The Party

by Ryan Conner

In a cautionary tale about how difficult it is to regain democracy once it's lost, The Party takes a satirical look at totalitarianism. Set in a United States that could be coming soon, ten mega-corporations control every aspect of the country and have installed a brutal regime, The Party, to protect their interests. The narrative unfolds through the weaving confessions of a bumbling colonel and a college student who have been captured in the wake of a coup attempt. Sentenced to death, they rush to tell their stories before the sword drops.

The Washington Post called Ryan Conner “the most singular comic in America,” and Norm Macdonald praised his stand-up on NBC's Last Comic Standing as the best he had seen in years. Ryan Conner's debut novel The Party is available exclusively on Amazon.

246 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 5, 2023

Reviews

[Seth Joseph · Rating 5 out of 5]

I finished The Party two days ago, and I keep thinking about the way Conner drapes absurdity over brutality in this story, creating something funnier than it should be, and more disturbing than I expected. The gut punches he delivers are shocking, and lasting, with a final page that stands as a stark contrast to Winston Smith's closing thoughts in 1984. Published in 2023, one wonders if Conner's narrative resulted from inside information about how 2024's election would play out. I can't help but see the story ultimately as an indictment of those who would protect norms at the risk of losing democracy *cough* Biden *cough* Garland *cough* and I'm surprised it hasn't been banned from Florida's public schools yet.

[Luke Giordano · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's 1984 if IngSoc was founded by Marjorie Taylor Greene and the MyPillow guy. The exact satire to meet the stupidity of our current moment. Ryan Conner barrages the reader with constant hilarious asides of history and background (a favorite: "It's the books you don't burn") that all together fill in how we got from here to life under the Party. The book's biggest strength, I think, is how surprisingly uncynical it is. THE PARTY frames the future as a choice, one we still have time to opt out of.