Hey everyone,

I’ve been looking forward to this one for a long time. There’s some exciting news about Birthright, and a handful of Christmas book recommendations.

Let’s start with the big one.

Birthright is officially entering the final stretch. I’m aiming for a launch in the second half of Q1 — exact date to be announced in the new year. But the cover is done, the layout is done, and the audiobook is going through its final feedback and revision round.

And honestly … the last few weeks were brutal in the best of ways 😉

Dozens of micro- and macro-iterations on the cover, the layout, the fonts, the smallest spacing issues. Some of them together with my designer, some of them me sitting up way too late tweaking things on my own. On top of that, figuring out how to collaborate best with my wonderful editor-and-designer couple — including some very patient and polite back-and-forth on expectations for the aspiring author — and also where I was making it harder for myself than necessary. Lots of lessons I’ll definitely take into book #3 (which is coming along nicely; more on that in 2026).

So: we’re very, very close to starting to release the first snippets of cover, characters, story, etc. First to you, then to the rest of the world. Very, seriously, very exciting! 😁

Which brings me to something I loved doing with The Human Relief Project:

Become an ARC Reader

If you’re curious to read Birthright early — really early — and help me polish the last 0.01%: Fill out this tiny survey here.

As an ARC reader — ARC stands for Advance Reader Copy in publishing speak — you’ll get:

a pre-launch digital copy in mid-December

the first look at the world, the characters, the new cover

a chance to flag any last grammar gremlins or anything that might have slipped through

a spot in the acknowledgements 😉

and when launch day comes in Q1, my only ask is:

leave an honest review on Goodreads ahead of launch

and the moment the book hits Amazon, leave a review there too

And, of course, until the official launch window, you’ll have to keep everything quiet.

If you’re in, I’d love to have you, and hear all your thoughts about Grace, her story, and her world.

Don’t remember what Birthright is about? Fresh off my digital printing press, here’s … *drum rolls* … the print version’s back-cover blurb:

In a country optimized to perfection, one imperfect choice could change everything.

Europe, 2096. Half a century after the Big Drop, the collapse of global birthrates, almost every child is now a Regular: genetically tuned, born in artificial wombs, and raised in state-run Centers designed for perfection. Those born the old way, the Natural-Borns, live in their own districts, remnants of a past fading from view.

Seventeen-year-old Grace is in her final year at a Center, her days kept on track by AI-guided human caretakers. She has never questioned her place, always grateful for her perfect upbringing—until she is gifted a banned book that awakens her longing to see beyond the Center’s walls.

On a school trip to Natural-Born District 1, she meets Tom, whose unscripted life is full of things she’s only read about: families built on warmth and choice, landscapes allowed to grow freely, futures that aren’t prewritten. Drawn to him and his different world, Grace starts bending rules—sneaking out, clashing with friends, deceiving caretakers—and she sees what Regulars aren’t meant to see.

As a charismatic minister drives a referendum to outlaw natural birth “for the children’s sake”, violence flares, and Grace and Tom’s bond collides with old wounds, a fragile new secret, and the cost of exposure. With days dwindling and the system tightening its grip, Grace must make a decision: accept the flawless future she was raised for—or fight for a life no one else believes in.

While Birthright is still a few months away, Christmas is just around the corner. I don’t just write books, I also read a lot of them, and I would love for some of them to end up underneath your Christmas tree… or the tree of someone dear to you. So here are a few suggestions.

Actually, any book by Ray Nayler works — his debut The Mountain in the Sea, or his new one Where the Axe is Buried. He is one of my favorite contemporary speculative fiction authors.

I read Tusks of Extinction this fall on a hiking trip and devoured it.

What it’s about: A tight, near-future story where conservation, identity, and AI collide when a human mind is revived inside a resurrected mammoth.
Why I loved it: It’s the kind of philosophical, nature-meets-technology fiction that hits you quietly and then stays with you for days.

This is one of those books that rewires something in your brain. From one of SF’s greatest authors.

What it’s about: A physicist living between two radically different societies — one anarchist, one capitalist — who is on a mission to tear down walls.
Why I loved it: It shows you what a theoretical concept like true anarchy would actually feel like if you lived inside it.

I’m normally not a post-apocalypse reader, but this one kept appearing everywhere, so I had to give it a try, and it did not disappoint.

What it’s about: A Shakespeare troupe, dedicated to keeping art and humanity alive, travels through what remains of civilization after a pandemic-triggered global collapse.
Why I loved it: It’s quiet, beautiful, and makes you re-appreciate things like electricity, warm buildings, and shared stories.

(Sneaky, I know 😀) If you’re into near-future “what if” scenarios, AI, purpose, and the emotional fallout of a world without work, well… this is your friendly nudge.

What it’s about: As AI is used to free society from work, two lives on opposite ends of the Human Relief Project collide in the promise of a workless world, forcing them to confront what’s left when progress outpaces meaning.
Why you should read it: It’s a very intimate, very personal book; a good fit for anyone thinking about work, meaning, and how we build our future.

As always, thanks so much for being here, and for being part of this journey.

I hope some of you jump in as ARC readers.
And I hope December treats you gently.

Until then, keep reading. Always keep reading.

Max

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