Bob @ Beauty in Ruins

I went into New Megiddo Risingthinking it was the first novella in a new series, but it turns out it's actually prequel to Lars Teeney's debut novel,The Apostates. While the novella can certainly be read alone, I can't help but feel that knowledge of the larger story might help to smooth over some of the gaps, put events in context, and make the conclusion feel like less of a dead stop.

Concept-wise, this was a really intriguing story. It's basically a post-apocalyptic dystopia, layered atop an alternate history (that sees Mexico as the real political power), driven by some deep commentary on the terrifying prospect of a fundamentalist Christian theocracy in America. It's a dark, ugly, unsettling future, and one that feels justifiably ripe for rebellion. I was immediately intrigued by the world and what was going on, and just as invested in the fate of the characters.

Character development was a bit simplistic here, without any read depth or backstory, but that may very well be something the novel expands upon. The roles were fascinating, particularly the more militant arms of the church, and the stench of corruption permeated the text. Dialogue was strong, however, and some of the narrative framework was nicely detailed and very well developed. Additionally, there were interesting bits of futuristic technology scattered through, contrasting nicely with the almost third-world conditions, but I wasn't quite sure how the two could coexist.

Like a lot of self-published titles, this could benefit from the touch of an editor - a query is not the same as a quarry - but I was sufficiently intrigued by the concept and the potential in the characters to keep The Apostates on my radar for a future read.


ebook, 87 pages
Published September 14th 2015 by Lars Teeney