Arcade

by M.F. Thomas

In the near-future, our technology centered world is reduced to a pre-industrial state. Explosions around the globe generate electromagnetic pulses that destroy every piece of technology using electronic circuits. Silicon Valley is not immune to the chaos that erupts. In the ruins of the world's technology hub, society's remnants focus on survival.In the final days before the Change, retired FBI agent Walter Jackson pursues his estranged wife and daughter from Memphis to the Bay Area. His return home now impossible, Walter survives by working for the local police while still seeking his family. He discovers a high-tech company that still operates with food, power and a mission that reaches far beyond our solar system. Its leader, Sloan Holt, is also driven by the need to recover a loved one.

Walter and Sloan collaborate, but other dangers put them at risk - from an industrialist who sees opportunity in the chaos to unknown forces from an alien world. The game of survival is being played out in an apocalyptic arcade.

MF Thomas, author of the acclaimed sci-fi thrillers Seeing by Moonlight and A Sickness in Time, returns with a fast-paced tale of the strength of familial ties in the ruins of a high-tech world. Arcade entertains fans of Ready Player One, Alien and Interstellar.

295 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 2, 2019

About the author

MF Thomas has lived and worked in more than 20 countries, including a few years in Central America. While he is happy to be home in the United States, he can still be found in an airport most every week.



He co-authored two sci-fi thrillers with Nicholas Thurkettle: Seeing by Moonlight in 2013 and A Sickness in Time in 2016. In addition to print and digital options, both books have serialized audio versions found on every podcast platform. MF Thomas is also the executive producer of the independent horror movie, A Ghost Waits, released in 2019. His fourth book, Spirals, is expected in 2020.

Reviews

[Ashley Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

MF Thomas is becoming a more mature, skilled author as is apparent in the quality of his latest novel, Arcade. From the first chapter I was hooked. I read far longer into the night than I had originally planned, and I finished the book first thing when I woke up the next morning. I was drawn in with Thomas’s compelling characters, thrilling storyline, and fascinating post-apocalyptic world. Although at times I had questions how the science could be explained, I was repeatedly and pleasantly surprised at the creative, mind-expanding ways the story continued to unravel and how my questions were creatively answered time and time again. Therefore, if anyone enjoys a really good science fiction thriller and wants to read one of my favorite new books in sci-fi, I would highly recommend reading or even gifting Arcade. I believe that it is bound to be a hit.

[Nicholas Thurkettle · Rating 5 out of 5]

*I received an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review

Fast-paced and generously peppered with sci-fi tropes, "Arcade" manages to combine, in a brisk 294 pages, a post-technology thriller, an interstellar mystery, and some creepy borderline-body horror. Thomas starts the action with a world-changing catastrophe, a coordinated series of EMPs which turn all the human race's lights off, seemingly permanently.

But beneath the surface of the new, gang-infested, analog world, where weary cop Walter continues the search for his daughter that was already underway before "The Change" trapped him in San Francisco, some machines are still on. Young people in a hidden bunker are offered shelter, food, and unlimited play in an "Arcade", with the most skilled gamers promoted to a much more important, and ominous, assignment.

Author MF Thomas remixes familiar sci-fi ideas to gradually broaden the scope as Walter's old pulp detective mission stumbles into a secret that threatens all of what's left of humanity, with a colorfully-cuckoo villain pulling the strings behind it all. The action accelerates confidently and there's even room along the way for a tragic love story. Sci-fi lovers will find this a fast-paced read with many imaginative highlights.

[Mar Woods · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received an advanced copy of the book and I thoroughly enjoyed it! The whole scene from the moment of the Change and Walter (the main character) trying to survive in a dystopian, post-apocalyptic, crippled and crumbling America was it’s own experience, coupled with a father’s search for his child that takes him underground and back into an environment we’re all currently familiar with, left me with a kind of Wizard of Oz-like reading experience. Add to that Walter is a strong main character in a situation where he struggles with his own morality in the face of a world he can’t change, which makes him totally relatable. And the characters and story lines that weave their way through and alongside Walter on his physical, emotional, and metaphorical quest are perfectly placed even if a bit predictable. I love Thomas’ writing style, just enough description to get the point across without bogging the story down. Arcade was an easy read, exactly what you need on a cold rainy day, a quiet day off, headed somewhere on a plane, or at home on a sick day. I fully recommend this book.

[Joseph B · Rating 5 out of 5]

Arcade crafts a fine post-apocalyptic tale that takes common tropes of the genre and twists them into something new; resulting in an engaging and imaginative story that keeps you turning the pages. A global EMP event wipes out all technology in the world, reducing humanity to a world with phones, computers, vehicles, electricity, or any other amenities our society depends on.

Thrust into this pre-industrial revolution world is Walter Jackson; a former FBI agent and "good guy" trying to find his family. He's a common enough character archetype but the situations he's thrown into and how he responds is what makes him interesting. The crux of this story is when Walter discovers a curious underground arcade run by an enigmatic corporation. It's a bizarre hook that keeps you reading just one more chapter until somehow you're done with the book.

Arcade contains plenty of imaginative twists and turns. M.F. Thomas tells a mature and refreshing story that can best be described a post-apocalyptic sci-fi thriller. Don't sleep on this one if you're looking for a read in this genre that shakes things up.

[Teresa M Bawa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I won this book from goodreads. I am a person who only reads science fi occasionally but I entered because I thought it sounded interesting. I have to say that this book keeps you engaged and interested. Fast paced and a pretty quick read as well.
I have to say the only thing I was disappointed in was that it just wasn't a bit longer. I was interested in seeing if perhaps sloan and Walter wouldn't get together and if Walter would ever find his daughter. Awe perhaps a sequel will be in the works.
Check it out.

[Carole Clark · Rating 5 out of 5]

Arcade is a novel of a world gone dark after an EMP. But unlike other EMP novels, this one has a great science fiction twist to it. Since post-apocalyptic novels are among my favorite genres, I was immediately hooked on this story...characters that you care about, an insight of what this world would be without technology, and lots of adventure.

I'm really looking forward to Mr. Thomas's next book, Spirals, which is due out this summer.

[Melanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Arcade is a fascinating leap into a future where the majority are without technology. Walter Jackson is a strong, relatable hero in a dark world. Enemies come in many forms, as do friends. I thoroughly enjoyed the awakening of Sloan Holt, a brilliant scientist, to what truly matters. I read this book straight through as I couldn’t put it down!

[Anne Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I scary futuristic look at the world to come?
This book kept me reading to see what would happen next to the likable characters.
Very interesting and terrifying.
I wanted to read what was going to happen next to the scientist and the police officer. Will he ever find his daughter?
This reader wants to know.