Reviewed by Lex Allen for Readers’ Favorite – 5 stars
In Endless Fall of Night by J.M. Erickson, by 2041 the global oligarchs, the elite among the elite, had taken over Earth’s governments. Steps were taken to clarify the distinctions and privileges between the various socioeconomic groups, now known and ranked top to bottom as patricians, plebians, surfers, and slaves. There was no confusion or pushback; everyone knew their place and stayed there until a hundred years later, when Cassandra XI, a patrician and first-class citizen, questioned the established social order. Tried, convicted, and sent to prison, she is “saved” when Captain Bennett of the spaceship Jefferson Davis is charged with investigating the disappearance of the Martian colony New Georgia and the message, ‘Bring Cassandra Kurtz.’
Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness serves as an excellent foundational reference for this fascinating dystopian novel by J.M. Erickson. Far into the future from Conrad’s 1899 setting in Africa or 1969 Vietnam, Erickson’s Endless Fall of Night takes place in a future where the colonies of Mars are ‘going dark,’ and no one knows why. The expedition to investigate is filled with scenes of racial, sexual, and class abuse of lower-class servants and slaves by the upper-class crew and ship officers. Cassie works hard at resisting these insults while straddling the fence between the elite and the downcast; all of which leads to an exciting, danger-filled adventure once the ship arrives on Mars. Erickson’s unparalleled sense of reality in scenes, science, and characterization creates a world that is both familiar and alien, drawing readers in with its vivid details. A comparison to not only Conrad but also Orwell is unavoidable. The surprises come fast and furious as new and dangerous life forms emerge among a rebel Mars society intent on saving the lower classes while creatures from hell attack the ship’s crew. While Endless Fall of Night comes to a solid conclusion, there is no doubt that the story will be continued for at least one more edition. I can’t wait to read it!