Ashlords

Ashlords is a prime example of young adult (YA) dystopian literature, a genre that has flourished since the early 2000s but has its roots in literature going back over a century. Traditionally, dystopian literature features future fictional societies that are bleak and oppressive as a result of their political and social structures. Dystopian novels function as a form of social critique, highlighting and hyperbolizing negative aspects of modern society as a warning for the future. Consequently, many, if not most, works of dystopian literature take place in the near or distant future, often with overlapping elements of science fiction or speculative fiction. Key examples include 1984 by George Orwell, Brave New World by Aldous Huxley, Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, and The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood.

Young adult dystopian literature focuses on many of the same themes through the lens of the fears and insecurities that teenagers face in the modern world. The early 21st-century boom in YA dystopian literature coincided with social issues such as increased surveillance, climate change, the rise of authoritarian governments, and the ever-increasing importance of