--- title: Thank you Da Book Joint! description: Who is Dani Matthews Really? image: https://damurrayofficial.com/hubfs/20260926_132232.jpg --- [Go Back Up](https://damurrayofficial.com/blog/thank-you-da-book-joint#top) [Skip to Content](https://damurrayofficial.com/blog/thank-you-da-book-joint#body) ## D. A. Murray Toggle Menu - [Home](https://damurrayofficial.com) - [Dominion](https://damurrayofficial.com/dominion) Toggle children for Dominion Main Menu (Press to Return) \> Dominion - [Characters](https://damurrayofficial.com/characters) - [Companion](https://damurrayofficial.com/companion) - [Book Clubs](https://damurrayofficial.com/book-club-kit) - [Events](https://damurrayofficial.com/events) - [About D.A.Murray](https://damurrayofficial.com/about) - [Blog](https://damurrayofficial.com/blog) - [Subscribe](https://damurrayofficial.com/email-capture) - [Contact](https://damurrayofficial.com/contact) # Thank you Da Book Joint! 1 min read [mailto:?subject=Thank%20you%20Da%20Book%20Joint%21&body=https%3A%2F%2Fdamurrayofficial.com%2Fblog%2Fthank-you-da-book-joint](mailto:?subject=Thank%20you%20Da%20Book%20Joint%21&body=https%3A%2F%2Fdamurrayofficial.com%2Fblog%2Fthank-you-da-book-joint) # Thank You, Da Book Joint! What a wonderful afternoon at Da Book Joint! Thank you to everyone who came out to celebrate *Dominion: Ascension* with me. Meeting readers, sharing the story, and signing books made the day so special. I’m grateful to Da Book Joint for welcoming me and to every person who stopped by, listened to the reading, picked up a copy, or took a moment to say hello. It means so much to see this story finding its way into your hands and conversations. I had a great time meeting everyone, and I’m already looking forward to another book signing soon. Until then, thank you for being part of the *Dominion* journey! #DominionAscension #DaBookJoint #BookSigning #ThankYouReaders ## D. A. Murray ## Bring Dominion to Your Book Club [Get the Kit](Here%20are%20four%20separate%20draft%20blog%20posts%20you%20can%20use%20or%20adapt.%20%20***%20%20##%202.%20“Who%20Is%20Dani%20Matthews,%20Really?”%20%20On%20the%20surface,%20Dani%20Matthews%20is%20exactly%20what%20Dominion%20wants%20her%20to%20be:%20a%20successful%20investigative%20reporter%20for%20a%20respected%20outlet,%20an%20educated%20woman%20thriving%20in%20a%20world%20designed%20by%20and%20for%20women.%20%20But%20from%20the%20opening%20pages%20of%20Dominion:%20Ascension,%20we%20see%20that%20Dani%20is%20carrying%20a%20private%20war%20inside%20herself—between%20loyalty%20to%20her%20mother%20and%20loyalty%20to%20the%20truth,%20between%20the%20safety%20of%20silence%20and%20the%20danger%20of%20asking%20the%20wrong%20questions.[1][2][3]%20%20Dani’s%20journey%20begins%20with%20a%20mystery%20that%20most%20of%20Dominion%20has%20already%20decided%20to%20forget:%20the%20death%20of%20her%20father.%20%20Officially,%20he%20died%20of%20a%20ruptured%20aneurysm,%20a%20neat%20and%20tidy%20explanation%20that%20never%20sat%20right%20with%20his%20daughter.%20%20Over%20time,%20Dani’s%20doubt%20hardened%20into%20obsession,%20then%20into%20a%20vocation—she%20becomes%20an%20investigative%20reporter%20because%20she%20cannot%20live%20in%20a%20world%20where%20uncomfortable%20truths%20are%20conveniently%20edited%20out.