T.M. Doran’s latest novel, Seeing Red, is his first forayinto the dystopian/alternative history genre. He’s proven withprior works such as Iota and Toward the Gleam that hecan create deep characters and tense plot lines, so I was eager tosee what he could do in this setting. Full disclosure: I had anopportunity to read an earlier version of this story in manuscriptform when Tom sent it to me for some author-to-author critique. I’mglad he kept working on the manuscript and wanted to see how thefinal product turned out.

If the book seems to read like a Twilight Zone episode, that’sbecause it is, among other things, a tribute story that pays homageto screen greats Alfred Hitchcock and Rod Serling, both of whomappear in the story under thin disguise. Those of us who remember TheTwilight Zone can also recall how the episodes could sometimescause viewers to furrow their brow as the story line forced them tolook at events from a new angle, or consider things they’d neverconsidered before. Seeing Red contains echoes of thisperspective-jolting tendency. It doesn’t fit tidily into typicalassumptions; indeed, it isn’t intended to.

For screenwriter Castro Hume, the glow of his sole Academy Award haslong since faded, and he’s been reduced by time and alcohol toliving in a shabby LA apartment, trying to get screenwritinglightning to strike twice. The first strike five years earlier hadbeen impressive – he’d turned a popular novel into a screenplayfor a photoplay directed by the renowned Alfred Cooperwasser. Theplay had been shot on a set that was essentially a reconstruction ofthe main town of the novel, which had been constructed in the middleof the woods in rural Michigan. In desperate hope of reacquiring hiscreative spark, and to evoke better times, Castor decides to visitthe still-standing set, which has become a minor tourist attractionin the economically strapped region. There he meets Jeff Clement,caretaker of the site and de facto tour guide.

Through a series of mishaps, Castro discovers that things on theaging set are more complicated than a casual tour would indicate, andClement has more going on than just maintaining the site. The setbuildings, being well off the beaten track, have become a haven forfugitive Red Cards. These are social outcasts with either congenitalor incurable medical conditions. They are hiding from the SocialSecurity Bureau, a government agency whose job it is to ensure thatprecious resources aren’t wasted on those who cannot contributeanything to society at large, and especially to the elite WhiteCards, a privileged class who get the best of everything. There areonly a handful of Red Cards secreted on the set, and it is challengeenough to keep them hidden and provided for. Discovery by randomvisitors is one of their worst nightmares.

But Castro is sympathetic to their plight, and is drawn into theirstruggle for survival. He ends up helping with a variety of things,such as smuggling one of the Red Cards to Detroit for treatment by anunderground medical practitioner. He runs afoul of an SSB raidingparty who have strong suspicions about what the set is being usedfor. He returns to Hollywood, where he tries to use his talents andconnections to generate sympathy, if not outright assistance, for theRed Cards.

Without unpacking the entire story, suffice it to say that there areplenty of twists and turns, as well as a bit of skullduggery, which isone of Doran’s specialties. One thing gratifying about the story isthat it doesn’t overreach. Nearly washed-up screenwriter CastroHume doesn’t burst from obscurity to topple the Evil Bureaucracy,save the endangered Red Cards, and restore a Just Social Order. Whathe does is turn a corner, both personally and publicly. Others areencouraged to stand up and speak out. Risks are taken and hope iskindled, but no outcome is guaranteed. Just like life.

Those who appreciate subtle thrillers will find much to enjoy inSeeing Red. If the work has a weakness, it is occasionalobscurity. Doran is a subtle writer, often resorting to hints andallusions, leaving his readers to fill in the gaps. But this meansthat if you don’t catch the hint or grasp the allusion, you couldbe left befuddled, at least for a while.

But these are minor matters. If speculative thrillers are your style,and especially if you’ve enjoyed Doran’s previous efforts, you’llappreciate Seeing Red.