Combustion

Judd Bell & Corey Purchase #2

by Steve Worland

Los Angeles.

Traffic clogs the streets.

Smog chokes the city.

And Zac Bunsen is going to burn it all down.

On a ruthless quest to save the planet, Bunsen releases the Swarm, an airborne nanotech virus that targets combustion engines and detonates their fuel supply. It is spectacularly, appallingly successful.

Terror and chaos reign as the City of Angels explodes. Every vehicle is now a deadly bomb and every freeway a war zone littered with bodies and twisted wrecks.

NASA astronaut Judd Bell and his best mate, Aussie chopper pilot Corey Purchase, must navigate the burning city in a desperate mission to stop Bunsen before he can execute the last phase of his horrific plan and send mankind back to the Stone Age.

Genres: Action, Thriller

328 pages, Paperback

First published July 24, 2013

About the author

Steve Worland has worked extensively in film and television in Australia and the USA. He has written scripts for Working Title and Icon Productions, worked in script development for James Cameron’s Lightstorm and wrote Fox Searchlight’s Bootmen, which won five Australian Film Institute awards.

Steve also wrote the action-comedy telemovie Hard Knox, the bible and episodes of the television series Big Sky and the Saturn award-winning Farscape. The family film Paper Planes, which he co-wrote, will be released worldwide in 2015. His novelisation of the screenplay will be released at the same time.

He is the author of the action-adventure novels Velocity, Combustion and Quick and is currently writing his fourth book.

Reviews

[Tien · Rating 4 out of 5]

After the action-packed Velocity (Worland’s debut), the beginning feels slow. Understandably so, however, as Combustion is set approximately a year after Velocity. The main characters’ current situations and the new set of baddies need to be set up prior to the action taking off. In Velocity, the terrorists are avenging personal injury whilst with Combustion, they are seeking to ‘save the world’ (albeit punishing it by destruction) from environmental threats. It was an interesting sci-fi / speculative twist to the method of punishment.

About 25% into the book though, BAM!

Explosions left, right, and centre –everywhere you turn your eyes

Buildings are collapsing

Cars, trucks, planes crashing, blowing up

“…looks like a war zone.”

I couldn’t stop reading and I couldn’t read fast enough! It was jam-packed with actions, friendship, and humour. I just loved the pairing of Judd Bell and Corey Purchase – a true friendship forged in fire again and again. They work well together in saving each other and the world. But most of all, their humorous interaction in-between the suspense was a great tool of relief (my tense shoulders are thankful for the short breaks).

[Corey] ‘Jesuschwepppes.’
[Judd] ‘You know it’s Jesus wept, right? As in, “boo hoo, I’m having a tear”, not Schweppes as in, “Thank you, Stephan, I’ll have another gin and tonic”.’
‘Are you sure?’
‘One hundred per cent.’
Corey’s not at all convinced.

There really wasn’t enough room for character growth amongst all the action but amazingly, there were! Of course, with life-changing experiences such as these will not leave anyone unchanged, especially in their appreciation of life and loved ones. Whilst at times, I had to suspend my disbelief that an astronaut and a helicopter pilot from woop woop (for the non-Aussies, woop woop is something like ‘middle of nowhere’) came to save the world twice over, I really had so so MUCH fun reading this. Not that I had a hard time doing that, there was too much excitement and things were happening so fast that I really didn’t want to spare time to ponder anything else but the words in front of me. If you’re after a fast, fun, suspenseful, gripping read, this is it!

I really enjoyed Velocity a lot that it was an easy decision to pick this one up and I enjoyed this one even more! I think I’m addicted. Steve Worland had just made it to my list of always-read-author.

