In Arc D’X, Thomas Jefferson is a rapist. Tours of the Black Clock: A Novel follows Hitler’s personal pornographer.

Steve Erickson plots take wild turns and lurch strangely in unexpected directions. Reading him is like careering through space in a stunt car—the kind that jumps ramps through rings of fire.

Erickson makes you cut through myriad and tangled subplots—and he tells bad jokes along the way. He’s postmodern as they come, but for those who despise that, he’s also compelling. People follow him as they would a cult leader, or hate him but follow him anyway.

Start with Days Between Stations or Tours of the Black Clock.