Underground Airlines

Ben H. Winters

Jul 2016 · Sold by Mulholland Books

About this ebook

The bestselling book that asks the question: what would present-day America look like if the Civil War never happened?

A New York Times bestseller; a Goodreads Choice finalist; named one of the Best Books of the Year by NPR, Slate, Publishers Weekly, Hudson Bookseller, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Kirkus Reviews, AudioFile Magazine, and Amazon

A young black man calling himself Victor has struck a bargain with federal law enforcement, working as a bounty hunter for the US Marshall Service in exchange for his freedom. He's got plenty of work. In this version of America, slavery continues in four states called "the Hard Four." On the trail of a runaway known as Jackdaw, Victor arrives in Indianapolis knowing that something isn't right -- with the case file, with his work, and with the country itself.

As he works to infiltrate the local cell of a abolitionist movement called the Underground Airlines, tracking Jackdaw through the back rooms of churches, empty parking garages, hotels, and medical offices, Victor believes he's hot on the trail. But his strange, increasingly uncanny pursuit is complicated by a boss who won't reveal the extraordinary stakes of Jackdaw's case, as well as by a heartbreaking young woman and her child -- who may be Victor's salvation.

Victor believes himself to be a good man doing bad work, unwilling to give up the freedom he has worked so hard to earn. But in pursuing Jackdaw, Victor discovers secrets at the core of the country's arrangement with the Hard Four, secrets the government will preserve at any cost.

Underground Airlines is a ground-breaking novel, a wickedly imaginative thriller, and a story of an America that is more like our own than we'd like to believe.

Ratings and reviews

Underground Airlines is set in a USA where the Civil War never took place. Slavery was abolished except in four southern states, known as The Hard Four. The Underground Airlines works to smuggle slaves out of the Hard Four. The main character, Victor, is an escaped slave who now works for the US Marshals tracking down slaves. The story centers on him tracking down a slave named Jackdaw who has escaped bondage via the Underground Airlines. Victor begins to sense something is amiss and he begins to search for the truth. It becomes primarily a government conspiracy mystery novel. This alternate version of the USA and the underground airlines become a backdrop while the mystery is solved. This is what disappointed me most. There are moments in the story where you really felt for Victor because even as a free man, he was still at the mercy of white men. The anguish, despair, anger and desperation that accompanies this subject matter was not touched upon nearly enough.

This is not only a thrilling read, but it is a compelling commentary on race in our country. Set in present day, but with an alternate history in which slavery was never fully abolished, Winters creates a platform to examine unresolved racial issues that still linger and have an effect on society. The characters are layered and compelling, and the narration is beautiful.

Very disjointed story. This story feels like a bunch of stories that the author threw together. The story idea was great, but poor execution. The author focused on details that didn't add to the story.

About the author

Ben H. Winters is the New York Times bestselling author of Underground Airlines, Golden State, and the Last Policeman trilogy. The second novel in the trilogy, Countdown City, was an NPR Best Book of 2013 and the winner of the Philip K. Dick award. The Last Policeman received the 2012 Edgar Award and was named one of the Best Books of 2012 by Amazon.com and Slate. Ben lives with his family in Los Angeles, CA.P346