Customer Reviews

Things fall apart: A novel of survival and honor

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This book has a solid storyline and character set. However, I found the remedial grammar and the amount of time spent on the whole post-apocalyptical-breakdown-in-society-leading-to-rampant-male bikers-on-teenage-boy-gang-rape very uninspiring. Yes, the idea of that happening puts a scare in most anyone, but in this sense, it felt that the author was being reckless and cheap.

Also, I was totally shocked and distracted by the number of spelling errors - there must be literally one on every other page.

I think this book is worth a read, just set the right expectation. It is definitely not WarDay, Arc Light, or The Last Ship.

The title for this says it all.

I guess it's worth it to buy it if you have everything else on the subject, but it's not that great and I wouldn't expect too much out of it.
If there were more books on the subject then I'd just say to skip it altogether.

It's predictable and it follows a set pattern.

If you can get it for cheap, then get it.

If not, then don't buy it.

Good plot, but hard to follow with constant grammatical errors and absolutely no spell check. I gave it 3 stars because it was a good read even with these problems.

Things Fall Apart, (with respects to Chinua Achebe, author of a wonderful story of the collapse of another civilization, which pre-dates this effort), is the latest in a steady stream of predictable, end-of-the-world survivalist scenario novels. This particular scenario involves a Chinese EMP weapon, which destroys all electronic systems within the U.S. Your typical cadre of rebellious, pre-calamity survivalist-minded individuals find themselves isolated in hostile environments, struggling to reunite in a safe location. The most common enemy which appears in this genre of novel, the evil, power-maddened Federal Government denizens (this time, led by a President who uses the attack upon the U.S. as a jusification to involve other innocent global powers), appears yet again, conspiring to keep the novel's wandering heroes from reuiniting in their survivalist utopia.

The characters are one-dimensional, the plot is thin, the story structure clearly marks the effort of an amateur (I use the phrase loosely) writer, and the ending is passe. Before purchasing this dud, (a mistake I made), take the time to preview the first five chapters online. The (again, forgive my use of the phrase) writer makes the first five chapters available on his website. There are far superior survival novels on the market today, like War Day, Nature's End, No Blade of Grass, Lucifers' Hammer,...

A good story packed with survival ideas and skills. Heiser approached the issue of catastrophic failure of government following a terrorist act from a different angle from some other similar books. His heroes are far from perfect, and have problems and foibles of their own. And yet, in the end, they turn out to be the type of leader that was needed all along. A good read.

If you like books about the end of civilization, this is the book for you. Seems like it will be the first in a series. Lot's of action, detailed, plausable. If you like the TV series Jericho, you'll like this book. Very similar. It also does a good job of telling you what is going on in the rest of the world, it doesn't leave you totally bottled up in the lives of the characters and their small world.

An excellent read. I would put this one along side of two other books I re-read on a regular basis: JW Rawles "Patriots" and "Unintended Consequences". Very good story, with an interesting kick off. Whether or not you could believe that the Chinese could sneak nuclear weapons into space or every harbor in the world, the overall collapse of society when modern conveniences fail makes for a compelling read if you are into that sort of thing like I am.

My daughter needed the book for class. It came quickly and with no issues. This is a great place to find books that are sold out at your local stores.

I loved this book. VERY entertaining. I'm not sure what some of these readers want from a book but for me this one was compelling. After reading this one and another which had an EMP as a beginning I am now thinking "Faraday Box" when I look at electronics. For those of you who do not know what a Faraday Box is, it hardens the electronics within it so as to survive an EMP. Military hardware is most likely so hardened.
For me, I am always surprised at the events that follow such a collapse. There are always bad guys who want to dominate the survivors and tyrannize them under the guise of rescue or restoral of order. There is a very thin veneer of civilization overlaying brutality and worse.

Now, with the current Obama Admin. nudging america toward a progressive "utopia" such books as this become more than entertainment, they become a warning that there ARE bad people and a manual with some hints on how to survive the bad people.
Progressives say the constitution of the USA is outdated due to changing times and I respond that human nature never changes, only the tools used to dominate others can change. The constitution of the USA constrains human nature.

This was a very good read, I recommend it to others not so hyper-critical of writing skills.

I've read this (in electronic format) many times...good story, especially if you are somebody who likes to "be prepared". I wish he'd write another in a series. Thanks for a story that will make you think. (and possibly stay awake at night wondering if it could actually happen)