Soulgame

The second novel by Mindy Mackay, sequel to Peacebreakers.

After the zombie apocalypse, the new ruling empire of Canada starts piecing itself back together again while protagonist Kiera Graves Wangsts about the death of her lover. Meanwhile, in exurban Montreal, a couple of rebellions take root. Reigning monarch Isabella Sordeno strategizes her way around each of them, ruthlessly manipulating her own underlings in the process by coercing them to perform such acts as Cold-Blooded Torture for the sake of keeping The Empire in power.

Not that any of them have any qualms with this.

Well, except for Kiera.

When Isabella offers Kiera her lover's soul in exchange for murdering a Rebel Leader and inflicting the same pain on a young girl that the Zombie Apocalypse put her through, Kiera's scruples are put to the test...


 * Affably Evil: Michael in spades.
 * A God Am I: Isabella admits this herself.
 * Arc Words: "All the time in the bloody world", carried over from Peacebreakers and likely to appear again in the forthcoming Bulletproof and Checkmate.
 * Back From the Dead:
 * Belligerent Sexual Tension: According to Word of God, this was what was originally going on between Camelie and Chandler. Mackay changed it not to meet status quo, but because she liked the pairing of  better.
 * Big Fancy House
 * Blessed with Suck: Apparently, the same heightened power Camelie receives can also kill her if she's not careful.
 * Bread and Circuses: the aim of the Population Proviso.
 * Break the Cutie: Poor Chamika!
 * Deadly Upgrade: Camelie's heightened powers after the empire is through with her.
 * Kiera, on a much more psychological level.
 * Defeat Means Friendship: This is the entire basis of the ongoing Vitriolic Best Buds dynamic between Camelie and Chandler.
 * Diabolical Mastermind: Michael.
 * Fantastic Drug: Seafoam and Carson Pharmaceuticals' psychosonic drugs are carried on throughout the series to slip Sex Drugs And Rock And Roll Various Characters'Vices past the radar.
 * Functional Addict: Cherise and her Prozac.
 * Deconstructed with Camelie, who is barely functional.
 * Everyone in the Paralysis and their coffee.
 * Heroic BSOD: Kiera through most of this book.
 * Chamika towards the second half.
 * Heroic RROD: Camelie.
 * Hit Me Dammit: The forest scene with Chandler and Camelie.
 * And again on the roof of Paralysis HQ.
 * I Hate You, Vampire Dad: Subverted. It's actually "I hate you human dad" and a reciprocal "I hate you mutant kid."
 * I Lied: Isabella frequently brushes off her various lies to enemies and allies alike with some nonchalant statement.
 * Names to Run Away From Really Fast: Vengeance Cheri.
 * Nietzsche Wannabe: Chandler.
 * No Plans, No Prototype, No Backup: Again, Camelie.
 * Psycho Lesbian:
 * Ragtag Bunch of Misfits: Catalyst.
 * Rebellious Rebel: Stephanie.
 * Red Shirt: This book's got plenty.
 * Roaring Rampage of Revenge: Vengeance Cheri goes on one of these.
 * Squick: and lots of it.
 * Chamika's
 * The Cold-Blooded Torture of Camelie
 * Mercedes Carson's backstory
 * The Uriah Gambit: Michael's solution to the Stephanie problem...which only made things worse.
 * Too Kinky to Torture: Aline acts pleased when, announcing proudly that she will get much more business from the niche market in the future.
 * Women Drivers: Averted with Lorelei.
 * Would Hit a Girl: Chandler's primary character trait.
 * You Said You Would Let Them Go: Show of hands: who here actually thinks Isabella was planning on letting Camelie go at the end?