Guaranteed Heroes

Fairly likable but not terribly original characters populate this mix of dystopia and western adventure from Lashner (Bagmen). In 1964, after nuclear disasters in the Great Plains and widespread unrest, a new America is created with a new constitution that theoretically guarantees and requires that every citizen work. Those who commit crimes (such as failing to find work), like Moonis Fell, are sentenced to the Labor Camps for the Malcontented. Others, such as Fell’s childhood friend Clyde Sparrow, work guaranteed jobs at barely livable wages with little hope for the future. Meanwhile, corporations and the government have all but merged and work willingly with Raden, a crime lord who rules the “disincorporated” lands that lie west of the Mississippi. When Moonis learns that his sister, Cecily, is missing, he escapes the LCM and gathers Clyde and others to attempt a rescue in the western wilderness. Unfortunately, genre tropes and somewhat hackneyed prose give this effort the feel of an old-fashioned pulp novel. Agent: Wendy Sherman, Wendy Sherman Associates. (Oct.)