Tosca Lee never ceases to amaze, and “The Line Between” is certainly no exception. The book is well written, to Tosca Lee’s high standards, and there are many quotable lines, but I picked this one because it reflects the prophetic nature of her story. In this scene, the main character, a young woman named Wynter, is expressing her feelings about the book’s antagonist, a man whose ego and hubris are so great that he thinks himself above God. She says of him:

“How many was he willing to let die? And for what? To hold the health of a nation hostage? To force the hand of God? A monster, Ashley called him. But he is something worse.”

– Tosca Lee – The Line Between

If anything about a pandemic being released on the world by men who think they can “force the hand of God”, sounds familiar to you, you should know that this book was published in January of 2019, many months before COVID-19 became a reality for most of us, and before the entire world was subjugated under the rule of a single, unelected bureaucrat whom we since find,  may have had a hand in developing the virus.

Did Ms. Lee foresee the pandemic? I don’t know, but what I do know is that the story she has to tell is powerful, timely, and brave in many ways.

I have always admired Ms. Lee’s work, but in this novel, she goes beyond the benchmark she has always held in my view. The novel opens with the main character, Wynter, as a child being brought to a safe place by and with her mother and her sister. Wynter learns, as she grows, that this place is a “Christian” commune called, New Earth. The founder and leader of the commune is the story’s antagonist, a man named Magnus. Over the course of Wynter’s growing up, she learns the many familiar evils of life in an autocratic, communal system, but she knows nothing else, so the perversity of the horrific rules of the commune just seems normal to her. Then, one day, as a young adult, Wynter discovers that an unspeakable evil has been perpetrated by Magnus. That knowledge completely changes the trajectory of Wynter’s life and thrusts her into great danger as she finds herself becoming the only hope for a world on the brink of annihilation.

There are so many remarkable things I could say about this book, and about Ms. Lee’s approach to this horrific tale, but I think the most significant thing is the way in which she methodically reveals the truths about cult living. She develops the negative aspects of such a life in a way that allows the reader to grow up in that environment right along with the story’s protagonist. It is so well crafted that you feel as though you’re living through Wynter’s shock, disappointments, and grief.

I am always impressed by Tosca Lee’s work and “The Line Between” is certainly no exception, except in the way that it has raised the bar once again. I give this book my highest recommendation and guarantee that you will not be disappointed. This one is a full five stars and leads me to my next read, Tosca Lee’s collaboration with Marcus Brotherton in, The Long March Home.