Commune

Commune, Book 1

By: Joshua Gayou

Narrated by: R.C. Bray

Length: 9 hrs and 46 mins

Publisher's summary

For dinosaurs, it was a big rock. For humans: Coronal Mass Ejection (CME).

When the Earth is hit by the greatest CME in recorded history (several times larger than the Carrington Event of 1859), the combined societies of the planet's most developed nations struggle to adapt to a life thrust back into the Dark Ages.

In the United States, the military scrambles to speed the nation's recovery on multiple fronts including putting down riots, establishing relief camps, delivering medical aid, and bringing communication and travel back on line.

Just as a real foothold is established in retaking the skies (utilizing existing commercial aircraft supplemented by military resources and ground control systems), a mysterious virus takes hold of the population, spreading globally over the very flight routes that the survivors fought so hard to rebuild. The communicability and mortality rates are devastating, leaving only small pockets of survivors scattered throughout the countryside.

Commune: Book One is the story of one small group of survivors who must adapt to a primitive, hostile world or die. As they learn the rules of this new era, they must decide how far they're willing to go to continue living, continually asking themselves the same question daily: is survival worth the loss of humanity?

©2017 Joshua Gayou (P)2017 Joshua Gayou

A Contender For Best of 2017

I’ve read a lot of post-apocalyptic books. A lot. And when I find something new I’m always shocked. In PA books there’s always a reason for the apocalypse, the journey is hard (in most books), and they get to where they are going only to have to defend their turf. Sure, that’s the same basic plotline of Commune, but the way that it gets there is totally different. Gayou was able to write new life into the same kind of story. It was a difference in tone. It was told from the point of view of storytellers (and the person recording the history of the story). Which made it completely unique among hundreds of books I’ve read in this genre.

Each person’s story was different. Just like the way that everyone has their own origin story to life. Each person in Commune felt different and interesting in their own way. There were quiet people who you knew had a lot going on under the surface. And the caring ones who cared, almost to a fault. Along with what I would call someone with the “papa bear” mentality. They all came together in different parts of this book and made something beautiful in the ashes of the apocalypse.

The back and forth of the characters playing out the same or similar situation really made this book stand out to me. I loved hearing about the story from Jake’s perspective and then Amanda’s. I also really like that everything is happening in the past and Commune is a sort of retelling. A ‘back to your roots’ sort of storytelling. Like the older generations used to do. That was how history was passed down from generation to generation. The back-to-basics sort of feel, looking back on their stories was something I’ve never read in any post-apocalyptic book.

I won’t ruin the ending or even how it gets to the ending, but I actually completely understand the way that Gayou went. I want to write more about it, but anything else I write here will become a spoiler. Let’s just say that I’m excited to see the direction that is taken in the other books in the series.

Sometimes I wonder if Bray picks books that make him laugh out loud at least once in them. I can’t even think if the last book I read by him made me laugh (it was about a guy out for revenge) but I’m sure it did. Ever since The Martian, almost every book Bray’s narrated has had me in stitches (even when it’s a serious book). Commune was no different. Numerous times (pretty much every listening session to and from work) I laughed at least once. Also, any book that Bray read the opening of and says “yeah, I’ll narrate your book” to an author he met on a Reddit AMA says a lot to me.

Overall, Commune Book 1 will easily be a contender for the best book I read in 2017. It’s easily one that I won’t forget for some time. Before I even finished it I told my wife that she had to listen to it. I woke up this morning to hear her in the kitchen listening to it.

I was given a free copy of this book which has not affected my review in any way.

Absolutely stunningly well composed!

it's hard to really explain how much i loved this book. It's one of those post apocalyptic dystopian adventures that just pulls you in and captures your complete attention! I first heard about this via Facebook on R.C. Bray's fanpage and really wanted to burn a credit, and let me tell you it was an absolute pleasure listening to this gem. I instantly wanted more! please dont hesitate to use tga that credit because this is a series you will be begging for more of!

Wow!!!

