Content levels
Trigger warnings
Positive tags
Hero archetypes
Heroine archetypes
Protagonist archetypes
Themes
Synopsis
Four extraordinary people-each with a supernatural or freakish talent-and an equally extraordinary machine are the central figures of this dazzling novel. What they do and what is done to them is a story of high imagination and hilarity-and a sobering lesson about the consequences of being different. When the government's monolithic central computer is told of the existence of an Ozark mountain boy, who controls the Poltergeist phenomenon; a sacramental prostitute of Deva, Indian goddess of erotica; a former company clerk, who writes indelible, blue fire with the tip of his nose; and a young soldier, AWOL from the government's clandestine corps of elite murderers, programmed to kill anything that comes within their four-foot radii, it orders the F.D.I. (Federal Deviation Investigation) to bring them in for trial. The plot concerns their efforts to remain free. The result is a major work of fiction, combining erudition and enormous imagination with lyric flights of comedy.
The Funco File: content & age rating
Intended for adult readers (18+).
This 1969 novel contains mature themes including government persecution, programmed killers with supernatural abilities, sexual content involving a 'sacramental prostitute,' and dark satirical comedy about conformity and control.
What to know going in
This book has moderate violence, moderate sexual content, and moderate language. Content notes include murder, violence, and government persecution (see the full list above).
Who'll love this
Adult readers who enjoy darkly comic, absurdist fantasy with social commentary will appreciate this imaginative take on outcasts fleeing government control.