In a future where climate catastrophes have made most of the United States dangerous and barely habitable, a young woman, Rose, infiltrates a secluded northern Canadian settlement to secure future housing for herself and her mother. As a paid sexual companion for the utopian settlement’s founder, she is charged with keeping tabs on him for her true client–one of this world’s most powerful men, who has his own designs on the Far North. Also at this settlement is a young man, Grant, the scion of a wealthy and powerful family, who is trying to escape his family’s influence and make a life of his own. Interwoven with these two is a group of mysterious women soldiers–White Alice–living in their own insular settlement.

The novel is told in alternating points of view, Rose’s perspective interwoven with Grant’s and White Alice’s. It begins slowly, focusing on Rose’s relationships with the other prostitutes there to serve high-ranking men in the camp, Grant’s discovery that this is not the university teaching position he thought he’d secured, and White Alice’s coming together as a collective of women. However, the tension gradually ratchets up as we learn more about the characters’ histories and true desires. Eventually, the three narratives come together in an explosive, destructive climax.

This is an ideal book for readers who like climate fiction and stories of women’s solidarity and community–and also those who enjoy braided suspense thrillers premised on big social issues.

The writing is spare and simple but effective. You can feel the physicality of the North and its effect on the characters. The cold, the dark, and the snow are visceral presences–as is the bleakness of the landscape and occasional beauty in the stark Arctic landscape. Rose’s prostitution is described in such matter-of-fact prose that it becomes completely ordinary and, in fact, almost devoid of sexuality. Like everything else in the world around it, it is subject to the privations of a world ruined by climate change: Rose and her sister prostitutes live in the back of an abandoned mall. One of their special days involves the discovery of an unpillaged store. You can feel the leftover tawdry glamor of the old capitalist excesses (and the contrasting harshness of their current lives) in the way they rummage through bins for “five-packs of ankle socks and cotton underwear, swatches of eye shadow and pots of pearly lip-gloss… sequined crop tops, neon leggings, and mini dresses for work; and thick socks, thermal underwear, and outerwear for their daily walks outside.”

Overall, this is a suspenseful novel that illuminates the ugly effects of power, patriarchy, and capitalism run amok–while questioning easy assumptions about solidarity and utopia. It manages to be both bleak, in the world it captures, and beautiful–in the moments of human connection it captures, and in the humanity and insight revealed in its climactic final moments.

This gripping eco-thriller takes place in remote, snowy northern Canada, where climate change has brought to the South unbearable heat and storms and pioneers seek a new frontier for escape. Two separate groups find themselves in the same isolated lands: an all-female team of military scientists manning an old Cold War station to verify climate change’s pace and a building site led by a visionary architect who wants to construct a community of geo-disk homes for the wealthy to buy. It's 2049, and in addition to a ravaged planet, the fossil fuel industry has collapsed, and everyone gets at birth an internet-connected device that provides endless info as well as entertainment. The Flick also it turns out may have destructive potential.

Architect Meyer hopes to design future homes for climate refugees, but his Camp Zero is woven with ugly undercurrents from the downtrodden, oppressed group of former oil workers he’s hired to be “Diggers” to beautiful prostitutes he’s flown in to see to the needs of the camp’s managers and named the “Blooms.” The smartest and loveliest of the Blooms, Rose, comes from a gorgeous Floating City that has been built for the uberwealthy in Boston Harbor, and has been spent by her wealthy client to spy on and encourage Meyer in his efforts. The bribe: to gain her Korean mom escape from a refugee camp to come to the Floating City as well as citizenship in the city for Rose. Meyer himself is riddled with doubt and looming depression about the potential futility of his work. Then there’s Grant, a recent grad from the Walden school, a clear stand-in for Harvard, who seeks to escape his oppressively wealthy and controlling family. Added into the mix is a mysterious man known as The Barber, a local who seems to have a secret agenda of his own.

Meanwhile in the military camp where the women have taken the code name White Angel, the team wrestles with isolation, survival, and the potential threat of the military cutting off all assistance. The group bonds into a close net community, and feminism rules the day.

The plot starts off slowly, as if the icy cold and endless snow has slowed things down, until all hell breaks loose. The two groups intersect, mysteries and spies get revealed, and you find yourself spellbound at how possible this dystopian future could be for us all.


Thanks to Atria Books and NetGalley for an advanced reader’s copy.

If you liked Station Eleven, you will like this too. That is not to say this book is a copycat novel, but the themes and style appealed to me in the same way Station Eleven did.

The climate crisis is in full bloom, and much of North America is hot and miserable. An assortment of people now live in small settlements in Canada trying to learn a new way to live.

Much of the old power structure remains—tech bros have the power and money, women are still treated as second class citizens. But now there is a chance for these things to change.

Sterling does an excellent job of creating a sense of mystery without losing the familiarity of every day life, so the dystopian world feels very real. She has a poetic touch, and I thought about the book for days after I finished it.