%20%20Her%20work%20is%20not%20a%20career%20pivot;%20it%20is%20a%20quiet%20act%20of%20rebellion.[3][1]%20%20Her%20relationship%20with%20her%20mother,%20Linda,%20is%20the%20emotional%20fault%20line%20that%20runs%20through%20the%20book.%20%20Linda%20is%20a%20brilliant%20scientist%20whose%20early%20work%20on%20intelligence%20testing%20was%20intended%20to%20remove%20bias%20and%20expand%20opportunity,%20especially%20for%20marginalized%20communities.%20%20Those%20same%20methods%20are%20later%20weaponized%20into%20Illegis,%20the%20system%20that%20fences%20men%20into%20fixed%20roles%20and%20locks%20an%20entire%20gender%20into%20state-managed%20destinies.%20%20Where%20Dominion%20sees%20Linda%20as%20a%20savior,%20Dani%20sees%20a%20woman%20who%20helped%20build%20a%20cage—and%20then%20chose%20to%20stay%20proud%20of%20it.[4][5][1]%20%20That%20tension%20between%20mother%20and%20daughter%20is%20more%20than%20personal%20drama;%20it’s%20a%20mirror%20of%20the%20world%20they%20inhabit.%20Dominion%20is%20a%20nation%20that%20rose%20out%20of%20devastation%20after%20The%20Great%20War,%20when%20bioweapons%20left%20many%20men%20infertile%20and%20cognitively%20impaired.%20%20The%20solution%20was%20drastic:%20women%20assumed%20full%20political%20control,%20and%20the%20state%20created%20a%20“rational”%20system%20to%20assign%20men%20to%20one%20of%20several%20tracks,%20including%20the%20highly%20controlled%20Breeders.%20%20Dani%20has%20only%20ever%20known%20this%20world,%20yet%20something%20in%20her%20refuses%20to%20accept%20that%20justice%20requires%20stripping%20others%20of%20the%20right%20to%20choose%20their%20own%20lives.[2][5][1]%20%20I%20wrote%20Dani%20to%20embody%20the%20questions%20Dominion%20doesn’t%20want%20to%20ask%20itself.%20What%20happens%20when%20liberation%20for%20one%20group%20is%20built%20on%20quiet%20oppression%20of%20another?%20%20How%20far%20can%20we%20go%20in%20the%20name%20of%20safety%20before%20we%20lose%20the%20very%20humanity%20we%20claim%20to%20protect?%20Dani%20is%20not%20a%20perfect%20heroine;%20she%20is%20impulsive,%20stubborn,%20and%20at%20times%20ruled%20by%20anger%20and%20regret.%20%20She%20imagines%20violent%20acts%20she%20would%20never%20commit,%20resents%20her%20mother,%20and%20second-guesses%20herself%20more%20than%20she%20would%20ever%20admit%20in%20public.%20%20But%20that%20mix%20of%20courage%20and%20conflict%20is%20what%20makes%20her%20the%20right%20person%20to%20step%20into%20the%20dangerous%20spaces%20Dominion%20prefers%20to%20leave%20in%20the%20dark.[1][3]%20%20As%20the%20story%20unfolds,%20Dani’s%20work%20as%20a%20reporter%20drags%20her%20deeper%20into%20the%20inner%20workings%20of%20the%20Breeder%20system,%20transformation%20camps,%20and%20resistance%20groups%20like%20Hangar%208.%20%20Every%20new%20piece%20of%20information%20forces%20her%20to%20choose:%20will%20she%20protect%20her%20own%20comfort%20and%20her%20mother’s%20legacy,%20or%20will%20she%20follow%20the%20story%20wherever%20it%20leads—even%20if%20that%20means%20exposing%20the%20truth%20about%20the%20world%20that%20raised%20her?%20%20In%20many%20ways,%20Dominique’s%20future%20depends%20less%20on%20its%20laws%20and%20more%20on%20what%20Dani%20decides%20to%20do%20with%20what%20she%20knows.