Coincidentally, I really just had to get this out there:
1. Really, the release date should be 27th July NOT 24th (you’ll understand if you read the epilogue);
2. Just curious, why purple?
3. What’s with the iPhones?! :p

Thank you, Steve Worland, Penguin Books Australia & Netgalley for ecopy of book

[Sue Gerhardt Griffiths · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars


Corey Purchase & Judd Bell - Book 2

Combustion by Steve Worland is a breathless and dramatic read and kept me entertained with its high energy, fast-moving scenes, laugh out loud moments and Sean Mangan’s voice - what a narrator! So good!

Love Corey Purchase, the Aussie chopper pilot, his best mate NASA astronaut Judd Bell and Spike the talking dog. Such awesome and cool characters.

Highly recommended for readers who find action-packed, over the top, adventure thrillers riveting.

Listened to the audiobook on BorrowBox
Published by Bolinda audio
Read by Sean Mangan
Duration: 9 hrs, 34min. 1.50x Speed

[Bree T · Rating 4 out of 5]

NASA astronaut Judd Bell is looking forward to a few days at the Beverley Wiltshire hotel with his girlfriend Rhonda. After he and a few others saved the Atlantis 4 shuttle, it’s been a bit of a wild ride. Judd has been treated like a hero, but there’s a cold feeling inside him that shies from the attention. He doesn’t think he’s a hero and a few days with Rhonda and catching up with Corey, the Australian chopper pilot who shared his adventure might be just what he needs. They’re going to meet with the studio responsible for adapting the saving of the shuttle into a big blockbuster movie and do a few promotional appearances.

It’s somewhat fortuitous that he and Corey are together when it happens. All around Los Angeles at the same time, engines begin exploding – cars, trucks, buses, airplanes, chainsaws. Anything that has a combustion engine – the exhaust turns purple and then black and then it explodes. LA becomes chaos as thousands of cars blow up, causing huge amounts of damage. Corey and Judd are able to get information from an injured man that it’s a nanotech airborne virus that gets in to the fuel line. It was supposed to be developed to be used in warfare, to disable an enemy’s weapons before they were able to be used but someone has taken it and used it in an urban manner. California has more cars per capita than any other location in the world – the perfect place to make such a statement of how they are killing the environment and should be stopped. And millionaire Zac Bunsen is willing to sacrifice people in order to get his conservation message across to the masses. And blowing up all of the engines in the local area isn’t the only thing he has planned – there’s another part to his plan that will release the virus to the entire world and cause a destruction that hasn’t been seen before.

In the devastation, Judd sees opportunity. He’s driven to do something, to try and stop this madness any way he can. It might be the only way to ease the cold feeling inside him, to erase the moment where he did nothing and replace it with one where he did something that mattered.

Combustion is the second novel to feature the unlikely pairing of NASA astronaut Judd Bell and outback Australian chopper pilot Corey Purchase. Having saved the world once already, the two are looking forward to a weekend of discussing the movie script and doing some promo. Corey has been hitching his way around America, seeing the country and has managed to find himself many new fans along the way. His ever-faithful dog Spike is by his side as always but Corey tries to keep the conversations he has with Spike secret even though in LA, it’s okay to be eccentric. Most people are, in some way or another. Neither he nor Judd counted on being thrust right into disaster, yet again.

These books are so fun and easy to sink in to – they’re like a huge big budget action flick where the pace is breakneck from the beginning. The plot moves along at a rapid pace and never stalls. Judd and Corey race around LA on push bikes and later on in a helicopter helped along by an antidote to the nanotech virus, attempting to stop Zac Bunsen and his men from completing the next phase of their plan which would cause even more catastrophic devastation. Judd and Corey work as a seamless team, both of them bringing their strengths to the union. Judd is focused, always thinking and Corey tends to be more of a “let’s do this and see what happens” wingman but I noticed that in this book he seemed to come up with more ideas and plans, speak out more. Perhaps their earlier adventure gave him more confidence in himself and his abilities. He grew on me greatly in this book. I liked him in Velocity but it took me a while to warm up to him and his ‘different’ personality. In this book I was on board from the get go and his relationship with Spike integrates into the plot naturally. I don’t even question it anymore. In fact most of the time I find myself wanting to know what Spike is saying and wishing Corey would translate everything. And then I catch myself and think you are wanting to know what a dog is saying.

