The Last Man: Rise of the Pink Army is a gender-conscious conceptual work of fiction penned by author Sean Williams. The sequel to the opening novel, The Last Man, this continuation of the trilogy operates under the idea that a radical group - The Femtheists - have taken control of the globe, radicalizing female power and reducing the population of men to a tenth globally. In this world, our protagonist Ian struggles against the ongoing war to become a leader and help people the way he used to, whilst Pink Army leader Mandy is conflicted by her own feelings and relationship with Ian. In a world where gender decides your fate, disaster looms on every horizon.

As a conceptual action novel, author Sean Williams creates some strong intrigue and exciting moments for his characters to play out. Definitely written for adults due to its graphic nature, the realities of war and the struggles which many characters face, the novel does present a harrowing, horrifying vision of an extremist future where enforced population control causes militant unrest. For me, however, the political and gender implications never quite reached their full philosophical potential, though the issues are explored by the main characters in part due to their relationship together. That said, the novel works really well conceptually to turn military fiction on its head and see a female-dominated war with powerful female leaders, both for good and for ill. Overall, The Last Man: Rise of the Pink Army is an intriguing continuation of the trilogy and a great, action-packed war story.

I really enjoyed The Last Man: Rise of the Pink Army by Sean Williams. I read the first book in this series and I enjoyed it too. Let me tell you why I like this book so much. First, it is not politically correct. Some of the ideas in this book just aren't discussed openly in polite society these days. Next, there is a ton of action. The heroes in The Last Man: Rise of the Pink Army are not the type of guys who sit around talking about a problem until they’re blue in the face. They want, no, they need to do something about it. This future world is the perfect setting for men like that. The era of the bureaucrat is over. This is the age of action and, boy, I’m not kidding when I say you will get your fill of action in The Last Man: Rise of the Pink Army.

Action is what drives this story more than anything else. The plot starts with our heroes arriving in Japan and immediately embarking on a rescue mission to North Korea. It doesn't get more exciting than this and the stakes are raised steadily as the story works itself to a satisfying conclusion. Sean Williams writes like a man who has seen conflict and it shows in The Last Man. The military jargon is authentic, as are the characters who spew it. There is a lot of violence and a lot of very strong language. But I was in the military, and that is exactly what I expect from soldiers. There are a lot of reasons why you may or may not agree with Sean’s vision of what the world will look like in the near future, but very few reasons not to like this book.