[2][1]%20%20If%20you’ve%20ever%20felt%20caught%20between%20the%20story%20your%20family%20tells%20and%20the%20reality%20you%20feel%20in%20your%20bones,%20I%20suspect%20you%20will%20recognize%20something%20of%20yourself%20in%20Dani%20Matthews.%20%20Dominion%20may%20be%20a%20speculative%20world,%20but%20Dani’s%20longing—for%20truth,%20for%20justice,%20for%20a%20way%20to%20love%20her%20mother%20without%20becoming%20her—is%20deeply%20human.[3][1]%20%20***%20%20##%206.%20“For%20Book%20Clubs:%2010%20Questions%20Dominion%20Always%20Sparks”%20%20Dominion:%20Ascension%20was%20written%20with%20book%20clubs%20and%20reading%20groups%20in%20mind.%20%20Its%20matriarchal%20government,%20Illegis%20testing%20system,%20and%20Breeder%20colonies%20raise%20the%20kind%20of%20questions%20that%20linger%20long%20after%20the%20last%20page—and%20that%20makes%20for%20rich,%20sometimes%20heated,%20conversations.[6][1][2][3]%20%20If%20your%20club%20is%20considering%20adding%20Dominion%20to%20your%20April%20or%20spring%20lineup,%20here%20are%20ten%20spoiler-light%20questions%20to%20get%20you%20started.%20You%20can%20also%20download%20the%20full,%20free%20Book%20Club%20Kit—which%20includes%20expanded%20questions,%20character%20spotlights,%20and%20themed%20prompts—on%20my%20website.[7][6]%20%201.%20In%20the%20opening%20chapter,%20Dani%20describes%20“uncovering%20the%20truth%20at%20all%20costs”%20as%20her%20North%20Star.%20%20What%20does%20“truth%20at%20all%20costs”%20mean%20in%20your%20own%20life,%20and%20where%20do%20you%20draw%20the%20line%20between%20truth%20and%20harm?[1]%202.%20Linda’s%20Illegis%20test%20was%20originally%20designed%20to%20remove%20bias%20and%20promote%20fairness%20but%20becomes%20a%20tool%20of%20control.%20%20Can%20you%20think%20of%20real-world%20systems%20or%20technologies%20that%20started%20with%20good%20intentions%20and%20evolved%20into%20something%20more%20troubling?[5][1]%203.%20Dominion%20frames%20its%20woman-led%20government%20as%20a%20necessary%20response%20to%20war%20and%20male-led%20destruction.%20%20Did%20you%20find%20yourself%20sympathizing%20with%20that%20argument%20at%20any%20point?%20Why%20or%20why%20not?[2][1]%204.%20The%20Singletary%20bands%20define%20each%20man’s%20societal%20role%20at%20a%20glance.%20%20How%20does%20that%20visual%20classification%20compare%20to%20the%20labels%20we%20use%20today—job%20titles,%20social%20media%20bios,%20identities—and%20how%20they%20shape%20our%20assumptions%20about%20people?[1][2]%205.%20Breeders%20are%20simultaneously%20exalted%20and%20tightly%20controlled.%20%20What%20parallels%20do%20you%20see%20between%20their%20status%20and%20how%20societies%20treat%20people%20whose%20bodies%20or%20labor%20are%20considered%20“essential”?[5][1]%206.%20Dani’s%20relationship%20with%20her%20mother%20is%20fraught%20but%20deeply%20bonded,%20a%20mix%20of%20admiration,%20disappointment,%20and%20anger.%20%20How%20does%20their%20dynamic%20influence%20how%20you%20read%20Dani’s%20choices%20throughout%20the%20book?[4][1]%207.%20Dominion%20claims%20to%20have%20eradicated%20certain%20diseases%20and%20“optimized”%20future%20generations%20through%20genetic%20editing%20and%20strict%20reproduction%20policies.%20%20How%20do%20you%20personally%20balance%20the%20promise%20of%20science%20with%20concerns%20about%20ethics%20and%20consent?