#August2019 #IndieBooksBeSeen #Indie #Author #Books #Monthly #BookReview!

Hey Everyone!! :-)

It's the 18th again, so time for my #IndieBooksBeSeen monthly indie author book review!! Enjoy! :-)


Augmented by Stuart Kenyon:

Imagine being alone in a wasteland that was once one of humanity's shining achievements. That's the situation John finds himself in; a British exile living not far from New York City when the apocalypse struck. He has spent a year learning how to survive with only the aid of his wits and the mechanical companion he constructed. But a chance glimpse of video changes his outlook from one of futility to one of hope, when he discovers he's not the only human left alive on the planet. Will he find the strength and resolve to brave the dangers infesting a once civilized enclave to connect with his fellow survivors? You'll have to read to find out!

I really enjoyed this book. Stuart Kenyon has a gift for crafting characters whose flaws make them so realistic a reader might expect to meet them on the street. His heroes aren't perfect and his villains are such not because of some over-the-top evil within them, but simply because they allow themselves to succumb to the most banal of human vices, sloth, greed, jealousy, etc. It makes his good guys relatable, and his bad guys far more frightening and real than if the harm they caused sprang from a more dramatic motivation.

The themes this story addresses are also both timely and well-illustrated by this story. In an age when there is legitimate concern about how, and whether, human beings will adapt to technology that is becoming more and more sophisticated at an exponential pace, this peek at a possible application of that technology is fascinating. Taken on a more metaphorical level, it's reasonable to ask if we've already gotten to the point where we've allowed our computers and social media to make zombies of us all. Whether you want to consider the theme literally or metaphorically, there is certainly enough food for thought in these pages. And if you just want an exciting adventure story about regular people finding ways to work together to defend themselves against threats and find solutions to the unique challenges they face set against a post-apocalyptic backdrop, this ticks that box as well.

As I said, I really enjoyed this book, and I can't wait for the next installment in the series. Five stars, and please keep them coming, Mr. Kenyon.