Book cover of Sensation Machines

Book description

A razor-sharp, darkly funny, and deeply human rendering of a Post-Trump America in economic free fall
 
Michael and Wendy Mixner are a Brooklyn-based couple whose marriage is failing in the wake of a personal tragedy. Michael, a Wall Street trader, is meanwhile keeping a secret: he lost the couple’s life…

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Why read it?

2 authors picked Sensation Machines as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

Just to get this out of the way: Adam is one of my closest friends. We both started our second novels New Year’s week of 2014 on a trip we took for the explicit purpose of starting new novels. I spent the next ten years trying to write my book, but Adam finished Sensation Machines in a more reasonable time frame. It was published in the summer of 2020, a basically impossible time to promote a book because we were all in lockdown. (Yes, I know, it wasn’t the worst thing that happened that summer, but still.)

It is a…

From Justin's list on second novels by authors I love.

Gripping. Frantic. Dark. Uncomfortable. And many more adjectives. Sensation Machines is an explosive, uncompromising satirical novel disguised as a crime thriller. It offers the best of both worlds: a sustained beat, a visual journey, and the questioning of our very own significance in a post-Trump America, one that closely resembles ours. 

Adam Wilson’s 2020 novel is a prime example of art being used to fulfill a perceived social responsibility. It follows the journey of a Brooklyn-based couple fighting to salvage their marriage. Connected by a string of murders, market crashes, and shady employment opportunities, they begin plunging into the gargantuan…

From Andre's list on highly political satirical.

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Aggressor by FX Holden,

It is April 1st, 2038. Day 60 of China's blockade of the rebel island of Taiwan.

The US government has agreed to provide Taiwan with a weapons system so advanced that it can disrupt the balance of power in the region. But what pilot would be crazy enough to run…

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