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Extropia
In 2164, the privileged live online. Tanked up and jacked into the vast and beautiful digital world Inside, controlled by a handful of enormously powerful corporations.
Ayven Reynolds has never seen it. Blind since childhood and raised in the Cascade Mountains by a community who believe the virtual world is an abomination, she believes the people sleeping in their tanks have abandoned their humanity and just need to be woken up.
Inside, she can see.
Bache Parker knows exactly how beautiful the Inside is. He also knows what it costs to lose it. Exiled from the Inside after a hack gone wrong, he spends his days tending other people's tanks while the world he used to belong to sits just out of reach. He has stopped expecting things to change. What he doesn't expect is the girl who shows up soaking wet on his doorstep in the middle of the night.
When their paths collide in a rain-soaked future Seattle, they are pulled into a rebellion that wants to bring the whole system down. Neither the cause nor the people fighting it are simple. And Bache and Ayven, falling reluctantly into each other's orbit, have to decide what they believe about the Inside, about the people willing to destroy it, and about each other, before someone else makes that decision for them.
Extropia is a YA cyberpunk romance about virtual reality, class divide, forbidden technology, first love, and what it costs to see the world clearly — even when you've been blind your whole life.
Ayven Reynolds has never seen it. Blind since childhood and raised in the Cascade Mountains by a community who believe the virtual world is an abomination, she believes the people sleeping in their tanks have abandoned their humanity and just need to be woken up.
Inside, she can see.
Bache Parker knows exactly how beautiful the Inside is. He also knows what it costs to lose it. Exiled from the Inside after a hack gone wrong, he spends his days tending other people's tanks while the world he used to belong to sits just out of reach. He has stopped expecting things to change. What he doesn't expect is the girl who shows up soaking wet on his doorstep in the middle of the night.
When their paths collide in a rain-soaked future Seattle, they are pulled into a rebellion that wants to bring the whole system down. Neither the cause nor the people fighting it are simple. And Bache and Ayven, falling reluctantly into each other's orbit, have to decide what they believe about the Inside, about the people willing to destroy it, and about each other, before someone else makes that decision for them.
Extropia is a YA cyberpunk romance about virtual reality, class divide, forbidden technology, first love, and what it costs to see the world clearly — even when you've been blind your whole life.
360 pages, Paperback
Published May 1, 2026
About the author
Jae Darcy
1 book2 followersJae Darcy is a content writer and marketer who lives in the starry hills of Western Massachusetts. She first dreamt up Bache, Ayven and their world in 1996, when she entered her first online RPG chatroom, and has been astonished to watch this reality get closer and closer every year since.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
October 4, 2026
Take my hand and join me in the year 2164 in Jae Darcy’s Extropia. The world as we know it has been split in two: The Inside, a digital utopia where those who can afford to store their living bodies project their consciousness; and the Outside, what remains of the physical world that the rest of humanity has left behind. The world has been stripped for resources and left to decay, and those who remain on the Outside are not expected to live past fifty. And some must remain on the outside. Who else will grow the food, and who will look after the bodies in deprivation tanks? Who will enforce order? Living on the inside is expensive, the corporations running the world make sure of that.
We get two views of this tense, futuristic Seattle: One from Bache, a former hacker who lost his ability to visit the Inside during a deadly job as a political activist, and Ayven, a blind girl from a hidden Luddite commune in the far mountains. Their worlds collide when Ayven is sent on a dangerous journey to Seattle to beg Bache’s help. The Luddites want a program, a deadly virus he created… Only, Bache can’t journey to the Inside, not with the injury that fried his hardware. Ayven can — only, on the Inside, she discovers that she can see again.
No single faction has all of the answers, and Bache and Ayven must learn to navigate the spaces in between if they want to survive long enough to learn what really matters to them. And there is a lot to survive. Bache’s old programs were stolen and used in a deadly hack to prove that the Inside is not so safe as it seems… Not great, when he’s simply trying to stay out of jail. Meanwhile Ayven is promised to Elijah, the new leader of her closed-off commune, a man who cares nothing for her opinions and only for what she can do for him. Together, can they change society? Or will the virus destroy their futures?
