(Raiders Trilogy, Book 1)
Jack Ward, President of Innovia, owes his life twice over to the enigmatic superhero, dubbed Power Blaster by the press. No-one knows who Power Blaster is or where he comes from – and he wants it to stay that way.
Scientist Desi Troyes has developed a nuclear bomb to counter the ever present threat of an asteroid hitting the planet. When Ward signs the order giving the go ahead for a nuclear test on the remote Bird Island, he has no inkling of Troyes’ real agenda, and that he has signed the death warrants of millions of people.
Although the island should have been evacuated, there are people still there: some from the distant continent of Classica; protesters opposed to the bomb test; and Innovians who will not, or cannot, use their communication devices.
Power Blaster knows he must stop the bomb from hitting the island. He also knows it may be the last thing he ever does.
Meanwhile in Innovia, Ward and his staff gather to watch the broadcast of the test. Nobody, not even Troyes himself, has any idea what is about to happen.
General Information
Pages: 238
Published: 20 November 2017
ISBN: 978-1979781312
Themes
- Superheroes
- Alternative dimensions
- Politics/activism
- Secret identities
- Celebrity culture/hero worship
- Media
- Arranged marriages
- Technology
- Secret affairs
First page
Bird Island
The year 133 A.B.
It was almost time. Nothing could stop him now. There’d been opposition all the way, but Desi Troyes had expected as much and had planned accordingly. He’d played to people’s fears, and won. Soon, the entire planet would be his, and his alone. His patience and meticulous planning were about to be rewarded.
Since the once separate nations making up the continent of Innovia had united and become one huge country, people were no longer afraid of war with the nation next door. The other continent, Classica, on the opposite side of the planet, was too far away and too undeveloped to pose a threat; there were safeguards in place to keep it that way for as long as possible.
Natural disasters had become the enemy. Even they were almost tamed as geologists had discovered how to predict when a volcano would erupt, or an earthquake strike, far enough in advance to evacuate anyone at risk.
One thing still terrified people – that an asteroid might hit them from space. Often, new asteroids were only discovered as they passed too close to the planet for comfort. One day, the tabloids were fond of reporting, we’ll find one on a collision course with one of our cities, and there will be nothing we can do about it. It will be too late. Not only will everyone in that city die instantly, but the cloud of ash and debris it causes will block out the sun, so nothing can grow. Within a year or two, the last survivors will starve. Our world will be gone.
Reasons not to read it
- Yet another new superhero, not anyone we know from Marvel or DC or even Julie Howlin’s previous novels.
- He’s not perfect, either. He’s a bit of a ladies’ man.
- Doesn’t even take place in a world we know, but in an alternative dimension.
- Which has too many similarities to our own, or how our own could be in the future.
- It’s got a nuclear bomb in it.
- There are a couple of characters having an illicit affair.
- There’s an attempted rape.
- It’s the first of a trilogy. So we don’t find out the superhero’s identity. You don’t find out if you guessed right.
- It ends leaving everyone up in the air, literally. You’ll have to buy the next book if you want to know what happens to them all.
Book club questions
- Compare and contrast the political climate in Innovia with the UK/USA in current times.
- Do you agree with Innovia’s population control policy, ie giving every citizen a contraceptive implant at birth which they must apply to have removed before they can start a family?
- Power Blaster is a superhero but at the same time he is a young man sowing his wild oats. How do you feel about a superhero having a human side and not acting nobly 100% of the time?
- Why do you think Jack Ward ended up with such an unsuitable first lady?
- Examine the relationship Innovia has with Classica. Is their zealous enforcement of laws to shield Classica from Innovian technology a good thing? Are they working?
- Is Shanna right to keep her personal opinions about the nuclear test to herself at work? Is her ability to argue from positions she does not agree with in the course of her work a good thing, or not?
- Was Benedict right to steal his father’s yacht and sail away, under the circumstances? What do you think might be the reason for his “curse”?
- What do you think is going to happen to the characters after they are sucked through the wormhole?
Gallery
Julie Howlin Author 