End Man

by Alex Austin

Once your life is diluted to ones and zeroes on the End Man’s desk, it’s over. Or is it?

Afflicted with dromophobia, the fear of crossing streets, 26-year-old Raphael Lennon must live out his life within the four thoroughfares that border his Los Angeles neighborhood. Luckily, he found a fulfilling job within his space as an End Man at Norval Portals where Raphael is the best possum hunter in the company. He hunts the dead who live, people hiding under the guise of death. He doesn’t want to bring these “possums” to justice but to keep them out of his firm’s necrology database so their presence doesn’t crash the whole system.

When the company founder assigns Raphael a fresh case, he sets aside all other work to investigate Jason Klaes, a maverick physicist with boundary-pushing theories that may have attracted unwanted and sinister attention. Raphael soon discovers messages sent by Klaes after his supposed death—threats to people who have subsequently died. As he digs deeper, he receives his own message from Klaes, a baffling command to pursue the truth.

As he unravels the mystery, he unearths the secrets of his own phobia-plagued life and the inner workings of Norval, whose corporate ambitions include a nightmarish spin-off of its product. Raphael must stop them or he’ll never be free and neither will anyone else.

Genres: Science Fiction, Dystopia

379 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 11, 2022

About the author

I was born in New Jersey and grew up on the Jersey Shore, where I spent much of my childhood underwater. My little town on the Raritan Bay, Union Beach, flooded every full moon, but the bay and creeks were my element. I spent many a day six feet beneath the surface trying to extract oxygen from water (Aquaman and I share the secret). After coming up for air, I did a tour in the U.S. Navy (on the water!). That done, I moved to California and attended UCLA, where I got a BA in history, but by then my interests had turned to less academic writing—both fiction and nonfiction. I've written in most forms, but for the last 20 years, I've stuck to novels. My latest, End Man, was published by Cursed Dragon Press and released October 2022. The novel took six years and went through more than 200 complete revisions. It's about our online and data-soaked times, but to make it work I had to set it 10 years in the future. It has very much to do with ChatGPT. When I'm not writing, I'm reading. I live in Los Angeles.


“End Man has echoes of Bladerunner, Max Payne and The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. Noir vibes, an outnumbered, outgunned hero and an impending sense of paranoia. It sends you into a future with a disturbing vision of how our data could be used.”
—Luke French, Reedsy Discovery

"Alex Austin is a master at building tension, psychological inquiry, and intrigue that tests his protagonist in unexpected ways."--Diane Donovan, Midwest Book Review

“Evocative and thought-provoking, End Man by Alex Austin is an extraordinary science-fiction tale that paints a disturbing futuristic picture of a technologically advanced society. ”—Susan Sewell for Readers’ Favorite

"An engrossing and well-crafted SF Tale with timely themes."—Kirkus Reviews Recommended

"Fast and fresh, End Man is a blood-pumping thriller like nothing you’ve experienced before!"
—Indies Today

“End Man is an exciting cyberpunk novel that creates a fully realized and compelling world for a fascinating protagonist to exist in.”—Literary Titan

“This is a well-written and gripping dystopian thriller, thoughtful and complex, that will appeal to sci-fi and mystery fans alike.” –Steph Warren, Bookshine and Readbows.

“I enjoyed this book through and through. . .The characters were one of a kind and the whole plot line impeccably well thought out.”—Victoria Luv
----

I'm a Los Angeles-based journalist and teacher (LAUSD). My novel End Man, a speculative mystery published by Cursed Dragon Ship, was released on October, 11, 2022. First sentence: "Death was a good place to hide." Bookish Beyond has published a persuasive review: https://bookishbeyond.com/index.php/2...

I've given several interviews in conjunction with End Man's release. You'll learn of my humble Jersey roots, how End Man emerged from an online epiphany, and why I caution those who contemplate writing novels:

https://heatherlbarksdale.com/author-...

https://twitter.com/_armedwithabook/s...

My novel Nakamura Reality was published by The Permanent Press in February 2016. Publishers Weekly gave the novel a starred review and called it "powerful and moving. The following are links to some reviews, interviews and published stories:

Publishers Weekly Starred Review of Nakamura Reality http://www.publishersweekly.com/978-1...

Better Beta Reads Interview http://betterbetareads.com/bookmarksi...



Night Swim (excerpted from Nakamura Reality)
http://web.archive.org/web/2012090117...

UV30 (excerpted from Nakamura Reality)
http://carte-blanche.org/articles/uv-30/

The Rat (Nominated for Best of the Web 2015)
http://districtlit.com/post/12

Reviews

[Marc *Dark Reader with a Thousand Young! Iä!* · Rating 4 out of 5]

I waited too long after reading to write a review, sorry if I don't quite do it justice.

This is near-future sci-fi with an interesting concept which is not a stretch of the imagination by any means: when you die, an enterprising corporation will capture and package your entire digital life and sell it back to your loved ones, recreating the essential "you" to live on in that form. In a disturbing moment over the recent holidays, I overheard my brother-in-law talking about considering investing in a company that proposed to do something not entirely dissimilar.

The concept evolves further from there, and it's delivered through the fascinating lens of a character whose life is constrained by a crippling phobia of crossing specific streets, limiting his life to a smallish block of central LA. The story combines these elements with passions for fine art and skateboarding to paint a well-rounded portrait of life slipping out of control in a digital doomsday era.