I really enjoyed the plot of this one – humans have come to rely on technology and vehicles so much. We use them for transport, for emergency assistance and enforcing the rules, to ship food and other goods. The idea of everything with a combustion engine blowing up was kind of a frightening one. Zac Bunsen advocated a more simpler existence, less reliance (or no reliance) on cars and vehicles and respecting the environment a bit more. That’s interesting because it’s certainly something that has been raised before but he didn’t seem to consider the repercussions of that – like food. There are many places that aren’t capable of producing their own food due to design or location. He’s a sociopath so presumably he doesn’t care, but it really isn’t just as simple as blowing up all the vehicles in the world. A simpler existence is actually not always an easier one.

Combustion is a book that takes you on a wild ride but it’s also comfortingly familiar. It’s the sort of book where you know that it’s okay to get attached to the good guys. Steve Worland is carving himself a pretty handy niche in the area of action novels.

8/10

[Shelleyrae at Book'd Out · Rating 4 out of 5]

Combustion is the perfect read for big budget, action film fans. The explosions come thick and fast, planes fall from the sky and buildings come tumbling down as a madman's twisted environmental crusade wreaks havoc across LA, and NASA astronaut Judd Bell and Australian chopper pilot Corey Purchase are reunited in an effort to save the world - again!

In the first book, Velocity, the pair were forced to work together in an effort to recover a hijacked space shuttle, and Judd's girlfriend Rhonda, from a group of mercenaries who planned to detonate a dirty nuke.
Combustion opens around nine months after those events as Judd, Corey, Rhonda and Steverson are meeting in LA for talks with the company making a movie about their heroic exploits. While Rhonda and Steverson are still enroute, Bunsen initiates the first phase of his plan to force the world to reconsider their reliance on fossil fuels - releasing a controlled amount of the airborne nanotech virus he spent 20 million dollars developing, which targets combustion engines and detonates their fuel supply. As vehicles begin to explode all over LA, a chance encounter reveals to Judd and Corey the existence of an antidote, and with emergency services crippled it is up to the pair to retrieve it and then stop Bunsen's plans for global destruction.

Combustion is all about the action that unfolds at a breakneck pace. From a foot chase of a packed school bus, to cycling stunts on the Hollywood Freeway, explosions galore and daring aerial feats as Corey attempts to outrun a surface to air missile (or two). This is cinematic action, unsurprising since Worland has a background in screen writing. I compared Velocity to a Nicholas Cage movie but I think Combustion reminds me most of Die Hard 4 (Live Free, Die Hard).

That makes Judd John McClane (Bruce Willis), I guess and there are some similarities, for example Judd is equally as uncomfortable with the hero tag, though for different reasons than McClane, and it is something Judd has to work through as he and Corey careen around LA. In general though Judd's motives in Combustion are more altruistic and he curses a lot less (actually I don't think he curses at all!).
I love the humour of the banter between Judd and Corey and between Corey and Spike (yes his dog).
Corey is more of an equal partner in Combustion than the sidekick he was relegated to in Velocity. He brings specific skills to the adventure and with Judd doubting himself, he steps up to take the lead when needed in his own way. There is also romance for Corey in this novel with film agent Lola whom he rescues from a burning building.

Just like Velocity, Combustion is a fun, exciting, fast paced and action packed novel. I wouldn't be at all surprised to see either on the big screen sometime soon.

[Josh · Rating 5 out of 5]

"The plan was, simply, to make people switch off their combustion engines. That's why the Swarm was designed to turn a vehicle's exhaust purple as soon as the engine was infected, then black before it exploded. It was a warning, so people understood that if they didn't turn off their engines they would die. Of course, for the warning to be effective, some people needed to die early in the process."<\i>

A nanotech virus, dubbed the Swarm, is released over the densely populated LA. It infects gasoline causing vehicle to explode and can survive in smog for years. The worldwide ramifications of this virus are extreme. Recent heroes (of previous installment VELOCITY) Judd Bell and Corey Purchase just happen to be in the city of angels when hell hits earth, and leap into action in an effort contain the spread and get the counteragent to the authorities before it's too late.

