Paladin’s Odyssey

Fottler departs nicely from the usual survival fiction formula by presenting a hero who isn’t already trained in prepping and survival, but who organizes the nitty-gritty details of continued existence, taking small steps in the shadows. Eventually he would be called Maj. Joseph Paladin, cofounder of the New American Confederation. But first he was Walter Johnson, who was an ordinary middle-class civilian when the world was laid low by a pandemic-born apocalypse. This novel is cast as Walt’s memoir, written in his old age to explain how someone with no military experience or survival skills eventually became a key player in America’s restoration by using logistics rather than guns, acting behind the scenes, enduring terrible circumstances, and making hard decisions. In the process of restoring modern amenities, Walt stumbles across the story of a hidden treasure trove that is just what the survivors need to rebuild. But getting to it—if it exists—will require a dangerous journey from his relatively safe but slowly decaying life. The conclusion feels anticlimactic, but the understated suspense otherwise works very well. This is an intriguing new slant on apocalyptic fiction, and fans who are tempted to snub it because it breaks away from genre expectations should set aside their concerns; they’re likely to enjoy it far more than they expect. (BookLife)