Inferno Author Todd Riemer

"Inferno," is the first work of fiction by novelist Todd Riemer. Riemer, a Los Angeles native, wrote the book over a two-year period and was highly influenced by such classics as "1984," "A Clockwork Orange," "Brave New World," "Waiting for the Barbarians" and "Fahrenheit 451."

The themes that guide the story are the quest for revenge, spiritual enlightenment, and the meaning of justice, all set in the background of a classic dystopian novel.

Riemer guides the reader through a post-apocalyptic future ruled by the despotic Magistrates. The hero, Blum, quests to overthrow their authoritarian regime in order to avenge the death of his lover, Isabelle. Blum makes an unholy pact with the Midnight Man, putting his soul on the line for the opportunity to kill those who have murdered his beloved. As he struggles through Wasteland and Metropolis, he learns that even the price of his soul may not be enough to redeem her. The themes in Riemer's prose challenge his reader, as “Inferno creates” a new verbal landscape in which characters fulfill sexual fantasies, explore mind-altering ways to connect with God, and try to stop the horrific “purification” of the world. Though starkly modern, Riemer draws on historical parallels that ground his vision of the future in a past that is frighteningly familiar to us all.