If this were a stand-alone book, I'd give it a 3-Star rating as it was entertaining and flowed well. However, this is a series launch, so some of my negative points are, well, negated. There are a handful of interesting characters, one being Frank Brogan who is the tragic hero in this saga. Thankfully, Sheridan makes him human and not just a SpecOps/Lawman on a mission. Brogan voluntarily leaves a civilized, protected Strata State to hunt down three Outzone criminals that killed his wife and daughter. The kicker - he can't return to the Strata State. Once he leaves, there is no going back. Once his mission is over, the Outzone and beyond is his new life. Post -Apocalypse, dystopian set-up: The world went all Skynet and paid a heavy price. Globally, populations are now a shadow on Earth. Democracy has turned Orwellian for civilization, and Wild-West for the rest. Straight off, Brogan encounters new allies, which were 'left off' so he could go hunt. Along the way, he meets a Tribal Chief, who although is a bear of a man, I kept picturing Danny Trejo for some reason. In any event, this is the beginning of a series and I'm fairly certain additional character development will occur. Sheridan does well to paint a bleak land - lawless in many respects, but shows humanity and ethics still rule some. There is violence, murder, kidnapping and more. 4 of 5 Stars - ARC provided.
From the Publisher:
When they killed his family, they killed a part of him too. The good part.
Seven years after a global war has devastated mankind, Frank Brogan and his family live in the safety of New Haven, a newly-formed authoritarian state deep in the American northwest. Beyond the Exclusion Wall lies the Outzone, a lawless territory ceded from federal jurisdiction. Brogan never thought he would go there. He was wrong.
When three Outzone bandits cross into New Haven and murder his wife and daughter, Brogan quits his specially-trained police unit to hunt them down. Entering the Outzone, he travels to its de facto capital, Winter's Edge and picks up the bandits' trail. In a violent city controlled by rival gangs, he needs to use all his hard-won skills as a police officer and war veteran to survive. It isn't long before Brogan's quest takes him out of the city and deeper into the territory, where a beautiful but dangerous woman takes a keen interest in him.
Can he survive encounters with the nomadic tribes that roam the Outzone's mountains and plains to finally confront the men who murdered his family?
Fans of Jack Reacher and Mad Max will enjoy this fast-paced, post-apocalyptic thriller.