I don't know where to begin. I really loved this book. I enjoyed the characters, the narration was amazing, the pace was perfect, the amount of action vs storyline was balanced and the different style of telling was interesting.
The story follows 3 adults and 1 child. It is told through 2 of the adult's perspective for the purpose of documenting their history. It was easy to follow and since this was the first book I've listened to utilizing this format, I found it to be not only an interesting way to tell the story, but also refreshingly different. The group struggles to make their way to a remote location in Wyoming owned by one of the members after a plague that took place shortly after a CME. The author doesn't dwell much on those 2 events, just that they happened, they sucked and now the people left had to figure how to live. There's touches on prepping, types of weapons and other items, but not to distraction. This is more a story about the people.
The characters develop during the book, they react accordingly to events and are believable. The narration is outstanding. Simply outstanding! There's a little humor, funny banter, some very real and disturbing descriptions (not many, but necessary) and language. Nothing that detracts, just realistic. Not a lot of swearing (which wouldn't have bothered me in the least if it had, but I know many readers don't like a lot of swearing). Not a lot of graphic violence, just a person matteroffactly retelling what it was like.
I could go on and on, but please take a chance and spend the credit or even the cash, this book is worth it.

My favorite book of all time

This is my number one favorite series I have ever read. I compare other books to this, I look for other stories like this. I love this book. The story is amazing and makes you want to be part of it, even though it is the end of the world. I want more, and I want it now!!

They said run!

Josh here.

The story contained in these digital audio bits, or the associated with the corresponding physical pages, is truly refreshing. This book brings about an interesting take on documenting a post-apocalyptic scenario. Having each character tell their view of the events which occurred is interesting and paints a new dynamic for the situation. In this case, there are no zombies. Instead we are placed in a world thrust back into a quasi-stone age. All of the luxuries of daily life are pushed into imminent extinction as supplies now become extremely perishable as different groups seek them in order to survive/maintain some semblance of their past lives.

I am not going to spoil some of the journeys that Billy, Amanda, Jake, and Lizzy find themselves thrust into but instead want to highlight key aspects of the book which kept me hooked.

The first item which immediately drew me in was the depiction of our reliance on the technologies and systems we take for granted in everyday life. What happens when the supply chains which transport our goods break down? What happens when all of the individual workers that make up an assembly/distribution chain for a single item are no longer collaborating or performing their required tasks? What happens when the folks monitoring critical systems such as water, power, or even satellite are unable to perform the small tweaks and tunings required to keep the respective systems operational? Each of these items are brought to light in this story. In fact, Josh goes into great detail at points on some of these topics and it really gives you a sense of where reality would be without those critical operators. This aspect of storytelling develops somber feel which increases as you realize the characters are running out of time for what little technology they have remaining. Our society has become overly complex for even basic things such as obtaining water, and Josh has done a great job depicting that in this first entry in the series.

The next piece of this book that drew me in is a trait I look for in any good post-apocalyptic story and that is depicting the real nature of humanity. Josh did a fantastic job in this regard and the first aspect I picked up on was how the characters were forced to figure out how they can decide whether or not someone they are meeting is trustworthy. In a world where everyone is out for themselves, how do you place trust in someone when you are competing the same, limited resources? This is witnessed at several points in the story such as Billy and Jake’s meetup, Amanda meeting up with Jake and Billy, later on with Otis, and each time presents a new challenge. Additionally, Josh does a great job at highlighting that our military members are human just like everyone else, even more so after the second wave hits and we start to see them perish along with the civilians they are trying to protect. This is an uncommon trend in the genre and a welcome one that I feel adds a new twist to the military industrial complex as it is typically portrayed in a post-apocalyptic setting.

Another interesting topic brought up in the story is that of disease and famine. When all power and running water is gone, how do you perform basic hygiene tasks? What happens to military labs where viral research was being conducted, especially in a non-weaponized fashion? What was once a trustworthy, safe, and protected endeavor of research is now much less-so when those safeguards are not available. While this doesn’t take on a major role in the story, it is hinted at and gives the reader something to ponder over. Additionally, seeing what occurs directly after the solar flare hits is depressing. This aspect of the story hits home on our over-reliance on modern systems to help control aspects of our lives many have forgotten about or take for granted.

