Publisher: Quirk Publishing Date: November 2014 ISBN:9781594746857 Genre: SciFi Rating: 2.2/5
Publisher Description: With the doomsday asteroid looming, Detective Hank Palace has found sanctuary in the woods of New England, secure in a well-stocked safe house with other onetime members of the Concord police force. But with time ticking away before the asteroid makes landfall, Hank’s safety is only relative, and his only relative–his sister Nico–isn’t safe. Soon, it’s clear that there’s more than one earth-shattering revelation on the horizon, and it’s up to Hank to solve the puzzle before time runs out . . . for everyone.
Review: I really wanted to like this novel. I am into the post-apoc/survivalist genre and look forward to seeing if writers can capture those realistic events and couple them with plausible characters. What I read was a man fumbling around and talk, talk, talking about finding his sister and the accompanying guilt of their last parting. And really who gives a shjt about solving a murder(s) when the asteroid is going to fall. I don’t.
Palace is not a bad character, he is just always pointed in the wrong direction in order to get the reader to sympathize with his plight. The “I was a cop but not a good detective” shtick wore a little thin as did his klepto side-kick and the “preserve every crime scene” mantra. I get that the author is trying to imbue this man with a failing grip on sanity within an insane set of circumstances but it fell a little flat. If I was Palace I would have looked for my sister for sure and exacted retribution if the need arose. Most people would not give a shjt either way and get on with living or dying. The whole premise is absurd if, in the end, everyone is going to die.
The best ending that this could of had, based on Fugtards inept ramblings would be to have no catastrophic end. How cool would that be? Society churns itself asunder based on a belief and now the joke is on them. And then the meek Amish inherit the Earth.
