Publishers Weekly
★ 07/15/2019
This magical, terrifying, and whimsical debut is a genuinely original and immersive take on post-apocalyptic SF. Several generations after an illness called the Nothing turned people into chimeras and destroyed civilization, only Amish culture has survived. Root, the blind daughter of the village weaver, asks too many questions and is often suspected of being infected with the Nothing. She grudgingly accepts her otherness within her regimented life until a tragedy in the community causes her to hear a voice that no one else can. Pushed to her limits and forced to question everything she has been taught, Root finds herself solely responsible for the fate of the world. In a departure from tales of grim technological nightmares, this not-quite-dystopian novel focuses on folk storytelling—with Root at its center, now old and recounting her life story to future generations—and the personal nature of questioning what is normal. Every word is placed as carefully as a quilt square. This is a welcome breath of fresh air and calm after the apocalyptic storm. (BookLife)
From the Publisher
"This magical, terrifying, and whimsical debut is a genuinely original and immersive take on post-apocalyptic SF...In a departure from tales of grim technological nightmares, this not-quite-dystopian novel focuses on folk storytelling...and the personal nature of questioning what is normal...Every word is placed as carefully as a quilt square...This is a welcome breath of fresh air and calm after the apocalyptic storm." - Publisher's Weekly (Starred Review)
"[I]mpossible to put down...[S]eamlessly blends elements of science fiction, dystopian fiction, horror, and mystery...[F]ans who enjoy grand, end-of-the-world-as-we-know-it narratives, such as Stephen King's The Stand, Justin Cronin's Passage trilogy, and Walter M. Miller Jr.'s A Canticle for Leibowitz, will find Giesler's debut nothing short of a storytelling masterwork." - BlueInk Review (Starred Review)
"In every way, this eye-opening post-apocalyptic tale is a true page-turner...The Nothing Within is a fresh and ingenious take on the post-apocalyptic novel...[A] densely woven futuristic tale that maintains suspense from its first page to its last." - Foreword Clarion Reviews (★★★★★)
"Crafty surprises abound in this debut novel...[P]henomenal worldbuilding...An often mesmerizing end-of-the-world adventure." - Kirkus Reviews
- Winner, Best Science Fiction Novel (2020): Next Generation Indie Book Awards
- Winner, Best Science Fiction Novel (2020): National Indie Excellence Awards
- First Runner Up, Best Commercial Fiction Novel (2020): Eric Hoffer Award
Kirkus Reviews
2019-05-21
In this debutnovel set in a post-apocalyptic future, a young woman struggles to uncover the truth about her heritage.
A woman named Root remembers how she always felt different from the other people in her village. She was the blind daughter of a "weaver"—a revered village herbalist and wise woman—and she had a penchant for asking unwanted questions. According to village beliefs, to break from tradition and attempt to "remake the World That Is" would have devastating results. Many suspect that Root had a strange illness known as "the Nothing" within her—a condition that could eventually cause a person to transform into a savage, bestial "chimera." To prevent this transformation, those thought to suffer from the Nothing were given a sedative drink and then burned alive in the Goodafter Pit. Root was 17 when she started hearing a voice in her head and soon gained extraordinary abilities. Her resulting flight set her on a path to discovering the true origins of the World That Is, which centers on a cataclysmic event known as the Reckoning. Crafty surprises abound in this debut novel as Giesler's story switches between Root's narration of the story of her life, framed as a presentation to a gathering of listeners, and the journal of her ancestor Ruth Troyer, who was alive during the initial days of the Reckoning. Giesler does an excellent job of connecting Root's modern perspective and Ruth's past knowledge to the rustic setting of the reconstructed civilization. The author also pays close attention to the development of language, religion, and cultural ceremonies across the centuries, resulting in some phenomenal worldbuilding. Root is a feisty, compelling narrator, and although some of her folksy asides are occasionally awkward, her monologue is full of appealing personality.
An often mesmerizing end-of-the-world adventure.
