I wish that NetGalley would include total pages in the information section. I had no idea this book would be almost 1000 pages. I’m not afraid of chunky books but I’ve been working on this one for over a week and not making much headway. The information is dense, the vast array of characters are hard to keep track of, etc. I know there is an important message in this book and all the pieces of this story will come together, but I can’t finish. If some of the less plot-driven aspects had been omitted, or had this been done as a series of books, I think the impact of the message would be more easily digested. I have a PhD in history and I struggled so I’m sure the average reader will do the same.

The Deluge by Stephen Markley. I have tried to start this book a couple of times. The prologue sounded interesting. When switched to the main story I just couldn’t comprehend it. There were too many acronyms. This book is not for me. Thank you for allowing me to try to review this book.

I'm writing this review before I complete the book as it's taking me some time (it's quite the epic) to finish. this is a truly remarkable work. Epic in style, beautifully written, poignant, depressing, and powerful. It's a work needed for our time, and a must read.

The ideas behind this book are interesting, but buried in clunky, jargon-filled prose, which makes the length of the book even more daunting. Needs a copy editor with a sharp red pencil. At least in the advance copy, the use of text boxes to demark temporary shifts in chronology or point of view was very confusing, chopping up the narrative in ways that even with careful reading left me lost. The title is a good description of the experience of reading — propelled along by a certain creative energy, but too often caught in turbulent eddies.

2.5/5

It’s full of captivating ideas and but there are too many characters in a too long book. You’d think with the length here I would care more about these people and what happens, but I just didn’t. That was a bummer.

Thank you for the opportunity. I will edit with links once they are all live.

I decided to give this big investment of time (at hundreds of pages more than any book I typically read, and most fiction published) a try because of reviews saying it’s epic, unforgettable. Perhaps a hard copy might help but I found all the scientific jargon off-putting and difficult to understand in the early opening setup. So I stopped reading it. I am interested in global warming and care about climate change so disappointed. If it weren’t so extra long, I might try to give it another chance but I doubt I will. Since I didn’t finish it, I don’t think it’s fair to rate, but believe it’s needed to send feedback. The rating then is based on the above early impression, not the totality of the book.

This book will definitely have split opinions. People will either love it or hate it. It surely requires patience to go through the 900+ pages.

Parts of the story were hard to get into and parts were brilliant. Overall, I have mixed opinions about it.

Wow. Wow. Wow. The phrase that kept going through my head as I read this hefty offering was "magnum opus." A book highly recommended by the master Stephen King was going to catch my attention, and this truly did.

I admit my scientific and political knowledge is limited, so I didn't dwell too much on the intricacies of the massive plot, but the fact was that I was truly entertained. The story made me feel, think and dream. That doesn't happen often.

To read this book is to make a big time commitment -- it's loooooong. But in the end, I'm glad I stayed with it, and I'm glad I read it.

I received a complimentary copy of the book from the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Stephen Markley’s The Deluge is the most powerful new novel I have read in several years. Tracing the dire consequences of climate change from the near past to the near future, we see how this crisis affects many groups of people, including scientists, eco-terrorists, non-violent climate organizers, national politicians, Capitol insurrectionists, young lovers, Homeland Security agents, advertising executives, desperately poor people, business leaders, Occupy activists, militia members, and the fanatical followers of a “theocratic fascist.” Each of these groups is portrayed so convincingly that you believe that Markley has had substantial experience with it. The text is occasionally enlivened by allusions to the works of such writers as Mark Twain (“Why not light out for the territories?”), Edward Abbey (“that anarchist rapper Haydukai”), and Bob Dylan (“warriors whose strength was not to fight”). Giving us the full picture requires 900 pages, but it’s well worth the commitment.

I tried to read this book, I really did. But is was so slow and very difficult to follow. I can usually read a book in less than a week but i I can barely get a chapter in a day. I'm not one to give up on a book, so I'll probably find myself coming back to this one at some point but I'm incredibly disappointed.

This was just “ehhh” for me, unfortunately - a bit too meandering and disjointed. Was good enough though that I *had* to finish, so I’d say 3.5 stars would be a sound review.
Thanks for the ARC opportunity!

4-1/2 stars for a phenomenal novel that takes out current circumstances and projects them into a future that's equal parts terrifying and reassuring. It's a bit too long (though I can't identify anything specific that needs to be cut) and it does bog down in spots, but overall, this 896-page novel was an amazing tour through three decades of the twenty-first century (2013-2040) as climate change becomes an increasingly urgent issue and divergent groups press for change. I found it helpful to keep a list of the many characters as they were introduced, and to make notes of their connections to one another, which sometimes changed in surprising ways as the story progressed. I don't pretend to understand all the science described, and have no idea if it's all accurate, but if it is, then the author built a convincing case for comprehensive plans to remediate our present ecological, political, economic, and social crises -- all intertwined and compounding one another. Descriptions of the effects of catastrophic weather events were frighteningly realistic, as were the political machinations of those who sought change as well as those who battled equally hard to preserve the status quo. Dialog and interactions among the various characters showcased the author's ability to "speak" in the voices of many individuals with vastly different backgrounds, values, and belief systems. The Deluge was not an easy read, and the last chapter left me with unanswered questions; if it weren't so awfully long I'd be tempted to go right back to the beginning and read it all again while I still remember most of the story. Just an amazing read!

