Hodge, Brian - Without Purpose, Without Pity

Published in 2012, this has its prophetic moments.
Las Vegas is expiring from an (un)natural catastrophe.
The water supply, as well as the gambling tourist trade, has dried up.
As the city reverts to arid desert, it is encircled by tornado / hurricane / devil winds, denying entrance and exodus. Residents are trapped.
Residents, including boxers, pugilists, and their coaches, who train and combat for ever dwindling purses. Crowds, as ever, roar for blood.
Especially for the fighter who has begun transfiguring into something more, and something less.
In this short novel for the old Delirium Press, Hodge unrolls multiple stories and themes. A few too many, if you ask me, as he is never able to array his threads into a coherent team.
I found this intriguing, especially the boxing angles, for a long time. The conclusion, should you call it that, is the hastily shrugged “good enough” surrender.