Clouds and Earth (The Peace Outside #1) by Sayde Scarlett

150 years in the future, the Long War may be over, but new advancements mean that the battlefields have merely changed, not disappeared. Clouds and Earth, the first installment of The Peace Outside series, is a riveting new sci-fi thriller from author Sayde Scarlett that drops readers into a radical future.

Extrapolating the Big Brother fears of the modern day into a truly data-fueled dystopia, Scarlett lays out a chillingly prophetic story. She introduces Lt. First Class Sandy Attiyeh, a soldier who must find a new path to apply her skills, and turns to the shadowy corporate side of life. However, in this strange vision of the future, where it’s impossible to keep secrets for long, Sandy soon finds her own dark skeletons rising up from all sides. Pulled between betraying her past and losing her only potential route forward, the moral quandaries of this novel alone make it worth the read.

Scarlett also demonstrates keen world building, as well as great attention to detail when it comes to character development and the shifting moods of certain scenes. The narration is refreshingly unique, balanced well between passive exposition and active moments of interaction between characters. The dialogue is believable for the most part, albeit peppered with futuristic jargon and the occasional trite exchange, and the pace of this brief novel rarely lets up.

For a quick afternoon read, Clouds and Earth offers an immersive and well-crafted plot that feels far from reality, yet is still layered with shivers of recognition.