I’ve read/listened to a lot of horror featuring a cast of ex-military professionals. It has slowly become a favorite sub-genre of mine, and there is a lot of great stuff out there. Existential is no exception, and actually went above and beyond my expectations. This story is exceptionally gory without being exploitative, and packs an emotional punch without compromising smart storytelling and the integrity of a surprisingly large cast. It is grim and bleak with a purpose, managing to inject realism into a plot that could otherwise fall into cheap Hollywood blockbuster fare. The story went places I didn’t expect and IMHO pulled it off. And I am a hard sell when it comes to anything dealing with extraterrestrials. The characters are imperfect and nuanced, and the author took care to flesh out villain and hero and minor character alike, allowing the audience to form their own opinions via gray area motivations, with no decisions condemned or lauded. Just explained, and sometimes in contrast to the narrating character’s POV.
For me, the hallmark of a quality genre novel is the inclusion of seemingly extraneous genre atypical details that enrich and texture- things that the author didn’t need to include to have a serviceable story. Plot twists and character quirks that were clearly included with care, not to pad out generic writing. This book had oodles of immersive character details and plot points so that I came away feeling satisfied and somehow more involved than stories twice as long and thrice as complicated. Most importantly there is a deep respect for those who serve our country, written without a hint of blind fanaticism or glorification of warfare. The main character is not a superhero everyman with a heart of gold, and the skeletons in his closet are not neatly eradicated via important life lessons akin to a bloody after school special.
I very much look forward to the next installment. I needed a break from by the book zombie outbreaks and EMP induced collapses of civilization!