[5][1]%208.%20Resistance%20in%20Dominion%20takes%20many%20forms:%20underground%20movements,%20quiet%20acts%20of%20refusal,%20strategic%20compromise.%20%20Which%20forms%20of%20resistance%20did%20you%20find%20most%20compelling%20or%20realistic,%20and%20why?[3][1]%209.%20The%20world%20outside%20Dominion’s%20polished%20cities%20still%20bears%20the%20scars%20of%20The%20Great%20War.%20%20In%20what%20ways%20does%20the%20setting%20itself%20act%20as%20a%20character,%20shaping%20the%20fears%20and%20decisions%20of%20those%20in%20power?[2][1]%2010.%20If%20Dominion%20were%20real,%20where%20do%20you%20think%20you%20would%20fit%20in%20this%20world—as%20a%20leader,%20a%20dissenter,%20someone%20trying%20to%20keep%20their%20head%20down,%20or%20something%20else%20entirely?%20What%20does%20that%20answer%20reveal%20about%20how%20you%20move%20through%20our%20world%20now?[3][1]%20%20You%20can%20download%20the%20full%20Book%20Club%20Kit%20and%20find%20virtual%20and%20in-person%20event%20options%20at%20the%20link%20below—perfect%20if%20your%20group%20would%20like%20to%20schedule%20an%20author%20Q&A%20or%20live%20discussion%20this%20spring.[8][6]%20%20***%20%20##%207.%20“What%20Men%20Are%20Saying%20About%20a%20Woman-Led%20Dystopia”%20%20When%20I%20first%20started%20sharing%20Dominion:%20Ascension,%20I%20wasn’t%20sure%20how%20male%20readers%20would%20respond%20to%20a%20story%20set%20in%20a%20woman-led%20nation%20where%20men’s%20lives%20are%20governed%20by%20a%20single%20test%20and%20a%20colored%20band%20around%20their%20necks.%20%20Would%20they%20see%20it%20as%20purely%20hypothetical,%20or%20would%20it%20feel%20personal?%20The%20answer,%20it%20turns%20out,%20is%20very%20much%20the%20latter.[1][2]%20%20Male%20readers%20have%20told%20me%20they%20recognize%20themselves%20in%20the%20men%20of%20Dominion—especially%20in%20the%20tension%20between%20being%20needed%20and%20being%20controlled.%20%20Some%20relate%20to%20the%20Breeders,%20whose%20bodies%20and%20genetics%20are%20essential%20to%20the%20nation’s%20future%20but%20whose%20autonomy%20is%20sacrificed%20in%20the%20name%20of%20survival.%20%20Others%20see%20themselves%20in%20the%20Formalists%20and%20Expeditors,%20men%20doing%20“ordinary”%20work%20that%20keeps%20the%20system%20running%20while%20they%20watch%20a%20select%20few%20be%20glorified%20and%20tightly%20managed.[9][5][3][1]%20%20Several%20men%20have%20described%20Dominion%20as%20“uncomfortably%20familiar”%20rather%20than%20purely%20speculative.%20%20They’ve%20pointed%20to%20real-world%20experiences%20of%20being%20stereotyped%20by%20job,%20class,%20or%20race;%20of%20having%20their%20mental%20health%20or%20physical%20strength%20taken%20for%20granted;%20or%20of%20feeling%20like%20they%20are%20only%20as%20valuable%20as%20what%20they%20can%20produce.%20%20Seeing%20men%20in%20Dominion%20classified,%20surveilled,%20and%20punished%20in%20the%20name%20of%20the%20greater%20good%20has%20sparked%20conversations%20about%20how%20any%20society—regardless%20of%20who%20holds%20power—can%20fall%20into%20the%20trap%20of%20instrumentalizing%20people.[9][3]%20%20I’ve%20also%20heard%20from%20men%20who%20were%20surprised%20by%20how%20much%20they%20empathized%20with%20Dani.