Title: Atomic Ocean Landfall
Author: J.W. DeLorie
Publisher: Westwood Books Publishing, LLC
ISBN: 978-1-6436-1864-7
Genre: Science Fiction
Pages: 376
Reviewed by: Jason Lulos
Pacific Book Review
J. W. DeLorie’s Atomic Ocean Landfall is an amalgam of two genres: the nuclear post-apocalyptic tale and a dystopia. In this imaginative, action-packed novel, readers are immediately immersed in a bleak, radioactive wasteland as they follow an ex-military commander struggling to survive but also seeking out a way to return the Earth to her former, natural glory.
In the beginning, we meet the protagonist, Samuel Jackson Knight. He had been living in an underwater society to avoid the fallout. Now, he is on land, accompanied by Max, his faithful German Shepherd, and a drot (drone) powered by Frank, a fellow soldier operating the drot from a remote location. Sam is resourceful and a born leader. Max sniffs out mutant henchmen and Frank scans the landscape with intel on upcoming enemies and dangerous storms. They are eventually joined by a strongman, Acorn, and an aptly named feisty female soldier named Fury. Although a formidable fellowship, they will need to find allies along the way.
Their goal is to defeat The Circle, run by the tyrant Cassidy Daire “The Matron”. Sam’s team faces incessant obstacles and skirmishes – characteristic of a war zone, where constant alertness is required, and sleep is rare. Awakened from her cryogenic sleep, The Matron seeks to prolong her own life. To do so, she and her followers rely on human experimentation and enslavement. Sam has risen from the depths of the undersea city to purify the world that her generation has destroyed.
The author is adept at letting the action dictate most of the story. What starts out as a Mad Max type of atmosphere evolves into a fantasy quest and ultimately into a full-blown military operation. Readers get to know the characters ever so gradually amidst their actions and sporadic dialogue, composed mostly of humorous, sarcastic ribbing with the occasional heartfelt conversation. The book’s greatest strengths are the detailed descriptions of action, the illustrative landscapes, and the camaraderie between Sam and his team. Although not short on violence, the novel is suitable as YA Fiction because of aspects like combat, zombies, and the kind of squad warfare characteristic of modern video games like Call of Duty. Although the book can be read as a standalone sci-fi novel, it is the second of a series Atomic Ocean being the first, and that first novel might provide some useful context.
The author does an excellent job of placing the reader right in a nuclear wasteland and of portraying what a ragtag group of rebels might have to encounter in such a catastrophic vision. Readers who love action-driven, militaristic plots and/or post-apocalyptic scenarios will find a lot to appreciate with this novel.
