In a near future, where civilisation has collapsed, a government of youth has taken power in North America. All older people deemed responsible for the cataclysmic climate emergency are relocated, but a breakaway group escapes exile to seek freedom … at devastating cost…

'The dystopian future landscape of The Forcing comes with a heightened realism that grips and shakes you … provocative and insightful, visceral and terrifying' SciFi Now Book of the Month

‘A superbly handled tale of struggle and survival in a maimed world’ The Times

'Smart, gripping, and all too plausible … announces Paul E. Hardisty as the true heir to John Christopher' Tim Glister

The jaw-dropping, passionate and provocative climate-emergency thriller from one of the world's leading environmental scientists.

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Civilisation is collapsing…

Frustrated and angry after years of denial and inaction, in a last-ditch attempt to stave off disaster, a government of youth has taken power in North America, and a policy of institutionalised ageism has been introduced. All those older than the prescribed age are deemed responsible for the current state of the world, and are to be 'relocated', their property and assets confiscated.

David Ashworth, known by his friends and students as Teacher, and his wife May, find themselves among the thousands being moved to 'new accommodation' in the abandoned southern deserts – thrown together with a wealthy industrialist and his wife, a high court lawyer, two recent immigrants to America, and a hospital worker. Together, they must come to terms with their new lives in a land rendered unrecognisable.


As the terrible truth of their situation is revealed, lured by rumours of a tropical sanctuary where they can live in peace, they plan a perilous escape. But the world outside is more dangerous than they could ever have imagined. And for those who survive, nothing will ever be the same again…
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'A compelling, moving story of survival in a dying world … a novel that might have actually predicted our future' Ewan Morrison

'A bold, beautifully written and imagined novel about an all-too plausible future – Paul Hardisty is a visionary' Luke McCallin

'Hardisty is a fine writer' Lee Child

'An excellent blend of deep suspense, thriller and – to be honest – horror. The message within it is all too plausible, the solution to the problem distinctly chilling' James Oswald

'Fierce, thoughtful, deeply humane and always compelling … the tension builds from page one and never relents' David Whish-Wilson

'Outstanding! Thrilling and thought provoking. If there's any justice, this book will be HUGE!!!' Michael J Malone

‘A clear-eyed reckoning with social and political currents we don't like to examine … tough, suspenseful and action-packed’ Jock Serong

'The book I've been waiting and hoping for…' Paul Waters

What readers are saying…

‘Stark, gripping, often poignant’

‘Riveting and suspenseful’

‘A twist I didn’t see coming’

‘Dark and disturbing’

‘I got a real Atwood vibe’

‘A masterpiece’

‘Powerfully told’

‘Full of pace’

‘An author at the very top of his craft’

‘The biting intensity of a thriller and the majestic world-building of a classic dystopian tale’