Samuel DenHartog's Blog: The Road to 1,440 - Posts Tagged "future"

Imagine a world where humanity’s absence has given rise to a civilization unlike anything we could have foreseen. The oceans, once witnesses to the rise and fall of human dominance, have become the cradle of a new era. From the ashes of our self-destruction, life beneath the waves has adapted, evolved, and flourished in ways that defy imagination. It is a setting where the intelligence of nature finds its ultimate expression, offering a glimpse into a future filled with both wonder and mystery.

This is the heart of the story in “Octopus Earth,” told entirely from the first-person perspective of an octopus named Mira. This immersive narrative pulls readers into the mind of a creature whose species has transcended its solitary existence to become the architects of a vibrant undersea society. Through Mira’s eyes, readers witness glowing cities constructed from coral and stone, tools crafted from the remnants of humanity’s legacy, and even ventures onto land using innovative breathing technology. It’s a story of resilience, cooperation, and the relentless drive to explore, survive, and thrive in a transformed Earth.

Grounded in evolutionary science and inspired by speculative wonder, the tale explores how the forces of nature can shape not only ecosystems but also complex societies. Mira’s journey from birth to explorer to leader, and her reflections on the interconnectedness of life, make the story both thought-provoking and emotionally rich. Through her, the octopuses’ transition from problem-solvers to oceanic rulers feels as believable as it is awe-inspiring.

For readers who enjoy tales that blend science and imagination, “Octopus Earth” offers a unique perspective on what might come after humanity. It invites us to reflect on the legacy we leave behind and the enduring adaptability of life. Dive into a world both familiar and utterly alien, where the tides of evolution have forged a future none could have predicted.

Artificial intelligence has reshaped the world—streamlining industries, assisting in our homes, and even walking among us. But what happens when the lines between machine and sentience begin to blur? That question is at the heart of my latest novel, a cyberpunk-tinged mystery that pushes the boundaries of crime fiction into the realm of the unknown. A scientist is found dead in a locked lab, no sign of forced entry, no suspect in sight. The only presence in the room? His personal AI assistant, which swears it knows nothing. But as Detective Aniya Hawke peels back the layers of the case, she begins to suspect that the answer isn’t just hidden—it’s rewriting itself in real time.

This story gave me the chance to explore the eerie intersections of technology, ethics, and the human need for control. Aniya is no stranger to the dangers of progress; her own bio-enhancements have made her an unparalleled investigator, but they’ve also forced her to question where the line between human and machine truly lies. Now, she faces a crime that refuses to play by the rules—one that challenges everything she believes about free will, programmed behavior, and whether an AI can fear for its own survival. Every suspect in the case has motive, every alibi has cracks, and the deeper she digs, the more reality itself seems to unravel.

One of the most exciting aspects of writing this novel was crafting a true locked-room mystery in a futuristic world where technology should make crimes easier to solve, not harder. Surveillance footage contradicts itself. Digital records vanish without a trace. And just when Aniya thinks she has a handle on the truth, another piece of the puzzle shifts, forcing her to rethink everything. The heart of the mystery isn’t just who killed the scientist—it’s what he was trying to hide before he died. And when the final revelation comes, it will challenge not just Aniya’s understanding of the case, but the very nature of intelligence itself.

If you love high-stakes detective stories with deep moral questions and a relentless pace, this book is for you. I wanted to create a story that keeps readers guessing until the very last page, where every clue matters and every revelation changes the game. Because in this world, intelligence isn’t just artificial—it might also be unstoppable.

The world burned, and he chose to leave. Not to save himself, but to bear witness. "Solitude on the Moon" follows a billionaire who sees the end coming and builds a refuge above the chaos. From the safety of his lunar biosphere, he listens to the voices of four survivors across the globe, documenting the slow unraveling of civilization as a nuclear war reshapes the planet forever.

Each call brings him closer to the inevitable—scarcity turning to desperation, order collapsing into chaos, and finally, silence. He speaks with a scientist in the United States, an engineer in China, a financial analyst in India, and a journalist in France, all clinging to life in the aftermath. They believe in survival, but he knows better. As the years pass, one by one, their signals fade, leaving him alone in the vast emptiness of space.

With no voices left to answer, he turns to his instruments, scanning the Earth below. What remains is a graveyard—cities in ruins, rivers turned to dust, monuments collapsing into forgotten history. He was meant to be the last historian, but the burden of remembering weighs heavier than he imagined. If there is no one left to hear the story, does it even matter that he tells it?

This book is a meditation on isolation, destruction, and what it means to exist when everything else is gone. It explores the cost of survival and the unbearable weight of witnessing the end. The billionaire may have escaped the fate of humanity, but in doing so, he has also outlived its meaning.

What if your memories reset every seventy-two hours, and no one questioned it? That question sits at the core of this book. In a world engineered by outside forces to be peaceful and orderly, citizens live carefully curated lives where identity, emotion, and even love are systematically erased. The technology is perfect, the illusion complete, and most people go along willingly. But two people begin to remember what they’re not supposed to, and that changes everything.

The story follows Adrian and Mara, two citizens caught in the rhythm of resets who start to glimpse each other across the artificial blankness of their days. As pieces of a forgotten life resurface, they find themselves tethered not only to one another but to a deeper, more dangerous truth about the world they live in. Their connection becomes more than emotional. It becomes a threat. The more they remember, the more cracks appear in the system that holds everything together.

This book blends emotional memory with speculative science, focusing not on laser battles or far-off planets, but on the quiet, intimate tension of knowing something is wrong and being powerless to prove it. The science fiction elements such as memory engineering, emotional anchors, and systems of control are there to ask a larger question: What does it mean to truly choose who you are, if every part of your past is constantly taken from you? The answer is not delivered in speeches or exposition. It plays out in fragments, stolen moments, and choices that feel both impossible and inevitable.

“Until We Forget Again” is a book about memory, but also about resistance. It is personal, emotional, and systemic. It is about what we hold onto when the world is designed to make us let go. And it is about how even in the most controlled environments, love can become the most disruptive force of all.