The Carbonite's Daughter

by Deryn Pittar

To lead or to breed? Calista has this choice, but before she can make a decision she needs to leave the protection of the tunnels and chance her life outside, where radiation kills and people wither—so she is told. Who can she believe—her father or the MICs (Men In Charge)? Fear battles with her desire for adventure, and if she stays another insemination looms. Set in dystopian New Zealand, post a Nuclear Dawn, this is a story of growth and discovery and the realisation that things aren’t always as they seem.

204 pages, Paperback

Published February 7, 2022

About the author

I write futuristic and fantasy fiction, spiced with romance and adventure. This allows my imagination to run free, to create interesting characters caught in unusual circumstances and events. Sometimes I have the pleasure of watching science and technology catch up with my imagination.

I also write Young Adult, short stories and flash fiction; articles on writing and I am published in these genre. I self-published a children’s rhyming book and once won a prize for a short screen script.

I’m a published poet and I endeavour to put my poetry skills into my fiction writing to enhance the word pictures I create.

I live in the Bay of Plenty, New Zealand which lives up to its name. I belong to the Romance Writers of N.Z., Tauranga Writers, and Spec.Fic.NZ (speculative fictionNZ).

Reviews

[Gillian Mayne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Highly Recommended.
What a wonderful story! Set in futuristic NZ the dystopian setting is totally plausible for a Post Nuclear dawn. The characters were believable and the storyline captures the struggles and triumphs in their journey. I was completely absorbed by this book and would like to read more from this author.

[Margaret Mcdonald · Rating 5 out of 5]

A New Zealand book set a few years hence after a natural disaster has changed the way of life radically in the South Island. A daughter finds her family again - a cautionary tale to contemplate. I’m looking for the follow up.

[Denise Fitzpatrick · Rating 5 out of 5]

This novel is fantastic. I had a hard time putting it down as the world this author has created, is both original and eye-opening. I especially loved the setting. It is based in the majestic Southern Alps in the South Island of New Zealand. The characters are believable, and Calista is a worthy heroine. I loved following her journey. The dystopian aspect, plot and twists, kept me reading far into the night. It’s a definite 5 stars from me… and I believe it would make a great movie. Are you reading this Hollywood!!

[SHARON Manssen · Rating 4 out of 5]

AN ENJOYABLE READ

Following a nuclear war in 2150, a community of survivors in New Zealand's South Island live sheltered deep within the Southern Alps. It's not safe to go outside into the Nuclear Dawn, so the inhabitants live commune-style within the tunnels, growing all their food safely under the artificial lighting using snowmelt and underground rivers for water. Much technology was lost, but due to the coal mines, the survivors managed to revert to steam trains and coal-fired generators.

The war wreaked havoc on humanity, with many becoming infertile. But Calista is one of the lucky ones: she's fertile and has been classified by the MICs (Men In Charge) as a prime breeder. At fourteen years old, she commences being artificially inseminated, and by seventeen has two children. Her only sadness is that her father, Aaron, abandoned her mother and her when she was five.

Aaron had tried to stop the coal-mining, believing that coal was too precious. Him and others who believed the same called themselves the Carbonites. They practically worshipped coal. It got him kicked out of the community, but somehow he managed to survive the radiation. And now he has returned to convince Calista to leave with him, to learn the truth about the outside world before returning to tell others about it and lead them out.

Calista agrees to leave, but her journey to discover and learn about the outside world becomes more a journey of self-discovery.

Deryn Pittar has done a wonderful job of building this dystopian future, wherein she explores the culture of a commune, where personal choices are removed 'for the greater good'. But when you've never learned to make decisions for yourself, it's inevitable that you'll make some wrong ones. You'll love joining Callie on her journey of discovery, and the story will leave you feeling full of hope for the future of humanity.

Sharon Manssen
Multi-award nominated author of the Realmshift Trilogy

[Piper Mejia · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Carbonite’s Daughter by Deryn Pittar

Being sure of your place in society is not the same thing as accepting the place you have been given. Raised in post-atomic New Zealand, Calista’s life in the mines beneath the once beautiful country is one of careful consumption. A lesson we have yet to learn ourselves. Believing they are the saviours of humankind, each member of her community has a role to play, and for Calista that includes providing for the next generation. Not an unexpected assumption in a post-apocalyptic novel. However, unlike others of this trope, The Carbonite’s Daughter is not a story of horror and desperation but rather it explores a less abrupt moment in time, giving the reader hope that the fall of a technological society may not be the end of the world.
The Carbonite’s Daughter is written from the point of view of a young woman, Calista, as she reconnects with her father on the surface of the thought-to-be but not wasteland. Enticed to leave her child with her mother, Calista agrees to be an observer for those who oppose leaving their homes in the mines. What she finds makes her question everything she knows about who she is and her place in the world. The Carbonite’s Daughter is a fantastical read, a blend of dystopia and the wild west. The characters are warmly written, overcoming obstacles, though different from our own, ones we can still relate to as in the end it is a story of family and friendships.

[Lyndsay Campbell · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Carbonite's Daughter is an excellent dystopian read for the adolescent reader. Calista provides a strong female protagonist who is searching for her father and is tasked with leading her friends out of the tunnels where she and others have been living to escape post-apocalypse radiation. I especially loved the location in the scenic South Island of New Zealand once she gets to the earth's surface. The novel is very engaging - action-packed, with a touch of romance, a real page-turner. You won't be able to put it down until you find out what happens.

Lyndsay

[Psyckers · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well thought out and plausible future where Northern Hemisphere nations had a nuclear war, so survivors in the South Island of New Zealand made a network of tunnels throughout the Southern Alps to escape the radiation. A couple of lifetimes later, where this story starts our heroine starts to gets the opportunity to escape the tunnels with her father to find out what life is like outside.
It is a very engaging read, though I believe the ending was somewhat rushed.
Still I enjoyed this book and I believe sequels are certainly possible.

[J.M. Goldie · Rating 5 out of 5]

The combination of a plausible dystopian world set in the South Island of New Zealand and a strong main character had me glued to this story. I could absolutely see Quake City and the Remarkables in this new way and was immersed. There are hints of Handmaid’s Tale-like scenarios although not as dire and the changes in point of view to include the ‘men in charge’ added to this. So much to like about Callie too - if anything I wanted her to transform and come out of her she’ll earlier. A great read.

[Jackie Kirk · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. I must admit I am one of those people who usually has a pile of books ready to be read, when I have the time! As is often the case I don't often seem to have the time but it was a different story with The Carbonite's Daughter. It didn't take me long to become invested in Calista, her family and life and I didn't want to put it down!