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This is not the story of preppers with stockpiles of food, weapons, and a hidden bunker. This is the story of Colton Ryman, his stay-at-home wife, Madison, and their teenage daughter, Alex. In 36 Hours, the Ryman family and the rest of the world will be thrust into the darkness of a post-apocalyptic world.
For decades, American administrations have forced our military to be neutered in many respects - hampered by restrained rules of engagement, passed in strength by Russia and China, and tested by rogue nations like North Korea and Iran. As a result, nuclear Armageddon hangs over us like a mighty sword. Military analysts agree that the United States can't start World War III. Why? We might lose. Sabers are rattling, and the war of words escalate between America and her enemies....
If society collapsed, could you survive? When Morgan Carter's car breaks down 250 miles from his home, he figures his weekend plans are ruined. But things are about to get much, much worse: the country's power grid has collapsed. There is no electricity, no running water, no Internet, and no way to know when normalcy will be restored - if it ever will be.
Author Chris Pike's debut novel Unexpected World is a gritty and compelling survival tale about human courage and steadfast determination to live, to endure, and to persevere against all odds. Assistant District Attorney Dillon Stockdale is on the phone with his daughter when an EMP obliterates the entire electrical grid of the United States. Anything relying on a computer is fried, including the plane his daughter is on.
With social unrest sweeping the country, Europe on the brink of war, and the US economy under siege by foreign nations, a new threat emerges. The nation is caught in the crosshairs of a power struggle between wealthy oligarchs and the political leaders who claim to have the country's best interests at heart.
America is on the verge of a second civil war, and Ava must pull it together if she wants to survive. Violent protest, widespread destruction, and politicians who insist on letting the disassociated vent their rage will bring America to her knees, threatening to decapitate the laws, principles, and values on which the country was founded. Ava refuses to give into fear, but she simply cannot survive on her own. She must deal with her crisis of faith and learn to trust other people, or she’ll never make it through the bloodiest period of America’s history.
This is not the story of preppers with stockpiles of food, weapons, and a hidden bunker. This is the story of Colton Ryman, his stay-at-home wife, Madison, and their teenage daughter, Alex. In 36 Hours, the Ryman family and the rest of the world will be thrust into the darkness of a post-apocalyptic world.
For decades, American administrations have forced our military to be neutered in many respects - hampered by restrained rules of engagement, passed in strength by Russia and China, and tested by rogue nations like North Korea and Iran. As a result, nuclear Armageddon hangs over us like a mighty sword. Military analysts agree that the United States can't start World War III. Why? We might lose. Sabers are rattling, and the war of words escalate between America and her enemies....
If society collapsed, could you survive? When Morgan Carter's car breaks down 250 miles from his home, he figures his weekend plans are ruined. But things are about to get much, much worse: the country's power grid has collapsed. There is no electricity, no running water, no Internet, and no way to know when normalcy will be restored - if it ever will be.
Author Chris Pike's debut novel Unexpected World is a gritty and compelling survival tale about human courage and steadfast determination to live, to endure, and to persevere against all odds. Assistant District Attorney Dillon Stockdale is on the phone with his daughter when an EMP obliterates the entire electrical grid of the United States. Anything relying on a computer is fried, including the plane his daughter is on.
With social unrest sweeping the country, Europe on the brink of war, and the US economy under siege by foreign nations, a new threat emerges. The nation is caught in the crosshairs of a power struggle between wealthy oligarchs and the political leaders who claim to have the country's best interests at heart.
America is on the verge of a second civil war, and Ava must pull it together if she wants to survive. Violent protest, widespread destruction, and politicians who insist on letting the disassociated vent their rage will bring America to her knees, threatening to decapitate the laws, principles, and values on which the country was founded. Ava refuses to give into fear, but she simply cannot survive on her own. She must deal with her crisis of faith and learn to trust other people, or she’ll never make it through the bloodiest period of America’s history.
In a night of devastating terror, ISIS operatives have unleashed a coordinated attack on America's infrastructure. With thousands of trapped travelers and scarce law enforcement, the miles between Jim Powell and his family become a brutal gauntlet where the rules of civilized society no longer apply. As Jim puts his years of preparation and planning to the test, he is forced to ask himself if he has what it takes to make it home. Does he have the strength - the brutality - required to meet this new world toe-to-toe?
