Underground Airlines

More about the book

What would present-day America look like if the Civil War never happened? In this alternate reality, a young black man named Victor works as a bounty hunter for the U.S. Marshall Service in exchange for his freedom. Slavery persists in four states known as "the Hard Four." Tasked with tracking down a runaway named Jackdaw, Victor arrives in Indianapolis, sensing something is amiss with the case file, his work, and the nation itself. As he infiltrates a local abolitionist movement called the Underground Airlines, he navigates through churches, parking garages, hotels, and medical offices, believing he is close to finding Jackdaw. However, his pursuit becomes increasingly complicated by a secretive boss and a heartbreaking young woman with a child who may offer him hope. Victor sees himself as a good man doing bad work, reluctant to relinquish the freedom he has fought for. In his quest for Jackdaw, he uncovers unsettling truths about the government's relationship with the Hard Four—secrets that the authorities will protect at any cost. This novel offers a thought-provoking exploration of an America that mirrors our own more closely than we might wish to acknowledge.