The plot didn't quite hold together for me towards the end—my main beef is that the "End Man" corporation acted less like a contemporary tech firm and more like a podunk operation—but it had a great energy and character payoff and was ultimately satisfying.

[L.S. Popovich · Rating 5 out of 5]

The first thing I appreciated about End Man was the Vaporware/ Outrun aesthetic of its cover, followed by its intriguing premise. Wherever corporate corruption is brought upon the chopping block I am game for a foray into speculation. Then you get oodles of commentary on mortality and how the virtual world contains online remnants of the dead. Elements of this book are not fiction, but our true reality. It got me thinking about the records we leave when we die, online, in print, etc. And how that is all that is left of us. In this fictitious world, that concept gets taken to the extreme.

The slick prose style keeps the action pulse-racing throughout and the realistic futuristic setting is beset with crucial and relevant subtexts without compromising the plot. What value does a human life have after death? How much of our identity can be stored? Corporations have been quantifying human worth since their inception, and their practices are no different in the author’s world.

Blanks are people without online personas, which, one might argue, makes them harder to control. But what do we give up when we go off-grid? These ideas are morbid and upsetting to me because I seem them playing out in reality. It is no shock to come across them in fiction. The author certainly utilizes them in a thought-provoking way, incorporating tons of world-building details onto every page, and rarely slowing down to dwell in quiet moments. There are plenty of character quirks that solidify over time into memorable personalities both flawed and relatable. Solid dialogue chops play out against the heavy undertones.

Sleuthing fans will be right at home in the investigative environment of the book. Among its many considerations, it will have you pondering the ripple effects of contemporaneous tragedies like mass shootings and humanity’s potentially bleak future in a world rife with evolving cybercrimes and terrorists more creative and elusive and effective than law enforcement. Online activity monitoring and personal surveillance is not only disturbing but dehumanizing. Cryptocurrencies are also irritating, prevalent, and suspicious. All the same, the up to date engagement with social concerns is right up front here. By implementing razor’s edge technological innovations the author is able to depict a riveting interplay of conflicts. Many of us will recognize the signs of corporate grind, burn out, ennui, addiction to social media, and dependence on tech and gadgets to run our lives for us. Add to this discussion of quantum computing, debt culture, and the typical people gaming the system leaves the playing field ripe for scandals. Reading about scary futures close enough to our present can disturb but also awaken us to the realities before our eyes. Still, the book is entertaining and intellectually stimulating. I have always considered the Internet to be a rabbit hole, but it can become a black hole — one that consumes and proliferates until its virtual landscape seems more vast and alluring than our physical world. How is it that our sophisticated civilization can be as deadly as the Viking-era villages, where survival is no guarantee, or even a likelihood, due to our destructive impulses?

Recommended for a cyber-aware audience.

[Herman · Rating 3 out of 5]

End Man by Alex Austin: Science Fiction in the near term in Los Angele's La Brea district a generation or two in the future is the stage for this inventive work where the commercialization of data is taken too a whole new level. Raphael Lennon is a smart young artistic IT professional with a secret he suffers from Dromophobia a fear of crossing streets, just one of the eclectic groupings of loose subplots that powers and sometimes hinders this book. There was this one Gobsmacked moment for myself since I'm a painter and when I read Raphael's comment "His painting was no different from or better than the self-important posts and images banged in daily on social media. All of it nothing more than clickbait."
Austin, Alex. End Man (p. 259). Cursed Dragon Ship Publishing, LLC. Kindle Edition.
Here I thought Mr. Austin caught the true essence of the artist fear, and while that is just a small thing it felt very truthful to me. Good writing was sometimes hampered by the difficulty fully understanding content that hasn't been invented yet, even worse was trying to understand Norval Department of Marketing Necrology (NDMN) business plan, no really trying to figure out how some nefarious grave to data AI modeled program is being developed to, and this is where my brain says woah! That's it I quit! Brain hops out of my head and sulks off, pissed off because I multi-tasked the heck out of my cerebral cortex and it just went on strike too many connection points hanging loosly until the very end when most are explained. I feel the author was reaching for connections with trauma and death and loss, and as with the comment about artistic dreams vs reality, he sometimes hits the nail on the head, the problem I have with this book is that there are so dang many nails, therefore I think this book was reaching for a classical resonance a certain pathos it aimed was high but fell short on a few levels so I can only give it three and a half stars but I found it a very good effort.

[Michael McGinty · Rating 5 out of 5]

I beta-read this some years ago and so pleased for Alex that Cursed Dragon Ship decided to publish it. Back then, it deserved to be published, but it has since evolved into an entertaining cyber sci-fi tale that would stand up alongside the likes of Count Zero (Gibson) and Snow Crash (Stephenson).

End Man is a near-future thrilling cyberpunk ride through one square mile of downtown LA.
Constrained within that square mile by protagonist Raphael's affliction of dromophobia, or fear of crossing (certain) streets, we are pulled along by the mystery of dead 'possums'. Those who are pretending to be dead. And once you're dead the only value remaining is the data you leave behind. Hence the End Men, whose task it is to retrieve and warehouse that data for commercial purposes.

While reading End Man, I couldn't help thinking about the one square mile that each of us is constrained to. The boundaries we dare not cross in our own lives. And yet, if we took the chance, we might be pleasantly surprised by the future that lies beyond.

In all, I thoroughly enjoyed End Man. I liked the urgency, the interwoven story of budding love, and the ones and zeros that seem to now define us in this ever-digital world we live in.

[Sue McKerns · Rating 4 out of 5]

Alex Austin's End Man is a fast-paced near-future sci-fi thriller. Boring it is not. It'll keep your mind working to figure out what is really going on. A satisfying and realistic look at where the future could takes us all.

[Christopher Kügler · Rating 5 out of 5]

So I took a dive down Amazon’s dystopian best-seller list and found this gem. This is a slick, fast-paced cyberpunk thriller that I highly recommend!

At the heart of End Man is Raphael Lennon. Working for a mega online-data collection company, Raphael hunts down “possums” – that is, people who fake their own deaths in an attempt to disappear. When a person dies, this company gathers all their personal data — an entire lifetime’s worth — then profits from it. So when a person seems to die but doesn’t actually die — that’s a problem.

The thing about Raphael, though, is he suffers from dromophobia, the fear of crossing streets. This has forced him to spend his entire life in the Wilshire-Fairfax district of Los Angeles, which, having lived in LA for a bit, isn’t a bad place to be stuck. Fun fact: the La Brea tarpits play a crucial role in this novel, which you might remember from the movie Last Action Hero… Nice.

So in the spirit of classic mystery noirs, Raphael investigates one such possum that ends up uprooting his entire life. This possum is the brilliant physicist Jason Klaes. And from here, things get wilder and wilder. And Raphael keeps getting dragged deeper and deeper into the mystery. This is one of those books where, when everything starts clicking together, IT’S SO MUCH FUN.

And that’s probably the best description I can give this book: fun. And thought-provoking. This book makes you think about what actually will happen to all of our online data after we die, like ghosts haunting the internet. It’s also got a cool punk-rock/skater aesthetic that I wasn’t expecting but was quite refreshing. Oh, and the author weaves art into the story. And that’s cool too.

[Carrie D. Krause · Rating 5 out of 5]

Raphael is intriguing—I was hooked in the first paragraph. I was invested in the mystery and rooting for him to be able to push his limits. There is a lot to unpack in this rich and well-developed world. Austin is an author on my watch list for more fascinating books.

[Pallavi Sareen · Rating 5 out of 5]

End Man is a sci-fi thriller that explores the implications of a technology that can preserve and manipulate the digital traces of the dead. End Man imagines a world where a corporation can harvest and sell the digital remains of the dead, creating virtual reincarnations for their grieving relatives. But what happens when someone fakes their death and tries to escape the system? That’s where Raphael Lennon comes in. He is an End Man, a possum hunter who tracks down and captures these impostors.
Raphael’s routine is disrupted when he is assigned to investigate the case of Jason Klaes, a brilliant physicist who died under suspicious circumstances and left behind some alarming messages that suggest a dark conspiracy involving Norval, the company Raphael works for. As he follows the clues, he uncovers secrets that will shake his world and challenge his identity.
The book is fast-paced and engaging, with a unique and original premise that raises ethical and philosophical questions about identity, mortality, and corporate power. The author creates a vivid and realistic near-future setting that blends elements of cyberpunk, noir, and art. The characters are well-developed and complex, especially Raphael, who struggles with his phobia and his sense of purpose. The plot is full of twists and turns that keep the reader guessing until the end.
The book is not without flaws, however. Some aspects of the technology and the corporation are not fully explained or justified, and the ending feels somewhat rushed and anticlimactic. The book could have benefited from more depth and clarity in some parts. Nevertheless, End Man is an enjoyable and thought-provoking read that offers a fresh and innovative perspective on the relationship between humans and technology in the digital age.
In the end, the book ended up being a fast-paced cyberpunk thriller that I can highly recommend!

[Ellie Mitchell · Rating 5 out of 5]

~About

The story is set in the 2030s, in Los Angeles, USA. Here, the protagonist, Raphael works for the Norval Department of Marketing Necrology (NDMN) as a Necrologist, otherwise known as an ‘End man.’ The company’s job is to capture the remnants of dead people, to turn them into an online presence, so that their loved ones can have access to their life’s memories.

Specifically, Raphael’s job is to locate people who are faking death, otherwise known as ‘possums.’ He is soon put onto a peculiar case, investigating a certain Professor Klaes who has supposedly died of unnatural causes. However, Klaes’ case leads Raphael to a series of mysterious encounters, which cause him to question not just his current assignment, but his entire career and life on Earth.


~Characters

*Please note: there may be faint spoilers contained in this next paragraph, relating to character backstory, motives, and personal growth.


Although there were numerous characters within End Man, for the purposes of this review, I will be focusing on six particular individuals; Raphael, his best friend Matt, his love interest Addy, Norval’s founder Geo Maglio, Merion Jenson (AKA: ‘Pink’), and Professor Klaes.


-Raphael

Firstly, let us examine Raphael, the leading man of the story. Raphael is an End Man, otherwise known as a Necrologist, working for the Norval Department of Marketing Necrology (NDMN), with the company’s aim being ‘To preserve and protect the online remains of the Dead.’

Raphael’s job is to capture possums, those faking their own deaths, for whatever reason. Raphael is haunted by a past mistake, where he declared a possum dead, only for them to resurface, alive, months later. He is also haunted by an unusual phobia of crossing streets, otherwise known as Dromophobia. It is Raphael’s belief that if he can finish a painting he promised to his mother, then he will finally be freed from his life-limiting phobia, to live a much richer life, broken out of his restricted environment.

Throughout the book, I found Raphael to be a brave and curious individual, always willing to dig into things if something didn’t make sense to him. He also proved himself to be a bit of a rebel, going against his boss’ direct orders, in order to try and see his initial job (of locating Professor Kales) through. Not only this, but he was also a well-developed character, with a unique backstory, fears, desires, and hobbies to boot, such as his love of art, and skateboarding outside of work. Overall, I found Raphael to be a fascinating character who would never give up on a goal, and would always do right by people, wherever he could.


-Matt

Secondly, we come to Matt, Raphael’s best friend and fellow End Man. While Matt only appears at certain times in the book (mentioned in passing or only for a short time), he was showcased as a good man, and a helpful and deeply supportive friend. No matter what Raphael asked of him, Matt would help him out wherever possible. The pair have friendly back and forths which helped to lift some more sorrowful parts of the story. Overall, Matt seemed like a good guy, the type of friend you would want in your corner when the going gets tough, so to speak.


-Addy

Thirdly, I’d like to examine Addy, Raphael’s love interest. Addy is introduced to us as a singer, who also works at the local Corngold Center, looking after patients with specific difficulties. She comes across as a caring and unique individual, with striking, teal-coloured eyes which bore into Raphael’s soul every time they meet. Addy is described as being especially beautiful in a physical sense. However, I found that the way she treated others ­– how she cared for them and took the time to get to know them on a personal level – was a far more beautiful quality, which led to me admiring her ever more. Furthermore, she was a steadfast friend to Raphael and helped him, even when she felt he had lied to her, giving him the benefit of the doubt and trusting in him enough to get to the deeper root of his unusual behaviours. That Addy was willing to place this trust in another and to help Raphael in his time of greatest need spoke volumes about how kind and caring she is as a character.


-Marion Jenson (Pink)

Next, we come to Marion Jenson, first referred to as ‘Pink’ due to the puffy, pink coat Raphael always sees her wearing. Pink initially comes across as a peculiar woman, carrying a laptop everywhere and speaking in riddles, alongside asking people if they want to buy data. It is unclear what is wrong with her at the start of the story. However, it soon becomes clear that Pink knows more about the company Raphael works for than she lets on. We later find out that Pink used to work for Norval’s current boss, Geo Maglio, at another data-related company, and so she knows things which other members of Norval may not be privy to. Pink always gave off a mysterious and slightly deranged presence. However, she also acted as a useful conduit for disseminating key information about Raphael’s cloudy future.


-Geo Maglio (Head of Norval)

The penultimate character we will examine is Geo Maglio, the current head of Norval. Although we don’t become acquainted with him until later in the story, Mr Maglio’s presence soon becomes a dominating force throughout the rest of the book. He is intimidating and stern, always one to have his way, with no resistance tolerated from his subordinates. He also appears quite secretive and lacking in morals, with a relentless hunger for power which goes unmatched by any other character. In general, he appeared to me as a pretty unlikable character, someone who was easy to root against.


-Professor Klaes

Finally, we come to Professor Klaes, a core character in the story, despite not being present for most of it. Professor Klaes was a highly intelligent individual, who worked tirelessly toward his own idealistic dream of a future where the dead could truly be brought back to life. He was presented as a hard-working and determined individual, but as somewhat detached from his human emotions, which enabled him to make some pretty tough decisions, morally-speaking. Although there were times when I felt shocked by his choice of actions, there were also many times where his character brought a tear to my eye with his intense sense of care toward those he loved as family, going to the ends of the Earth to protect and enrich their lives in the best way he knew how.


~Positive Aspects

There was so much to like about End Man, the details of which I have included below in a handy bulleted list.

-Firstly, the plot moved along steadily, revealing new information, bit by bit, allowing the reader to remain engaged throughout the book.

-Secondly, the premise of the book was really interesting. I really liked the idea of Norval’s company aim and how they went about executing it, in reality.

-Thirdly, the characters were interesting, each with their own goals, hopes, fears, and problems. Raphael – in particular – drew me to him with his love of art and fear of leaving the space he feels safe in.

-In addition, the world (set in the 2030s) seemed more futuristic, yet similar enough to our own, thus inspiring a sense of terror that such drastic societal changes could soon befall us.

-Furthermore, the book included certain physics concepts, such as ‘non-locality,’ which I found fascinating to learn more about.

-The plot itself was fascinating, exploring numerous, multi-faceted mysteries centring around one man, Professor Klaes.

-Finally, I especially loved seeing Raphael’s personal transformation as a character. At the start, he is a loyal Norval worker, trying his best to track down possums. However, toward the end, he begins to question everything he has built his life around, shunning the very technology he once relied upon and worked with. This transformation was a gradual yet powerful one, which really spoke to me, echoing concerns of how technology is infiltrating our lives in nefarious ways, in our own modern-day reality.


~Memorable Quotes

As always, while reading, I kept my eyes open for any interesting quotes I thought might be good to share. End Man did not disappoint. With that in mind, I include the following five quotes for you.

1) ‘Art must be born from the deepest emotions – sometimes even suffering.’
2) ‘The world changes, but it does not change.

3) ‘If something was in the data, everything was in the data, and the data was in everything.’
4) ‘If you want to escape, you must chance the fall.’

5) ‘Give me a lever and I’ll move the world. The lever? Love.’
This final quote was a lovely, sentimental take on Archimedes’ original quote.


~Overview

Overall, End Man was a thought-provoking and gripping novel, which explored the concept of what it means to be human, as well as the lengths we will go to – as a species – to achieve immortality.

Other key themes included life and death, technology, love and loss, corruption, freedom vs imprisonment, and artificial intelligence.

My Rating: 5 stars.
Recommended to: lovers of uniquely chilling sci-fi / dystopian fiction.

[Steph Warren · Rating 4 out of 5]

*I received a free ARC of this book with thanks to the author. The decision to review and my opinions are my own.*

The premise here starts out simple and intriguing - main character Raphael's job is to weed out those who have faked their deaths ('possums' who are playing dead) from his company's 'necrology' database which collates all online activity of individuals who have died in order to preserve them in a memorial format on the system. Except that his latest possum isn't following any of the usual patterns and not only can Raphael not work out whether he is alive or dead, he can't work out how he is suddenly getting messages from beyond the grave about it. Or why everyone he speaks to seems to be turning up dead.

Fast-paced and almost manic, we follow Raphael as he ricochets around the small area that his phobia confines him to, as he tries to make sense of a deadly conspiracy involving AI and a digital afterlife, and a series of very suspicious deaths. From the beginning, it is clear that Raphael has problems with his mental health, as he struggles to decipher reality from his imaginings, attempts to record his entire life in painting format, and believes himself unable to leave his immediate area under pain of death by ice, fire, wind or gaping chasm in the earth. This uncertainty casts doubt on everything that Raphael is uncovering in his investigation, throwing the reader into the same turmoil the character is in, of being unsure what or who can be trusted.

Alongside the conspiracy-laden action sci-fi thriller runs a strong thread of philosophical exploration about what it is to be human, how we recognise reality and what is waiting for us after our physical bodies 'end' in death. It really made me think about the potential for online immortality in the future and how that could be open to exploitation and corruption. And I was shocked at how disturbing I found the idea of Natural Blanks - those who have no online data print at all due to being too old or too young. The idea of being preserved via social media was pretty creepy, but the idea of being gone with no trace left at all.... At least the Blanks get the choice! Honestly, none of the dystopian technology or social advances felt too far in our future; it all felt far too possible for comfort.

This is a well-written and gripping dystopian thriller, thoughtful and complex, that will appeal to sci-fi and mystery fans alike.

Review by Steph Warren of Bookshine and Readbows blog
https://bookshineandreadbows.wordpres...

[Literary Reviewer · Rating 4 out of 5]

End Man is a tech-noir thriller set in the near-future. Raphael Lennon is an End Man, someone who works for the NDMN: “Norval Department of Marketing Necrology.” These IT workers have the jolly pleasure of gathering every bit of digital data left by the recently deceased and packaging it into a marketable product. As Raphael tries to track down an elusive “possum” (someone who faked their own death) he discovers a plot that could alter the course of life, and death, as we know it. To top it all off, Raphael suffers from dromophobia, a fear of crossing streets. This leaves him trapped in a tight square mile of dystopian Los Angeles.

I really enjoyed End Man. Raphael’s day-to-day work, with its “mindfulness videos,” horrible bosses, and questionable morality, feels all too real. Future L.A. is different, but grounded, being based on the real-life area surrounding the La Brea Tar Pits. Raphael is plagued by hallucinations of deadly winds to the south, fires to the north, a glacier to the east, and chasm to the west. This gives the story a claustrophobic feel as the walls close in on the him as he delves deeper into the mystery of the possum Jason Klaes, ominous warnings, and strange murders.

While I really enjoyed this absorbing technothriller I felt that the story took a little while to get going. The mystery-thriller aspect is the meat of the story, but I felt that the book gets bogged down a bit in the beginning with the inner workings of Norval. A few characters are introduced with a handful of sentences and disappear with little consequence, while the inner workings of Raphael’s mind and his self-imposed artistic therapy are prevalent. Raphael’s character is one that I enjoyed following otherwise. The plot and his character make for a unique read that was wildly entertaining and fun.

End Man is an exciting cyberpunk novel that creates a fully realized and compelling world for a fascinating protagonist to exist in. It’s a really interesting read that is incredibly relevant to the technological and social state of the world today. This is a slick and explosive dystopian thriller that I highly recommend to science fiction fans.

[Tom Kiefer · Rating 4 out of 5]

What if, in just another 10 or 15 years, most of us are so immersed in our onlineness, tweeting and swiping and streaming our way through so much of life, while every online action adds to a data composition so increasingly complex and complete that it could fuel an AI simulation of ourselves for family and friends to visit after we pass?

Not that much of a stretch?

In End Man, Alex Austin does a good job realistically extrapolating today's increasingly common online-obsessiveness into such a state, and anticipating some emerging entrepreneureal opportunities that would follow, even to the point of Marketing Necrologist fitting right in as a perfectly valid occupation.

Take this odd near-future setting, drop in a vividly hallucinatory dromophobic skateboarding necrologist, a maybe-dead physicist with a relentless passion for quantum entanglement applications, and a little ruthless corporate product development, and things get interesting rather quickly.

I did trip over a distracting scene continuity or causality hiccup once in a while (e.g., he strode out of the cubicle and then couldn't exit the cubicle? and the connective story tissue before and after the three-forty feels a little out-of-nowhere to me), and even after everything that happened Raphael's final personal win still felt like a bit of a sudden unexplained leap. But these were a relatively few minor wobbles in a story that otherwise flowed and engaged and entertained quite nicely while illustrating a few interesting (and disturbing) questions.

[Emily Grandy · Rating 5 out of 5]

End Man offers a fresh, modern take on mystery writing. In the semi-near future, every blink, every finger-swipe is recorded as data. When someone dies, companies like Norval step in to archive that data. But some people will try to avoid detection, slip under the radar, by playing at being dead. Twenty-six year old Raphael Lennon works at Norval as an End Man, someone who specializes in outing those who fake their death. The story follows Raphael on a fast-paced hunt for an award-winning, supposedly dead, physicist . . . all within the confines of a single square mile of Los Angeles.

There's plenty to love about this novel - its quirky characters, authentic and believable dialogue, its tight, compact setting defined by four LA streets - but I especially enjoyed the deeply realized world Raphael inhabits. Not only is every detail of this tech-savvy version of the future well-integrated into each facet of Raphael's work and daily life, it also provokes real conversations among characters about what it means, and what we risk, storing so much of our lives online. Unlike traditional murder dramas that hit the streets, the mystery of the possum physicist requires us to dive behind a wall of data, erected entirely within the virtual realm, where emails and forum posts, rather than blood trails and broken glass, might hold a clue. End Man makes for a snappy, urgent read right up until its satisfying conclusion.

[Happy Booker · Rating 4 out of 5]

‘End Man’ is a metaphysical science fiction story filled with cyberpunk and many action-adventure scenes. The story begins with Raphael Lennon’s hunting down ‘possums’, that is, people who fake their deaths so they can disappear. Raphael works for a company that collects data which equals the entire lifetime worth of very much money. This data is then profitable, but if someone is written as dead and isn’t actually dead, this becomes a problem for the company.

As you read scene after scene, you are not only introduced to a diverse amount of characters but also a well-descriptive thriller. This keeps you intrigued and interested until the end. The backstory and the novel stand unique in their genre, which was very appealing to me.

I recommend this book to thriller and science fiction fans.

[Lydia Redwine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had the opportunity and pleasure of beta-reading this book years ago and I loved every second of it!
With compelling characters and a heart-racing plot line, I found every part of this story fascinating. I have never read anything like it.

[Kein Ouzunupi · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best books I have read in the last few years, period.

End Man is a book with philosophy, concerned with aspects of our modern life, but is also a very entertaining story that you can't put down.

[Margaret D'Amore · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved It!!

[Victoria Liiv · Rating 4 out of 5]

First of all, I want to thank Alex Austin for providing me with an ARC of his book, because WOW…

His book is hiding a deeper and slightly terrifying concept and he’s managed to bring it to life with an amazing story and compelling characters. The whole idea behind a company harvesting our online presence and saving all of our information is not bizarre and there’s most certainly some of that going on in the real world, but the extent to which Norval Portals operates is completely horrifying.

Even though I wasn't particularily at the edge of my seat the whole time, nor lost sleep over it I enjoyed this book through and through. You don't always have to be an emotional wreck after reading something to know what you read was great!
The characters were one of a kind and the whole plot line impeccably well thought out. Alex Austin has certainly got his own style and voice and the way it brought together this story was amazing to see.

[Gina Rae Mitchell]

End Man is the thought-provoking tale of Raphael, who suffers from dromophobia. Since he can not cross streets, he lives in a one-mile area of Los Angeles. He's fortunate to be able to live and work within that area. 

However, strange things are afoot with his job as an End Man. In this slightly futuristic world, when a person dies, their personal data is mined and sold. A possum is what they call someone who fakes their death. Raphael's job as an End Man is to suss out the possums so they don't affect the database. 

That's where the trouble begins for Raphael. He believes he's tracking a possum, but all other evidence points to the actual death of the man. Is he losing his mind, or are these strange things really happening?

Raphael is determined to discover the truth, but will he uncover more than he bargained for?

***************

The book is well-written, with a slightly slow start while the world is set up. But then the author ups the tension until every page is a potential clue to solving the mystery. 

End Man is one of the most thought-provoking books I've read this year. I frequently paused while reading to absorb the ramifications of what I read. After I finished the story, I pondered different parts of it often, looking for missed clues or alternate ways of looking at the situations.

If you are a fan of sci-fi techno-thrillers, you will love this book. Grab a copy today and immerse yourself in Raphael's art world, skateboarding, mind games, and mystery.

I read a copy through Amazon's Kindle Unlimited program. This review is my honest, unbiased opinion.

[Davida De La Harpe · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a story set in the near future with a protagonist who is constrained by both his mental issues and the work he does for a large commercial entity that commercialises information of dead people- except his job is to track down those who are not actually dead- but are possums who have faked their own deaths. It is essentially a mystery novel, but it turns out to be much more than that, and really calls into question our own society as we merrily rush headlong into the future
The writing is impeccable, the storyline fascinating, and the characters well developed. I confess I read this some time ago as a Beta reader and was simply amazed by the story. I am delighted it has now been published and is available to a wider audience.

[Alex · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Midwest Book Review will post the following review of End Man in its September 2022 issue.

Dromophobia is the fear of crossing streets. In an urban environment, this condition dictates that work and daily life take place in a carefully manipulated and close environment where no streets need to be navigated.

Fortunately, 26-year-old dromophobic Raphael Lennon has carved out just such a niche for his life. Unfortunately, this is about to change.

End Man is a study of not just fear, but in self-imposed prisons and attempts to hide from death. Ironically, Raphael's job is to ferret out those hiders who "play possum" and fake their deaths. Death may be a good place to hide, for nefarious reasons. But it's not a good place to conduct business.

Readers who pursue End Man will find its special blend of mystery and sci-fi create compelling scenarios and opportunities for higher-level thinking as moral and ethical quandaries mix with philosophical life inspections: "They’re dead, but not less valuable. That’s our business."

Raphael may have carved out a life for himself, in control of his world, but as events force him out of his comfort zone, readers follow his progression into chaos: "Why is this happening, he thought to himself ... Because of the limitations of his world (and his apartment was the center of his world), he knew its mechanisms well."

If End Man were simply a story of dromophobia, this rare exploration would be enough of a draw to gain an audience. But its real value lies in the pursuit of Raphael's expanding world and the dilemmas it introduces as his carefully organized existence undergoes a sea change.

Alex Austin is a master at building tension, psychological inquiry, and intrigue that tests his protagonist in unexpected ways.

The sci-fi elements introduce a futuristic setting with revised moral and ethical boundaries that offer particularly notable, compelling dilemmas throughout its action-packed scenes.

Austin takes the time to build character, setting, and personal and corporate thinking processes. This lends both a sense of realistic fatalism to the story and creates fine tension replete with unpredictable twists and turns.

The result is a tale of not just a mystery that engulfs the unwitting Raphael, but one that shifts from personal to corporate responsibility and values as events unfold.

Readers and libraries seeking exceptional sci-fi mystery settings and quandaries worthy of book club discussion will find all this and more in droves in a story packed with intrigue, growth, and a wry dash of humor for added impact. –Diane Donovan, Senior Reviewer

[Book Nerdection · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tech, quantum physics, and strange phobias. End man was a novel with an enticing plot and dare I say, it lived upon its expectations!

Talking about the characters of End man, it’s been a while since I read a character as compassionate and deep-thinking as Rapahel. His attempts at emotionally uplifting his colleagues and bringing food for ‘Pink’ had me in awe. His notion of a ‘painting representing his whole life’ that would possibly set him free of his dromophobia is quite moving. He was kind of a rebellious person, a loyal employee at the start of the book but gradually started questioning his company’s motives of gathering the dead’s data.

The concept of End man is pretty new. I mean, finding possums through their tech footprints? A corporation like Norval digging up the ‘online’ remains of the dead, selling them out to loved ones, and making a profit through- the idea though grotesque doesn’t seem impossible at all. But it’s something I desperately hope doesn’t occur in a long time. After all, Who would want their internet history sent to family and friends for grieving?

Alex Austin’s writing is pretty illustrative. He excels at taking the reader’s hand and transporting him inside the book. I felt like Raphael, skateboarding his way home and yet limited to the square mile of his home. His fears and paranoia felt real, the way he lived all alone, and dangers seemed to be zooming in on him as the story progressed.

Being a fan of Sci-fi myself, I loved the hints of Quantum physics in End man. The theory of ‘nonlocal action’ though a little scary, enticed me nonetheless. Some of the tech advancements weren’t any different than what we usually see now, which is all the more terrifying; thinking of what humans might be really doing. Trying to be immortal, that is. If not physically, then digitally.

End man has some places filled with Raphael’s internal monologue and I didn’t quite enjoy that. However, the peek at Rapahel’s life and the struggles he has to go through, including his mom’s death; are things I loved in the End man and yearned for more.

All in all, End man is a deeply moving book; with a blend of three-dimensional characters, an authoritarian corporation, and secrets hidden deep in each nook, that would surely keep you speculating.

[Shey Saints · Rating 5 out of 5]

Summary

Death was a good place to hide. Ninety-nine percent of the reported dead stayed dead, but occasionally someone played possum. At the Norval Department of Marketing Necrology, Raphael's job was to root out people who have faked their own deaths in an attempt to disappear. But that's not the only challenge in his life. Amongst many others, he suffers from dromophobia, the fear of crossing streets.

Jason Klaes, his new assignment, is an allegedly dead physicist whose accounts have been active even after being declared dead. It seems that he has created afterlives for the deceased based on their social media content, and Raphael’s phobia is getting in the way of this investigation. In order to solve the mystery, he must overcome his greatest fear.

