Burn: A novel BY Peter Heller

In Burn, the best-selling author of The Dog Stars delivers a gripping tale of survival, loyalty, and the unraveling of a nation. Jess and Storey, lifelong friends bonded by their annual wilderness retreats in the remotest parts of Maine, emerge from weeks off the grid to find their world in chaos. The simmering political tensions they had dismissed as distant concerns have erupted into full-blown violence, transforming familiar landscapes into war-torn ruins.

As they stumble upon a small town reduced to ashes, with bridges blown apart and roads littered with bombed-out cars, the two men realize that their country is no longer the one they left behind. The violence that has convulsed Maine all summer—part of a broader wave of secession mania sweeping across the states—has reached even the most secluded corners. Jess and Storey, armed only with their wits and their deep bond, must navigate this new dystopian reality, where every step forward is fraught with danger.

Their journey home becomes a desperate struggle for survival, as they scavenge for food, avoid armed factions, and drag a wagon through treacherous terrain. Along the way, they encounter signs of a fractured nation, with no clear enemy, only a landscape of destruction. But when they make a shocking discovery, the stakes of their escape skyrocket, forcing them to confront not just the dangers around them but the very nature of their friendship.

Burn is a powerful exploration of male camaraderie in the face of existential threats, a haunting meditation on the fragility of society, and a blistering commentary on the divisions that can tear a country apart.