THE AFTERLIFE PROJECT

A small group of pandemic survivors takes extreme measures to save humanity from extinction in this SF novel.

In the mid-21st century, a hyperpandemic wipes out most of a climatically devastated Earth’s population. Many of those who survive become infertile as a result of the disease. Some members of the New Hampshire–based Centauri Project, whose goal is saving the human species, aim to find a solution. They sail a yacht to Stromboli, an island off the coast of Sicily with reputedly fertile inhabitants. Along the way, they brave treacherous storms and, when going ashore for food, potential confrontations with dangerous people thriving in the ravaged world. Meanwhile, another team member, biologist Dr. Nick Hindman, travels 10,000 years into the future in a Time Dilation Sphere. He searches for any sign of humans, for whom he can bring a cautionary tale of how “Humanity 1.0” failed. But Nick also awaits fellow Centauri members in other spheres, namely his lover, physicist Dr. Natalie Quist. Weed’s story oscillates between Nick in the “deep future” and the sailing crew, whose narration comes courtesy of physician Alejandra Morgan-Ochoa’s journal. Each subplot is deliberately paced but wholly absorbing. For example, Alejandra delivers a slew of curious tidbits, from Natalie’s “famous tech wizard” billionaire father to the Centauri Project’s original intent of interstellar colonization. Similarly, Nick fights off loneliness and hopelessness––seeing no trace of humans in dense wilderness or footprints on sandy beaches. Settings atop the vast sea or ostensibly deserted lands generate a lyrically descriptive narrative: “The fiery reds and oranges of autumn, beginning in the high country, creep down into the lowlands day by day. Great vees of migrating geese fill the air with their throaty honking.” The final act takes a noticeable but not entirely drastic turn, culminating in an extraordinary and befitting denouement.

This engaging dystopian tale deftly blends enthralling fiction with real-life fears.