Review: Main Street, DOA, by Declan Finn

Sean can’t go anywhere without blowing something up.

What do you do after you stopped an alien invasion, ended a civil war, deposed a dictator, helped unite most of the galaxy? You take a vacation, right? That's what you and I would do.

For Sean Ryan and his White Ops team, that doesn’t really fit their style. However, when their new boss, Calinn orders them to take some downtime, the crew finds themselves on Yisden, a planet-sized amusement park. Of course, Sean can’t go anywhere without blowing something up.

The story

The galaxy is safe from the threat of the Anima, the Renar have been spared a lengthy civil war (and had a new valley installed), and President Douglas Wills is in hiding. You would think that Sean Ryan and White Ops would be able to settle down and begin training future generations of Rangers.

That’s certainly what they thought until Sean inadvertently snarks his way into an unwanted trip to an overgrown amusement park.

The team begrudgingly goes along with it, expecting the whole thing to be an exercise in controlling their more violent impulses, impulses that are tested repeatedly until they discover that the park is not what it seems. In fact, it’s under the control of one William Smythe, head of security for former president Wills and he has plans for the planet and its many, many tourists.

In the meantime, Father Healy of the Holy Order of St. Patrick is putting together a team of his own, a team made of former White Ops members and others on a par with Ryan and his associates.

The characters

While it’s a big galaxy out there, Declan Finn’s Main Street DOA stays mostly confined to the amusement park.

If the idea of a planet-wide park controlled by a sociopathic genius sounds nuts to you, I can assure you that you have no idea. Just imagine what could be done with genetically engineered dinosaurs, undead pirates, and superheroes programed to fight and be able to take on massive damage. All of that is just for starters.

If nothing else, Finn shows that when the situation calls for it he is more than willing to lean into the crazy. The result is an absurd amount of mayhem and fun.

The world

How does a team of accomplished killers relax? What’s more, what if they are the kind of killer that takes glee in being the fist of justice sent to punish the wicked? They fall in love and argue with robots of course.

Following on the heels of Politics Kills, Sean and Kami begin exploring their relationship as do other members of the team, even the less normally than affectionate Renar on White Ops. If you thought they were dangerous before having significant others to care about, you’re right. But give Sean Ryan a woman to love and… well, let’s just say getting in his way would be a bad idea.

There are others as well. Like John, the unassuming best assassin in the galaxy who is trying to clean up a loose end with the last name of Wills.

Of course, there is a new bad guy. William Smythe is one of the remaining loyalists to President Wills, the human villain of the last two books. He’s also a loyalist who wants to get paid. To make sure that happens, the brilliant psychopath has concocted a plan to use Yisden and every tourist on the planet as hostages. He also has a nasty history with one of the additions to White Ops, a history that is going to get someone killed.

The politics

The title of the previous book is Politics Kills. One of the themes in this one is that politics is petty and vicious. Yet, usually all it takes to take down the bad guys is good men and women willing to stand up to them. If you can bring an arsenal to help, it’s just more fun.

Content warning

I suppose if you don’t like watching Ryan and company smacking down krakens, dragons, and animatronic superheroes in the service of the good, true, and beautiful then this might not be for you.

Who is it for?

If you liked Reacher but wish the guy had more personality and stood for something other than his own interests, this is definitely your book. Or you can think of it as Flash Gordon meets Die Hard 2. Or maybe Die Hard 4, the one where John McLane beats up an F-35 and kills a helicopter with a car. It’s that level of insane kick-assery.

Why read it?

Did you read the above paragraph? If that sounds good, what the hell are you waiting for?