Standalone Novels
| Title | Published | Buy on Amazon |
|---|---|---|
| The Cautious Traveller’s Guide to the Wastelands | 2024 | Buy |
Sarah Brooks published her first novel in 2024 to considerable critical attention. The Cautious Traveller’s Guide to the Wastelands is set aboard the Trans-Siberian Express as it crosses a region known as the Wastelands — a vast and strange territory that has been changed by some unexplained event and is now home to phenomena that defy ordinary understanding. Passengers are warned not to look out the windows. Not everyone listens.
The book has drawn comparisons to literary fantasy writers who prioritize atmosphere and language over plot mechanics. Brooks builds her world through the perspectives of several characters aboard the train, each with their own reasons for making the crossing. The Wastelands themselves are never fully explained, which suits the tone — it is a book interested in how people respond to the unknown rather than in resolving the unknown itself.