Zack Parsons, bestselling author of Liminal States and editor of SomethingAwful.com, has released a collection of satirical, acerbic stories in Wages: Future Tales of a Hired Gun, created and distributed by Vook.

In the book’s near future, private military contractors are hired to protect the interests of businesses and individuals. These men and women work as bodyguards, security, and are the means by which “desirable outcomes” are achieved. From Dubai to Texas, “still technically the USA,” these mercenaries have all the firepower of the military—and none of the accountability. Written in a wry voice that mixes extreme violence with bleak political and philosophical musings, the book reads like a Call of Duty installment written by Jean-Patrick Manchette.

“I’ve always loved reading Zack’s writing on Something Awful. When the opportunity arose to release a story collection based on the exploits of a character that first appeared online, we were eager to get the book onto the digital press,” said Matt Cavnar, our VP of Business Development.

Wages is available for $2.99 on Amazon, iBookstore, Kobo, Sony, Samsung, Google Play, and Barnes & Noble, and Vook’s store.