Emily Wagner’s Go Back is a harrowing and emotionally raw dystopian novel that unfolds in a near-future America where the government, in partnership with an anti-tech movement known as Go Back (GB), launches a sweeping crackdown on technology under the guise of public safety and mental health. The story follows Sarah Grimes, a reluctant tech journalist turned whistleblower, whose life is upended when she becomes entangled in a web of corruption, coercion, and underground resistance. With alternating perspectives and gripping prose, Wagner exposes the consequences of blindly trading freedom for a false sense of order.

The writing is intimate and electric. Wagner has a way of pulling you in and making you feel every drop of fear, anger, and hope. Her characters, especially Sarah and Olivia, are vivid and fully human, both strong and vulnerable in a world that punishes both. The world-building was solid. It’s familiar enough to be plausible, but jarring in how quickly things spiral. I especially loved the way Wagner slowly peels back the layers of the GB movement. It doesn’t hit you all at once. It sneaks up, just like the movement does in the story. The slow burn is terrifying because it feels real.

Some of the plot developments were so twisted and bleak that I had to put the book down and catch my breath. There’s a sense of hopelessness that creeps in by design, but I wish there were a few more glimmers of resistance that actually gained ground. Even when characters fight back, they seem to get swallowed by the system. Maybe that’s the point, though. Wagner doesn’t sugarcoat the fight for truth or justice. It’s ugly, it’s thankless, and sometimes, it’s fatal. But there’s beauty in the way her characters cling to humanity, even when it’s stripped from them.

Go Back is not just a story about tech or politics; it’s about control, freedom, and the price of silence. This book is for readers who love thought-provoking and emotionally intense dystopias like The Handmaid’s Tale or 1984. If you’ve ever wondered how much you’d be willing to sacrifice for the illusion of safety or how quickly a society can be undone, this one will resonate with you.

Pages: 284 | ISBN : 978-1967547166