HellSans
Description
HellSans is set in a fictional UK, where HellSans is a ubiquitous typeface, enforced by the government in all communications and in all public spaces. It is the ultimate control device. The majority of the population experience bliss when they see the typeface, but there’s a minority who are allergic to it. The HellSans Allergic (HSAs) are persecuted, and live on the streets or in a ghetto on the outskirts of the capital city.
Jane Ward, CEO of the company that manufactures the Inex (a cyborg doll-like creature that has replaced the smart phone as the essential aid and accessory) has everything: fame and fortune, until she falls ill with the allergy and becomes embroiled in the government’s internal power struggles. She loses her job and her wealth, ending up in the ghetto until she is rescued by Dr Icho Smith.
Icho is a scientist who has developed a cure for the allergy, but she is on the run from the government and the Seraphs (the ghetto ‘terrorist’ group), who all have their own agenda for the cure. Jane and Icho work together, aiming to expose government corruption and bring the cure to the HSAs.
HellSans is written in three parts. Parts one and two can be read in either order which provides a unique approach to the perspectives of the haves and have-nots in the run-up to the revolutionary conclusion.
File Under: Science Fiction [ Dystopian Nightmare | Typography Matters | Artificial Friends | Nevertheless Resist ]
Praise for HellSans
"A smart and unique dystopian thriller… Give this one to readers who like their heroes morally ambiguous."
– Library Journal
"Dundas’s wildly imaginative debut tackles big ideas of identity, narrative, surveillance, and the societal marginalization of queer and disabled people, while also working as a dark, emotionally centered thriller full of both unsettling absurdity and psychological resonance… Clever metatextual elements and dubious narrators enhance the ride. The harrowing worldbuilding and strong message make this stand out."
– Publishers Weekly, starred review
"If you like your near future sci-fi dystopia delivered straight up, then HellSans will pull you into a dark, brilliantly imagined world. We are lucky to have Ever Dundas' inimitable talent, HellSans' rage, love and sorrow is perfectly contained!"
– Jenni Fagan, bestselling author of Luckenbooth
"This terrific book; a dark and clever sci-fi social satire."
– Joanne Harris, author of Chocolat
"Clever, terrifying, and full of love and rage – I'm deeply jealous."
– Mat Osman, author of The Ruins
"This is visceral, powerful writing that gets right under your skin, that provokes the kind of physical reaction that leaves you reeling. I was enraged, I was inspired - I want to read every word that Ever Dundas writes."
- Helen Sedgwick, author of The Growing Season
"HellSans is speculative fiction at its best: political, fearless, smart, badass. And also with tons of horrific body horror and cruelty from just about everyone. To put it down is unthinkable, you care about everything and everyone all the time."
– Mariana Enriquez, author of International Booker shortlisted The Dangers of Smoking in Bed
"Dundas’s wildly imaginative debut tackles big ideas of identity, narrative, surveillance, and the societal marginalization of queer and disabled people, while also working as a dark, emotionally centered thriller full of both unsettling absurdity and psychological resonance… Clever metatextual elements and dubious narrators enhance the ride. The harrowing worldbuilding and strong message make this stand out."
– Publishers Weekly, starred review
"A smart and unique dystopian thriller… Give this one to readers who like their heroes morally ambiguous."
– Library Journal
"So smart and provocative it hurts, this fabulously unique debut is is one to place at the top of your reading lists."
– Liz Robinson, LoveReading
"A cracking read."
– The Times
"HellSans is innately cinematic, with relentless action, dramatic backdrops, unexpected twists."
– The Herald Scotland
"This novel. Oh wow, this novel."
– BookRiot
PRAISE FOR GOBLIN BY EVER DUNDAS
“In my opinion, the best debut fiction by a Scottish author since 2012. Profoundly affecting, intellectually challenging and beautifully written. An instant classic of modern mythology.”
– Stuart Kelly, The Scotsman
“Terrific… Goblin brims throughout with reckless joy.”
– Peter Ross, The Guardian
“Enthralling... a captivating debut... Dundas presents us with an iconic protagonist: a powerful imaginative force who looks beyond the façade of 20th Century Britain.”
– Alastair Mabbott, The Herald
"A standout debut...sophisticated."
– Nick Barley, Herald, Books of the Year 2017
“Confounds your expectations and enchants your sensibilities... an indelible and haunting novel.”
– Alistair Braidwood, Scots Whay Hae
“A love letter to the outcasts, rebels and underdogs... a dazzling narrative... Unflinching, raw and diamond bright.”
– Megan Kenny, Disclaimer Magazine
“Magic Realist stories often see their hero slipping off somewhere fantastical to escape the harshness of the real world. In a good story, you’re often not sure whether these moments of magic are real or the imaginative embellishments of a vulnerable mind. In a great story, you’re left feeling like it really doesn’t matter. Goblin is a great story.”
– Ross McIndoe, The Skinny
