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The Utopia
In the Utopia, where all major decisions are made by the Computer, life is far
from idyllic for many. Three ordinary people find their lives intertwined in a society that demands conformity and obedience.
Deron Boyd, a man struggling with loss and addiction, has been convicted of a crime he doesn’t remember committing. Even though there’s surveillance footage of him breaking into a Store and stealing drugs, he feels that something isn’t quite right. Everything in the Utopia is free—there is no money—so why didn’t he just wait until the Store opened?
Matthew Tucker is a guard who transports criminals to the Utopia’s labour camp, a place where Utopians work for twelve hours a day. He lives in constant fear of failing his duties and being sent back to the Camp himself. So when the leaders of the Utopia ask him, a lowly guard, for a meeting, he doesn’t know what to think.
Sakura Saito’s story mirrors that of Deron’s, with loss and addiction affecting every part of her life. When she arrives at the Camp, she becomes a beacon of hope and love in Deron’s darkest days, though soon their relationship is strained with the inevitable hanging over them—Sakura’s release and their unavoidable separation. But a friend thinks he has a plan to keep them together, though it requires them to risk it all.
from idyllic for many. Three ordinary people find their lives intertwined in a society that demands conformity and obedience.
Deron Boyd, a man struggling with loss and addiction, has been convicted of a crime he doesn’t remember committing. Even though there’s surveillance footage of him breaking into a Store and stealing drugs, he feels that something isn’t quite right. Everything in the Utopia is free—there is no money—so why didn’t he just wait until the Store opened?
Matthew Tucker is a guard who transports criminals to the Utopia’s labour camp, a place where Utopians work for twelve hours a day. He lives in constant fear of failing his duties and being sent back to the Camp himself. So when the leaders of the Utopia ask him, a lowly guard, for a meeting, he doesn’t know what to think.
Sakura Saito’s story mirrors that of Deron’s, with loss and addiction affecting every part of her life. When she arrives at the Camp, she becomes a beacon of hope and love in Deron’s darkest days, though soon their relationship is strained with the inevitable hanging over them—Sakura’s release and their unavoidable separation. But a friend thinks he has a plan to keep them together, though it requires them to risk it all.
360 pages, Hardcover
Published September 4, 2024
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
August 27, 2025
A fresh new look at dystopian fiction. Christian Jerry Marchioni creates a world reminiscent of Orwell and Huxley, updated for modern day. Set in the not-too-distant future, the Utopia is a cohesive island society with no money and free services. The family has been abolished, and a central computer acts as the arbiter of the judicial system. Anyone who breaks the rules is sent to ‘the Camp’, a quasi-gulag where the drudgery and menial labour of the society is carried out with long hours.
Our central character, Deron Boyd, with drug and alcohol problems, awakens one morning to find he’s being arrested. While on a bender the previous night, he broke into a store—a stupid thing to do, since he could have simply gone in the morning. But it’s all on tape, and the computer’s judgement sends him to the camp, even though he can’t remember the crime, and can’t rationalize why he’d commit it.
Along the way, we’re introduced to various other characters—Carla, a camp inmate who Deron pursues romantically, despite his past relationship troubles; Matt Tucker, the former inmate now promoted to guard; Yuri, Deron’s competition for Carla’s affections; Hakeem, an older inmate who may be harbouring a deep secret; and Sakura, an addict who fell into drugs because of the general malaise of Utopian society.
This was a great book, with almost every chapter offering insightful critiques of utopian ideals and our current society. I can’t wait to see what Marchioni comes out with next.
Our central character, Deron Boyd, with drug and alcohol problems, awakens one morning to find he’s being arrested. While on a bender the previous night, he broke into a store—a stupid thing to do, since he could have simply gone in the morning. But it’s all on tape, and the computer’s judgement sends him to the camp, even though he can’t remember the crime, and can’t rationalize why he’d commit it.
Along the way, we’re introduced to various other characters—Carla, a camp inmate who Deron pursues romantically, despite his past relationship troubles; Matt Tucker, the former inmate now promoted to guard; Yuri, Deron’s competition for Carla’s affections; Hakeem, an older inmate who may be harbouring a deep secret; and Sakura, an addict who fell into drugs because of the general malaise of Utopian society.
This was a great book, with almost every chapter offering insightful critiques of utopian ideals and our current society. I can’t wait to see what Marchioni comes out with next.
May 5, 2025
I found this book to be tremendously well produced. From the cover design to the storyline itself, everything just worked, and I was enthralled with the wonders of the world of The Utopia. Without providing any spoilers, I will say that I found the characters to be charming, witty, and appropriately diverse in terms of the feelings and emotions they gave off. The story itself was a beautiful tale, comprising of elements of adventure, strife, and of course love. And they were wonderfully woven together in a way that felt natural and not forced. Overall, I could not recommend this book enough and hope that others out there enjoy it as much as I did!
August 17, 2025
First of all, the world is amazing!! Super cool and fun concept. Also scary! I don't want to spoil anything but the way this is written is so realistic and possible! Also interesting because at times I found myself wanting to live as part of this society and then as the book progressed I really second guessed that notion! I think this is what the author was going for and if it was he did a fantastic job of it! Kudos to him and hope to read more of his work in the future!!
October 3, 2025
In my opinion the first half of this book was weak. Things mentioned feel skipped or overlooked and the main character Deron is hard to sympathize with. That being said, the second half feels much more cohesive and brings forth some great philosophical points. I will keep an eye out for future titles from Chrisitan as the potential for greatness is there.
December 27, 2025
A thoroughly engaging plot mixed with a unique cast of characters, The Utopia is one of the better books I read in 2025. Timely in its content, the world never strays into the land of the fantastical. This could be our future. In some countries, this may even be their present. 1984 reimagined and more engaging. I felt like I was reading an episode of Black Mirror—truly a great read.
June 9, 2025
Really good book. Kinda just stumbled upon this tbh but really glad I did. Had good reviews so figured I would give it a try. Glad I did. I won't spoil anything but suffice to say I thought the storyline was well though out and the characters were super interesting. Easy 5 Stars.
August 17, 2025
An excellent read. The author does a great job of controlling a lot of moving parts, having them fit within the timeline in a way that makes sense and is easy to follow. Each character feels unique with their own charm. Loved this book!!!
August 17, 2025
Rich story with a lot of interesting characters. The Utopia is a scary world mostly because it is completely realistic. Anyone who has seen and enjoyed the Black Mirror series I think would really enjoy this book. It was hard to put down once I got into it.
August 17, 2025
This is to me an excellent read! Please check out and it will not disappoint.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews