The Handmaid's Tale: Margaret Atwood

This story takes place in a futurist world where a religious cult has taken over the New England portion of the United States. The cult takes their newly acquired territory back to the jesus times. Woman aren't allowed to read and are only kept around for breeding. There were nuclear "incidents" and many babies are born dead or with deformities so the community centers around reproduction where unmarried women, or female "prisoner's" of breeding age are given a chance of survival by becoming breeders. If they don't produce children within 6 years they are sent to the colonies where life expectancy is about 3 years. The story is not told in a linear order, coming in spurts as the narrator "Offred" daydreams about memories before the world fell apart. She was married and had a daughter before they tried to escape to Canada and were caught and separated. One day she was denied a purchase of cigarettes claiming she had no money in her account. Then when she got to work she was fired. It wasn't until hours after getting home that she was to learn woman were not allowed to own anything anymore. She is sent to a new home to breed for an elite family. The man is a captain and sneaks time with her when he is only supposed to meet with her monthly to mate. She does not get pregnant. The wife arranges for Offred to sleep with the Family Chauffer, Nick. Offred develops feelings for NIck, who is usually silent during their continual secret meetings. Both Offred and Nick believe Offred if pregnant. About the time she begins to not care what is done with her because she just wants to survive, she is rescued. Her fate is decided on May day, according to a neighbor handmaid, there is a secret society that rescues women on May day. The neighbor handmaid commits suicide on that same day believing she has been found out, she doesn't want to give any info away while under torture. The wife finds out Offred is spending time wither her husband some nights and at first offred thinks the wife called the secret police to take her away. However Nick tells her it is a rescue and she enters the van unsure of what fate awaits her. The book ends with a scholarly talk years after the cult community collapses. The speaker brings to light his investigation about the people mentioned in the handmaid's tale, which is actually a tape they find, made in the first few years of this Gilead society. The speaker believes the woman "offred" coded names to protect the people who helped her. However her name in the society "of Fred" gave away her captain's identity as his name was actually Fred. Shortly after her rescue, he is tried and killed for harboring an enemy agent, which we know is Nick. This was a fascinating book and I already want to read it again with my new perspective to look for new clues.