The protagonists in Corey and Judd are not cast from the traditional mould. Judd's an astronaut, Corey, a light helicopter pilot - yet I couldn't imagine a different combination of heroes for these books.

Hindering their progress is a deadly duo with delusions of changing the world by force; Kilroy - a hired muscle of sorts, and Bunsen, the brains of the operation.

Bunsen's warped rational leads to inducing mass hysteria and death; effectively creating a hell on earth as LA and its inhabitants burn for the sake of kick starting the widespread and prolonged use of clean renewable energy to down scale greenhouse gas omissions is as scary as it is believable.

Worlands fiction is a fast addiction. His thrillers read like big budget Hollywood blockbusters. In VELOCITY we saw the theft of a space shuttle, in COMBUSTION it's a major US city set alight. The ambitious and all consuming scale of these stories can't be underestimated. Despite the seemingly far reaching plots, Worland manages to create a distinct sense of plausibility further embedding the readers imagery into this dangerous landscape where the innocuous could be the catalyst for large scale devastation.

Like VELOCITY, COMBUSTION is a fast paced thriller which pulls no punches. It has a couple of great lead characters, intriguing antagonists with reasons to support their actions, and a nice ensemble cast to complement Judd and Corey. I cant wait to see what's next from Steve Worland.

This review also appears on my blog: http://justaguythatlikes2read.blogspo...

[Balthazar Lawson · Rating 4 out of 5]

"We're five thousand feet above you with no engine power and there's a large gash in the fuselage. The captain's dead, the copilot's unconscious and there are seventy passengers on board. The airports are all blocked and every goddamn road is jammed with burning cars. Even the canals are full of cars. We need a place to land ASAP."

This pretty much sums up what a roller coaster of a ride this book is. It's action packed from cover to cover and it's just the way I liked it. A mindless action read. And of course, it's just right for a movie.

[James Barron · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed Combustion a lot. I thought Judd Bell was a pretty good character, and I enjoyed the way Corey communicated with his dog. I also enjoyed the way that the antagonist wasn't 100% evil and had decent reasons to do the things that he did. The novel was funny and filled with action.

[Tyson Adams · Rating 4 out of 5]

Normally it's only supercars that explode into flames.*

Judd Bell and his partner are busy training for a mission to Mars, while Corey Purchase is touring the USA with his dog. Both are in LA for a meeting about a movie based on their last adventure when an eco-terrorist releases an aerial toxin that destroys combustion engines. In the city that loves cars as much as it does traffic jams, this results in devastation. Can Judd and Corey rise to the challenge once more and save the day? Will it make for a good sequel?

I've had Combustion sitting on my shelf since its release. I'd enjoyed the first novel in the series, Velocity, but had not gotten around to Worland's other books. Seven years later and I can't remember much of Velocity, but enough that I knew Combustion would be a fun thriller in the mould of Matthew Reilly or Andy McDermott. And I think that sums it up. Combustion could be described as Reilly-lite. Everything explodes, everyone has to do a lot of running for their lives, and someone is always in imminent danger. Good fun!

My only minor gripe with the book is the eco-terrorist villain. It is something we've seen a fair bit of in fiction, the villain who is trying to save the planet from humanity's excesses. Whether it be using mobile phones to trigger a killing spree, a Titan wanting to erase half like a divorce court attorney, or the temporary king of the seas throwing all the garbage back on land, the eco-terrorist always feels like a stupid choice for a villain. Hey, let's have the bad-guy be trying to do something good but in a really dumb way! I'd have less of a problem with the idea if it actually resulted in a change from the protagonists who fix the problem in a good way instead.

