SILENT, EMPTY, AND CRUEL. THIS WAS THE NATURE OF THE WASTELAND.
Ignium was supposed to solve the world's energy crisis. Instead, it destroyed the planet. In the darkness of the 22nd century, survivors fight to endure what's left.
London, a wasteland veteran, struggles to keep his promise to protect his adopted daughter, Rose. After years of starvation, scavenging, and desperation, the two wanderers find a new hope: the growing nation of New Uruk. The city is an oasis of plenty and security, offering London a chance to fulfill his promise.
Little does he know that war is coming, seeking to end the sanctity they've long searched for.
Fans of The Gunslinger and Mad Max will love E.T. Gunnarsson’s multi-award-winning book Forgive Us, a story of three men told in three interwoven timelines that readers call "thrilling, brutal, awesome, and completely unique."
Gunnarrson’s debut, the standout first entry in the post-apocalyptic Odemark Series, kicks off with a blunt declaration of its pulp integrity: “Silent, empty, and cruel. This was the nature of the wasteland.” The novel that follows backs up that promise as it explores three eras of humanity after the fall of Earth, surveying lives of scavenging, gas masks, mutant attacks, warring factions, abandoned bunkers and ruined cities in 2100 and 2154, and even—in the exciting third storyline, set in 2185—tyranny and revolution among the genetically engineered populace of a space station. But what’s most surprising, here, isn’t the novel’s scope, ambition, or power, though that’s all notable, especially considering the author was a teenager at the time of composition. What’s most remarkable about Forgive Us is how much more it offers than silence, emptiness, cruelty, as Gunnarsson emphasizes throughout the kindness, courage, and perseverance of individuals, who carry the seeds of a restored humanity—books, children, and of course literal seeds—throughout the first eras, so that they might bloom later. With hurtling momentum and a feel for cliffhangers, Gunnarsson alternates between his three eras in crisp, brisk chapters that find his heroes striving not just to survive but to protect each other and to create futures worth living in. Some phrasing is prosaic, and the early signs of dystopian rule in the far-future section are familiar to a fault, but the action is sharp and lively, as are the personalities, dialogue, and dilemmas.
Audacious in structure yet assured in execution, Forgive Us, though, boasts a gripping, just-one-more-chapter urgency that many such ambitious novels lack. The incidental excitement of each characters’ fates in the wasteland scrub (or the Arcadis Station) is richened by revelations about the past and by seeing how the world changes between eras, as readers will search for hints of how characters we’ve met earlier in the timeline have had an impact on what comes after. That’s the secret those striking first lines hold back: the novel pulses with hope.
Takeaway: Smart, sweeping post-apocalyptic novel spanning decades.
Comparable Titles: Hugh Howey’s Silo series, M.R. Carey’s Rampart Trilogy.
Production grades
Cover: A
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A
Forgive Us covers three distinct time frames: 2099, when a loner is determined to rebuild civilization (perhaps single-handedly); 2154, when emerging nations face dangerous feuds that could destroy them; and 2185, when a space station survivor faces a revolution. Each scenario presents struggles for the survival of humanity and selects a few lone individuals who follow their own courses of assuring that mankind and its society lives on, however altered by past events.
Each protagonist is a refugee in his own world. E.T. Gunnarsson crafts each story as a separate yet connected scenario in which their complex dystopian environments are threatened by forces that are linked to past events.
Under another hand, having such free-flowing time streams and four major characters who move through each world might prove confusing. However, Gunnarsson includes time frames on each chapter heading and solidifies events by linking these disparate times at pivot points where the characters have successfully changed both their personal and their world's self-destructive trajectory.
Oliver, for example, is focused not just on rebuilding, but making sense of relics from the past; while next-generation London strives to make the world better place for his adopted daughter Rose, against seeming insurmountable obstacles.
Between Peacekeepers to prisoners and struggles for freedom which keep changing both its nature and the characters' efforts, Forgive Us excels in crafting complex futures that rest firmly on solid characterization and scenarios that test the mettle of individuals and societies alike.
The progressive buildup of tension and history is excellent, leading to an unpredictable conclusion that comes full circle in a surprising way.
Readers seeking a solid work of social evolution, technological advancement, and dystopian power struggles will find Forgive Us a compelling piece that draws the reader with realistic characters and a satisfyingly complex series of subplots
This was an excellent book, the author cleverly weaving 3 distinct stories with various characters into one. The first big reveal where two of the stories became connected had my jaw on the floor. Just one of those things that was done subtly didn't beat you over the head with it. By the time the 3rd was intertwined I was hoping desperately that it was the character I thought it might be. Mr. Gunnarsson didn't disappoint.
The tales woven are those as old as time but in a fresh desperate world. Human nature, the resilience, the drive to survive, the love, the lofty ideals torn asunder by paranoia, power, and greed. Each individual story is told in a chaptered order there by splitting up the stories until they slowly come together. This style was incredibly engaging as most chapters would end on a cliffhanger and you were desperate to find out what happened to the other characters but also get back around to the characters you just left.
This is an incredible freshman debut for the author, I sincerely hope he continues writing and will be on the outlook for any other work he has published.
Author E. T. Gunnarsson delivers a powerhouse of post-apocalyptic prose in this highly engrossing and cinematically styled novel.
As a huge fan of the genre myself, I am always looking for new twists and clever plays on the desolation and survival aspects of the genre, and I found this novel to be both innovative and surprising, whilst also keeping many of the popular themes and dilemmas that readers have come to expect.
The novel is as rich in its characterization as in its worldbuilding, delivering a story which develops over time and gives us generations of heroes and villains forged from a dire circumstance.
For its edge-of-your-seat thrills, inviting character work, and deep conceptual realism, I would highly recommend Forgive Us to fans of dystopian worlds, suspenseful horror, and for survival fiction fans everywhere.
E.T. Gunnarsson skillfully introduces and builds up the concept of Forgive Us around three timelines, giving enough room for character development for several protagonists; Oliver, London, Rose, and Simon.
The well-paced plot is matched by an engaging narrative that chronologically alternates between the characters' perspectives until key events lead them to cross each others' paths.
The protagonists' struggles and perseverance show the beauty and the ugly side of human grit. With a strong balance between descriptions and dialogue, the dark and nail-biting moments are convincing and heart-wrenching.
The ending serves not only as the conclusion to an excellent dystopian sci-fi story but as a reminder that ignorance and a greed-ruled world can certainly plunge the human race into an undesirable future. Simply put, an excellent read.
The world-building was phenomenal in this brilliant and entertaining novel.
The author gave readers exceptional characters that drove the story forward and allowed them to form a relationship with each of them. What would you do if Earth became a wasteland? That was the question I asked myself as I read the story. E.T. Gunnarsson crafted a believable universe that was very easy to imagine.
The credit goes to the author and his narrative style. The author jumped between years with a convincing tone without giving readers whiplash. He added cohesiveness to the story that allowed readers to connect the different storylines and understand what was happening in the grand scheme of things.
Forgive Us is an incredibly complex yet refreshing story!
E.T. Gunnarsson paints a grim picture of humanity’s self-inflicted future in Forgive Us, a dystopian thriller that will leave readers gasping, as though they too are on the toxic, Ignium-ruined surface of the Earth.
Forged in the crucible of a post-apocalyptic world, this inter-generational cast of warriors, survivors, and rebels combine for a gripping slice of dark realism as they move through wastelands of the past.
Mixing savvy future tech and sci-fi elements into gritty survival fiction and action-fueled road adventures, this complex, creative, and poignantly written book stands out in an increasingly crowded genre.
