Upright Women Wanted

Sarah Gailey
Upright Women Wanted Cover

Upright Women Wanted

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8/29/2020
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For those who enjoyed the motley crew/found family of the author's River of Teeth novellas, this one provides more of the same, in a post-apocalyptic setting where the U.S. has become a frontier presided over by an authoritarian government which strictly regulates "acceptable" thought and behavior.

I was put off by a main character who, despite the love of their life having just been executed, immediately commences to spend the entire story mooning over someone else, and a story which involves way more mooning and way less actual plot than I prefer in my books. Which is too bad, because the premise here is really good, if not entirely original: roving Librarians who are supposedly spreading the approved authoritarian literature across the country, but are instead spreading materials to support a secret rebellion, and spiriting endangered persons away to safety in free territories. Those who enjoyed Karen Memory and its focus on the main character’s romantic relationship will likely enjoy this one too, as it bears many similarities to that story.