S:7 E21 | What If Women Ruled the future? D.A. Murray Breaks Down Dominion: Ascension

What happens when the world is rebuilt after catastrophe and the power structure flips, completely? In this episode, author and tech executive D.A. Murray joins us to unpack her debut dystopian novel, Dominion: Ascension. The conversation starts with the central provocation: a society where women hold leadership across civilization and men are pushed into tightly controlled roles, including a “breeder class” shaped by fertility and status. From there, we go deeper into what the book is really examining—how power changes people, how systems enforce obedience, and what gets lost when identity becomes something managed rather than lived.

We also talk about Danny Matthews, the 29-year-old protagonist whose emotional development makes sense inside a world where information is restricted and self-exploration is contained. At the heart of Danny’s experience is her relationship with her mother, giving the story a pulse that goes beyond the dystopian frame. D.A. Murray shares why technology in Dominion isn’t a sleek promise but a “jagged edge of progress,” and how today’s AI boom raises real questions about privacy, guardrails, and what it means to stay human while moving fast. Plus, a glimpse at what’s coming next in the trilogy, including the second book, Anarchy.