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Reviewed by Asher Syed for Readers' Favorite
Into the Dax by Bob Welch follows Kiley, a systems engineer working with pollination drones in an agricultural region, whose routine changes when hostile machines destroy her network and target her directly. A recorded message from her father, Lucas Van, a scientist in hiding, reveals that her mother, Terra Hill, created BioNet, a biological system that stores and transmits data through living organisms, and that access to it is linked to Kiley’s DNA. As Federation forces move to capture her, Kiley is forced to flee across a landscape where surveillance operates through engineered insects and animal constructs. Guided by Coy, a hunter from a self-governed community known as the Dax, she travels toward a protected settlement, seeking to reach her father while uncovering the truth behind her identity.
Bob Welch's Into the Dax offers a dystopian future and a ruling power known as the Federation, countered by the Dax, a self-governing population that lives outside Federation control. I'm a huge fan of female leads, especially in a genre where there are few, and Kiley is the intelligent protector I was looking for when I picked the book up. The world-building is first-rate, and the author does a great job of incorporating speculative tech into organized control, where officers enforce obedience through confinement and ritual, extending this influence into technology, belief, and daily life. The settings are intrinsically linked to survival, from an underground settlement beneath Taugannick Falls where people live among trees and artificial light, to a submerged cave system near a forest camp where water hides travelers from aerial detection. Well written and wholly immersive, this book is perfect for readers who enjoy dystopian fiction built on environmental systems, political power, and advancing technology. Very highly recommended.
