cover image The Quake Cities

The Quake Cities

Mark Wheaton. Severn, $28.99 (224p) ISBN 978-0-7278-9052-8

At the start of this so-so SF thriller from Wheaton (Emily Eternal), a woman awakes in 2025 Los Angeles with no memories of who she is or what is going on; the city, along with most other major American metropolises, has been devastated by a series of massive earthquakes, leaving only desperate survivors scrabbling to find food and water. Just as a stranger urges her to get out of bed and flee the building, she remembers her name is Alice Rhodes. Alice’s freedom is short-lived, as soon after she’s betrayed by a woman who drugs her into unconsciousness in order to sell her. Things get even stranger after Alice is fatally shot, but somehow returns to life, a development that proves connected with her unwanted popularity. Alice is somehow able to reincarnate herself, making her body and, in particular, her unique blood, a precious commodity that has set bounty-hunters on her trail. The convincing apocalyptic scenario compensates only in part for thin characters. Readers looking for mind-bending plots grounded in relatable human emotions would be better served by Blake Crouch’s Pines trilogy. Agent: Laura Dail, Laura Dail Agency. (Mar.)