Forager

A century after an apocalyptic war reduces all countries to smouldering ruins, Melbourne’s remnant population huddles behind twelve-foot walls. But are these walls for protection from the Skel savages who roam the city’s ruins, or to imprison the people and subject them to archaic rules enforced by the town's paramilitary Custodians.

Twenty-year-old Ethan Jones is a forager whose uncanny success is due to a secret he harbours. If he's found out, he'll be dragged away by the Custodians and dissected like a science project.

When Ethan rescues a mysterious Japanese girl from the Skel and brings her back with him, she breaks the town's rigid conventions in her attempts to get to know him, risking the dire wrath of the Custodians.

Meanwhile, the Skel are ramping up their attacks on Newhome's foraging teams and infesting Melbourne's ruins in ever-greater numbers. Is this part of a larger plan that could spell the town's doom?

Keeping his secret, uncovering the girl’s true intentions and trying to stop mass annihilation all vie for Ethan’s attention. And if he fails, not only his life, but the lives of all, are at stake.

Forager is the first instalment in the Forager Trilogy by author Peter Stone. Books two and three, Infiltrator and Expatriate are available now.

"The main thing that I really liked about Forager was that I was constantly taken by surprise." -- From Trips Down Imagination Road.

"I love that everyone in Ethan's home is one way, while the Japanese girl he saves is almost the exact opposite. Woman are to be seen and not heard, but this girl has guts like you wouldn't believe." -- From Journey with Books