What do you think?
Rate this book
Nameless
It was supposed to be a nothing job.
Identify a body that’d been reduced to its component elements by a swarm of nanites, get a paycheck. Satya Hassan didn’t have to like the cops to like paying rent, and with more than half of the country out of work, well, a gig is a gig. Only now, she and Dan Landvik, a detective just promoted to homicide, are trapped on all sides amoral megacorps, an uncaring government, and a mass-murderer that the Minneapolis Police Department doesn’t dare to touch.
Betrayed by the people they thought they could rely on, facing an enemy they can’t pin down, and without even the name of a victim to go on, Dan and Satya will have to do more than uncover a conspiracy—they’ll have to face their own lifetimes of queer trauma, make allies out of enemies, and maybe even change the world along the way.
Or, at least, save a small cat with a prosthetic leg.
A kinetic, character-driven, cyberpunk novel, Satya and Dan are going to discover firsthand that nobody survives winter alone.
Identify a body that’d been reduced to its component elements by a swarm of nanites, get a paycheck. Satya Hassan didn’t have to like the cops to like paying rent, and with more than half of the country out of work, well, a gig is a gig. Only now, she and Dan Landvik, a detective just promoted to homicide, are trapped on all sides amoral megacorps, an uncaring government, and a mass-murderer that the Minneapolis Police Department doesn’t dare to touch.
Betrayed by the people they thought they could rely on, facing an enemy they can’t pin down, and without even the name of a victim to go on, Dan and Satya will have to do more than uncover a conspiracy—they’ll have to face their own lifetimes of queer trauma, make allies out of enemies, and maybe even change the world along the way.
Or, at least, save a small cat with a prosthetic leg.
A kinetic, character-driven, cyberpunk novel, Satya and Dan are going to discover firsthand that nobody survives winter alone.
364 pages, Kindle Edition
Published February 11, 2026
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
February 27, 2026
Nameless, by Zoe Ann Wendler, is set a handful of years from now. Nanite technology has revolutionised manufacturing: with a blueprint, materials, and a suitably-sized “maker”, anybody can make anything, from food to fully-functional prosthetic limbs. As nanites can break down waste to produce these materials, the planet is getting cleaner and climate change is going in the right direction.
Unfortunately, the worst aspects of capitalism persist. People are still expected to work for subsistence, even though there are many fewer jobs now that most things can be made at home. The gap between the rich and the poor has grown even larger, and the police only care about protecting the former. Nanites can make – and be used as – weapons, and the US’s refusal to grant China access to its innovations resulted in a devastating war.
When idealistic cop Danica (Dan) Landvik goes to freelance programmer and traumatised veteran Satya Hassan for help identifying a murder victim whose body has been degraded by nanites, things escalate quickly. The nanites involved are a revolutionary new model nobody’s seen before – and there are dangerous people out there who will go to extreme lengths to keep things that way.
I found Nameless a great read! As well as being fast-paced with some real heart-in-your-mouth moments, the author has really thought through the capabilities and limitations of the novel technology she introduces, as well as its consequences for all aspects of society and around the world.
Satya and Dan are well-realised, compelling characters, and I loved watching them become firm friends after their awkward initial encounter. Their need to get to know and trust each other pretty fast means the reader also gets to learn about them in an unforced way that avoids exposition, and there are some brilliant flashes of humour in their interactions to boot. And, of course, I adored Muezza – Satya’s little grey cat who, like his owner, has a sophisticated prosthetic limb.
At the same time, Wendler isn’t afraid to put her lovingly-crafted characters into life-or-death situations. Satya in particular goes through some horrendous things, both in her present situation and in flashbacks from her past, giving me lots of big feelings.
As you might have guessed, nanites were absolutely used in the war to lay waste to people – Satya being one who lived to continually repeat the experience in her mind – and the military is especially keen to take advantage of the latest innovations as they develop, waving away the ethical questions that arise.
The future presented in Nameless isn’t all doom and gloom, however. Two notable themes are gender/sexuality and disability. While Satya and Dan have experienced instances of transphobia and homophobia respectively, the general trend appears to be towards more acceptance and understanding than we have today (plus, I came away from this book with a clearer idea of what dysphoria is, and how it feels).
The advent of nanites and makers, meanwhile, seems to have shifted the general idea of assistive devices away from “things that restrict people” to “things that enable and even empower people”, and it feels like there’s more of an emphasis on choice, too.
For example, one secondary character (and ally against the baddies) has opted to upload himself into a computer monitor with robotic arms and legs rather than continue to live in a deteriorating body, and is entirely happy with this decision. Meanwhile, Satya is pleased with her prosthetic arm, “meh” about her prosthetic leg, and unable to come to terms with losing one of the breasts that made her feel right for the first time in her life.
Nameless is an exciting, nail-biting and well thought-through sci-fi thriller.
Unfortunately, the worst aspects of capitalism persist. People are still expected to work for subsistence, even though there are many fewer jobs now that most things can be made at home. The gap between the rich and the poor has grown even larger, and the police only care about protecting the former. Nanites can make – and be used as – weapons, and the US’s refusal to grant China access to its innovations resulted in a devastating war.
