Night Roll

New mother and climate refugee Aileen Dupree has been abandoned by her partner in post- industrial Detroit. Her neighbor, Virgil, is Aileen's only connection to the outside world. But then Virgil borrows Aileen's prized possession - a chrome and leather, royal blue fourteen-speed bike - and disappears. Looking for answers, Aileen hears strange stories of the Elf, a timeless being that always fought the colonizers and capitalists of Detroit, and now leads the Night Roll on a race through the city's disintegrating streets. It is up to Aileen to brave the strange magic of the Night Roll and bring Virgil back. But what can the Elf teach her about her new life? And what must she pay for that knowledge?


Genre: Science Fiction

"Night Roll is one of the most vivid and captivating works of near future fiction I have read in a long time. The story of a woman left alone with her newborn in a collapsing Detroit, it follows her journey of discovery into the new communities that emerge from our slow-burn apocalypse, germinating the seeds of a more hopeful tomorrow firmly rooted in a sober assessment of the now and the deeper colonial and ecological history of North America. DeLuca's gifts for drawing out the pockets of wild nature resurgent within the concrete canyons of the city are enough to hold my attention throughout, but the fresh authenticity of voice and vulnerable but committed charisma of his characters are what keep you turning the pages of this compelling novella." - Christopher Brown

"Michael J. DeLuca has written a lyrical, deeply affecting, and ultimately thrilling love letter to Detroit past, present, and future. An alchemical mix of science fiction, urban fantasy, and magical realism, this gripping novella calls out with remarkable compassion and grace. Night Roll sings." - Robert Levy