Upright Women Wanted

Esther flees her home in a near-future, fascist American Southwest after her best friend and secret lover is executed for possessing unauthorized materials. To escape an arranged marriage, she stows away in a wagon belonging to the Librarians, a group authorized by the state to distribute approved propaganda. Esther soon discovers that these couriers are actually queer revolutionaries who smuggle subversive literature and resistance fighters across the desert. Moving through a landscape of military checkpoints and dusty outposts, Esther confronts her own internalized prejudices while learning to handle firearms and navigate the reality of an anti-authoritarian uprising.

Readers who enjoy queer westerns and high-stakes speculative fiction will find a narrative focused on personal reclamation and communal defiance. The story appeals to those interested in how underground networks operate within oppressive regimes and the logistical challenges of cultural preservation during wartime. The reader finishes the book with a clear view of how individual identity shifts when displaced from a rigid society into a collective focused on survival and mutual aid. It offers a gritty look at the physical and emotional labor required to build a life outside of state-mandated norms.