%20%20Watching%20her%20navigate%20loyalty%20to%20family,%20grief%20for%20a%20lost%20father,%20and%20anger%20at%20a%20system%20that%20benefits%20her%20at%20others’%20expense%20resonated%20across%20gender%20lines.%20%20For%20these%20readers,%20Dominion%20wasn’t%20just%20a%20thought%20experiment%20about%20“what%20if%20women%20ruled”;%20it%20was%20a%20story%20about%20how%20easy%20it%20is%20to%20inherit%20an%20unjust%20system%20and%20how%20hard%20it%20is%20to%20decide%20what%20you’re%20going%20to%20do%20about%20it.[10][2][3][1]%20%20Perhaps%20the%20most%20encouraging%20feedback%20has%20come%20from%20book%20clubs%20and%20reading%20partnerships%20where%20men%20and%20women%20read%20Dominion%20together.%20%20Those%20conversations%20often%20move%20quickly%20from%20the%20fictional%20colony%20and%20Illegis%20testing%20to%20real-world%20questions:%20Who%20decides%20whose%20bodies%20are%20regulated?%20How%20do%20we%20talk%20honestly%20about%20harm%20without%20collapsing%20into%20blame?[7][8][3][1]%20%20If%20you’re%20a%20male%20reader%20curious%20about%20Dominion—or%20if%20you’re%20part%20of%20a%20mixed-gender%20book%20club%20looking%20for%20a%20title%20that%20will%20push%20everyone%20out%20of%20their%20comfort%20zone—this%20might%20be%20the%20story%20that%20gets%20your%20group%20talking%20in%20new%20ways.[11][9]%20%20***%20%20##%208.%20“If%20You%20Loved%20The%20Handmaid’s%20Tale%20or%20The%20Power…”%20%20Readers%20have%20compared%20Dominion:%20Ascension%20to%20modern%20feminist%20dystopias%20like%20The%20Handmaid’s%20Tale%20and%20The%20Power—stories%20that%20wrestle%20with%20gender,%20control,%20and%20what%20happens%20when%20the%20balance%20of%20power%20tips%20hard%20in%20one%20direction.%20%20If%20those%20books%20pulled%20you%20in,%20Dominion%20may%20land%20in%20your%20sweet%20spot%20while%20taking%20the%20conversation%20in%20some%20fresh%20directions.[11][3]%20%20Like%20The%20Handmaid’s%20Tale,%20Dominion%20is%20deeply%20interested%20in%20how%20systems%20of%20control%20are%20justified,%20ritualized,%20and%20normalized%20over%20time.%20%20But%20instead%20of%20a%20theocratic%20patriarchy%20controlling%20women’s%20bodies,%20Dominion%20imagines%20a%20postwar%20matriarchal%20state%20that%20has%20decided%20the%20safest%20path%20forward%20is%20to%20manage%20men’s%20bodies%20and%20futures%20through%20Illegis%20and%20the%20Singletary%20bands.%20%20The%20core%20question%20shifts:%20what%20happens%20when%20those%20who%20were%20once%20oppressed%20become%20the%20architects%20of%20a%20new%20order—and%20how%20do%20they%20guard%20against%20repeating%20the%20patterns%20they%20escaped?[5][3][1]%20%20If%20The%20Power%20asks%20“What%20if%20women%20suddenly%20had%20the%20physical%20power%20to%20dominate%20men?”,%20Dominion%20asks,%20“What%20if%20women%20controlled%20the%20political,%20scientific,%20and%20reproductive%20power%20of%20an%20entire%20nation—and%20believed%20that%20control%20was%20morally%20necessary?”%20%20In%20Dominion,%20the%20force%20isn’t%20an%20electric%20organ;%20it’s%20data,%20legislation,%20and%20a%20tightly%20engineered%20caste%20system.%20%20That%20means%20the%20horror%20is%20quieter%20but%20no%20less%20chilling:%20the%20wrong%20test%20score,%20the%20wrong%20band,%20the%20wrong%20assignment%20today,%20and%20your%20life%20path%20narrows%20instantly.[2][5][1]%20%20Dominion%20also%20leans%20into%20character-driven%20intimacy.