The Net is the sequel to Redeemed from Time.

If the first book in the Soft Apocalypse trilogy gathered up the past, unpacking the
way ‘what has been’ impacts the present, its sequel lands us in the present. It doesn’t
matter if that ‘present’ is some way in the future; the same things will entangle us
then as they do now.

Britain, in The Net, is coping with a political crisis as the old patterns of government
ring increasingly hollow. There’s rebellion in the air. But many are also seeking
escape. While the Euphoria Church is gathering momentum. Clean, a new political
party, is attracting millions of followers. Violent protest is on the rise. There is a
sense that change is inevitable and that nothing will be the same again.

Pee-Bee is wrestling with his own demons. The events, recounted in Redeemed from
Time, have affected him deeply; he now has to work out who he is and what he wants.
That’s a tough call when little seems stable or secure. One thing soon becomes clear:
there are hostile forces aligning and he seems to be in their sights. He is not the only
one threatened, however, and survival means forging alliances. Pee-Bee is obliged to
call again on the support of Melchizedek, while still deeply suspicious of what this
man’s personal agenda is. As he navigates his way forward, Pee-Bee has to work out
the difference between a net, which saves you from falling, and a trap.

In Redeemed from Time, Pee-Bee was still an adolescent. Home life was no bed of
roses but he knew where he stood. The challenges he had to face, while searching for
his grandfather, were a significant challenge. The Net shows Pee-Bee, a couple of
years older, moving into independent adulthood, testing the way forward. Clouds
Unfold, the final book in this trilogy, will continue his journey. The way the
challenges he encounters are resolved will reveal an intriguing projection of the
future for our species.