Underground Airlines

By: Ben Winters

Narrated by: William DeMeritt

Length: 9 hrs and 28 mins

Publisher's summary

It is the present day, and the world is as we know it: smartphones, social networking, and Happy Meals. Save for one thing: The Civil War never occurred.

A gifted young black man calling himself Victor has struck a bargain with federal law enforcement, working as a bounty hunter for the US Marshal Service. He's got plenty of work. In this version of America, slavery continues in four states called "the Hard Four". On the trail of a runaway known as Jackdaw, Victor arrives in Indianapolis knowing that something isn't right—with the case file, with his work, and with the country itself.

A mystery to himself, Victor suppresses his memories of his childhood on a plantation and works to infiltrate the local cell of an abolitionist movement called the Underground Airlines. Tracking Jackdaw through the back rooms of churches, empty parking garages, hotels, and medical offices, Victor believes he's hot on the trail. But his strange, increasingly uncanny pursuit is complicated by a boss who won't reveal the extraordinary stakes of Jackdaw's case as well as by a heartbreaking young woman and her child, who may be Victor's salvation. Victor himself may be the biggest obstacle of all—though his true self remains buried, it threatens to surface.

Victor believes himself to be a good man doing bad work, unwilling to give up the freedom he has worked so hard to earn. But in pursuing Jackdaw, Victor discovers secrets at the core of the country's arrangement with the Hard Four—secrets the government will preserve at any cost.

Underground Airlines is a groundbreaking novel, a wickedly imaginative thriller, and a story of an America that is more like our own than we'd like to believe.

©2016 Ben Winters (P)2016 Hachette Audio

Critic reviews

Campbell Memorial Award, 2017, Third Place

NOMINATED FOR THE BEST HARDCOVER NOVEL ITW THRILLER AWARD

A FINALIST FOR THE CHAUTAUQUA PRIZE

A New York Times Bestseller; a Goodreads Choice finalist; named one of the Best Books of the Year by NPR, Slate, Publishers Weekly, Hudson Bookseller, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Kirkus Reviews, AudioFile Magazine, and Amazon

"This one kept me up at night and changed the way I saw the world once I was finished."—Ann Patchett, Time

"This is one of the most thoughtful and inventive books I've read. Part alternate history and part detective novel, Underground Airlines couldn't be more timely or thrilling. It's a page-turner with a big mission: to warn against placing our history on a dusty shelf. On every page is the spirit of Faulkner's quote—The past is never dead. It's not even past. Here, Winters takes America's legacy as a slaveholding nation all the way to its logical and terrifying conclusion."—Attica Locke, Edgar Award-nominated author of Bluebird, Bluebird

"An extraordinary work of alternate history . . . Indisputably a winner"—Maureen Corrigan, NPR

Original and disturbing novel

The first half of this story was interesting but only mildly engaging. In this revisionist historical novel, the Civil War was not fought, and there is still slavery in the modern day deep south. The narrator is a black man who captures runaway slaves in the north (doing the devil's work, as he describes it). The novel has a slow noir feel to it and a very original premise. I was intrigued early on. The novel gets more engaging and faster paced in the second half, when we learn more about this slave catcher. When the story moves into slave territory in the south, it is at its most disturbing and most riveting. This is a novel that stayed with me after I finished it. It was worth the listen!

There but for the grace of God...

A smart, compelling story that transports the listener to a world that could so easily be ours. The performance is riveting, thanks to the narrator, who makes you connect with the characters while opening your eyes to the small and large differences in this alternate America. The writer has captured An important reflection at an important time in America's history. Highly recommended to all who want to be reminded of just how far we've come even as we are eager to go farther still. Race relations in America - as it could have been.

Old Times There Aren't Forgotten

Quite a compelling read... Some well thought speculation on the what if front, and it's more alternate current events than alternate history;). The idea of slaves as stock/chattle is pulled off incisively w/o beating you over the head;). The story moves well and has some delightful turnarounds woven. Into the central plot and overall storyline... It paints a grim picture of how the country coulda turned out drastically different, although in many ways maybe not so much... Puts a whole new spin on the idea of profiling and enhanced interrogation... The pace and flow never lags making it a decent binge read;). Characters are well done, but Victor and Martha shoulder the load... Particularly impressed w/ the sequences of victor's memories of his time as a person bonded... On that same note, thought that his past could have been a bit more complete... Narration is average, and fairly slow, but plays relatively well at 1.25x... Definitely worth the credit...

Best Novel I've Read In Years

Insightful on both a macro and micro level, exploring psychology and sociology, PTSD and the gruesome ways human beings survive gruesome inhumanity. Stunning, clever, powerful writing, captivating story, and complex characters. The writer has the wisdom to describe traumatic events without re-traumatizing the reader with excessive graphic detail, weaving words boldly and with care, clearly understanding that many of the readers are survivors of violence themselves. I love this book.

Sci-fi, mystery and history retold in the present

What was one of the most memorable moments of Underground Airlines?

When the main character, Victor reveals his backstory. You see the impossible situation he is in.

Which character – as performed by William DeMeritt – was your favorite?

Victor- a chameleon. A man of many faces, voices and names. The narrator gives depth and believability to the story with his mastery of accents. He does not just read the words, he uses his voice to bring them to life.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

In a country divided by slavery, do you know who you can trust.

Any additional comments?

I am a fan of dystopian fiction and historical fiction. From the beginning, I was hooked on this story and cared about the characters. I would recommend it to people looking for a well paced, interesting mystery.

Entertaining but predictable.

Would've liked a more realistic conclusion. Perhaps all parties involved in the tent/exchange seen are killed by someone higher up the chain of command, thus quashing any hope for things to change. I feel as is the story was at odds with what the author is trying to say.

Good quick read, perhaps prescient.

A very simple book, but if you let your mind wander past the subject of modern day slavery, to some analogous scenarios, it's even scarier. I wouldn't simply toss the subject matter aside as fiction.

Great book that makes you think

An amazing concept! Outstanding performance! Good story, but I didn't find it leaving me on the edge of my seat eager to know what was going to happen. Still it was interesting enough to keep me engaged and worth the purchase.

Fascinating and horrifying concept

I love alternate reality books, and this one makes our reality seem pretty good. It was a tough book to read right now, with the escalating racial tension in our country, but it was a fascinating concept of how things might be if the Civil War hadn't happened and if Abe Lincoln had been assassinated before he did his thing. It was almost too awful to imagine, and very hard to believe it even could have ever ended up that way. It was a “page-turner” for sure. The narrator did a fantastic job. Apparently there's no sequel planned, but I'd love to see a sequel come out. The ending, while satisfactory, definitely lended itself to one.

Beautifully written. Gripping.

Although the story started out fantastically hard to believe. The author made a compelling case. Scary truly scary and well written.