by Blake Crouch
Part of Wayward Pines
First published 2014
Secret Service agent Ethan Burke has spent three weeks trapped in Wayward Pines, Idaho. The town operates under strict rules that control every aspect of life. Residents cannot choose their spouses, homes, or jobs. Children learn to worship David Pilcher as their creator and god. Anyone who tries to leave dies. Even asking the wrong questions proves fatal. Ethan has uncovered the shocking truth about what exists beyond the electrified fence surrounding the town. The fence protects Wayward Pines from the horrors that roam the outside world. This secret gives a madman and his followers complete power over every person in town. Now that same secret threatens to destroy the fence and everything it protects. The terrifying forces from beyond prepare to storm through and eliminate this fragile pocket of surviving humanity.
Genres: science-fiction, dystopia, suspense, mystery, horror, thriller
Vibes: claustrophobic, dark, fast-paced, intense, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: hidden-truth, man-vs-system, trapped-protagonist, unreliable-reality
Setting: Wayward Pines, Idaho
Period: 21st-century
294 pages · Kindle Edition · Thomas & Mercer
Content warnings: death, murder, violence