The characters are relatable and real, and the heart of this story. Bache is jaded and hurt, grieving and angry after the job that lost him everything. Despite that, he’s honest and funny and willing to stick his neck out to do what he thinks is right, even at his lowest. Ayven is not defined by her disability; she is courageous and brash, smart and capable. She’s willful to the point of stubbornness, and she doesn’t give up. She comes from a very different upbringing than Bache, which puts her principles to the test when she comes into contact with the world outside of her commune for the first time.
The plot was tight and the pacing had me reading this all in one go. Extropia was mysterious and thrilling in turn, and I greatly enjoyed it. If you’re looking for a dystopian cyberpunk read, one with some thrill, romance, and a rich world, look no further.
We get two views of this tense, futuristic Seattle: One from Bache, a former hacker who lost his ability to visit the Inside during a deadly job as a political activist, and Ayven, a blind girl from a hidden Luddite commune in the far mountains. Their worlds collide when Ayven is sent on a dangerous journey to Seattle to beg Bache’s help. The Luddites want a program, a deadly virus he created… Only, Bache can’t journey to the Inside, not with the injury that fried his hardware. Ayven can — only, on the Inside, she discovers that she can see again.
No single faction has all of the answers, and Bache and Ayven must learn to navigate the spaces in between if they want to survive long enough to learn what really matters to them. And there is a lot to survive. Bache’s old programs were stolen and used in a deadly hack to prove that the Inside is not so safe as it seems… Not great, when he’s simply trying to stay out of jail. Meanwhile Ayven is promised to Elijah, the new leader of her closed-off commune, a man who cares nothing for her opinions and only for what she can do for him. Together, can they change society? Or will the virus destroy their futures?
The characters are relatable and real, and the heart of this story. Bache is jaded and hurt, grieving and angry after the job that lost him everything. Despite that, he’s honest and funny and willing to stick his neck out to do what he thinks is right, even at his lowest. Ayven is not defined by her disability; she is courageous and brash, smart and capable. She’s willful to the point of stubbornness, and she doesn’t give up. She comes from a very different upbringing than Bache, which puts her principles to the test when she comes into contact with the world outside of her commune for the first time.
The plot was tight and the pacing had me reading this all in one go. Extropia was mysterious and thrilling in turn, and I greatly enjoyed it. If you’re looking for a dystopian cyberpunk read, one with some thrill, romance, and a rich world, look no further.
May 9, 2026
Wow, where do I start? Mind blown! The author creates such a unique and clever universe in which the book is set - a potential future the reader could see playing out in the world, where the privileged live in a perfectly crafted online construct, living beautiful and carefully manicured lives, while the marginalized take care of their comatose bodies and what is left of the planet.
I'm obsessed with Bache, a flawed genius who has been through so much and almost given up. But thankfully he has a few trusty loyal mates (I want another book with more Dex!) by his side.
Our heroine Avyen is truly lovely, loyal and capable, it is hard not to fall in love with her, even as you want to scream at her for not trusting the right people.
Both the word in which the book takes place and the characters are rich and layered and well worth your time. I am crossing my fingers that the author works on a sequel set in this universe, I desperately need more of the Inside!
I'm obsessed with Bache, a flawed genius who has been through so much and almost given up. But thankfully he has a few trusty loyal mates (I want another book with more Dex!) by his side.
Our heroine Avyen is truly lovely, loyal and capable, it is hard not to fall in love with her, even as you want to scream at her for not trusting the right people.
Both the word in which the book takes place and the characters are rich and layered and well worth your time. I am crossing my fingers that the author works on a sequel set in this universe, I desperately need more of the Inside!
