Midnight Black: The Purge by R.J. Eastwood

Imagine being isolated from society for more than a decade, only to find out that the entire world has fallen to pieces when you return. In Midnight Black: The Purge, a new thriller by author R.J. Eastwood, that exact scenario plays out for the protagonist, Billy Russell, an ex-cop who had served 15 of his 20 years for taking well-deserved justice into his own hands.

Russell is brought back to the land of the living only to find that a nuclear conflict has ushered in a new world order, and his newly granted freedom will start with him swallowing some hard truths. As a part of his parole, or perhaps a larger more sinister scheme, Billy re-enters society as an officer of the law again, but everything has changed, including the implicit honor behind the badge.

This gripping dystopian thriller grabs you from the very start with subtle details and brilliant descriptions, as well as tension-building prose and believable dialogue that immediately endears readers to this unlikely hero. The world may have changed, but Russell hasn’t forgotten his former life, nor the core of his beliefs, which makes him immediately relatable as a character.

There are patriotic elements to this story, as well as anarchic ones, action-packed scenes, and thoughtful philosophical moments that take a reader by surprise. The novel deserves a better cover, but Eastwood’s talent as a flexible and creative author is on clear display as he unravels this twisted vision of the future.