Click here to see the cover of the sequel.
At some point in the distant future, some kind of gender-specific pathogen nearly wipes out the human race by killing, shortening the lifespan and greatly reducing the viability of the male gender. The exact cause is unknown and all attempts to find a cure were met with abject failure.
In light of this, the oppressed female population of numerous patriarchal societies, fixated more on revenge and preventing the return of the male population to dominance, create a horrific, mandatory tournament where young male teens are forced to fight each other to the death until only one remains.
After some 200-odd years, the tournament has evolved into a format where these teenagers are forced to build a Battle Harem of 6-15 girls to become their brides and assist them. This tournament is called the Harem Games. The story follows one of these participants, Alex Dolorean and his harem.
The plot of the sequel, The Anointed Prophetess, picks up right where the previous book left off. Alex is no longer fighting fellow contestants, but is dragged into a war with the Matriarchy directly, after they decide they no longer want to live by their own rules, just to spite him.
This work provides examples of the following tropes:
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General
- Battle Harem: By design, "the Harem Games" tournament forces the few existing teenage males into a battle royale with a harem of helpers by their side.
- Bureaucratically Arranged Marriage: This is how the Battle Harem teams are chosen. The girls really don't have much choice to whom they're married. Alex's team is an exception as most of his brides specifically petitioned Martufe for the role, much to his chagrin, though he is very grateful they came to his aid.
- Crapsack World: Poverty is rampant, slavery is the law of the land, with boys being legally required to own a sex slave, and there is a constant barrage of propaganda proclaiming that everyone of the male gender is the epitome of evil. Oh, and all boys entering puberty are legally mandated to provide sperm samples while unmarried girls are required to become pregnant by artificial insemination, or else mankind will cease to exist as a species.
- Crystal Dragon Jesus: Justified. For camouflage, the Christian religion in the setting is under such relenting persecution that it has hidden its faith with plenty of pagan trappings, to the point that none of the rank and file can even tell where the original Christianity ends and the paganism begins.
- Despotism Justifies the Means: The Matriarchy will do anything to hold on to their position as the world government, no matter the harshness of their policy, purely for the power of the position.
- Dystopia: The world is ruled by an all-powerful man-hating Matriarchy, and they will do anything to keep it that way.
- Forced Prize Fight: The "participants" of the Harem Games are compelled to participate, refusal is not an option, and the Sole Survivor (and his harem, if any of the girls survive) is given one wish that the Matriarchy must publicly grant.
- Heroic Bastard: Alex's parents were never married. Still doesn't stop him from being a good and decent person.
- Slavery Is a Special Kind of Evil: Discussed. Alex hates the institution of slavery, and his entire family shares this mindset. They are all fully aware of the history and abuses inherent in the system, but are not in a position to do anything about it. Being legally required to participate, Alex does his best to ensure Happiness in Slavery; he succeeds.
The Harem Games
- All Women Are Lustful: Alex's brides are all very eager to consummate their relations with him.
- Apocalypse How: Class 1. The book starts by explaining how the yet unidentified pandemic ravaged the human population, starting with adult males.
- Aren't You Going to Ravish Me?: Shinobi, Alex's sex slave, wanted to be his first, and was completely distraught when someone else got there ahead of her.
- Bastard Bastard: Ash's parents were never married, and he's a truly despicable example of humanity.
- Beware the Nice Ones: Alex is the living epitome of this trope. He is officially the sweetest, most sensitive, gentle, patient, and kind guy on the planet... until Ash and his flunkies push him way too far.
- Black-and-White Morality: Alex and his brides are clearly the victims and the antagonists are clearly villains.
- Bullying a Dragon: At first, the other contestants who harass him had no idea how dangerous Alex is. After having several dramatic illustrations of how dangerously powerful and intelligent he is, his rivals still continue to harass him, only being spared from retaliation because he's forbidden from fighting back. Once he's allowed to retaliate, they don't stand a chance.
- Chick Magnet: Alex is very popular with women on both sides of the fourth wall.
- Evil Is Petty: Ash Udderweis puts Alex through a great deal of suffering for an absolutely trivial slight, and it's a completely imaginary one.
- A God Am I: The Big Bad, as Alex is chosen to decide her punishment, declares that he should treat her as a god. He decides to comply.
- Happiness in Slavery: Unusual for this trope as Alex manages to make his sex slave, Shinobi, happy with the job. He does this by treating her as family and literally showering her with love and affection for four years.
- Surprise Incest: Alex and Shiatsu don't learn they're fraternal twins until after they've been married to each other and have children on the way. By the time they find out, those involved no longer care.
- Take That!:
- Obama's policies are directly blamed, predominantly by Martufe O'oharra, for being a major contributing factor to the current world setting.
- A subtle reference is made to the barbaric practice of a certain religion where "proper" women are forced to undergo a rite of passage where their genitals are mutilated by whatever sharp instruments are at hand, "to promote fidelity".
- The story itself is a very, very subtle stab at the premise behind the extreme militant feminist movement which loudly and repeatedly proclaims that the world would be a better place if only men didn't exist.
The Anointed Prophetess
- Awesome Moment of Crowning: Alex becomes the first Patriarch, ever, after winning the Matriarch War.
- Black-and-Grey Morality: On the Matriarch's side, they bomb their own soldiers, send tank columns and attack helicopters after innocent civilian families, steal Alex's genetic material to create raping and murdering bio-weapons which they then unleash upon their own forces and civilians at large while trying to frame Alex, and hold the families of an entire news agency hostage so that the "news" they want broadcast is all that is, ignore their own laws, rules, regulations, and promises, and murdered Alex's mother by slow-acting poison. Alex, on the other hand, in order to survive, sends his brides to break into not one, but two high-security prisons, one of which has death-row inmates, plans to blow up a civilian dam to cover his tracks The Matriarchy beat him to it, launches raids against news agencies, incites open revolt against the Matriarchy, and ends the war by using nuclear weapons, and taking POWs as slaves.
- Deliberate Values Dissonance: Lampshaded to the hilt. The author makes numerous "cultural notes" that highlight where perfectly acceptable behavior, in-universe, would be criminal, if not felonious, in reality.
- Genetic Engineering Is the New Nuke: Played with. Alex subverts it by using his acquired powers to build nuclear weapons. The Matriarchy plays it straight by using Alex's stolen genetic material to build abominations to serve as weapons of terror and mass destruction.
- Gladiator Games: Although Alex abolishes "the Harem Games" as it was previously held, i.e. participation being compulsory, and battles being to the death, he allows the "sport" to remain, not only for the entertainment of the masses, but to serve as Training from Hell to deal with an oncoming alien invasion. In making participation voluntary, and allowing the battles to be non-lethal, Alex wins the support of numerous powers and countries normally opposed.
- Reluctant Mad Scientist: Tapioca never wanted to be a scientist for the Matriarchy. She was conscripted after death and her consciousness forced into an automaton compelled to do it.
- Tautological Templar: The last of the Matriarchy posits that they all believed themselves inherently good people, and the man-free Crapsack World is the best possible outcome, and as such, whatever actions they take to ensure the status quo are fully justified.
- Was Once a Man: Tapioca was once human until her corpse's memories were uploaded into a machine, and she was conscripted into serving the Matriarchy.
