Kurt Schlichter’s novel, “People’s Republic – A Novel” is an action-adventure story set in a near future where the United States has fractured into two separate countries. The People’s Republic of North America encompasses the west coast and the Great Lakes and east coast down to about half of Virginia. The remaining states are still called the United States of America. There was at least some combat between the two groups of states but at the time of the story it has settled into a bickering of guerillas at the borders.
(Spoiler Alert – Skip down to last paragraph to avoid spoilers and read recommendation)
Now the story is not about the civil war or the current relations between the two countries. Rather it is an adventure story about an undercover operation by a family to rescue a woman who foolishly defected to the People’s Republic. The main protagonist is a former special forces soldier who earns his living by smuggling people across the closed border from the People’s Republic to the United States.
Together with the woman’s brother who is also a veteran they go on an odyssey to reach Los Angeles and rescue the girl and also carry back a data base full of the names of spies currently working in the United States. Along the way we see the results of the radical progressive agenda in the People’s Republic and the growing discontent with the extreme economic hardships that exist there.
The book is liberally seasoned with fights, gun fights and escapes. This is solidly in the action/adventure genre and provides a fast paced and well-written story. There is a fair bit of progressive bashing built into the plot but being a progressive-basher myself I enjoyed it pretty consistently. I would happily recommend this book to anyone on the right side of the political divide who enjoys action-adventure. Progressives will definitely not enjoy how the Left is characterized. Oh well.