Genres: Romance, Sci-Fi, Dystopian, Cyberpunk
LGBTQ+ Identities: Bi, Gay, Non-Binary
Reviewer: Maryann
About the Book:
Hacker Bast has it all: a cushy condo, a sexy boyfriend, and a place among the wealthy elite. When his past catches up with him, he flees into the dreary and dangerous wastelands between domed cities.
There, he meets Delphi, who saves him, and Galeron, who runs a small town. He is anything but safe, however, as robotic “dogs” roam the countryside, looking for people to kill, and humans can be just as deadly.
As Bast settles in to life in the town, he develops a controversial relationship with Galeron. They fall in love, but all is not well in their world. Can the two of them survive and reach the happy ending they long for, or will the wastelands take everything they hold dear?
Warnings: Guns, death, child death, violence, animal death, suicide, drug use, nazis.
The Review:
The United States has changed. There are those who live in the “bubble cities,” and those who have found a way to survive in the polluted and dangerous place known as the wasteland. The rain is acidic, animals are diseased, and there are very few places left to find food or anything usable. It’s a world where it’s illegal to be an AI or altered with cyborg or robotic parts, and androids and humans cannot be together.
Bast lives with four roommates, better labeled as international criminals. At the age of twenty, he’s created a custom program to access millions of bank accounts. His plan is to sell account numbers, passwords and screen names to the three highest bidders, either foreign agents or independents, for blackmail or money. It doesn’t matter – either way, he will make a fortune with his roommates.
He and his best friend and one time lover Idle will get a large part of the money. Idle is a code writer, and did most of the work for this job. Idle is technologically enhanced, but Bast has chosen not to be altered.
Ransom is known for his temper. He has connections for selling the information, and has cyborg and robotic parts. The twins, Pope and Pomp, are known for their personas, and did the electrical work.
As soon as Bast finalizes the deal, everyone is packed and ready to move on. They can no longer live with each other, because now they will be targeted.
Bast plans to relocate to a beautiful condo in Central City that he bought outright. He meets Pauline, one of his new neighbors, who lets him know of about an upcoming party. He meets a variety of people there, including.a handsome married man named Adonis.
Bast has been warned about Adonis, but he makes a mistake and falls in love. His relationship with the man leads him to have a sketchy doctor who performs painful modifications on his legs. Bast wants to believe he’s found love, but in reality, it will never work.
While Bast is recovering from another alteration, he reveals who he really is, and has to go on the run. Now he’s an international criminal. Heartbroken, he leaves the bubble city to face life in the harsh wasteland.
Almost dead, Bast is rescued by Delphi. She tells him about the dangers of the wasteland, including robotic killer wolves. He meets the inhabitants of Delphi’s small, thriving but struggling village. He meets the man Delphi considers her father – Galeron.
In another part of the United States, a terrible earthquake has destroyed the bubble city of Seattle. Its total destruction has left behind a handful of people who found a way out. Gabriel and several others travel east to Philadelphia. Danger, hardship and death seem to be around every corner. They eventually come upon a small village, where Bast’s life will once again be turned upside down.
I felt sympathy for Bast, a lost soul who craves someone to love and spend his life with. I liked both Galeron and Gabriel too – they gave of themselves to Bast and made his life better.
The people of the village are always allowed to express themselves, and all suggestions are taken under consideration. They work together, and everyone fills in where needed. This is a story of hope.
Schock has penned an epic story of a dystopian world in the The Wasteland Kings.
I highly recommend this book – I was totally immersed in this story from the very start. I didn’t want to put it down, as I had to find out what would happen to Bast. I was very impressed with Schock’s writing, and their fantastic descriptions of a desolate and dangerous world. Well done.
The Reviewer:
Hi, I’m Maryann, I started life in New York, moved to New Hampshire and in 1965 uprooted again to Sacramento, California. Once I retired I moved to West Palm Beach, Florida in 2011 and just moved back to Sacramento in March of 2018. My son, his wife and step-daughter flew out to Florida and we road tripped back so they got to see sights they have never seen. New Orleans and the Grand Canyon were the highlights. Now I am back on the west coast again to stay! From a young age Ialways liked to read.
I remember going to the library and reading the “Doctor Dolittle” books by Hugh Lofting. Much later on became a big fan of the classics, Edgar Alan Poe, Mary Shelley, Bram Stoker and as time went by Agatha Christie, Ray Bradbury and Stephen Kingand many other authors.
My first M/M shifter book I read was written by Jan Irving the “Uncommon Cowboys” series from 2012. She was the first author I ever contacted and sent an email to letting her know how much I liked this series. Sometime along the way I read “Zero to the Bone”by Jane Seville, I think just about everyone has read this book!
As it stands right now I’m really into mysteries, grit, gore and “triggers” don’t bother me. But if a blurb piques my interest I will read the book.
My kindle collection eclectic and over three thousand books and my Audible collection is slowly growing. I have both the kindle and audible apps on my ipod, ipads, and MAC. So there is never an excuse not to be listening or reading.
I joined Goodreads around 2012 and started posting reviews. One day a wonderful lady, Lisa Horan of The Novel Approach, sent me an email to see if I wanted to join her review group. Joining her site was such an eye opener. I got introduce to so many new authors that write for the LGBTQ genre. Needless to say, it was heart breaking when it ended.
But I found a really great site, QRI and it’s right here in Sacramento. Last year at QSAC I actually got to meet Scott Coatsworth, Amy Lane and Jeff Adams.