In this debut satire, people in a dystopian nation unwittingly cross paths with a fiendish being who’s crusading for the Apocalypse.

Park ranger Trent Taphor cares for his twin brother, Calvin, who has Down syndrome. That doesn’t mean that Trent is too preoccupied to notice that his fellow Californians are evacuating their homes on account of the “anomaly” popping up on the Doppler radar. On the same night that the mass of “goopy dots” appears, Calvin vanishes, soon after encountering creepy, perpetually smiling Mr. Moony. Not far away, a local cult, certain this event spells the impending end of days, names member Don Philly, a writer who’s actually undercover for research, as the “Chosen” one to face whatever doom awaits. Ten years later, the U.S. has become the Divided States of America while a series of calamities, including merciless storms and another civil war, have shaken the country. Calvin is effectively imprisoned with others whom Mr. Moony dubs “the significants,” while Trent and Philly, both having apparently swallowed one of those dots (which are even worse than they initially seemed), are affected in a disturbing fashion. The twins and this so-called Chosen writer most assuredly have links to a diabolical plan that Mr. Moony has brewing, in which he’ll ensure the Apocalypse transpires. Doing so requires more people whom he draws together—hacker and former reality TV star Love; her psychedelic therapist and former best friend, Yew; and high school principal Gary Mustafa. Combine all of them with recently christened Eden’s End, a quasi-utopia on the DSA’s West Coast, and Mr. Moony may very well get the Apocalypse he’s craving.

The first third of Enterante’s 446-page novel, which centers primarily on Trent, Calvin, and Philly, leans toward horror. This element comes courtesy of Mr. Moony’s chilling introduction in the pitch-black night, the inexplicable “storm” aimed at California, and Trent’s eerie tendency to converse with his meat cleaver, Dex. But the story changes direction following a time jump and the corresponding exposition that the narrative sprints through. The original trio sadly fades into a gradually expanding cast, with the plot becoming more devoted to unraveling mysteries and connecting characters in sometimes surprising ways. Of course, this new focus also prompts darkly comedic turns that lampoon such topical issues as America’s political polarization and the prevalence of social media and technology. For example, the DSA’s three politically charged “Zones”—Red, White, and Blue—abide by the oxymoronic Treaty of the Divided Alliance. Such drollness runs throughout the book, from Philly on the phone with his wife in Florida and oblivious that she’s clearly enjoying someone else’s company to Yew taking a call during a therapy session and convincing her patient that the ringtone was an LSD hallucination. Enterante takes advantage of the futuristic setting, with robotic Skeeter-5000s joining the cast and someone using tech to provoke a tragedy. This work’s curious structure employs an unknown narrator who adds periodic asides to an omniscient narrative (“Mind You, I’m nearly finished with my tale’s whole setup—just so You know”). While most readers will work out who this figure is, the narration leads to an unforgettable and truly worthy ending.

An epic, entertaining fusion of hilarity, unease, and memorably eccentric characters.