Kill Code by Clive Fleury

WHEN THE OCEANS RISE...THE TRUTH DROWNS

It's the year 2031. Our future. Their present. A world decimated by climate catastrophe, where the sun's heat is deadly and the ocean rises higher every day. A world ruled by the rich, powerful, and corrupt. A world where a good man can't survive for long.

Hogan Duran was a good man once. He was a cop, forced to resign in disgrace when he couldn't save his partner from a bullet. Now Hogan lives on the fraying edges of society, serving cruel masters and scavenging trash dumps just to survive.

But after four years of living in poverty, Hogan finally gets a chance to get back on his feet. He's invited to join the National Security Council, the powerful paramilitary organization responsible for protecting the rich and powerful from the more unsavory elements of society. All he needs to do is pass their deadly entrance exam, and he'll be rewarded with wealth and opportunity beyond his wildest dreams. 

But this ex-cop's path to redemption won't be easy. The NSC are hiding something, and as Hogan descends deeper and deeper into their world, he starts to uncover the terrible truth of how the powerful in this new world maintain their power...and just how far they will go to protect their secrets. 

In a world gone wrong, can one man actually make a difference, or will he die trying?

Format: ebook
Narrator: n/a
Performance: n/a
Story: 🌑🌑🌑🌓

Dystopian stories are usually the purview of YA. Kill Code follows the dystopian tradition of bringing down those in power while avoiding most of the annoying tropes found in YA books. Chief of which, is that, thankfully, there are no romance angles so far. 

The story follows Hogan Duran, ex-soldier and disgraced cop, trying to eke out a living in the poorer section of the city. He has applied to the National Security Council a couple of times when, at his third attempt, he finally got accepted. The NSC is an elite paramilitary organization and their main task was to deal with Krails, a group of barbaric, motorcycle riding hooligans living in the wilderness. Hogan and his fellow trainees will undergo rigorous training to see to see who is worthy of becoming an NSC officer. Only one is chosen and the rewards are great. Among the other trainees were Ruby, a stripper and Jake, an arrogant bastard willing to do whatever's necessary to come out on top.

The story started in an unhurried pace but quickly picked up once the training started. I liked how it breezed through the training while still making it relatively difficult for the trainees. One by one, the unworthy were eliminated. The remaining trainees were all set to deal with the results, when the author threw a HUGE curve ball! 

Hogan, Ruby, Commander Beecham, Jake and the rest of the officers were suddenly dealing with a hostage situation and fighting off Krails who started invading the base. The Krails were getting too close when Hogan suddenly realized there must be a traitor in the midst, the one who let the criminals get in so easily. Just when the traitor's identity dawn on him, BAM! the story went off in a completely different direction, which left Hogan, and me, reeling from the impact. Just like Hogan, I needed to shake off cobwebs and tried to process WTF just happened.  And what the hell is happening now. Hah! that was a good one, Clive Fleury.

Another plus for this book, is that Hogan is not really the chosen one, more like that person who listened to his gut and did what's right. Ruby proved she can hold her own in a fight, having been an ex-soldier herself and quite a skilled hacker. Jake deserved what he got and the Krails were more than the hooligans the NSC made them out to be. Meanwhile, the NSC were hiding sordid secrets of their own.

In terms of world-building, it wasn't as detailed as I would have liked. Just enough details to establish that this is dystopian. Also, I felt I didn't get a deeper sense of the characters, again we mostly see them doing stuff but not really much introspection. 

All in all, Kill Code is an action-oriented sci-fi story, with many twist and turns that will keep you on the edge of your seat. It is also a great opener to a series. Recommended to those who enjoy stories about unlikely heroes dealing with mind-bending situations.

P.S. 

Thank you to the author, Clive Fleury, for giving a copy in exchange for an honest review.

SOUNDTRACK

Eat The Elephant

A Perfect Circle

Eat The Elephant

Looming, omnipresent
This task ahead
This task at hand
Ominous and daunting
Crippling undertaking, I'm frozen

Where to begin eludes me
Without you to remind me

Just take the step
Just take the swing
Just take the bite
Just go all in

Where to begin eludes me
Ruling ever deeper
This massive endeavor
Ominous and daunting
Crippling undertaking

Just take the step
Just take the swing
Just take the bite
Just go all in

Take the step
Take the swing
Take the bite
Just take the bite

Take the step
Take the swing
Take the bite
Just go all in

Where to begin eludes me
Without you to remind me
Just begin