Book Reviews

Book Blurb

Once upon a time, humanity could no longer contain the rage that swelled within, and the world ended in a wave of fire.  

One hundred years later, in the wasteland formerly known as America, a broken man who goes only by the name of Cavalo survives. Purposefully cutting himself off from what remains of civilization, Cavalo resides in the crumbling ruins of the North Idaho Correctional Institution. A mutt called Bad Dog and a robot on the verge of insanity comprise his only companions. Cavalo himself is deteriorating, his memories rising like ghosts and haunting the prison cells. 

It’s not until he makes the dangerous choice of crossing into the irradiated Deadlands that Cavalo comes into contact with a mute psychopath, one who belongs to the murderous group of people known as the Dead Rabbits. Taking the man prisoner, Cavalo is forced not only to face the horrors of his past, but the ramifications of the choices made for his stark present. And it is in the prisoner that he will find a possible future where redemption is but a glimmer that darkly shines. 

The world has died. This is the story of its remains.

First edition published by DSP Publications, April 2016.

Book Review

In the end, he never learned what it felt like to burn as he wasn’t even aware he had died when the blast hit him. His last thought was I hope I come back here to—and then he was gone. There was nothing left of him but his seven words. And they carried long after the whole of humanity became nothing more than a thing of the past in a future of chaos. God forgive us for what we’ve done.

It is wrong to assume that TJ Klune is only capable of making us laugh. That is very far from the truth. He has the capacity to make me feel deeply, strongly, and to tell me a story so intricate in its depth as to leave me shaking at the end. I have no idea where or how or why 'Withered + Sere' came to him, I am only grateful that it did, and that the opportunity to experience this story was not lost to me.

Post-apocalyptic and dystopian worlds fascinate me. Probably because if you really sit and think about it, there are very few things actually preventing a global nuclear war that would end everything in minutes. There wouldn't be a World War III. Buttons would get pushed, the world would explode, and everything would be gone. Possibly a few scattered people would survive, and after decades the Earth would look much like the author describes. Small areas of partial civilization with no communication like the Time Before, limited electricity, and places like the Deadlands with bands of cannibals who roam and strike fear in the hearts of good people. Lone men like Cavalo who have nothing but memories and ghosts, who live away from people with only their dog, a dog whose voice Cavalo can hear in his head and he's pretty sure he's going crazy. A man who lives in an abandoned maximum security prison with Bad Dog and SIRS, the sentient robot in charge of the facility, whose parts are wearing down and he, too, is going insane.

United Federated States of America (UFSA) has suddenly appeared, with no one knowing a new government had begun in the East. They seem to know an awful lot about the Deadlands, the Dead Rabbits, their leader, Patrick, and Lucas, the Dead Rabbit who is with Cavalo. Even through the morass of Cavalo's sanity he knows there is more going on and much more happening that is not being shared by the new government. There is far more to Lucas than Cavalo could ever dream. In the incomparable words of J.M. Barrie from 'Peter Pan' - "All of this has happened before, and it will all happen again."

Brilliant. Stunning. Overwhelming. I was in awe up to the very last sentence. I will wait with bated breath for 'Crisped + Sere' to explore again this intricate and coldly beautiful world the author has created.

"It has taken losing my mind to find my soul."

 

 

 

 

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Additional Information

Format	ebook
Length	Novel, 333 pages
Heat Level
Publication Date	24-November-2019
Price	$5.99 ebook
Buy Link	https://www.amazon.com/Withered-Sere-Immemorial-Year-Book-ebook/dp/B081ZBMKHX