The North Koreans launch a surprise Nuclear EMP attack on the USA. Our hero, Joe doesn't care about politics or what happened, he just knows his world went to Hell. Planes fell out of the sky, people went nuts looting and killing as he scrambled to hide from all of the craziness. Joe had a cabin and land in Southern Oregon when TSHTF and retreated to the cabin to survive the massive die-off that was always predicted for an apocalypse. The weeks before the Grid went down weren't much better for Joe because his best friend, his fiancé, and his beloved Grandma all died before lights out.
Three people from different walks of life each experience the end of America. Cassy is a 33-year-old prepper and single mother, away on business. Ethan is a hacker and conspiracy nut living underground. Frank is a family man out camping with friends and family. When a devastating EMP attack in the middle of the night destroys America's infrastructure, they are propelled on an unforgettable journey across an ocean of chaos to reach safety...Safety from an unknown invader and from once-fellow Americans now hungry and desperate.
As a prepper, Grayson Rowan was prepared for almost anything...anything other than being totally alone when the sh*t hits the fan. While he sat back and watched the US rattle swords with Korea, play chicken with Russia, and strong-arm China, he felt sure if the lights went out that he and his family would be ready and safe. What he wasn't prepared for was his family not being home if it ever happened. Olivia Rowan is with her sisters, Gabby and Emma, on a girls-only trip to Myrtle Beach. Graysie Rowan, a freshman at university, just wants to go home.
The EMP hits. The lights go out and silence roars. Society is on the brink of violent chaos. The only way to survive is to get out, away from the cities and into the wilderness. Max is an office worker with some gear and a plan. He's one of the first to realize the unspoken dangers. A few years ago, he inherited an old farmhouse. His plan is to get to it as fast as possible and bunker down. He thinks he's ready, but he quickly discovers that there's more to surviving than just having the right gear.
Ripley's a tomboy at heart who has never met a stranger. Her plans were to finish her veterinary studies and take her family to the country, where life wouldn't be such a struggle. She thought the worst she'd have to deal with at the University of Maryland were the unwelcome advances and attitudes of affluent students, and the occasional East Coast hurricane. She never expected the sun to fall down.
After an EMP obliterates the nation's electrical grid on New Year's Eve, it's not long before society unravels and panic ensues. As the lights go out and silence spreads over the city that never sleeps, four ordinary strangers - a bike messenger, a homeless person, a support rep, and an ex-convict - must forge a connection in order to stay alive. When they realize the danger is far greater than they expected, they must embark on a perilous journey out of the city.
Five years after a pneumonic plague killed two-thirds of the world's population, army veteran Marcus Battle is isolated. He's alone with his guns, his food, and the graves of his wife and child. Unaware of the chaos that's befallen everything outside of his central Texas ranch land, Marcus lives a Spartan life. If anyone steps onto his property, he shoots first and never asks questions. But when a woman in distress, chased by marauders, seeks asylum, Marcus has a decision to make.
Grace Hardwick's dad is a science fiction writer who makes his living destroying the world. When Grace decides to go away for her first year of college her dad, Robert, can't help but think of all of the potential ways that society could collapse and strand his daughter hundreds of miles from home. Then, near the end of her freshman year, it happens.
Lauren Russell often wondered why her father had been so adamant about teaching her skills that most other fathers wouldn't even consider teaching their daughters. Ever since she was little, she had been taught how to live and survive outdoors, and how to use firearms to protect herself and those around her. Some of the training had been a bit extreme. Or had it been? Many of her questions were answered the day the world as she knew it ended.
One of the threats facing our nation is the use of an EMP weapon to cause a grid down scenario. There are many bad actors on the international stage capable of terrorism on a massive scale. The list is long, including Russia, China, North Korea, Iran, Syria and now terrorist groups like ISIS. Each is capable of wreaking havoc in the US by shutting down our power grid through the use of an EMP, and enjoying the resulting chaos.
Already cited on the floor of Congress and discussed in the corridors of the Pentagon as a book all Americans should read, One Second After is the story of a war scenario that could become all too terrifyingly real. Based upon a real weapon - the Electro Magnetic Pulse (EMP) - which may already be in the hands of our enemies, it is a truly realistic look at the awesome power of a weapon that can destroy the entire United States.
Would you have the mindset to survive?
To provide for and defend the ones you love at all costs?
Willing to confront the depravity of man?
This is a true story, it just hasn't happened yet.
Book one of this new post-apocalyptic survival fiction series, 36 Hours, provided the listener a glimpse into the rapid decline of society once word of the catastrophic solar flare racing towards Earth began to spread.