Thanks to Netgalley and Atria for the chance to read an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

Going into this, I had heard comparisons to Emily St. John Mandel, and I believe the author fully delivered. The comp was perfect and I really enjoyed this one. The book is set in the near future, as the world is quickly becoming uninhabitable for humans. The story weaves through three separate narratives, which eventually overlap, and each character brings an extremely unique experience to the story. I particularly liked the writer's invention of "the Flick," which is a small chip that is implanted in humans upon birth, meant to offer a new way for people to be linked and coexist in their social media feeds. However, we come to learn that the Flick is actually a data-harvesting surveillance tool. I imagine this book will become a TV series or film in the very near future. Thank you Net Galley for the early copy.

My first dip into climate fiction! Those aspects of the novel are some of those that I enjoyed best, as the 2050s future seemed all to possibly realistic (of course the wealthy are still the one's benefiting and getting by!)

Camp Zero has been compared to Station Eleven which is partially apt in it's woven storylines. The part where that comparison falls apart for me is with the ending & with it's characters. Other than Rose, I didn't feel that we really got into the mind and psyche of the other characters.

Overall - a 3.5 star read that really ramped up in the second half!

Man this book is a downer and it's not even a story where tragic things keep happening to our characters. It just paints a portrait of a climate decimated Eastern Massachusetts that's just like oomf stab to the heart. It's too real in how the climate crisis will play out.

The only reason this book is four stars for me is because the payoff just doesn't quite work. The mysteries are very suddenly resolved and some of the characters/concepts are so abstractly written that it doesn't land.

Camp Zero taps into a near future world that is absolutely fascinating but which unfortunately overshadows its plot and characters, leaving me wanting for more. For a mystery-thriller, the book is remarkably slow-paced due to the three perspectives crowding the narration. The three stories only tangle together at the very end where the central twists of the book are over-explained. Above all the novel lacked the emotional punch to truly connect to the characters and fear for them when shit hit the fan.

That said, I loved the absolute bleak picture Sterling paints of the 2050s. The immediacy of an American apocalypse reminded me of Octavia Butler’s Parable of the Sower series, now updated with a horrifying continuation of smart technology rooting in the human body. Something about the matter-of-fact references to just how uninhabitable some areas of the United States are, to the mundane "new normal" of the ultra rich, to the fantastical, ubiquitous technology (which fails to uplift anyone from poverty), to the literal bubble city floating amongst the wreckage. Never mind the fact the story is partially set in Boston and hit very close to home.

Camp Zero says a lot of smart things about alienation, including a pretty brilliant choice where nearly every named character is using an alias of some sort. The combination of invasive technology and climate apocalypse have made the world miserable and fomented a disconnect between the general population and the environment, as well as a disconnect from one another.

So much time is spent on the development of this world that the characters, the plot, and the politics of the narrative get lost in the shuffle. I did appreciate the guts to sticking to the "no happy ending," rejecting escapism by making it impossible for characters to escape. Still, there is work to be done. I hope Rose and Willow finish the job <3.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

For me, this book started off a bit slow and the chapters can be long (raise your hand if you hate stopping the in middle of one). But once I got used to this version of the world in 2049, and got to know the characters, I was definitely invested.

We get to see the world through a few different characters, with their chapters labeled: Rose, Grant, and the crew of White Alice. They all have different backgrounds and goals for the future. And secrets, of course.

In this near future, climate change has really taken its toll. So much of the world is subjected to heat and severe weather. The opportunities in the North, where it's still cold and has fresh air, are hard to resist. But of course, resources are scarce, class privilege changes everything, and there are plenty of challenges for all.

I really enjoyed getting immersed in this world and getting to know the characters and how the stories intertwined. There was definitely some sci-fi aspects, but not as much as I expected so maybe more dystopian fiction.

Camp Zero is a speculative fiction book set in the near future and shows the affects of climate change on the United States and Canada. This is different from any book I’ve read and I enjoyed it! I feel like the ending was left open for a potential sequel- or it could just be an ambiguous ending. This is also the first time I’ve read a book with a first person “we” narrative so that took me a couple of chapters to get used to. The main female character Rose and main male character Grant don’t interact enough for my liking but the story didn’t need them to interact so that’s just a personal preference. Overall, I thought it was a very interesting story and I’d like to read more by this author.
*Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an eARC of this book.

A captivating all too possible near future novel with themes of climate change and social inequities, as well as its many self-sufficient and capable wholly realized female characters, including sex worker "Rose." Camp Zero is certain to find resonance among not only empathetic readers, but those who may find new perspectives as well.

I think readers who pick this up looking for the next Station Eleven will be disappointed; it does not nearly have the level of writing or world building as that comp. My guess is that it will find its audience among those looking for something more plot driven and who are ok with ambiguity. I didn’t hate it (except for the ending) but I can’t recommend it either.

