Sanctuary by James Cleary

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✦ BLURB ✦

The near future…

Climate disasters have crippled the United States. With half the country under water and the other half a dust bowl, civil unrest would soon escalate into something darker, something unstoppable. Billionaire John Brandt anticipated this and channeled his money, power, and influence into being prepared for the great unraveling.

Now Brandt, his family, and his security team must retreat to Sanctuary, their underground bunker—a vast luxury mansion beneath the parched earth of the Nebraskan Great Plains. But they are not alone. Above ground a group of raiders are desperate to survive and will use any means possible to accomplish that goal.

As tensions mount both inside and out, battle lines are drawn— between the haves and the have-nots, between decency and expediency, between life and death. In this game, everyone’s a loser.

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✶ PRE-READING ✶

I always enjoy a good post apoc read, and bunkers are of special interest. This looks like being a pretty dark look and I'm interested to see how it goes.

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✶ POST-READING ✶

As I thought... yes, it's a darkpocalypse. James uses a few ideas I haven't seen before and leans into the 'humans will do what it takes to survive' idea very strongly.

It surprised me by... How dark it went. I'm used to apocalypses, but this really went dark, especially towards the end. I was also a little surprised that the raiders thought they maybe had enough food to get through the first winter, if they were lucky. After a time skip, they were approaching the second winter and just starting to run out of food, while explicitly no one had gone out foraging. So I'm not sure what happened there!

✦ MUSIC PAIRING ✦

Because sometimes, the heart of a story plays out like a song.

Featured Song:

“Run” – Hozier
Brutal, atmospheric, and full of that “civilization has burnt down but human emotion is still a live wire” feeling.

Vibe Album:

“Post” – Björk
Chaotic, industrial, intimate, explosive.
Ideal for a world falling apart and the humans trying not to follow suit.

Artist Recommendation:

Chelsea Wolfe
Dark, apocalyptic, raw - perfect for bunker tension and moral unravelling.

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🎨 Vibe Check

• Colour Palette: Rust red, bunker steel grey, scorched tan, blackout black, toxic yellow

• Soundtrack: Distant gunfire, rattling vents, humming generators, wind across dead plains

• Season: Permanent drought

• Mood: Claustrophobic dread meets survival brutality

• Scent: Cold metal, dust storms, sweat, recycled air, smoke

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📚 For Fans Of

Book: The Water Knife by Paolo Bacigalupi
(climate collapse + ruthless survival + power struggles)

TV/Movie: Snowpiercer
(class conflict, confinement, moral decay, everyone losing even when they “win”)

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★ TAROT CARD PULLED ★

🔮 Seven of Swords (Nightfall Tarot)

In Nightfall, the Seven of Swords depicts a figure sneaking away from a camp, swords in hand, while a small group gathers around a distant campfire. It’s a card of cunning, strategy, and survival in morally gray spaces.

For Sanctuary, it captures the tense, post-apocalyptic landscape perfectly: the raiders above ground, the bunker inhabitants, and the desperate measures each group takes to survive. It’s about stealth, risk, and the choices people make when every decision has high stakes. The campfire in the background hints at community under pressure - some trying to protect, others trying to take advantage - reflecting the novel’s complex web of power, morality, and survival.