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The Work Ahead: A Novel
What happens to the regular people during an alien invasion? What about after humanity gets it's butt kicked?
If you, like me, aren't a super soldier, trained assassin, billionaire playboy philanthropist, god or hulk, then you start working for your new alien overlords. And no, you don't get some cool "fly a spaceship around" job- you get to be a farmer!
This fast paced, funny, book is an account of the time that I lost my office job- the one with the super chill boss, and went into farming with my new a blood thirsty 8ft tall space lizard that was only interested in getting his next big promotion. Read and witness how I use the only things I'm good 90s pop culture trivia and MS Excel to go from humble farmer to slightly more efficient farmer, to member of the secret society that runs all of EARTH! Witness my ego growing so large that I fail to see the anonyms hackers I hired off the internet using Dogecoin might not actually have my best intrest at heart! You already know, having survived the invasion that humanity wins, but you DON'T know what happened behind the scenes. You don't know how THAT sausage was made! So here it is!
You'll laugh at the absurdity of my life (hey!), you'll cry at the similarities of human and alien corporate culture, you'll join me in solemnly saluting my coworker's tragic loss of frequent eater points at his favorite sub sandwich shop, you'll remember the 90s, and most of all you won't be bored for a few hours!
If you, like me, aren't a super soldier, trained assassin, billionaire playboy philanthropist, god or hulk, then you start working for your new alien overlords. And no, you don't get some cool "fly a spaceship around" job- you get to be a farmer!
This fast paced, funny, book is an account of the time that I lost my office job- the one with the super chill boss, and went into farming with my new a blood thirsty 8ft tall space lizard that was only interested in getting his next big promotion. Read and witness how I use the only things I'm good 90s pop culture trivia and MS Excel to go from humble farmer to slightly more efficient farmer, to member of the secret society that runs all of EARTH! Witness my ego growing so large that I fail to see the anonyms hackers I hired off the internet using Dogecoin might not actually have my best intrest at heart! You already know, having survived the invasion that humanity wins, but you DON'T know what happened behind the scenes. You don't know how THAT sausage was made! So here it is!
You'll laugh at the absurdity of my life (hey!), you'll cry at the similarities of human and alien corporate culture, you'll join me in solemnly saluting my coworker's tragic loss of frequent eater points at his favorite sub sandwich shop, you'll remember the 90s, and most of all you won't be bored for a few hours!
276 pages, Kindle Edition
Published May 20, 2022
2 people are currently reading
12 people want to read
About the author
Sameer Chopra
3 books7 followersSameer Chopra is a banker by day and a writer by night. He is an avid motorcycle traveler who has toured some of the remotest parts of India. He is also a passionate photographer and has assisted professional photographers in his pursuit of the craft. A qualified Engineer and Master's in Business Administration, he toils in the corporate world while having an ardent belief that there is another life beyond it.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
September 21, 2022
mind bending
The author’s style was fast and furious. His pop culture references almost overwhelming. This plot was so complex that if you blinked you could get lost. It was exhausting. And it all worked. Loved the central characters. This kid can write. I recommend this book.
The author’s style was fast and furious. His pop culture references almost overwhelming. This plot was so complex that if you blinked you could get lost. It was exhausting. And it all worked. Loved the central characters. This kid can write. I recommend this book.
July 18, 2022
Don't eat, drink, or operate heavy machinery while reading this
I'm about to blaspheme against all of geekdom: I think this book is funnier than Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. There, I said it. I wince, waiting for the Geek (not Greek) pantheon to smite me. Am I still alive? Phew. Let's see if I survive to finish this review...
This is one of those rare books that breaks the 4th wall and pulls it off. And I like it when the author calls me, the reader, Dr. Nerdnik. About time someone got my title right, thank you very much. :)
The book trots out the expected geeky pop culture references--especially near the end. Wow, I've never read a climax quite like that one! The author sets up an elaborate scenario that, when I looked back at it, left me blinking in awe. (in a good way) Throughout the book, you get a steady stream of irony, subtext, corporate satire, antiheroism, and genuinely surprising and absurd events. Its situational and observational humor made me bark with laughter every few pages. My cats came from their roosts to see what my deal was.
Oh, and this author's writing style makes the whole thing work. It's clean, clear, concise, original, and doesn't bore you with pointless or distracting details. In fact, he refers to this "...but my editor told me that it would be better to literally kill you than bore you with any more details of the hierarchy..." Some books almost did kill me with boredom, but not this one. Every word does useful work here. Other authors, please take note!
Some of the lines I found memorable:
-"'They're all gone. All my (Hilton Hotel) points are gone.' I patted his back. Like tears in the rain, Matt's years of effort were gone."
-"As we got closer, the crowd scattered back to their seats like pigeons seeing a pretzel truck barreling towards them."
-"I used the adrenalin rush to decide if I should really do soemthing or if I should figure out what's going on. Ultimately, I compromised and used the rush of superhuman speed and strength to sit and mumble, 'Whoa.'"
-"If you ever want to sneak into anything, just get an orange vest! If I ever directed a James Bond movie, we would dispense with all the casinos and invisible cars. Instead, we'd skip straight to our hero walking into the secret base with a hard hat, an orange vest, a clipboard, and maybe a bucket of paint (don't worry, the paint is shaken, not stirred!)"
-"It certainly was sounding like the US government had taken over Disney World and we were about to get on a ride. Uncle Sam's Wild Ride--featuring bloated budgets, bureaucracy, and acronyms!"
-"Matt, the way I see it, we're following the Frozen 2 princple. We're just gonna keep doing the next right thing."
-"It never occurred to me that conspiracy theorists secretly hoped to get the evidence to prove there was a conspiracy so that they could then lead their own conspiracy--one that...was bigger and stupider than the original."