Book two, Zero Hour, continues to follow the obstacles faced by Colton Ryman, his wife, Madison, and their teenage daughter, Alex. In 36 Hours, the Ryman family and the rest of the world was thrust into the darkness of a post-apocalyptic world. A catastrophic solar flare brought with it a blast of solar matter in the form of an EMP, leaving America in darkness.
The Rymans weren't preppers and had no concept of what prepping entails. They applied common sense, logic, and a will to survive to their decision-making as they prepared for the post-apocalyptic world created by the EMP.
The dangers they face are not from the solar flare itself, but from their fellow man. Who can they count on? Who is a threat? The words of Colton Ryman's grandfather repeated in his mind.
Never underestimate the depravity of man!
Note: This book does not contain strong language. It is intended to entertain and inform audiences of all ages, including teen and young adults. Although some scenes depict the realistic threat our nation faces from a devastating solar flare, and the societal collapse which will result in the aftermath, it does not contain graphic scenes typical of other books in the post-apocalyptic genre.
What I really like about this and as a second book is that it's so so real. It may be fiction, but the true facts behind this are scarily real... and it puts you in the heart of a worst case scenario with devastating consequences.
Bobby Akart brings us characters here that survived the first couple of days, reunited with his family and now is trying to do right by them and the community around them.
When the world collapses and people become desperate, these events would be more likely to happen in your street. The characters here, really make you want to help them, to route for them and of course for their survival.
It is again a shorter piece, but the story moves so fast I think it was gone in a blink of an eye and I so wanted more, to see where the Rymans end up, do they even make it out the street So much is going on around them, so many scared and terrified and dying people.
What I really like about this series and the narrator who does a very excellent job of the story is that as I'm from the UK and essentially not a 'prepper' I have picked up several tips and things that I would need, that would be likely just as important over here as in the US.
All in all an excellent second book and I'm going on to pick up the next as I thought I saw it floating out there.... :)
4 of 4 people found this review helpful
JUST BECAUSE IT IS THE END OF THE WORLD AS WE KNOW IT, DOESN'T MEAN IT IS THE END OF THE WORLD.
Akart hits the ground running, with the action. Akart can write and he writes good action scenes. I gave book one four stars for story and five overall thanks to Kevin Pierce's great performance. Pierce continues to give a great performance in this book.
Robert Heinlein
It is my understanding that Robert Heinlein wrote STRANGER IN A STRANGE LAND to make people think. To make people more open minded. Part of me wonders if Akart is trying to make conservatives see themselves in a different way. You have to be blind to not see the numerous hypocrisies in this story. It seems as if they were put there on purpose. I kept waiting for their to be a epiphany moment in which the main character sees what he is doing is wrong. Instead in the last hour it got even worse. when the main character shows himself to be a total racist. It was not necessary, except the author seemed to want to make a political statement against BLACK LIVES MATTER.
Hypocrisies
They are numerous, but let me go with what I remember. This guy is member of a Neighbor Association. He hates it and the liberal bankers, IRA agents and psychiatrists that run it. Anyone who wears a suit is considered an idiot. I have never been rich enough to live in this type of neighborhood, but it is a free country and I am pretty sure he could have lived somewhere that did not have an association. He and his daughter loot the neighborhood and that is okay, but others who also loot are viewed as bad guys. At one point they almost get caught looting by another group of looters. He tells his family we must loot the dead, cause if we don't another family will and than their family will be stronger than ours. His teenager daughter who we are told more than once has nice legs, uses her femininity to steal guns from a neighbor. We are told it is okay, cause the teenage boy gives her the guns, but we all know those guns are not his to give away. She claims she does not like the kid, but even gets in close to his personal space to make him nervous with her female closeness, in order to steal his daddies guns. The daughter kills a man, but lets the man's son take the blame. In book one his wife gets beat up at an atm. In this book the neighbors notice the bruises on her face and they are worried the husband may have beat her. We are told they are just being nosey. Abusive fathers and husbands are all too prevalent in our society and I stronger don't believe we should ignore it and let it continue to happen. It often leads to death. While he claims they are not that concerned or they would have checked on her earlier, he claims he is worried about his elderly neighbor, but waits too long to check on her and by the time he does she is dead. Then he steals from her. I am used to political statements in these books, but this makes anyone with an open mind, especially a Christian to question. Religion is not pushed heavy in this, but we are made to believe in a couple of statements that this is a religious family. They obviously did not read, what are preacher read to us today in church, that Jesus told Peter to take care of his sheep. This family is all about themselves.
COBRA
In the last hour I am expecting some explanation for all this when, the real bad guys make an appearance. A group of blacks are going house to house and beating everyone to death and than stealing from them. This is a large group and their reasoning is to get us back for slavery. Black Lives Matter is not mentioned, but it is worded in away that we know what he is talking about. The main white character than gives a speech on how we can all live together. First of all their was no reason the author had to make this group of monsters, all be black unless he wanted to make a statement about blacks. Second, racism does still happen to today, I have witnessed it. A black man has to worry about his life and has less rights and opportunities than whites and if you don't see that your lying to your self. It was terrible what Cobra was doing as written in this book. I had a problem with a white man who knows nothing about being black, making speeches on how we can all get along. The author went out of his way to make this most improbable situation an issue.
I won't buy another Akart book.
71 of 86 people found this review helpful
I like the characters, it's usually what draws me in, so far so good on to book 3
2 of 2 people found this review helpful
This starts right from the ending of book 1, so we are thrown into it from the start!! It's Zero hour and the Solar storm has hit. The Ryman family were lucky enough to heed the warnings and prepare some bit. Colton got home in time to see that his wife and daughter had managed to get an impressive amount of things in a short space of time. Now that it's Zero Hour, can the community come together to help each other, or is it a case of every man for himself?
Having loved book 1, I couldn't wait to dive into this and am so happy to say that it's even better than the first. 36 Hours sees them having to scramble to prepare but this one sees the fallout and what they have to do now. This time the family have to try to protect themselves and their home from not only raiders, but neighbours.
I loved that this also gave us POVs from all the Rymans. We get to see how and what each of them do in any given situation and it really adds to the overall feel of the story. The tension and worry is palpable and makes for such an exciting read. You literally can't put the book down because you need to see what will happen next.
In all, a brilliant second book and one that will leave you wanting the next one ASAP. It's fast paced, gripping and entertaining. It really makes you think of "what if?" and how quickly things could escalate if something like this did happen!! It's scary. Well written and researched, it's a must read for everyone, whether you like these types of books or not :)
Kevin Pierce has narrated a lot of Post Apocalyptic books and I do think he does it well. He has a clear, crisp voice and knows how to read the story perfectly. He doesn't change his voice much for a female but more often than not that works better than if he tried to do a falsetto voice! He is easy to listen to and makes the story pop.
I was voluntarily provided this free copy by the author, narrator, or publisher. This in no way affected nor influenced my thoughts.
5 of 6 people found this review helpful
this was a good story I only wish there were a few more skirmishes and more marauders those are exciting parts for me
1 of 1 people found this review helpful
I liked it and have just bought the 3rd audiobook.
There are always little things to pick apart but the story makes up for any of that.
There is a ring of truth in this book. The new shooters are not always effective. People agonize over shooting bad guys. This is some of the stuff that people involved in real shootings experience.
Good stuff.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful
The author has a good story going here. In my review of Book 1, my main complaint was that it was a little heavy on the politics. Parts of it read like a Tea Party guy complaining about the Democrats. This book backs off the politics to a great extent and is better for it. I plan to follow this series.
Greatness as always by the Master Narrator, Kevin Pierce
1 of 1 people found this review helpful
Book two chronicles the Ryman family; Colton, Madison and Alex as they struggle to remain a close-knit family and survive the generated EMP from the huge solar flare. As is usually the case in this genre, your neighbors and other survivors present the biggest danger to you. As Colton’s grandfather said to him, “Never underestimate the depravity of man!” In these disasters people’s reliance on the government for help or assistance is almost always fruitless. The dreaded FEMA camps are more dangerous and filthy than the streets the refugees come from. As Mr. Akart opined, “Their government left them bloodied and mentally broken.” Obviously penned with a right wing bend the story is still good and relays a lot of good information. I look forward to book three when it becomes available.
3 of 4 people found this review helpful
I wish we didn't have to think about this stuff but in the modern age this sounds more and more like what I envision things will be like.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful
*I received a copy of this audiobook for an HONEST review*
The story of the family continues, going into neighbor turning on neighbor. They have to do what it takes to protect themselves and their own, while still doing why they feel safe doing for friends. Again, I really loved the flow and feel of the story, and have grown quite attached to this family.
What more is their to say about this narrator? Love him!
Bob says: 4.5 Platypires
3 of 4 people found this review helpful