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The Zone: Fallen Son: A Cyberpunk Action-Thriller
402 pages, Kindle Edition
Published February 17, 2026
About the author
Stu Jones
12 books226 followersSWAT Sniper. Adventurer. Award Winning Author of Epic Genre Bending Thrillers.
A veteran law enforcement officer, Stu Jones has served in patrol, narcotics, criminal investigations, as an instructor of firearms and police defensive tactics and as a team leader of a multi-jurisdictional SWAT team. He is trained and qualified as a law enforcement SWAT sniper, as well as in hostage rescue and high-risk entry tactics. Recently, Jones served for three years with a U.S. Marshal’s Regional Fugitive Task Force - hunting the worst of the worst.
A Dragon Award Nominee, Jones is the author of multiple sci-fi/action/thriller novels, including the multi-award-winning It Takes Death To Reach A Star duology and Condition Black, written with co-author Gareth Worthington(Children of the Fifth Sun, A Time for Monsters).
Known for his infectious storytelling and blistering action, Jones strives to create thought-provoking reading experiences that challenge the status quo. When he’s not chasing bad guys or writing epic stories, he can be found planning his next adventure to some remote or exotic place.
Jones is represented by Italia Gandolfo of Gandolfo Helin & Fountain literary.
www.stujonesfiction.com
For updates - make sure to follow Stu @StuJonesFiction
A veteran law enforcement officer, Stu Jones has served in patrol, narcotics, criminal investigations, as an instructor of firearms and police defensive tactics and as a team leader of a multi-jurisdictional SWAT team. He is trained and qualified as a law enforcement SWAT sniper, as well as in hostage rescue and high-risk entry tactics. Recently, Jones served for three years with a U.S. Marshal’s Regional Fugitive Task Force - hunting the worst of the worst.
A Dragon Award Nominee, Jones is the author of multiple sci-fi/action/thriller novels, including the multi-award-winning It Takes Death To Reach A Star duology and Condition Black, written with co-author Gareth Worthington(Children of the Fifth Sun, A Time for Monsters).
Known for his infectious storytelling and blistering action, Jones strives to create thought-provoking reading experiences that challenge the status quo. When he’s not chasing bad guys or writing epic stories, he can be found planning his next adventure to some remote or exotic place.
Jones is represented by Italia Gandolfo of Gandolfo Helin & Fountain literary.
www.stujonesfiction.com
For updates - make sure to follow Stu @StuJonesFiction
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
May 13, 2026
Fans of Mad Max
The cover and interior art drew me in. The story opens in full PG-13 cinematic action mode with the air of Running Man with Chance making a deal with a couple devils to find and save his hostage infant son. They add a clock with medicine the boy needs. All over the planet, everyone seems to be trying to kill everyone with everything from muskets and spring-loaded zip guns to light sabers, making this is the perfect time to piss off both the local underworld lord and the cops. Add in a few malfunctions and betrayals to add difficulty. Commoners claim, “Just one more push is all it would take to free us of the Glom for good.” While the bad guys search for a McGuffin called the Soul of the Desert. The Mage thread has shades of Johnny Mnemonic.
The prose is full of purple metaphors. The author rarely clues the readers in on the goals, who the enemies are, or even the current location most chapters till later. I’m not sure what planet we’re on with only two cities, but the classic muscle cars and the cowboy’s accent hint at Earth. The two main villain names Varrogan and Volkan were a little too similar for my taste. Unfortunately, none of the threads have a conclusion, and it’s all a setup for another novel.
errata:
A VTOL flying car that can soar over buildings is not a hovercraft; those rely on ground effect to rise up a short distance and would be known in the genre as a GEV.
Too many paragraphs start with character’s name, usually Chance.
If it wasn’t for him should be weren’t
In chapter two, the first thing he asks his wife is where their son is when she already answered that question in chapter one.
Typo: And now. we find you here,
In chapter 20, format switches from # for scene breaks to ###, which means end of document.
Typo: “You’re trespassed.”
The Lazarus shot through the massive hole in the Firebase perimeter fence at what felt to Chance like faster-than-light travel. (confusing: use darted or ran because the last several times he shot it was from his trademark pistol)
The cover and interior art drew me in. The story opens in full PG-13 cinematic action mode with the air of Running Man with Chance making a deal with a couple devils to find and save his hostage infant son. They add a clock with medicine the boy needs. All over the planet, everyone seems to be trying to kill everyone with everything from muskets and spring-loaded zip guns to light sabers, making this is the perfect time to piss off both the local underworld lord and the cops. Add in a few malfunctions and betrayals to add difficulty. Commoners claim, “Just one more push is all it would take to free us of the Glom for good.” While the bad guys search for a McGuffin called the Soul of the Desert. The Mage thread has shades of Johnny Mnemonic.
The prose is full of purple metaphors. The author rarely clues the readers in on the goals, who the enemies are, or even the current location most chapters till later. I’m not sure what planet we’re on with only two cities, but the classic muscle cars and the cowboy’s accent hint at Earth. The two main villain names Varrogan and Volkan were a little too similar for my taste. Unfortunately, none of the threads have a conclusion, and it’s all a setup for another novel.
errata:
A VTOL flying car that can soar over buildings is not a hovercraft; those rely on ground effect to rise up a short distance and would be known in the genre as a GEV.
Too many paragraphs start with character’s name, usually Chance.
If it wasn’t for him should be weren’t
In chapter two, the first thing he asks his wife is where their son is when she already answered that question in chapter one.
Typo: And now. we find you here,
In chapter 20, format switches from # for scene breaks to ###, which means end of document.
Typo: “You’re trespassed.”
The Lazarus shot through the massive hole in the Firebase perimeter fence at what felt to Chance like faster-than-light travel. (confusing: use darted or ran because the last several times he shot it was from his trademark pistol)
Displaying 1 of 1 review