-"My only regret was not eating more pizza." (what the mc thinks right before his imminent death)
-"We've got an entire galaxy chomping at the bit to buy Earth (stuff), and we haven't seen a single shipment of Polly Pocket Playsets yet."
There's much more I want to say about this book, but the anti-spoilery angels of my nature compel me to hold those spoilers back.
I look skyward through the gaps of my fingers. Well, looks like I'm still alive. The ghost of Douglas Adams might come for me later, but I stand by my earlier comment. Don't read this if you're recovering from low back or abdominal cramping--because your laughter will only make that worse. And when you see the crazy stuff the main character has to face in this book, you will be forgiven if you...
Panic!
I'm about to blaspheme against all of geekdom: I think this book is funnier than Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. There, I said it. I wince, waiting for the Geek (not Greek) pantheon to smite me. Am I still alive? Phew. Let's see if I survive to finish this review...
This is one of those rare books that breaks the 4th wall and pulls it off. And I like it when the author calls me, the reader, Dr. Nerdnik. About time someone got my title right, thank you very much. :)
The book trots out the expected geeky pop culture references--especially near the end. Wow, I've never read a climax quite like that one! The author sets up an elaborate scenario that, when I looked back at it, left me blinking in awe. (in a good way) Throughout the book, you get a steady stream of irony, subtext, corporate satire, antiheroism, and genuinely surprising and absurd events. Its situational and observational humor made me bark with laughter every few pages. My cats came from their roosts to see what my deal was.
Oh, and this author's writing style makes the whole thing work. It's clean, clear, concise, original, and doesn't bore you with pointless or distracting details. In fact, he refers to this "...but my editor told me that it would be better to literally kill you than bore you with any more details of the hierarchy..." Some books almost did kill me with boredom, but not this one. Every word does useful work here. Other authors, please take note!
Some of the lines I found memorable:
-"'They're all gone. All my (Hilton Hotel) points are gone.' I patted his back. Like tears in the rain, Matt's years of effort were gone."
-"As we got closer, the crowd scattered back to their seats like pigeons seeing a pretzel truck barreling towards them."
-"I used the adrenalin rush to decide if I should really do soemthing or if I should figure out what's going on. Ultimately, I compromised and used the rush of superhuman speed and strength to sit and mumble, 'Whoa.'"
-"If you ever want to sneak into anything, just get an orange vest! If I ever directed a James Bond movie, we would dispense with all the casinos and invisible cars. Instead, we'd skip straight to our hero walking into the secret base with a hard hat, an orange vest, a clipboard, and maybe a bucket of paint (don't worry, the paint is shaken, not stirred!)"
-"It certainly was sounding like the US government had taken over Disney World and we were about to get on a ride. Uncle Sam's Wild Ride--featuring bloated budgets, bureaucracy, and acronyms!"
-"Matt, the way I see it, we're following the Frozen 2 princple. We're just gonna keep doing the next right thing."
-"It never occurred to me that conspiracy theorists secretly hoped to get the evidence to prove there was a conspiracy so that they could then lead their own conspiracy--one that...was bigger and stupider than the original."
-"My only regret was not eating more pizza." (what the mc thinks right before his imminent death)
-"We've got an entire galaxy chomping at the bit to buy Earth (stuff), and we haven't seen a single shipment of Polly Pocket Playsets yet."
There's much more I want to say about this book, but the anti-spoilery angels of my nature compel me to hold those spoilers back.
I look skyward through the gaps of my fingers. Well, looks like I'm still alive. The ghost of Douglas Adams might come for me later, but I stand by my earlier comment. Don't read this if you're recovering from low back or abdominal cramping--because your laughter will only make that worse. And when you see the crazy stuff the main character has to face in this book, you will be forgiven if you...
Panic!
July 2, 2022
An Alien's your boss 👽
What's a cloud architect to do when aliens descend from the actual clouds and enslave the human race? Why, architect innovations in cucumber farming while saving the world, of course!
The Work Ahead has a sharp wit and corporate dryness that speaks directly to my shriveled, white collar soul: Sameer will keep you laughing whether the protagonist is grappling with obstinate clients in corporate America or plotting to take down an incompetent and corrupt alien kleptocracy. Bright pops of human ingenuity compete with flawed human nature, while the alien middle-management chain had me double-taking wondering if Sameer used some of my managers as a reference!
The narrative is peppered with pop culture references that may even have - gasp - plot relevance? - and certain plot twists had me in fits. The Work Ahead has enough laughs, conspiracy and geekdom to keep the pages turning. It's a good time all around. Don't forget to file your reports. 🖖🏼
What's a cloud architect to do when aliens descend from the actual clouds and enslave the human race? Why, architect innovations in cucumber farming while saving the world, of course!
The Work Ahead has a sharp wit and corporate dryness that speaks directly to my shriveled, white collar soul: Sameer will keep you laughing whether the protagonist is grappling with obstinate clients in corporate America or plotting to take down an incompetent and corrupt alien kleptocracy. Bright pops of human ingenuity compete with flawed human nature, while the alien middle-management chain had me double-taking wondering if Sameer used some of my managers as a reference!
The narrative is peppered with pop culture references that may even have - gasp - plot relevance? - and certain plot twists had me in fits. The Work Ahead has enough laughs, conspiracy and geekdom to keep the pages turning. It's a good time all around. Don't forget to file your reports. 🖖🏼
August 14, 2022
I hoped this would be funny and there might be a little more farming. But there wasn't. The blindness thing really didn't work well, the humour wasn't to my taste and I felt as though things hadn't really progressed from one end of the book to the other.
June 15, 2022
A relaxing, humorous read about a regular person dealing with an alien invasion.
June 18, 2023
A little simplistically written but a clever concept and lots of fun pop culture references...
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews