The Jakarta Pandemic [Kindle Edition]

Steven Konkoly (Author)

Book Description

RE-RELEASED JUNE 2012 with over 90 Pages of never before published Bonus Material, including an excerpt from bestselling apocalyptic horror master Craig DiLouie's THE THIN WHITE LINE.

THE JAKARTA PANDEMIC:

In the late fall of 2013, a lethal pandemic virus rages unchecked across the globe. When the Jakarta Flu threatens his picture perfect Maine neighborhood, Alex Fletcher, Iraq War veteran, is prepared to do whatever it takes to keep his family safe. As a seasoned sales representative for Biosphere Pharmaceuticals, makers of a leading flu virus treatment, Alex understands what a deadly pandemic means for all of them. He particularly knows that isolation is the only guaranteed way to protect his family from the disease.

With his family and home prepared for an extended period of seclusion, Alex has few real concerns about the growing pandemic. But as the deadliest pandemic in history starts to unravel the fabric of their Maine neighborhood, he begins to understand that the flu itself will be the least of his problems.

A mounting scarcity of food and critical supplies turns most of the neighbors against him, forcing Alex to confront their unexpected hostility before it goes too far. Just when he thinks the situation can't get any worse, the very face of human evil arrives and threatens destroy them all. Alex and his few remaining friends band together to protect the neighborhood from a threat far deadlier than the flu, as they edge closer to the inevitable confrontation that will test the limits of their humanity.

From the author: "The Jakarta Pandemic was an enjoyable, yet sobering story to write. The likelihood of experiencing a devastating pandemic in our lifetime is quite real, and this cautionary tale explores the strengths and weaknesses of community bonds, in the face of such an epic civil disaster. Told from a father's point of view, the story focuses on the human elements that shape our ability to survive. This book puts you in the middle of a likely and frighteningly realistic scenario, where everyone is a potential victim, no matter how well you might have prepared for The Jakarta Pandemic."

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Nobody writes breakneck-paced thrill rides like Konkoly. There are few in the genre who can do it like he does!" Russell Blake, bestselling author of The Voynich Cypher, King of Swords and Zero Sum.

About the Author

Steven Konkoly graduated from the United States Naval Academy and served on active duty for eight years with various Navy and Marine Corps units. He currently lives with his family in southern Maine, where he works for a major pharmaceutical company.

Product Details

• File Size: 861 KB
• Print Length: 466 pages
• Page Numbers Source ISBN: 1456309501
• Publisher: Stribling Media (October 15, 2010)
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
• Language: English
• ASIN: B0047DX080
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• X-Ray: Enabled
• Lending: Enabled
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #26,502 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)
  • #90 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Genre Fiction > Mystery & Thrillers > Thrillers > Technothrillers

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

67 of 70 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Pay attention to this thriller and its author March 5, 2011

By Tridogdude

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

I have read well over 25 PA fiction books not including many preparedness books and would rate this as one of my favorites. If you are looking for a PA zombie novel then you won't find it here but if you want a truly gripping tale this is it. A new strain of the H1 influenza virus starts spreading like wildfire across the globe with the death toll building at an alarming rate. The story follows the Fletcher family in Maine who seem to be better prepared than most to take care of themselves.

The author did his homework on both the influenza virus's history and what it take to be prepared for long term emergency situations. While this book can be deadly serious, it also can make you laugh with the banter between husband/wife and the ribbing's between good friends. There are thrillers out there from more well known authors for three times this price and they don't come close to the story telling here.

If you are not a prepper or for that matter even if you are, pay attention as you may learn a few things in this book that could help you make the best of an emergency situation. For that matter some of the info in this book may very well save your life.

If you buy only one post apocalyptic book this year make it this one. You cannot go wrong. I cannot wait to see more works from this author.

91 of 97 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Suburban apocalypse! January 1, 2011

By EM Johanson

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

OK, this book is thriller about a flu pandemic, not a cosmic reckoning between good and evil. It is terribly good, however, at stripping off the thin veneer of contemporary upper-middle-class american life and throwing its characters into a world without stocked supermarket shelves, hot running water, hospitals, snowplows, police, or babysitters. It might as well be doomsday. Anyone who has relished running to the hardware store before a big storm to stock up on essentials will be drawn to Steve Konkoly's intricately-researched and drawn breakdown of our supply systems, and transfixed by his description of what it takes to survive six months of enforced isolation behind the locked (booby-trapped, draped and shuttered) doors of one's own home.

