::SPOLIERS::
I really thought I would love this book. The synopsis had many things that I love and I did love the world and the idea of the book but the story and characters fell flat leaving me greatly disappointed.

There wasn't a climax or mystery. The murder was all an accident and the hidden crops were not that big of a deal. The weak attempts and making it seem like it was a murder were dismissed before you could even really think about it being true. There wasn't any suspense.

The mother with the three kids that seemed like a clear banner less child issue was overlooked because she felt sorry for her. Thomas' death was pointless. They only thing anyone was guilty of was trying to survive in a world full of restrictions.

The only reason I don't give it a one star is due to the fact that I liked the world and the idea of the story but it was very poorly done. This could have been so much better.

Bannerless transcends the limitations of genre, combining many elements to create a fascinating, disturbing, yet strangely satisfying novel. You might describe it as a dystopian detective novel, but that's far too narrow a classification. I tend to dislike such attempts to define a good book, anyway...

Bannerless takes place in a future where civilization has fallen. Odd bits of knowledge and artifacts have survived from before the Fall, but for the most part life has become far more primitive. Luddites might think of it as utopia rather than dystopia.

The heroine, Enid, is an investigator, something akin to a policewoman but far less numerous. She and her enforcer partner have been called to look into a suspicious death, something that just doesn't happen in this version of the future. People are too busy surviving to kill each other. Or not.

Central to the civilization is the notion of implants for birth control, and a strictly regulated 'banner' system that determines who is permitted to have a child. Resources such as fertile land are regulated, too, and those who violate the rules are shunned. Individuals may be exiled, but even whole communities can be shunned; no one will trade with them, and they'll be left to die out on their own.

In the midst of the harsh backdrop is a story of hope, and redemption, and love. This one is well worth reading.

As a fan of Carrie Vaughn's since book one, this does NOT disappoint! Pick it up, enjoy and go back and read ALL her others!

I love Carrie Vaughn books and this one is no exception a distopian mystery with an interesting female protagonist. 100 Years after The Fall or the end of civilization, society is now rural, agrarian and trying. to be utopian except that people's natures have not changed and people still do bad and stupid things.
Enid is an investigator trying to solve a crime in a world without modern detective techniques, just going on instinct and brain power. I hope there are more stories in the future in the new world.

A hundred years after the Fall ended global civilization, the Coast Road communities in western North America have made a good life for themselves, despite violent storms. In order not to overload their environment, they enforce strict quotas on maximum crop yields, number of children, and related matters. Humans are still human, however, and some people want more than they are allowed. When a suspicious death brings investigators Enid and Tomas to a seemingly idyllic small town, there is more there than first appears. Intercut with chapters detailing Enid'd younger days, and her travels down the coast with an itinerent musician, this is simultaneously a murder mystery and an intriguing look at one possible post-apocalyptic future.

Recommended.

The United States has destroyed itself with decades of environmental abuse and unsound economic decisions, the people in Coast Road, however, are doing better than would be expected. In their world, birth control is not a choice, it’s mandated for everyone. Only when a person or persons can prove they can provide for a child, financially and emotionally, are they allowed to procreate. They are issued banners as a symbol to all of their success. Enid is the person who handle justice for the Coast Road, and when a man dies suspiciously, she must investigate claims that his death was no accident. This Utopian society is anything but, and Enid must peel back the layers of jealousy, anger and hatred to uncover the truth. This is certainly not the first time a novel has depicted the future where the right to reproduce is strictly controlled, but Vaughn puts a fresh spin on the perspective in this compelling story