It's said that we never get a second chance to make a good first impression, and my first impression was that The Oblivion Society had been well crafted. The cover and product quality, so often the Achilles heel of small press books, looks every bit as professional as anything from a major player. The opening sequence sets up the five main protagonists, and gives a good indication of the author's style of humour and taste in characterization. In no time we're picking up the pieces with Vivian Gray, and four others, who spend at least half their time engaged in reference heavy banter. This clearly works best for readers in the target group, who will have the best chance of spotting the cues. For everyone else there are still things to enjoy, and older/younger cultural references that will raise a titter. The plot, rather disappointingly, is very much the junior partner. The major portion of the author's efforts are directed toward the interactions of his cast, which usually take the form of jokes, in jokes and general japes at the expense of the survivors. To an extent this is entertaining. After a while, though, I got rather worn down by the relentless juvenile wisecracking, and lack of news or serious interest in what had become of the world outside of the characters bubble. It felt like an number of plot opportunities had been lost.

Author Marcus Alexander Hart, who is pictured toward the end of the book adopting the image of exactly the sort of clever dick his prose suggests, has crafted an above average web site in support of the book, complete with introductory cartoon. If marketing effort alone was how I rate books, The Oblivion Society would be a winner. All things taken into consideration, however, this is a book best suited to those within the author's target audience of early teens to mid-twenties. Especially those who are intrigued by the idea of a bawdier, post-apocalyptic radioactive version of Friends. There's even a character who is more irritating than Ross, which in its own way is a major accomplishment. For those readers blessed with a wider world view, or perhaps just a more mature perspective, The Oblivion Society will have limited appeal.