Birthright — A Near-Future Novel
Coming on February 21st
In a country optimized to perfection, one imperfect choice could change everything.
Europe, 2096. Half a century after the Big Drop, the collapse of global birthrates, almost every child is now a Regular: genetically tuned, born in artificial wombs, and raised in state-run Centers designed for perfection. Those born the old way, Natural-Borns, live in their own districts, remnants of a past fading from view.
Seventeen-year-old Grace is in her final year at a Center, her days kept on track by AI-guided human caretakers. She has never questioned her place, always grateful for her perfect upbringing—until she is gifted a banned book that awakens her longing to see beyond the Center’s walls.
On a school trip to Natural-Born District 1, she meets Tom, whose unscripted life is full of things she’s only read about: families built on warmth and choice, landscapes growing organically, futures that aren’t prewritten. Drawn to him and his different world, Grace starts bending rules—sneaking out, clashing with friends, deceiving caretakers—and she sees what Regulars aren’t meant to see.
When a charismatic minister drives a referendum to outlaw natural birth “for the children’s sake”, violence flares, and Grace and Tom’s bond collides with old wounds, a fragile new secret, and the cost of exposure. With days dwindling and the system tightening its grip, Grace must make a decision: accept the flawless future she was raised for—or fight for a life no one else believes in.
Tense, intimate, and plausibly near, Birthright asks: when technology replaces a mother’s womb, who decides how we are made? And who we become? For readers of Klara and the Sun, Handmaid’s Tale, and The School for Good Mothers.
What Readers Are Saying
“Thought provoking. Makes you ponder what gives us purpose.” — Charmaine Chua, Singapore
“Tackles the deeply human struggles that we are confronted with in our brave new AI world. An absorbing mix of utopia and dystopia.” — Rosalee Edwards, UK
“A story of a world without work worth diving into. With a fine eye for individual implications and the time ahead.” — Johannes Schneider, Germany
“The societal and personal conflicts of this scarily realistic future pulled me in immediately. Not just entertaining, but this book provokes highly relevant thoughts about our future with AI." — Daniel Baumann, Germany
“A relatable yet futuristic book about what it means to be human - through work, technology, and love.” — Amanda Siegel, US
“Malterer paints a meticulous picture of 2038 around them, with realistic technological advancements of the very near future and political and social dynamics that feel both new and familiar. Readers can see how these factors shape their attitudes and affect the decisions they make in the plot." — K.C. Finn @ Readers’ Favorite
Reading Group Guide
Coming soon.
The Human Relief Project
What would you miss in a world without work?
In 2038, the Human Relief Project is using AI to eradicate labor, freeing people from jobs, one relief facility at a time. Bert, after years of struggle, finally believes he’s found purpose as a Project Conductor. But every profession he helps relieve leaves new fractures: a new partner who keeps pressing him with hard questions, a mother unmoored after her own relief, and friends and family split over what progress should look like.
Meanwhile Alex, the Project's new leader, faces fierce opposition as she pushes toward a workless future most can’t yet imagine. With Hive, the Project’s central AI, she removes one obstacle after another — stubborn politicians, greedy governments, a wary public — believing a world without work is worth the painful discomfort of change.
As global relief nears completion, events on the world stage and in Bert’s childhood home converge, pulling Alex and Bert into a shared crisis that forces a reckoning with purpose, dignity, and what we owe one another when work is no longer the measure of a life.
Set in a plausible near future shaped by AI, The Human Relief Project is a tense, human story about identity, meaning, and the costs — and promise — of progress. It ultimately asks: If work ends, what remains of us? And who gets to decide?
What Readers Are Saying
“Thought provoking. Makes you ponder what gives us purpose.” — Charmaine Chua, Singapore
“Tackles the deeply human struggles that we are confronted with in our brave new AI world. An absorbing mix of utopia and dystopia.” — Rosalee Edwards, UK
“A story of a world without work worth diving into. With a fine eye for individual implications and the time ahead.” — Johannes Schneider, Germany
“The societal and personal conflicts of this scarily realistic future pulled me in immediately. Not just entertaining, but this book provokes highly relevant thoughts about our future with AI." — Daniel Baumann, Germany
“A relatable yet futuristic book about what it means to be human - through work, technology, and love.” — Amanda Siegel, US
“Malterer paints a meticulous picture of 2038 around them, with realistic technological advancements of the very near future and political and social dynamics that feel both new and familiar. Readers can see how these factors shape their attitudes and affect the decisions they make in the plot." — K.C. Finn @ Readers’ Favorite
Reading Group Guide
Organizing or part of a book club and in need of some discussion questions? Look no further than our reading group guide, just watch out for the spoilers!