Review: Spot on first effort, can't wait for more!
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 04 14, 2013
Apparently this is the very first book ever written (or at least published) by author Ryan Henry.  To say that I was surprised by this would be an understatement - for a debut effort this really stands out to me as a work by someone with lots of experience.  The prose, the editing, the character development - all of it seems like it had to have come from an author that had been there and done that, but Mr. Henry is brand new, and that bodes very well for what's to come.This book didn't require a lot of suspension of disbelief.  Aside from having somewhat of a "ripped from the headlines" type of feel (as far as the themes and how they are playing out politically in the world landscape), there was a true feeling of accuracy and believability.  The opening scene radiated legitimacy and really struck me as authentic.  Either Mr. Henry has had his share of hard times in the seedy underbelly of the darker side of society, or he is so good at his research and theoretically immersing himself in a lifestyle that he was able to convince me of the former.This book really paints what I could totally see as an accurate picture of a dystopic (and not too far off) future where our protagonist (Trent), an anti-hero of sorts who you can't help but root for, finds himself emerging from hiding out in the wilderness to a civilization ravaged by a terrible viral outbreak.  Trent is an ex-Marine drug dealer who exiled himself into the forest to get away from some trouble aroused by a deal gone bad.  He spends some time in the wilderness (and this part of the story also seemed quite believable and written from experience, as far as the survivalist aspect of the plot) and comes back to see that some "The Stand" type dilemmas have stricken the planet.  Action, character engagement, and genre-crossing storytelling ensues, and I can't wait to read what's next from Mr. Henry!One thing I wanted to specifically mention about this book - right now post-apocalyptic fiction is all the rage.  Ever since the "Zombie Craze" hit several years back, the market has been flooded with book after book of the same plot of the group of survivors, and "how do they make it in this new world?"  For one, I like how Mr. Henry avoided the stereotypical Zombie trope altogether, and secondly, by focusing one the heart and soul of one character, really avoided spreading himself thin and thus delivering a much more satisfying read. I will definitely be reading Ryan Henry's next book, and I suggest you do the same!