Alex and Kate and their two young children (a boy and a girl, of course!) live in a four-bedroom, two-and-a-half bath colonial-style home of recent vintage in a subdivision in southern Maine full of doctors and lawyers and business executives. Alex is your prototypical everyman: a pharmaceutical sales rep who loves his wife and kids and who is slightly disgusted with his job. So far, so normal. Alex, however, is also ex-military with an arsenal of guns and supplies in the basement and just enough salt to co-opt his employer's flu vaccine samples for those in need when the pandemic hits Maine. We've all dreamed of the perfect exit from a demeaning job and Alex's coup de grace does not disappoint. What follows is a fascinating account of the disintegration of a suburban neighborhood as a deadly influenza descends. Lack of food and water quickly become more threatening than the virus itself. The scenes of denial and desperation among Alex and Kate's neighbors are particularly well done, and the build-up to the inevitable deadly show-down is intense and absorbing.

54 of 60 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Interesting story concept with so-so execution November 23, 2010

By T. Adams

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

I just finished the Kindle version of the book, and my immediate thought is that I must have read something different than the other four previous reviewers did. The others gave the book five stars each, so apparently the standard for a true five star book has been lowered. Here's why:

Proper editing was non-existent. There were so many missing words, typos, grammar errors and so forth that it seemed like even the author didn't re-read the work prior to publishing, much less an editor. I'm not talking a few here and there. Literally every third or fourth page had an error of some kind, and it was frustrating to be stopped each time to have to discern the correction. For instance, the words "your" and "you're" are improperly exchanged for one another in far too many places as if the author doesn't quite know the difference, in a couple of places there were two periods at the end of a sentence, and it seemed even the spell checker was broken when I saw the word "anywyas" start a sentence (should have been anyway/s).

For the most part this book isn't a page turner, not that that's a requirement for a great novel. Instead of ending chapters with some level of anticipation for what comes next, in the majority of chapters we're left with mundane conversations or happenings that are neither interesting nor relevant. There's very little build-up to the story to come. I love a book that I can't put down, and I'm afraid this one didn't rise to that level.

Okay, so why did I even bother to give it three stars? Simple. This is a really interesting concept that would have been a four star effort with some editing. The author clearly has an interest in the subject matter, knowledge of safety procedures related to pandemic avoidance, an understanding of firearms and home defense, catastrophe preparation, and more. From that angle the book is solid and informative, and I appreciated being educated in addition to being entertained.

Another positive is that I immediately latched on to the protagonists. I wanted them to be okay, to somehow make it through an extraordinary and terrible event. A poorly-written book typically leaves me uncommitted to the outcome, but in this case I was interested in how they would make out in the end, and perhaps I could project my own family into the pandemic situation. Great job on character development. The people in the book were mostly what you would expect, yet there was nothing cardboard here. Each of the main characters had a personality of his/her own, and that alone was refreshing.

Finally, the book progressively gets more interesting around the halfway point, to such a degree that I'm glad I finished it. The first half may have been a bit bland, but the second half -- especially the last few chapters -- made up for it. If those chapters are the type of work that we can expect from the author in the future, then I would love to pick up another attempt and give it a try.

In the end I would still recommend this book, especially if you're interested in the subject. If you simply can't overlook the countless errors and typos, save yourself the frustration and move along. Still, if you're patient and willing to invest a bit of time early on, you'll be rewarded.

More About the Author

"I write techno-thrillers and apocalyptic stories with gritty, often unapologetic themes. I don't believe in black and white, so strap in for a roller coaster ride through conflicted territory, where the right decision is rarely obvious...and always comes at a difficult price."

Steven graduated with merit from the U.S. Naval Academy, receiving a Bachelor of Science in English Literature. At one point, he studied Shakespeare and Electrical Engineering during the same semester. He was one of sixteen graduating Ensigns selected for the U.S. Navy's elite Special Warfare program (SEALs).

He served the next eight years on active duty in various Navy and Marine Corps units, training with the Navy SEALs, driving warships, and directly guiding every conceivable munition onto target. From Visit, Board, Search and Seizure (VBSS) operations as a boarding officer in the Arabian Gulf to directing Close Air Support (CAS) as a Forward Air Control (FAC) assigned to a specialized Marine Corps unit, Steven's "in-house" experience with a wide variety of regular and elite military units brings a unique authenticity to his writing.

Upon resigning his commission, Steven moved with his family to coastal southern Maine, where he wakes up at "zero dark thirty" to write, before reporting to his day job. When "off duty," he struggles to strike a balance between a woefully short sailing season and unreasonably long winter.

You can contact Steven directly by email ([e-mail]) or through his blog (www.stevenkonkoly.com).