City Ash and Desert Bones - Paperback

300 years in the future the world is run by the Theocracy and the Apostles are their representatives. The tiny, dusty and ironically named town of Big City has never seen Apostles until the newly deputized team, Reesa and Joule, are given their first assignment-get to the bottom of the town's untapped oil reserves. They are a married couple, supposed to have been matched perfectly by the Theocracy, and Reesa is eager to do her duty while Joule is dismayed at the backwater, Old West-style location they find themselves in.

Just as Big City belies its name, so do nearly all appearances in this small town. Efforts to find out what's going on there are thwarted by the mayor and citizens alike. Soon they discover that the quaint false front of the town hides a terrible truth-it's under siege by creatures known as Takers. The town has placed their faith in Tombstone, a stoic straight shooter, but even he can't keep everyone safe. As the bodies begin to mount Reesa strikes out on her own only to discover that she is at the center of the biggest lie of all.