Henry is a sharp protagonist, full of probing questions and biting retorts about humanity’s courage, motivation, and values. It raises the questions, “How long would you have lasted? When would you have cracked under the pressure of oblivion?” World of Trouble is indeed about the end of the world, but it’s also about so much more. To see him chasing this dream with his tattered scruples flapping in the wind is both fascinating and a bit sobering. Always does what’s right, always keeps a level head. Palace has always been a straight-laced character. The way they balance so precariously on an edge, waiting to be tipped one way or the other. There’s something about a manic character that really gets under your skin and comes to life in your mind. It’s foolish and unlikely, but Henry is desperate and the world is ending anyway. Henry let her go, but as days run out, he can’t bear to watch the world end without seeing her one last time. She bought into a conspiracy theory about nuclear missiles and the capability to destroy the asteroid and is now part of a rogue group on a Hail Mary mission to save Earth. Henry is on an impossible mission to find Nico Palace, his younger sister. One week ’til impact, and the world has gone to pieces. Henry Palace, the last policeman, has been pushed to the edge by the world’s impending doom, and his manic desperation to solve one last case propels the frenzied currents of this series’ final installment. The goal is to survive and make the most of what you have left. (They were, and it is.) In the first two books, the world has been approaching the end of its days, facing the catastrophic asteroid with rations, bucket lists, and mild indifference. If the first two books in Winters’ Last Policeman trilogy were good and exciting, then World of Trouble is the crux of the fun. I turn my head to the wall, scared to die, even now, even today. She’s shouting, advancing across the room, the barrels of the semiautomatics aimed at my face like twin black holes.

World of trouble by ben h winters