In August 2021 the unthinkable happens to the world, nuclear war. Fifty years later humanity is making a return but the aftermath of war is not the only problem to deal with, a virus was set loose turning part of the population left on the planet into mindless zombie like killers.

Kevin is a member as what is known as a roadhouse, he is a hired driver to make all sorts of deliveries between the scattered towns risking his life with each trip. Out one day Kevin comes across a woman in trouble and against his own judgement he decides to help. Taking on the strange woman just may be the end to Kevin and his dreams of owning his own roadhouse in this desolate world.

One More Run is the first book in the Roadhouse Chronicles by Matthew S. Cox. The story started off reminding me a bit of a Mad Max movie with Kevin’s heroic rescue, a bit of those the good guy against horrible odds is this really realistic moments for me and with the dystopian society Mad Max was my first thought. As the adventure begins though it takes on a feel of The Walking Dead as those affected by the plague are introduced. Several times it is said that they are not the undead but it certainly seemed like zombie attacks being described within the pages.

When mixing the things the story was reminding me of it seemed that I would end up loving the book but for me the thing that brought my rating down a bit is simply the length. I am one that for a book to be 500 pages or more it has to be simply amazing or I find myself dragging through eventually and with this I began questioning if some couldn’t have been cut out to make the story a bit tighter and hold my interest more. There is action but I started thinking it to be a bit repetitive in nature. Otherwise it’s not a bad start to a series and I’m sure others would absolutely love it.

I received a copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

One More Run will absolutely find a place as one of my favorite books of the year. In fact, it is exactly the kind of book I could see myself reading over and over again. It takes numerous well worn and overplayed tropes, throws them all together, adds a pinch of spice and just enough uniqueness and boom! You end up with something brand new, exciting, and impossible not to completely devour.

Want a taste of dystopian nuclear wasteland? You got it. Feel the need for a few zombies? Eh, throw some in. Human trafficking and bands of merceless outlaws? Done. Why not add a pinch of romance, some androids for good measure, and a suped up electric muscle car for spice? Done and done.

Not only that, but the characters were something else. Each little settlement had it's own personality, as did those who lived within. Tris and Kevin learned and adapted as their relationship and adventure progressed. I'd love for them to find a happy ending, yet just as equally I desperately want to jump back into their world and go on "One More Run" with them.

I feel as if this book could easily appeal to so many different people, across so many genres. Yet I never once felt overwhelmed, or as if there were too much going on. It's a big world, and people are so different. So many tales to tell.

"What happened to 'people want to help each other'?" "There'll always be a bad element. Human nature. What I meant was most people are helpful. The two you gotta watch out for are the ones who don't give a sh!t about sh!t, and the ones who've given the f--k up."

Such a wild ride. Such amazing world building. Characters you can care about. Absolutely 5 Stars! ~ George

While the premise for this story is interesting, I was unable to get into it, and so did not finish this book. It's not that the book wasn't written well, but it just wasn't my style. I don't want to say any more about the novel, especially since I didn't get through it and that would be very unfair to the author and his story. Thank you to the publisher and the author for giving me the opportunity!