When idealistic cop Danica (Dan) Landvik goes to freelance programmer and traumatised veteran Satya Hassan for help identifying a murder victim whose body has been degraded by nanites, things escalate quickly. The nanites involved are a revolutionary new model nobody’s seen before – and there are dangerous people out there who will go to extreme lengths to keep things that way.
I found Nameless a great read! As well as being fast-paced with some real heart-in-your-mouth moments, the author has really thought through the capabilities and limitations of the novel technology she introduces, as well as its consequences for all aspects of society and around the world.
Satya and Dan are well-realised, compelling characters, and I loved watching them become firm friends after their awkward initial encounter. Their need to get to know and trust each other pretty fast means the reader also gets to learn about them in an unforced way that avoids exposition, and there are some brilliant flashes of humour in their interactions to boot. And, of course, I adored Muezza – Satya’s little grey cat who, like his owner, has a sophisticated prosthetic limb.
At the same time, Wendler isn’t afraid to put her lovingly-crafted characters into life-or-death situations. Satya in particular goes through some horrendous things, both in her present situation and in flashbacks from her past, giving me lots of big feelings.
As you might have guessed, nanites were absolutely used in the war to lay waste to people – Satya being one who lived to continually repeat the experience in her mind – and the military is especially keen to take advantage of the latest innovations as they develop, waving away the ethical questions that arise.
The future presented in Nameless isn’t all doom and gloom, however. Two notable themes are gender/sexuality and disability. While Satya and Dan have experienced instances of transphobia and homophobia respectively, the general trend appears to be towards more acceptance and understanding than we have today (plus, I came away from this book with a clearer idea of what dysphoria is, and how it feels).
The advent of nanites and makers, meanwhile, seems to have shifted the general idea of assistive devices away from “things that restrict people” to “things that enable and even empower people”, and it feels like there’s more of an emphasis on choice, too.
For example, one secondary character (and ally against the baddies) has opted to upload himself into a computer monitor with robotic arms and legs rather than continue to live in a deteriorating body, and is entirely happy with this decision. Meanwhile, Satya is pleased with her prosthetic arm, “meh” about her prosthetic leg, and unable to come to terms with losing one of the breasts that made her feel right for the first time in her life.
Nameless is an exciting, nail-biting and well thought-through sci-fi thriller.
March 24, 2026
Great book! The story centers on two women trying to find a path through a dystopian future Twin Cities. Noir/ Cyberpunk storytelling takes place in a dark world, and the world of Nameless is bleak. It feels very current with major technological changes sweeping through society that put many people and even whole industries out of work. In the book, 3D printing can manufacture anything out of elements, and nanobots can turn anything back to elements. I think of Star Trek replicator technology but in the context of capitalism.
It's a well-paced thriller that kept me on the edge of my seat. The characters learn and grow throughout with convincing arcs as they face questions of trust, gender and body dysphoria, and PTSD. For all of the darkness of the world, warm and supportive relationships are a strong through-line in the story, and it lands on some amazing hopeful notes, which feel well earned and satisfying. Wendler calls this book a love letter to the Twin Cities, and as someone who moved here I feel that that comes through strongly.
It's a well-paced thriller that kept me on the edge of my seat. The characters learn and grow throughout with convincing arcs as they face questions of trust, gender and body dysphoria, and PTSD. For all of the darkness of the world, warm and supportive relationships are a strong through-line in the story, and it lands on some amazing hopeful notes, which feel well earned and satisfying. Wendler calls this book a love letter to the Twin Cities, and as someone who moved here I feel that that comes through strongly.
April 1, 2026
Fun read, but a few issues
I enjoyed reading this book. It's a unique futuristic dystopian story full of pop culture references, fast paced and attention grabbing
It does have a few "first book" issues, but I'm sure with time and experience the author's writing will mature. There were quite a few typos, which will hopefully be corrected and some repetitive word use. For example gape, gaped, and agape are used a collective total of 33 times throughout the book, as well as other descriptions of people's mouths hanging open in various ways when they were surprised and all I could visualize is a shook Patrick Star. It took me out of my reading trance and made me acutely aware of the words on the page. Hopefully the author will realize that people show shock in many ways that don't always make them look like a surprised cartoon character.
Overall the book was enjoyable, but I can't ignore the novice writer feel in many parts.
I enjoyed reading this book. It's a unique futuristic dystopian story full of pop culture references, fast paced and attention grabbing
It does have a few "first book" issues, but I'm sure with time and experience the author's writing will mature. There were quite a few typos, which will hopefully be corrected and some repetitive word use. For example gape, gaped, and agape are used a collective total of 33 times throughout the book, as well as other descriptions of people's mouths hanging open in various ways when they were surprised and all I could visualize is a shook Patrick Star. It took me out of my reading trance and made me acutely aware of the words on the page. Hopefully the author will realize that people show shock in many ways that don't always make them look like a surprised cartoon character.
Overall the book was enjoyable, but I can't ignore the novice writer feel in many parts.
February 20, 2026
Lovely trans* punk procedural mystery; a little preachy in sections, but sometimes that is called for. Asks the normal questions about the role of policing and wealth inequality framed in an intellectual property dystopia. (My rating scale is 1: DNF/not worth it, 2; passable-good 3: very good, 4: phenomenal; 5: among the greats)
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews