A
surveillance-heavy future U.S. blurs lines
between
utopia and dystopia in “The Price of Safety”
Family
takes center stage in fast-paced sci-fi thriller
DENVER,
CO
– In a 2013 interview with David Marchese of New York Magazine, Margaret Atwood famously stated that “within
every dystopia, there’s a little utopia.” Michael C. Bland’s “The Price of
Safety” (World Castle Publishing, April 6, 2020) embodies this punchy aphorism,
diving into a fictional society where all citizens are safe, yet all are
watched. In connection with current concerns regarding corporate and
governmental data mining, Bland pulls readers along the fine line between
progression and regression.
By 2047, no crime in the U.S. goes unsolved.
No wrongdoing goes unseen. When Dray Quintero learns his 19-year-old daughter
Raven committed a heinous act, he covers it up to save her life. This pits him
against the police he’s respected since he was a child and places him in the
crosshairs of Kieran, a ruthless federal Agent. To survive, Dray must overcome
the surveillance system he helped build and the technology implanted in the
brains and eyes of the citizens.
Forced to turn to a domestic terrorist group to protect his family, Dray
soon realizes the sheer level of control of his adversaries. Hunted and betrayed, with time
running out, will Dray choose his family or the near-perfect society he helped
create?
MICHAEL C. BLAND: Michael is a founding member and the secretary
of BookPod: an invitation-only, online group of professional writers. He pens
the monthly BookPod newsletter where he celebrates the success of their
members, which include award-winning writers, filmmakers, journalists, and
bestselling authors. One of Michael’s short stories, “Elizabeth,” won Honorable
Mention in the Writer’s Digest 2015 Popular Fiction Awards contest. Three short
stories he edited have been nominated for the Pushcart Prize. Another was adapted
into an award-winning film. Michael also had three superhero-themed poems
published in The Daily Palette. He
currently lives in Denver with his wife Janelle and their dog Nobu. His novel, The Price of Safety, is the first in a
planned trilogy. For more information about Michael’s life and work, visit www.mcbland.com.
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