June 19, 2026
Extropia by Jae Darcy is an ambitious, emotionally charged sci-fi dystopian novel set in a future where humanity has split itself between the physical world and the seductive virtual realm known as the Inside. In 2164, the world outside has decayed into poverty, surveillance, abandoned cities, religious resistance movements, and corporate control, while the wealthy and privileged live much of their lives inside sensory tanks. Against this sharp divide, author Darcy builds a story that is part cyberpunk adventure, part political rebellion, part coming-of-age drama, and part tender, slow-burning romance.
The novel follows two beautifully contrasted protagonists: Bache Parker, a gifted former hacker whose access to the Inside has been destroyed after a disastrous raid, and Ayven Reynolds, a blind sixteen-year-old from a New Green commune in the Cascade Mountains. Bache is bitter, funny, wounded, reckless, and deeply lonely; Ayven is brave, perceptive, principled, and far less fragile than the world around her assumes. Their first meeting itself sets the tone for one of the book’s strongest elements: the gradual, electric, emotionally complicated trust that develops between them.
What stands out most is the worldbuilding. Author Darcy’s future Seattle is vivid and cinematic with tank towers, Bootjack patrols, abandoned districts, underground routes, access decks, meat-minders, body tanks, hackers, New Greens, and the wealthy Avar society of the Inside. The contrast between Ayven’s mountain world and Bache’s decaying city world gives the novel a strong ideological tension. Neither side is treated as wholly pure. The Inside offers beauty, safety, pleasure, and freedom from bodily limitation, but it also enables abandonment, inequality, and disconnection from the dying physical world. The New Greens value nature, community, and embodiment, but their society also contains patriarchy, coercion, secrecy, and fanaticism.
Bache and Ayven are the emotional heart of the novel. Their bond works because it is not instant perfection. It begins with suspicion, betrayal, practical necessity, and ideological disagreement before becoming intimate. Bache’s cynicism meets Ayven’s moral seriousness; Ayven’s sheltered certainty meets Bache’s painful knowledge of systems, power, and compromise. Their conversations about reality, illusion, the body, technology, nature, and freedom are some of the book’s most thoughtful passages.
The secondary characters are also strong. Dex and Sarna bring history, loyalty, guilt, and urgency to Bache’s arc, while Seth and Elijah complicate Ayven’s world in very different ways. Elijah, in particular, is an effective antagonist because he wraps control in the language of faith and collective duty. Billy Severn’s presence adds another layer of menace, connecting personal grievance to large-scale violence. Linus Ross and NeuroGen, meanwhile, deepen the book’s critique of corporate power, inherited privilege, and the myth of technological salvation.
That said, Extropia is a substantial read. The book is long, dense, and structurally expansive, with many moving parts: political history, hacker mythology, tank technology, religious ideology, romance, pursuit, rebellion, and corporate conspiracy. Readers looking for a lean, fast sci-fi thriller may find the pacing deliberate in places, especially where the novel pauses to explain the mechanics of the Inside or the political situation outside it. However, for readers who enjoy immersive speculative fiction with emotional stakes and layered worldbuilding, that density becomes part of the appeal.
Overall, Extropia is a compelling, richly imagined, and emotional dystopian sci-fi novel. It combines cyberpunk atmosphere, ecological anxiety, class conflict, forbidden romance, and questions of identity into a story that feels both intimate and large in scope.
The novel follows two beautifully contrasted protagonists: Bache Parker, a gifted former hacker whose access to the Inside has been destroyed after a disastrous raid, and Ayven Reynolds, a blind sixteen-year-old from a New Green commune in the Cascade Mountains. Bache is bitter, funny, wounded, reckless, and deeply lonely; Ayven is brave, perceptive, principled, and far less fragile than the world around her assumes. Their first meeting itself sets the tone for one of the book’s strongest elements: the gradual, electric, emotionally complicated trust that develops between them.
