Marlen Suyapa Bodden’s Afrofuturist Novel ‘In Defense of Earth’ Arrives in Audio

Keisa Parrish and Max Newland narrate a story of climate catastrophe, family survival and an extraterrestrial’s deceptive promise of rescue

STAMFORD, CT, UNITED STATES, November 10, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ — A scientist who survived a devastating hurricane must assess an extraterrestrial’s offer to save the planet in the new audiobook edition of Wall Street Journal bestselling author Marlen Suyapa Bodden’s “In Defense of Earth.” Published October 6, 2026, by Lantern Audio, the audiobook features narrators Keisa Parrish and Max Newland.

The Afrofuturist novel imagines humanity’s future through the experiences of a Black woman scientist and her family. Seventeen-year-old Elaine Johnson-Coleman’s swimming skills are tested when Hurricane Zeta strikes New York in 2046. Floodwater rises through her grandparents’ Harlem brownstone, and a desperate attempt to reach safety leaves her facing devastating losses.

Years later, Elaine’s geothermal engineering expertise draws her into a secret NASA project. Axy, an extraterrestrial android, promises clean energy and a solution to climate change. Its hidden mission, however, threatens the very life it claims to protect. Meanwhile, New York’s post-hurricane government monitors residents and enforces a one-child law, forcing Elaine to conceal a twin pregnancy to protect her family.

For Bodden, bringing the novel to audio offered a return to a more personal storytelling experience.

“Even dating back to prehistoric times, I believe humans were wired to hear stories,” said Bodden. “Now, people say they like to listen to audiobooks on their commutes, as they exercise, or simply relax, but, deep down, there’s something comforting about having someone read a story to us.”

The audiobook divides the novel’s two narrative perspectives between two performers. Parrish narrates the third-person sections following Elaine and the other human characters, while Newland voices Axy’s first-person account. Book Buddy Media handled production.

Bodden chose Newland and Parrish during narrator auditions based on her vision for the characters. “I wanted listeners to hear Axy’s side of the story in a human voice,” Bodden said. “Since Axy is a computer with no emotion, I didn’t want it to sound like a flat cardboard villain character, so I gave it traits that both a computer and a human might share.”

“Max Newland, Axy’s narrator, brought out the ‘human’ side of Axy,” she added. “Unlike Axy, Elaine is human and lived through tumultuous events, so Keisa Parrish had to show great emotion without ‘overacting.’”

For Parrish, portraying Elaine meant considering how her response to trauma changes throughout the story. She needed to distinguish moments of surprise, exhaustion and fear from those when protecting family overrides concern for personal safety. “I just try to put myself in that character’s shoes at that moment in their life, at this point in the story,” Parrish said.

Although she does not usually consider herself a science fiction fan, Parrish said the audition chapter drew her into the story. During recording, unexpected developments prompted audible gasps and required her to re-record passages.

“The setting was familiar, the characters were relatable, the family dynamics felt universal in the way it was written,” she said. Intertwined with this familiarity, she said, were “crazy suspense and emotional rollercoasters I had no idea were coming, making it feel like I was in the pages of the story.”

Parrish also spoke about the significance of participating in telling a story by and about a Black woman.

“It’s so important for Black voices to show up in spaces that are authentic and speak to our souls,” she said, especially in science-based genres and careers where there is underrepresentation or exclusion. “But time and time again, Black voices show up and show out, constantly reminding the world we belong!”

Bodden’s experience as a human rights lawyer shaped the novel on several levels, including how institutions can limit freedoms and the legal mechanisms of repression. The novel also explores how family relationships help people endure loss and resist government control. Working with incarcerated clients, she observed how family connections supported survival and the transition back into society. “Families, the ones we were born into and the ones we chose, are how all of us can survive and be resilient,” Bodden said.

“In Defense of Earth” is available as an audiobook through Amazon/Audible.

ABOUT MARLEN SUYAPA BODDEN

Wall Street Journal bestselling author Marlen Suyapa Bodden is a novelist and human rights lawyer. Her fiction explores abuses of power and the relationships people draw upon to survive. She is the author of “In Defense of Earth,” “The Wedding Gift” and “Arrows of Fire.” Learn more at marlenbodden.com.

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