In “Outrider,” Mark Wales has conjured a gloomily plausible near-future in which China has invaded Taiwan (obliterating three American carrier groups along the way) and decimated the Royal Australian Navy on their path to occupying the country.
But this is no “Red Storm Rising” – Tom Clancy’s epic delineation of WWIII as he speculated back in 1987. Rather, Wales neatly sketches these details as vital backdrop to his story, which is focused mainly on the actions of one man: Jack Dunne, the last surviving Outrider. In this respect, it’s more akin to a Vince Flynn actioner.
Outriders are the most elite troops AUKUS ever created, and have been hunted since the occupation began in 2029. When the novel opens, the Chinese occupation of Australia is into its fifth year, and the country is entrenched in civil war. The Chinese Communist Party has secured various strategic locations pivotal to their stronghold on the region. Much of the country has been reduced to anarchy. Some Australian’s now serve their invaders. Others have formed pockets of resistance. The nation is divided.
“Outrider” is centred on these conflicts rather than fighting the occupiers, which might ease the minds of those concerned with the racial connotations of the novel’s premise. It’s an unabashed military thriller, chockfull of vivid and cinematic action, and packed with all the advanced hardware and gadgetry readers of the genre expect.
If that sounds gormless, don’t worry—Wales’s story is centred on the relationship between Jack and his eleven-year-old son. After the death of his wife, and the boy’s mother, all Jack wants is to withdraw from the frontlines to keep him as safe. Circumstances (and a necessary narrative trope) transpire against Jack, as he’s drawn into a grand mission on which hinge the lives of the entire resistance.
In many ways, “Outrider” reminds me of the action movies from the era of VHS rentals, when tough-guy military mavericks took it upon themselves to wreak havoc against the enemy, and get done what a platoon could not. The ravaged and war-torn Australia Wales has concocted is ripe for further exploration. A sequel, surely, is in the works. If you love slam-bang entrainment, (and plenty of bang for your buck), you’ll love it.
Written By Sime 