Interestingly, Worland only appears to have published three books (not including two adaptations of screenplays). So I'm guessing the next Bell and Purchase novel might not end well for the heroes. I might check it out at some point.

* Seriously, this list is made up of mostly high-end sports cars that seem to spend half their time catching fire.

[Chad McHunt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yes it's ridiculous, yes it's action packed, yes it's funny and yes I loved it. Great follow up from the first book velocity, hope there's a third in the Judd and Corey series.

[Batlady · Rating 3 out of 5]

It’s a page turner but quite nonsensical. I like that one of the characters is an Aussie

[Dark Matter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Evie Kendal reviewed this book; for more reviews by Evie, see Evie Kendal on Dark Matter Zine. To see all reviews on Dark Matter Zine, go to Dark Matter Zine's reviews.

Combustion opens with a football match in which 15-year-old Corey Purchase scores the winning goal moments before an earthquake tears the Adelaide stadium apart, killing his mother and two other spectators. This opening, combined with the novel’s title and cover art of exploding cars, sets the mood for what will be an action-packed story.

After this scene the story jumps immediately to a heist in Los Angeles involving the wealthy (and heavily armed) environmental activist, Zac Bunsen. Described as “a winner in the genetic lottery” who resembles “Brad Pitt’s better looking cousin,” Zac intends to blow up all combustion engines in order to stop exhaust emissions and further pollution of the planet. Think Batman if the Dark Knight was fighting greenhouse gases instead of criminals.

It is a little unclear how much time elapses between Corey’s game and Zac’s attack but the next time we see Corey he is an adult who has spent the last year hitchhiking in America. A former helicopter pilot and sheep farmer in Central Australia, Corey reminisces about his time saving the hijacked shuttle Atlantis 4 with NASA pilots, Judd, Rhonda and Severson.

Having prevented a terrorist bombing in Virginia, all four are now considered heroes and are reuniting as consultants for the movie version of their exploits. However, a brief insight into Judd’s mind during a space shuttle landing simulation suggests there’s more to the story than the media ever found out. Thus, twenty-five pages into the novel Combustion appears to be your standard action-film-as-book, with a little mystery added into the mix….

And then on page twenty-six Corey starts talking to his dog and I mean really talking to him. Just like that the story morphs into something different, flirting with the line between fantasy and realist fiction, not yet committing to either. At the same time a romance plot is introduced between Corey and an LA studio executive named Lola Jacklin, a horrendously awkward love-triangle style romance, but one that remains interesting nonetheless. Lola is fascinated by Corey’s Australian “otherness” and he is good old-fashioned Hollywood starstruck. It’s just a pity billionaire movie star Scott Ford got there first. Never fear though, Corey will have his chance to impress the ladies when he and Judd are called on to save the city from Zac’s eco-terrorism.

Zac has developed a nanotech virus that targets combustion engines, essentially turning all cars into bombs. As his attacks escalate, the heroes from the Atlantis 4 mission must traverse the wreckage and prevent the final phase of Zac’s plan from being enacted, which will send humanity back to the Stone Age. Without giving away too much of the plot, suffice it to say that all the usual James Bond escapades ensue.

Recommendation

This book is suitable for anyone who likes action movies and just wishes they were books. It would also be educational for anyone hoping to write an action movie, as there are some detailed instructions on how to make a successful movie pitch (Corey’s Zompires movie is no doubt already being optioned!). As a scriptwriter, Worland offers great pacing in his novel even if the descriptive language is sometimes a bit less developed. Dialogue and narrative voice are also strong and the novel sustains reader interest throughout. Suitable for adult and young adult readers.