What stands out most is the worldbuilding. Author Darcy’s future Seattle is vivid and cinematic with tank towers, Bootjack patrols, abandoned districts, underground routes, access decks, meat-minders, body tanks, hackers, New Greens, and the wealthy Avar society of the Inside. The contrast between Ayven’s mountain world and Bache’s decaying city world gives the novel a strong ideological tension. Neither side is treated as wholly pure. The Inside offers beauty, safety, pleasure, and freedom from bodily limitation, but it also enables abandonment, inequality, and disconnection from the dying physical world. The New Greens value nature, community, and embodiment, but their society also contains patriarchy, coercion, secrecy, and fanaticism.
Bache and Ayven are the emotional heart of the novel. Their bond works because it is not instant perfection. It begins with suspicion, betrayal, practical necessity, and ideological disagreement before becoming intimate. Bache’s cynicism meets Ayven’s moral seriousness; Ayven’s sheltered certainty meets Bache’s painful knowledge of systems, power, and compromise. Their conversations about reality, illusion, the body, technology, nature, and freedom are some of the book’s most thoughtful passages.
The secondary characters are also strong. Dex and Sarna bring history, loyalty, guilt, and urgency to Bache’s arc, while Seth and Elijah complicate Ayven’s world in very different ways. Elijah, in particular, is an effective antagonist because he wraps control in the language of faith and collective duty. Billy Severn’s presence adds another layer of menace, connecting personal grievance to large-scale violence. Linus Ross and NeuroGen, meanwhile, deepen the book’s critique of corporate power, inherited privilege, and the myth of technological salvation.
That said, Extropia is a substantial read. The book is long, dense, and structurally expansive, with many moving parts: political history, hacker mythology, tank technology, religious ideology, romance, pursuit, rebellion, and corporate conspiracy. Readers looking for a lean, fast sci-fi thriller may find the pacing deliberate in places, especially where the novel pauses to explain the mechanics of the Inside or the political situation outside it. However, for readers who enjoy immersive speculative fiction with emotional stakes and layered worldbuilding, that density becomes part of the appeal.
Overall, Extropia is a compelling, richly imagined, and emotional dystopian sci-fi novel. It combines cyberpunk atmosphere, ecological anxiety, class conflict, forbidden romance, and questions of identity into a story that feels both intimate and large in scope.
May 26, 2026
I loved Extropia! It didn't take long before I felt completely immersed in the futuristic world Jae Darcy created. The "Inside" virtual world premise was both alluring and unsettling, and felt eerily close to a future we could actually be heading toward. I felt very connected to the two main characters, Ayven and Bache, but I also fell in love with the supporting characters. The pacing kept me completely hooked, and the ending was surprising, exciting, and emotional. I also really enjoyed the romantic tension and how it built throughout the book. Smart, compelling, and hard to put down. Five stars!
May 22, 2026
Clear your schedule! I received this book this morning. Absolutely amazing. I couldn't put it down and finished it in one day! I really hope the author writes more! I was fully expecting to hear others raving about it in public. It played out like a movie in my head, great characters and development. The crossover between reality and what could be reality is phenomenal. I can't wait for more! Everything comes together seamlessly with twists and turns along the way. Could be a stand alone book, but I'd *love* to see more. Total page-turner! Highly recommend!
September 8, 2026
Another Great Read - AI Possibilities
MC is maliciously blinded due to terrorist rebels as a child. Amnesia of life prior to attack and separated from her Family. Only knows her kidnappers as her "family". Luddites persecuted by ruling society, world changed, love and subterfuge. Well written, fun reading.
MC is maliciously blinded due to terrorist rebels as a child. Amnesia of life prior to attack and separated from her Family. Only knows her kidnappers as her "family". Luddites persecuted by ruling society, world changed, love and subterfuge. Well written, fun reading.
May 11, 2026
This is a perfect book for the moment ! Relevant to our times - but not pessimistic or pedantic. The world - building is intriguing and the young characters are well- drawn — sympathetic, smart and complex. I loved that the plot was unpredictable. The writing is top notch for this type of YA genre book. I hope there will be a sequel!
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews