Barricade

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What to expect

Kenstibec was genetically engineered to build a new world, but the apocalypse forced a career change. These days he drives a taxi instead.

A fast-paced, droll and disturbing novel, BARRICADE is a savage road trip across the dystopian landscape of post-apocalypse Britain; narrated by the cold-blooded yet magnetic antihero, Kenstibec.

Kenstibec is a member of the 'Ficial' race, a breed of merciless super-humans. Their war on humanity has left Britain a wasteland, where Ficials hide in barricaded cities, besieged by tribes of human survivors. Originally optimised for construction, Kenstibec earns his keep as a taxi driver, running any Ficial who will pay from one surrounded city to another.

The trips are always eventful, but this will be his toughest yet. His fare is a narcissistic journalist who's touchy about her luggage. His human guide is constantly plotting to kill him. And that's just the start of his troubles.

On his journey he encounters ten-foot killer rats, a mutant king with a TV fixation, a drug-crazed army, and even the creator of the Ficial race. He also finds time to uncover a terrible plot to destroy his species for good - and humanity too.

Read by Rupert Degas

(p) 2014 Orion Publishing Group

Critics Review

I found Barricade to be a fast-paced action adventure, full of dilemmas that need to be overcome. The book left me with many questions, two of which were: Why is there always fear of the unknown? Does being logical mean you always know best?
Fantasy Book Review
Jon Wallace keeps the pace up, delivering inense setpieces alongside plenty of twisted humour and bone-crunching violence
SFX
A superb, powerful, perfectly-paced debut that I found myself galloping through - clearly a writer we should be keeping an eye on. Hugely recommended
Forbidden Planet International
Barricade is like one of those clever teachers that manages to educate through fun and amusement. More than that though its a book that can be enjoyed on many levels. You can just enjoy the ride; the crazily constructed story and crafty characters or you can enjoy the messages it subtly imparts
SF Book
Compelling, fast paced and full of action, some very violent, the story moves through a series of set pieces told in the first person, cleverly from a Ficial's perspective. What makes this book a little different is the dual narrative strands: before and after the journey; a dislocation of time
We Love This Book
BARRICADE is a refreshingly short and sweet addition to the genre
Reader Dad
Jon Wallace presents a powerful portrait of a destroyed Britain, full of intriguing landscapes and settlements, as well as glimpses into the world and society that preceded it
Forwintersnights
Jon Wallace, I warrant, is one to watch
Tor.com
I'm not looking for a sanitised, clinical apocalypse. I want a writer to bring the world to an end with a BANG, not a whimper. The writing needs to revel in the anarchy and chaos, unleash a bit of mayhem. I'm glad to say BARRICADE manages to do exactly that
The Eloquent Page
even a machine would find it tough not to enjoy the glee with which Jon Wallace breaks the world apart
Sci-Fi Now
The fact paced narrative is a big draw...a promising dbut
The Big Issue
A taxi ride, in Jon Wallace's scintillating debut novel, becomes an epic trek through a near-future Britain ravaged by conflict and nuclear war...the end of civilization has seldom been such gruesome fun
The Financial Times

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