It had characters and tropes that were familiar from beloved books in this genre (a camp in an abandoned shopping mall, characters who go by pseudonyms, an Aunt Lydia type character, and many more), but they never fully made sense to the story. It was almost as if they were put in for the sake of getting comps to those books. I was left with a lot of questions about why the world in this book was the way it was and I just wanted it to be fleshed out more. The character development was lacking too. I don’t know if Grant was supposed to be unlikable, but I despised him. All the characters felt a bit wooden and not true to life.

On the plus side, this was incredibly readable and I flew through it, and it’s inspiring me to pick up more post apocalyptic climate fiction. I loved the mixed race main character and that there were a lot of scenes in Boston - that stuff is always fun for me. Overall I think I could have skipped this one and not really missed anything, but I hope it does find the right readers!

I really enjoy climate fiction, and this one featured a dystopian future that seemed all too possible. I enjoyed the world building and the various plot lines. I did feel that the pacing was a bit off for my taste. But all in all, this was a good read.

My thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for the opportunity to read and review this book.

An indigenous novel about a near and probably likely future focused on humanity existing on the edge of climate collapse.

Unintentionally terrifying, this novel makes you state your future in the face and the three intertwined stories were exceptionally well planned.

I will be recommending this novel to many, many people.

This was a pleasant surprise. Camp Zero is swiftly paced, has solid twists, and features multiple compelling interwoven storylines. Michelle Min Sterling’s vision of the future is intriguing, alarming, yet totally plausible.

The separate POVs are well-differentiated, as each character brings a unique perspective to the story and they intersect in surprising ways. Each narrative thread has mysteries to unspool and Sterling doles those out in a consistent and continuous manner so you’re never waiting too long for the next reveal. Sterling’s utilitarian prose is effective at moving the story forward, as well.

I had hoped for a tidier ending, but the conclusion sticks to the book’s themes of societal disarray and desperation that all the characters confront throughout, so I can’t complain too much.

I went into this book thinking it would be something like station eleven but was highly disappointed. The characters weren’t well formed. The story line was hard to follow because there were no time stamps telling me what year it was. The perspectives were hard to follow because it wasn’t clear that white Alice was not also Rose. For at least a quarter of the book I thought Rose lived with the women of White Alice. It had a lot of potential to be a great book but it missed it.

Thanks to NetGalley for this advance reader copy of Camp Zero in exchange for a fair review.
A dystopian future, the earth's resources are running out. Who do you trust to create and sustain a new society?

I actually received a print advance reader copy but the font was difficult for me to manage, so I requested the NetGalley edition. I was determined to read this book. There is intrigue, mystery and murder in this book but I felt like it took way too long for the story to rev up to be propelling. It was close to halfway before I knew enough back story to make the story go forward. After the halfway point, it got interesting and exciting, but I hope readers are not put off by the slow early portions. If I wasn't reviewing it, I might have set it down.
That being said, I think science fiction fans will really enjoy the book.
3*

DNF @ 35%. The synopsis promises "an electrifying page-turner," but this book is dreadfully slow in the beginning. 100 pages in and I'm only on chapter 5, and haven't gotten much background on two of the main POVs, White Alice and Grant. The third one, Rose, has a very compelling background told through many flashbacks, but I've been waiting to see the story start moving forward. I wanted to continue to see if the culmination of these stories is worth it in the end, but I've resolved not to force myself through books this year.

this was a really interesting story. Climate fiction, futuristic Floating City, a bit of a mystery, some family drama, military involvement, science !! A little bit of everything.
I liked the MC, Rose, immediately. Her story was engaging from the start. (I do appreciate the normalizing of sex workers in the story, as well. )
There were two storylines going on in the book, and i didn't realize the different time frames right away. I liked the way that they ended up dovetailing.
I would definitely read a continuing story involving Rose.

Had a great time reading Camp Zero. The dystopian world could be in our not so far off distance with climate change. Loved White Alice and the Blooms (wished they had more screen time other than Rose and Willow) and would like to see more of these two groups again. I, too, am out for blood.

Camp Zero is told from three points of view: Rose, Grant, and White Alice. White Alice is the “elite group of women soldiers” and their point of view was the most fun to read, since it’s a collective POV. Everything is told as “we” and “us,” and the various women are referred to by their profession, such as “The Botanist,” or “The Cartographer.” Rose is also a really intriguing and nuanced character, whereas I was pretty uninterested in Grant’s academic/rich boy angst but his involvement worked very well as a plot device. The women in this book are so bold, and their involvement is thrilling- while the book presents a terrifying dystopia in some senses, it also foretells a world in which women may be able to take power back for their own survival. The story/setting itself were great, but my favorite part of the book were the little nuggets we discover about the rest of the world that our characters inhabit. It’s North America in 2049, and it is eerily realistic and easy to believe that we are headed to a world in which people flee north to the cold, or pay to escape to gorgeous and insulated floating cities off the coast. The pacing and plot of Camp Zero is also superb- the narratives converge precisely at the pace the reader wants them to, and information is revealed slowly & consistently through the book, with well orchestrated twists.

This is an excellent book to lose yourself in for a few hours! Thank you to Atria Books for the advance copy!