The Kindling

A terrifying yet beautiful meditation on art, humanity and connection, by internationally bestselling author L. K. Steven, for fans of Station Eleven and Fahrenheit 451. 'It should never have been the machines making the art and us doing the rest.' Near-future, America. Human imagination has mutated with powerful consequences. Under an authoritarian regime where all forms of human creativity have been banned, three people's lives intersect in unexpected ways. After a tragic childhood loss, Isaac Reyes resolved to live his life to the full, eating and drinking whatever he wants, sleeping with whomever he wants, and secretly selling his micro-paintings that illicit reactions as strong as a thousand orgasms on Yale's black market, even though it could cost him his life.
But Isaac does not plan to get caught. Delphie Jones is a stand-up comedian whose daughter has been missing for nearly a decade. Everything changes the night the comedy club is raided and a rogue cop presses a note into her hand before allowing her to escape. It reads: Find Augustus Carmichael. He knows what happened to your daughter. Except Augustus Carmichael is impossible to find. The son of a high-profile politician once known for his beautiful soprano voice, he seems to have disappeared too.
In truth, after a terrible accident, Augustus was banished to a cabin in the Montana woods where he lives a desperately lonely existence, but doesn't dare to defy his father's order. As rebel groups gain traction and the governmental control begins to tighten and crack, Isaac, Delphie and Augustus will get caught up in a moment that might just change the course of history.