[Aaron Cosgrove · Rating 5 out of 5]

The second Judd Bell & Corey Purchase installment delivers a no holds barred, hard hitting follow-up. Combustion, sees the return of the most bizarre, yet lovable, hero couplings of all time. An astronaut - Judd, an Australian helicopter pilot, currently on sabbatical - Corey, and the world's ugliest, smart-mouthed blue heeler in existence - Spike. All responsible for foiling the Atlantis shuttle hijacking in their first adventure together, Velocity. Following up on the heels of the hijacking, our heroes are in LA for a press release to announce the Atlantis 4 movie - based on the heroic events of the hijacking - when they unwittingly explode onto the scene and are thrown into the middle of a situation to once again save the world. Though this time, they are in direct competition with a man set on saving it too, though by devastatingly destructive means.

Combustion is a fantastic, full-throttle, explosive read, a must for any action-adventure thrill-seeking reader.

Watch out Reilly, Worland has your number!

[Denise · Rating 2 out of 5]

Liked the sticker on the front that this was going to be a book I couldn't put down and the fact that on the front cover the Canberra Times had said "a fresh voice for fans of Matthew Reilly". Unfortunately, I didn't feel it lived up to what I was expecting. Sure, there was lots of heroic action with Judd Bell and Corey Purchase outrunning all the bad guys and the explosions. Other minor characters such as Rhonda who landed the plane could have been stronger. I think this would be a great action movie but as a book I didn't really enjoy it. Dear authors - I really don't care about your product placement and, in fact, it gets old very quickly. Chapter 1, first two paragraphs, for example, Nikon, Patek Philippe and iPhone (not to mention the character resembled Brad Pitt's better looking cousin!) all had a look in. Not necessary and I start to wonder are you writing for enjoyment or are you hoping to gain sponsorship? My do isn't smart so I would love Corey's dog, Spike......

[Any Length · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wasn't that impressed by this book. Too many whams and whoosh noises as this and that slammed into him or her. Of course although they all sustained what should have been life threatening injuries, they are soon back on their feet running, fighting, flying helicopters, solving the puzzle as to how to save the world. Totally unrealistic characters. Both males are bumbling morons, who don't understand the concept of a code word and are more annoying than giving the reader the feeling of being in a genuine "emergency". The talking dog isn't funny, and although he claims to be soooo tired right at the beginning that he lies down and sleeps among cars exploding all over the place, he then manages to run several stints of 20 minutes at a time besides bicycles and does all he is told to do - even guarding! Pull the other one. I'm not buying. All up the book was mildly amusing.

[Mandi]

I’ve been overrun lately, finding it hard to find time to read. I needed a book that would suck me in, let me hit the ground running and keep propelling me forward so that I wouldn’t keep getting interrupted by the overwhelming to-do-list breathing down my neck.

Steve Worland’s Combustion (Penguin) was just the ticket! Wow, what a ride.

Read the rest of this review here... http://blog.thatbookyoulike.com.au/ex...

[Dale · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm not sure if the author here was paid for every company name referenced, but I certainly have not noticed this in other books before. Every second paragraph is Apple this, Boeing that. And it would be great if the vocab to describe characters or events was something other than "mo-fo".

[Writerbyter · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Atlanta Four are embroiled yet again in a madman's scheme to destroy the world. This is Worland's second novel and is just as action- packed as the first. If you like the idea of Die Hard meets Dundee then you'll enjoy this. Inventive plot.

[Rosemary · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a read, loved this book and that voice of Sean Mangan, hmmmmmmm

[Shane · Rating 5 out of 5]

The action scenes in this book are so rediculously over the top that you can't help but love it.

[Don · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another 'rippa' read from Steve Worland. Again Cory, Spike and Judd save the world with a some romance to help the plot along. In my opinion Spike is the star of the book with Cory a close second.

[MsEleanorMae · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was good.

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another rollicking, action-packed adventure with Judd, Corey and Spike. Pure entertainment!

[Banafsheh Serov · Rating 2 out of 5]

Gotta love a book that starts with the word "BOOM"!! 💥💣
.
Reads like Matthew Reilly but a whole lot more rediculous. No wonder my 15yo son enjoyed it.

[Tanya · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another fast exciting action thriller!