Title: Afterburn
Authors: Michael Bodhi Green
Publisher: Indie book / self-published
Release Date: October 4, 2025
Price: Kindle / eBook–$1.99 (USD), Paperback–$10.99
As anyone of age is aware, life in the 2020s has been chaotic, conflicted, and downright messy, at least politically and economically speaking. Violence, culture wars, and pandemics have widened the tensions over science, religion, race, and politics. Perhaps in time, art will provide a way to sort through the chaos of the past six years and help us collectively find our identity again. For now, most publishing companies and studios have steered clear of such topics as they don’t make for a wide-reaching product, instead risking alienating consumers.
Michael Bohdi Green, author of the indie novel Afterburn, discusses this very issue in the preface to his book. He writes, “I tried to pitch the story—about a future American society splintering around issues of racial identity—as contemporary and relevant in these fraught times. After all, good science-fiction is allegory. In the end, I’m not shocked that nobody thought they could sell a politically charged, tough-to-classify book that might alienate great swaths of its potential readership.”
Green certainly takes bold swings and goes places that many have refused to go; but with these the novel brings a sense of freshness and authenticity that feels so relevant to the issues facing the world right now. Green’s vision feels very possible, giving readers both a sense of wonder and trepidation for the future.
Synopsis
The book’s overview is listed on Amazon as follows:
“Afterburn is a speculative fiction thriller in the vein of American War by Omar El Akkad or Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel. It is 2070, and the American dream has been replaced by containment zones, surveillance drones, and endless wildfire. Inside the Gypsum detention center, Alton Lucas lives a lie, concealing his mixed heritage from the white supremacists he is imprisoned with.
His cover is blown not by the inmates, but by the state. Desperate to stop a new wave of insurrection, the government weaponizes Alton against the insurgency’s leader: Alex Weber, now known as Hagen. Years ago, Alton, Alex, and Kiara were inseparable, bonded by a shared obsession with space travel. Now, they are on opposite sides of a civil war.
To stop Alex, Alton must become something else entirely. Augmented with lethal technology and stripped of his agency, he is sent into the mountains to hunt the only family he has left. But as Alton peels back the layers of Alex’s plan, he discovers that the target isn’t the White House or the capital—it’s the upcoming Mars Colony Launch.
Afterburn is a visceral journey into a future where identity is a weapon and nostalgia is a trap. From the squalor of prison camps to the promise of the Red Planet, Alton must decide if he will let the world burn to join his friends—or if he has the strength to let them go.”
What Worked Well
Michael Bodhi Green has a sharp eye and a writer’s intellect regarding the many issues facing the United States (and the world) at this moment. He envisions a world where racial tensions have boiled over, a society that is just on the other side of racial civil war, with white supremacy narrowly defeated at great cost. But the wheels of corruption and oppression simply turn over, as a liberal, racially diverse government seeks to solve the conflict by doubling down on authoritarianism and brutality, all in the name of liberty and safety.
After the civil war, white Americans are put into internment camps, separated from society for the safety of everyone involved. Readers are immediately put into a position of shock and sympathy, only to find that those interned in the camps have largely embraced the ideologies of white supremacy and violence. It’s a world in which there seems to be no innocent parties. Survivors have become the oppressors, and the cycles of violence and demonization only serve to perpetuate hatred.
Green builds an expansive and believable world. Those frustrated with the state of American politics will recognize the state of affairs in the novel, and resonate with Green’s message that broad social change is needed.
What Didn’t Work
Unfortunately, despite the fantastic world-building in Afterburn, Green’s writing doesn’t quite execute the lofty vision. Specifically, the political nature of Green’s writing at times comes off as preachy or soap-box sermons. These moments really took me out of an otherwise entertaining story. On a personal level, my politics very much align with Green’s ideas—that I found Afterburn to be hyper-political at the expense of storytelling suggests those with more conservative views will find the novel very objectionable. To be clear, many people are capable of reading stories that don’t quite align with their beliefs, particularly when a good story is being told. But in the case of Green’s novel, it feels that he had a personal axe to grind or a message to deliver that relegated the plot to an afterthought.
This politicization is regrettable, because Green is a talented and beautiful writer on a technical level. There were a number of passages in Afterburn that made me pause and set the book down to linger in the beauty of the writing. Sadly these moments were lost in the clutter of political agenda and preaching.
“As he placed his palm on the frigid window to say goodbye, he felt crushed by grief. He was too young to understand his feelings in the moment, but as he thought about it over the years, he realized that space was the ultimate fresh start, a place where disappointments and failures and unmet expectations had absolutely no meaning. A place where not having a father might not matter that much” (Afterburn, Michael Bodhi Green).
One of the most egregious moments for me came toward the end of the novel when a character who had a deep and fascinating story arc was abruptly reintroduced as a trans character. Again, to be clear, my personal politics are very much aligned here, and I’m a fierce defender of trans rights in my professional and personal life; but Green’s handling of this character is a disservice to the cause and downright awful storytelling. If Green wanted to include a character who was trans, he should have taken the time to do it well, particularly if the character was going to transition later in the story.
There was zero exploration of this very personal and profound journey, leaving readers to feel that it was arbitrary, abrupt, and tokenism. It’s the kind of thing that makes readers roll their eyes and dismiss genuine inclusion of diverse characters in other stories they read because they see it all as agenda driven and inauthentic. That Green then immediately harms this character after their reintroduction isn’t great, and while different, reminds me of the “bury your gays” trope. Strange writing decision for an author so passionate about inclusive politics. It is worth noting that there’s a less significant character in the story who is non-binary and is well written. It’s unfortunate that the character development is so inconsistent.
Final Score
I wanted to love Michael Bodhi Green’s Afterburn. In fact, I’m honestly the target audience given my love for science-fiction and inclusive politics. I found the first half of the novel quite enjoyable to read and felt deeply disappointed by the novel’s poor finish and diminished quality. Nevertheless, if you’re looking for an affordable, immersive indie novel to dive into, and you happen to enjoy deeply political storytelling, Afterburn might be worth your while. I definitely don’t regret reading the novel, but I can’t fully say I’d recommend it broadly. I do believe that Green is a talented author who might find his groove in future stories, and I hope to read his other works.
Boss Rush Network gives Afterburn two and a half stars out of five.
Tell us what you think! Have you read Afterburn? Share your reactions in the comments below or join the conversation on Boss Rush Network’s Discord, Facebook, and Twitter.
Featured Image: Michael Bodhi Green
David Lasby is the Editor-in-Chief for Boss Rush Network. His favorite video games are The Legend of Zelda, Metroid, and the Aliens franchise. You can find him on Twitter to talk all things Nintendo, sci-fi / fantasy, and creative writing.
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