Liminal States

Lore & Background

The novel's first section, The Builder, is set in 1871 in Spark, Nevada. Sheriff Warren Groves and his wife Annie face Gideon Long, son of a copper magnate, who covets Annie. After a failed train robbery, Gideon is led to a pool of white liquid in black mountains; its waters melt his flesh, and he is reborn. He later throws Warren into the pool, giving him the same immortality. The two kill each other repeatedly until a second Gideon emerges from the pool. In 1890, five Gideons and four Warrens agree to a covenant: each clone takes a new name, abandons his old life, and avoids contact with other clones.

The middle section, The Judge (set in 1951), is narrated by Casper Cord, a former cop and judge of the covenant. He investigates the murder of a woman resembling Annie Groves. Casper learns he has cancer, possibly from fighting in a version of World War II that lasted until 1948. He returns to Spark to find the pool drained, and is captured and lobotomized by the Gideons. The final section, The Mother (set in 2006), sees Casper reborn alongside many clones of himself, Gideon, and a woman named Veronica. The pool now produces vast numbers of clones, and Los Angeles suffers from diseases and blight from other worlds. A dog containing the spirit of the Reificant warns Casper of impending disaster.

Reader's Guide

Liminal States is significant as a genre-blending work that uses immortality to explore themes of identity, conflict, and historical divergence. Its three-section structure—western, noir, and science fiction/horror—allows the narrative to shift tone and setting while following the same immortal characters across more than a century. The novel's alternate history, in which World War II extends to 1948 and Los Angeles becomes a blighted zone, creates a backdrop for examining the consequences of unchecked power and replication. The related serial 'The Reificant,' published on Something Awful, expands the mythology by introducing an alien perspective on the same immortality. The novel's reception, while not detailed in the source, is part of its legacy as a cult work that integrates serialized online fiction with a published book. Its exploration of clone societies and the covenant's rules offers a unique take on the costs of eternal life.

Did You Know?

• The novel is divided into three main sections: The Builder, The Judge, and The Mother.
• The related serial 'The Reificant' was published in chapters between February 2 and March 23, 2012, on Something Awful.
• In the novel's alternate history, World War II lasted until 1948.
• The pool of white liquid produces clones of Warren, Gideon, and Veronica, referred to as Type A (Warren), Type B (Gideon), and Type C (Veronica).