Arts / ‘Big vote of confidence’ for isles author as she prepares to release sequel to popular debut
THE AUTHOR at the helm of a dystopian young adult fantasy series is relishing bringing book-lovers back into the world she created.
Rachael Boxall, from Sandwick, has been emboldened by positive reviews to the first in her Immutavi series – The Generation Archives – which was released in January.
The Abatement Mandate is that book’s sequel, picking up where the first one left off earlier this year, and is set to be released at the end of January 2026.
Boxall, who writes under the pseudonym R.R. Boxall, juggles writing and editing with her day job as an air traffic controller at Sumburgh Airport.
And after sky high reviews to The Generation Archives, she is excited to release its sequel to the world.
“Book two was really fun to write, because the world was already established so the pace and plot can move a lot quicker,” she told Shetland News.
“There are more big reveal moments in book two, so I can finally reveal those bits of it. It’s like scratching an itch for me to reveal some of those things.”
The series picks up with lead character, Rin, having escaped from a dangerous situation – without giving too much away – having suffered serious injuries and searching for her friends.
Book two in the series touches on themes that will feel familiar to those reading the news daily, which include “passive participation in propaganda and fake news”.
Boxall said that “probably mirrors things in the real world”.
“A lot of people are susceptible to believing what they’re told, especially when it’s from places that we trust,” she added.
But while that may recall real events, Boxall stresses she wants the Immutavi series – which whisks readers to distant lands – to offer “escapism for a couple of hours”.
The author told Shetland News last October that she was nervous about the reaction to the release of her first ever book.
Thankfully, she said the feedback had been “really, really positive”.
“The absolute majority has been really lovely,” the author said.
“It’s difficult to get people to take a chance on a new book because there are so many big hitters coming out every year.
“But genuinely people have been so kind. Thank you to everyone that read book one, otherwise there wouldn’t be a book two.
“The publishers [Cranthorpe Millner] have been good at getting the books into the right hands.”
Despite that positive response, Boxall said she was still “so nervous” about what the reaction to The Abatement Mandate would be.
And she added that she felt more pressure when people would tell her the books “sound right up my street”.
“I still get so nervous at that, I’m just thinking ‘I really hope you like it’.
“Especially if people are spending money on it. To spend £10 with the cost of living, it’s a big chunk to spend on a book”.
She admitted though that she has gotten better at realising that the books will not be for everyone.
“I feel after the positive comments now that I can feel if people didn’t like it that it’s because it wasn’t their thing, rather than it being the book that’s bad.”
With positive comments though, Boxall admitted there was “definitely” more pressure for The Abatement Mandate.
Feedback from data readers came back uniformly positive for the sequel, telling Boxall that if the first was good then the second was “so good”.
“I think I think if I hadn’t got that I would be terrified,” Boxall said.
“Maybe the rug will be pulled out from my feet!”
Cranthorpe Millner was so confident in The Abatement Mandate’s success, however, that they reserved a space for the third book in the series – which Boxall says will be the last – to be printed.
“That was a big vote of confidence,” Boxall admitted.
Like the first, the second Immutavi series book is set to be released on the final Tuesday in January – Lerwick Up Helly Aa day.
Boxall said she could not believe the clash when it was announced last year, or that it was happening again in 2026.
“I asked them to move it [last year] and said, ‘that’s a big event in Shetland’, but it was too late.
“Then I forgot to say to them, ‘make sure it’s not that day next year’!
“To be fair, I don’t know if there’s a massive crossover between the Up Helly Aa crowd and young adult fantasy readers …”
She hopes to have a pre-launch event in Shetland Library in January, with early release copies available.
Book three in the series is finished, with Boxall currently up to her eyes editing that entry.
“It’s absolutely killing me to be editing book three instead of writing,” she laughed.
Boxall said that writing was her favourite thing to do, adding: “People are asking ‘did you watch The Traitors’, but if I’m not walking the dog, working or eating then I’m writing.”
She is now planning a new series, based in the same world as the Immutavi trilogy, but focusing on a new set of characters.
Boxall encouraged folk to keep an eye out for more details about the launch of The Abatement Mandate at Shetland Library.
The Abatement Mandate can be pre-ordered through Waterstones and Amazon, and will be available to buy through Shetland Bookshop.
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