There are several emotional moments in the story from a humor, revenge seeking, and sad perspective. The biggest moment which really got my emotions going was when Lizzy climbed into bed with Amanda as she was crying after her ordeal. I was driving out on a family trip as this scene came about and I definitely teared up a little bit. This was counter-balanced with some humor/revenge situations where I found myself cheering/laughing such as Larry’s tug-of-war event with his own keister. The ending left me tearful as well. It amazed me how I became attached to a character in such a short time.

This is a great start to a refreshing series in the genre and I am excited to see how the story develops in subsequent novels. This audiobook is one I stumbled upon at the recommendation of R.C. Bray on his Facebook page. Needless to say, his recommendations continue to ring true as he seems to select/narrate books that I genuinely enjoy. Bray did a fantastic job and really showcased his diversity with the accents he used throughout the book. Getting to hear him voice Beavis from Beavis and Butthead was truly a joy to hear. Likewise, I had to replay a section of the story for my wife and ask if Bray was attempting to sound like Morgan Freeman. He nailed it if that was his intention.

This is a great book. For any post-apocalyptic reader/listener, give this one a shot. You will not regret it. I am grateful for the fact that Josh’s friends convinced him to write and release this book. Thanks to each of you and, most of all, thanks to Josh for putting this out. This was definitely a story worth sharing.
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Melissa's Review
Overall 4 stars
Performance 5 stars
Story 4 stars

Again, my husband suggested I give this story a little to. It seems the majority of the time, I'll give 4- or 5-star ratings based on his suggestions. I remember hearing (audiobook version) parts of this story while out driving around with him when he listened to it, but there wasn't really anything that caught my attention at the time.

Well...I really liked this story after giving it go myself. I wasn't a big of the whole being-interviewed-tell-me-what-happened-to-you type of writing style. While I'm sure an author can get in more details and whatnot using this approach, I couldn't help but question the number of details each character remembered when giving their narratives to the interviewer.

Either way, once I finished book 1, I was automatically on to book 2.

I was sad when the main character died (won't say the name) because this was such a cool character. But, thankfully, in book 2, there's a new character that makes me think of the...dead one. I can't wait to see...read...hear more about what happens to this new group of people in book 2... besides "the horse." Lol

EDIT: I forgot to mention the narrator. My apologies to...who was it now? Some guy named RC Bray? ;) Yeah, I love him. He does a great job narrating, and I've never had any issues with his style. Listening to his voice is like coming home. I don't know exactly what I mean by that, but I get a comforting feeling hearing him talk.

Amazingly refreshing

I stumbled across Joshua Gayou by chance and am very happy to have found this book. It has re-sparked my interest in end of the world novels and does a great job of both carrying a story with interesting characters you can care about as well as speaking in detail about the post-apocalyptic world. It doesn't just set up a series, but rather is a valid story on its own. I am looking forward to the next.

Surprisingly good.

I was surprised at the quality of the novel. RC Bray is one of the better narrators, and he enhances the plot in all the best ways.

Amazing start to series

The characters in Commune are what makes the story. Josh Gayou has created such rich characters in Jake, Billy, and Amanda so it’s easy to just jump right into the action. The reader feels their pain and losses personally. And the jumping from first person POV from Jake to Amanda feels natural and not forced. RC Bray is the consummate narrator. He’s always the right choice.

Great Post-apocalyptic Stuff

If you liked "World War Z" and wondered what it would be like without the zombies, you'll enjoy this.

Surprisingly Good

This is a very enjoyable listen. It plays out as a history of the commune and the viewpoints of various characters are given from the time of the flare to a few months or so afterward. The stories of how these few characters' experiences and how they met each other is surprisingly enjoyable.
Recommended.