Tomorrow’s Children

In a ruined future Manhattan, the delicate alliances between gangs come unglued with the arrival of some curious and covetous outsiders in this retro SF novel from Polansky (the Low Town trilogy). Trapped by a roiling cloud known only as the “funk,” the island’s inhabitants struggle to be self-sufficient by farming Central Park and generating electricity via stationary bikes. The funk interferes not only with the weather but with the genetics of the isolated Manhattanites, gifting some with psychic powers—though too much exposure tends to vaporize the unlucky “funk-huffer.” When freelance troublemaker the Kid knocks out an entire gang, reluctant sheriff Gillian (aka The Doom What Came to TriBeCa) sets out to learn who ordered the hit, a task that takes her from the counting houses of Wall Street to the lairs of subway dwellers. Polansky brings a 19th-century feel to his smog-ridden reverie of petty enclaves jostling for primacy with the aid of shaven-head “confessors” trained by a female Pope. Against the steampunk backdrop, the rebellious attitude of street versus suite comes across loud and clear. This entertaining tale is sure to win fans. Agent: Chris Lotts, Lotts Agency (Mar.)