Fail State

An Audible Original: End of Days, Book 2

By: John Birmingham

Narrated by: Rupert Degas

Length: 9 hrs and 28 mins

Publisher's summary

On Zero Day of the first and last cyberwar in human history the internet went dark, transport and power grids collapsed and cities began to starve. Ten days later millions have died from thirst and starvation, from violence and from the simple failure of the world’s machines to keep them alive.

This second installment of John Birmingham’s End of Days trilogy finds James O’Donnell and his friends Rick, Michelle and Melissa hunkered down in the wilderness, where they know a horde of starving, desperate exiles from the graveyard of the US East Coast is heading their way.

On the far side of the continent, in the Pacific Northwest, Jonas Murdoch helps lead the good folk of Silverton in defending themselves from waves of starving and desperate refugees pouring out of Seattle.

And slowly, cautiously navigating the inland waterways of California, Jodi Sarjanan and Ellie Jabbarah negotiate an apocalyptic landscape of burning skyscrapers and marauding gangs.

All of them are seeking sanctuary. A safe place where the madness hasn’t penetrated. But does such a place exist?

And what if they need to sacrifice their very humanity in the struggle to reach it?

©2019 John Birmingham (P)2019 Audible Australia Pty Ltd.

Great reader

Someone who does proper accents and actually pronounce the english language properly. Really a pleasure to listen too.

Great story and excellent narration

The narrator was fantastic At his accents. Totally the best I have listened to! The story line was really good too.

Great trilogy. Amazing narrator!

The trilogy is mostly realistic (I think timeline could have been longer) and sends shivers down your spine as this novel could be non-fiction in the near future. What I enjoyed as much as the storyline was the narration. Degas has an amazing range of voices and tones and you feel as though you are right in the thick of the plot.

Very Good Book

It wasn’t great but it was a very good trilogy. I’m glad I stuck with it. Also glad the writer didn’t make the frequent mistake of making it a series just to try and sell more. It could have been great but the ending was a little weak.

I would look for more by the writer and narrator.

Excellent read!

The series is well-written and narrated. The plot seems plausible for the apocalypse to occur.

Killer thriller

Another edge-of-your-seat thriller from John Birmingham. Loved every second. I can't wait for book three.

Need book 3 !!!

I had not heard about this author before, I got the first book free and it was good enough to get book 2. Now I’m addicted! Largely believable storyline, characters are developed enough to have a good sense about them. The narrator brings it all together, albeit oddly. His voice is excellent and he’s good at giving the characters life but his English accent is an unusual choice for a storyline that features primarily American characters, I’m totally down with it though! Spend the credit!

The CHARACTERS are why!!!

I felt this book was a masterpiece of a character-driven story. The good guys and the bad guys were far, far from being run-of-the-mill stereotypes. And what a mix!

Good read.

Can't wait for the next book. Really a good listen enjoyed every minute of the book.

Good sequel

I enjoyed the continuation of the characters and story from the first novel. Try it.