Haven

Dave Hutchinson's 'Shelter' was a very effective and enjoyable start to the shared-world Aftermath series; a splendid story of a fragile peace between feudal communities broken apart by teenaged stupidity, greed and mistrust. 'Haven', Adam Roberts's follow-up, is equally enjoyable, but takes things in a different direction.

A self-contained story, though the world is richer for having read Hutchinson's first book, 'Haven' details the unwanted adventures of Davy Forktongue, an epileptic boy who ought to have been, at most, a sidelines observer of the political machinations of the various powers in the Aftermath world. Instead, he becomes a prize being fought over by all of them, for varying reasons, and has to try to escape and save himself.

The book ends with a resolution of sorts for Davy; but with the distinct knowledge of larger forces on the move. I am very much looking forward to Hutchinson's projected book 3.