Review

End Man is a science fiction and techno-thriller novel by Alex Austin. Though there were familiar sci-fi terms I’ve heard of before, this story is completely new to me! I love that the concept of this story is driven by today’s internet era. The theme, though fiction, is very timely, considering that in this digital era, the majority of us have been swallowed up by social media. It has practically become the main source of people's footprint where everyone's activities can be acquired through social media and other online platforms.

Another thing that I love about this book is its strong opening. I had to use it as part of my summary because I instantly got hooked to the first paragraph and I’m sure other readers will. On top of this, the rest of the narrative had a smooth flow that will make even the non-scifi enthusiasts keep reading this book! I also love the main lead’s struggles and inner motivation. It gives me a sense of triumph to read his character development.

Overall, I'm giving this book 5 out of 5 stars. This book has very fascinating characters in a well-depicted setting and an extremely imaginative storyline. I highly recommend this book to all sci-fi enthusiasts.

[Marco Ocram · Rating 5 out of 5]

The underlying premise of this thought-provoking book is that businesses will develop that buy-up the rights to the digital vestiges of the dead in order to exploit their value in any way they can. The employees at one such company, Norval, who go hunting for the remains of the newly dead are called 'End Men', the name being a homophone of a Norval acronym. The plot kicks off when one of the End Men, Raphael, is allocated the case of Professor Jason Klaes- a supposedly dead physicist who seems to be active on the internet. Raphael needs to determine whether Klaes is really dead, or a possum- Norval speak for someone whop has faked their death.

What follows is at one level an engaging thriller, as Raphael works through the steps to investigate Klaes' death and background, unearthing a web of potential misdirections. What elevates the book beyond the status of an excellent thriller, is that its premise gives many opportunities for author Alex Austin to explore and comment on the science, technology and ethics surrounding the business of Norval and the activities and motives of Klaes.

The style of the writing is taut and economical- short sentences free of extraneous descriptive detail- which makes for a pacy, punchy read with engrossing twists. Highly recommended.

[Heather Barksdale · Rating 4 out of 5]

“End Man” introduces Raphael Lennon, a 26-year-old End Man. He’s a successful employee for Norval Department of Necrology (NDMN) assigned to find the most challenging of possums (people faking their own deaths). He also happens to have dromophobia, fear of crossing streets, and forced to work, live and play in a small area of LA.

Overall, I enjoyed this fast-paced ride. There was something about the tone of the tale and the insight into Raphael as a protagonist that hooked me and kept me flipping pages. The setting in LA and near the tar pits/museum made for an intriguing setting. Raphael is a complex and interesting protagonist. His phobia is a different characteristic, but not what defines him. He has managed to live a relatively normal life despite his limitations. It isn’t until he’s assigned the Klaes case that Raphael begins to see the truth behind his company and the opportunities he is missing out on in his personal life. Find the full review at heatherlbarksdale.com

I received a copy of this story in exchange of a fair and honest review.

[Suzy Olear · Rating 5 out of 5]

End Man is a fast-paced, thrilling ride or peril, love, loss, AI, technology, and fears. I love all books published by CDS. And this one was well loved by me too. I enjoyed the story Raphael had to tell and how he overcomes many obstacles while life threatens him at every turn. This book is fast-paced and keeps you guessing and throws peril, love, loss and action into every page. This book is very well written and I enjoyed every page. A good and interesting look into death, AI, and life after death in a unique and different scenario. Makes you really question what happens after death. Was a thought provoking read that I found myself staying up late to finish the chapters. Alex weaves a grand story that will keep you turning pages. I would gladly put this on my shelf of books everyone needs to read. Greatly enjoyed this read. A must read for anyone who enjoys edge-of-your-seat thrillers that the action never stops. Peril at every turn, this book keeps you guessing. Would rate 100 stars. Truly a unique read I will highly recommend.

[Terry Weaver · Rating 5 out of 5]

I quickly realized the author knows genre and storytelling very well. This is a futuristic mystery novel that has dystopian thematics. The main character is on the hunt for a shapeshifter, potentially dead or in hiding, termed a opossum in the NDMN agency. The world the author built is as fascinating as the main character. If you're a fan of mysteries set in one-of-a-kind futuristic settings, this novel will punch you right in the imagination as it did me. This is a fascinating read, through and through.

[Anastacia · Rating 4 out of 5]

End Man is about a company that saves every bit of data a person has in their lifetime. Raphael has a mental problem that doesn't allow him to cross certain streets, so he's in an invisible cage. His company has a "possum," someone who may be dead or alive, and it is up to Raphael to find out what state the man is in. A good read. It reminded me of the Amazon show "Upload." The insta-love was a bit of a letdown, but other than that, I really enjoyed this book.

[Terry Stroud · Rating 5 out of 5]

Austin is clearly on to something with this storyline. With the advancement and current interest in AI I can see where it could go. Scary, but possible we will never die and fade away. For the factory worker in Peoria, not to big of a deal but for great minds and thinkers like, Steve Jobs, Elon Musk and the Coen Brothers - Joel and Ethan it's neat to think they could still be here when they're gone.

[Mark Mieczkowski · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't do spoiler reviews so I will not give details on the plot. This novel is chock full of literary references and subtle nods to literature. Austin uses the kinds of literary techniques you had to write papers about in high school and college. The ending is perfect.