%20While%20the%20worldbuilding%20spans%20war-torn%20landscapes,%20high-tech%20cities,%20and%20hidden%20colonies,%20the%20emotional%20core%20of%20the%20story%20stays%20close%20to%20Dani%20and%20her%20relationships—with%20her%20mother,%20with%20childhood%20friend%20Robbie,%20and%20with%20those%20she%20meets%20in%20the%20Breeder%20system.%20%20Readers%20who%20loved%20the%20personal,%20interior%20focus%20of%20Offred’s%20narrative%20in%20The%20Handmaid’s%20Tale%20often%20gravitate%20toward%20Dani’s%20voice:%20sharp,%20conflicted,%20and%20unwilling%20to%20stop%20asking%20“why”%20even%20when%20it’s%20dangerous.[3][1][2]%20%20Another%20key%20difference%20is%20that%20Dominion%20is%20as%20interested%20in%20systemic%20design%20as%20it%20is%20in%20resistance.%20You’ll%20find%20detailed%20glimpses%20into%20how%20Illegis%20works,%20how%20Singletary%20classifications%20are%20enforced,%20and%20how%20the%20Breeder%20colonies%20operate%20day-to-day—not%20just%20the%20spectacle%20of%20oppression.%20%20For%20readers%20who%20enjoy%20unpacking%20the%20machinery%20of%20a%20fictional%20society,%20Dominion%20offers%20plenty%20of%20gears%20to%20examine%20and%20debate.[5][1]%20%20So%20if%20you%20finished%20The%20Handmaid’s%20Tale%20or%20The%20Power%20and%20thought,%20“What%20happens%20if%20we%20flip%20the%20script%20again,%20and%20keep%20asking%20hard%20questions%20about%20power,%20vengeance,%20and%20justice?”,%20Dominion:%20Ascension%20might%20be%20your%20next%20step.%20%20And%20if%20your%20book%20club%20likes%20to%20pair%20reads%20around%20a%20theme,%20Dominion%20can%20sit%20alongside%20those%20titles%20as%20part%20of%20a%20powerful%20conversation%20about%20gender,%20governance,%20and%20what%20true%20equality%20might%20require.[11][3]%20%20Would%20you%20like%20me%20to%20shorten%20any%20of%20these%20for%20email/newsletter%20versions%20or%20reshape%20one%20into%20a%20press-release%20style%20piece?%20%20Sources%20[1]%20DOMINION-Ascension-Submission-_-June-2024.docx%20https://ppl-ai-file-upload.s3.amazonaws.com/web/direct-files/attachments/27553030/0fc83aca-6049-4870-a47e-9cf8d2b39940/DOMINION-Ascension-Submission-_-June-2024.docx%20[2]%20Home%20-%20DA%20Murray%20https://damurrayofficial.com/dominion%20[3]%20Dominion:%20Ascension%20|%20LITERARY%20TITAN%20https://literarytitan.com/2026/01/26/dominion-ascension/%20[4]%20Characters%20-%20DA%20Murray%20https://damurrayofficial.com/characters%20[5]%20Dominion:%20Ascension%20|%20Koehler%20Books%20Publishing%20https://www.koehlerbooks.com/book/dominion-ascension/%20[6]%20Book%20Club%20Kit%20-%20DA%20Murray%20https://damurrayofficial.com/book-club-kit%20[7]%20Blog%20-%20DA%20Murray%20https://damurrayofficial.com/blog%20[8]%20Events%20-%20DA%20Murray%20https://damurrayofficial.com/events%20[9]%20Dominion%20|%20D.%20A.%20Murray%20|%209798888247723%20-%20NetGalley%20https://www.netgalley.com/catalog/book/634328%20[10]%20A%20world%20where%20power%20flips,%20identity%20is%20managed,%20and%20tech%20cuts%20both%20...%20https://www.instagram.com/p/DUWkpvTCN2g/%20[11]%20Dominion%20a%20book%20by%20D%20A%20Murray%20-%20Bookshop.org%20US%20https://bookshop.org/p/books/dominion-ascension-d-a-murray/8f895237473c6cf5) 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