I received an invitation to read this ARC and I hesitated before accepting because I also started reading the author’s previous book. I really should not have accepted because I do not connect with his writing style and the topic of this book is just very very deep. I know that he is talented but just not for me. I am not posting this review to Goodreads as I did not finish it and that would be unfair to the author.

Deluge takes the issue of climate toward disastrous results. In the not very far future characters struggle for survival Some exert political control, others resort to violence.
The characters are captivating..

The Deluge
By Stephen Markley

This is a huge book in many ways – not just in number of pages, but also in numbers of characters and plot lines. I must confess that I am still struggling to finish it.

While I like the writing style here, I find myself getting confused over what characters and what plot lines the author jumps around to. There is so much information to get through, that I sometime have trouble keeping it all straight. While I find myself getting bogged down at times, the author still manages to pull me in and encourage me to keep going.

I honestly can't say what kind of review I would give this book over all, but I must give the author credit for the prodigiousness of his imagination. I will keep going until I get to the end.

I wanted to like this but the writing felt pretentious and I could not get through the story. I can see why people will love this one, but it was not for me.

I read Stephen King's tweet when he said THE DELUGE is a "modern classic." I completely agree. This is a book you won't forget.

In 2018 I read Markley’s ’Ohio’, also a story of the changing of America, but set in the years of the recession in small town America. The disenchantment that follows as life begins to morph from those idyllic memories of what once was into something they don’t recognize.

In comparison, ’Ohio’ was a walk in the park compared to Markley’s latest, ’The Deluge’, in both length as well as the scope of this story as he tackles the years that begin in 2013 up through the present and beyond - politics and politicians, and the ever growing threat of climate change and how those that deny or ignore the threat are in for an awakening, as well as those politically motivated to prevent anything that would threaten their wealth and status. Religious ‘leaders’ who insist that there is no need to worry about the ocean rising, taking over the land, destroying towns in their path.

This is an epic story, epic in length and in scope - covering 2013 to 2040, in nearly 900 pages. This story is shared so realistically that it feels as though it is more of a prophecy than fiction. And that prophecy is beyond alarming.

It should come as no surprise that the there are those people in this story who are activists trying to make others realize that the changing climate poses a real threat, as well as others who either don’t care or don’t believe, who won’t listen or have too much invested financially in certain companies that will never agree with the need for change.

This was a hard one to read at first, not because it wasn’t well written but there are so many characters, and so much going on at the start. This is an epic read so I tried to set aside a little bit more time to read this, at least all the days after except for one. Depending on what year you were born in, this is a topic that many of us have been following since before The New Seekers song ’ I’d Like to Teach the World to Sing’ attempted to bond the world in harmony in 1971 - which then ended up as a song used to sell Coca Cola…

This isn’t a book anyone will say ‘I couldn’t put this down!’, but it is one that I became invested in the more that I read it. There are often very disturbing moments, but there are also some beautiful moments that share the lengths we will go to in order to protect those we love, including putting ourselves in harm’s way. The generosity of strangers, as well as the evil in others. Politics and politicians - both those names we know (including Trump, albeit somewhat briefly) and those we don’t - play a major role, along with those who will spend their lives, some risking their lives, to make sure that the rising temperatures of the earth, and thus the seas, will be seen for what it is. This also includes an evangelical preacher who runs for office on the premise that he will save the planet through his prayers.

Many organizations and companies are formed claiming to have solutions to the global crisis, but not all are in it for the right reasons. Money is most often a factor. As this story progresses, as time passes, the threat becomes even more real. A threat to all the earth, to all humanity.

Throughout this story, Markley’s story keeps us aware of how serious this is, how little time we truly have before it’s too late to change the course, and also of how little a not insignificant percentage of people prefer to continue living as though the crisis is a figment of someone else’s imagination, as though the scientists and those people who understand and believe in science are the ones lying. There is also a focus on family, health, families and love, as well as much more.

While this story is fictional, the science is not. At times, a disturbingly realistic story, reflecting on the recent years of divisions in the world as well as the dangers of the rising temperatures and the rising seas, and the need for resolution before it is too late.


Pub Date: 10 Jan 2023


Many thanks for the ARC provided by Simon & Schuster

First off I’ll start by saying at nearly 900 pages this book is a commitment. There are many characters which at times can be confusing. Overall I found The subject matter fascinating and immediately added more titles from this author to my TBR list. Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of this e-book in exchange for an honest review.

Such a long story, almost 1,000 pages of what we are heading for or are already in, depending on where in the world you may live. Is it possible to happen in our future? Yes, Climate change is ruining our world and the longer we argue about it and not change our lives to hold the future back, the faster we will lose what we have now.

There were too many characters for me and only Kate was someone I cared about. Some were disturbing, some were trying to help, but there were just too many to keep track of. I should say here, I have not finished the book and don't know if I will as the doom and gloom is something you can only read for so long and then you have to go do something more cheery.

A lot of research went into this and yet we didn't have to learn all of it to know how the future is heading in the wrong direction and for all the wrong reasons. It could have been a lot shorter without as much research and with fewer characters.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for an advance reader copy in exchange for an honest opinion. The contents are scary, but likely to happen unless we all change our ways. In fact, it is already happening so maybe instead of reading, get out there and do something to prevent this from happening sooner.