One Year After

This is the second of three books written by John Matherson, the first being "one Second after". Where as the first book brings you the horrific events that unfold after a EMP is detonated over America, this book brings you the painful lives that the survivors endure with no real government in place. the events going on in the world at this writing, mostly the threat of nuclear war with North Korea, you almost wonder if Mathersons books are a prophecy.Most of America, especially most preppers, have never taken into account the results of an EMP and how our daily lives would change. This book is very well written and breaks down the days by chapter. You honestly do not want to put the book down as the chapters are written on which day it is after the EMP. No one really gives thought to how a nation runs when that the government can not communicate with the people, and the fact that the people do not even know if an actual government still exist. John writes about this so well, that your mind goes to work as it's really happening now.Its uncanny how well it's worded that you would think he was writing about an event that has actually happened. What I really love is that this book's events happen in a small town in North Carolina. The people he writes about seem genuine and truly as if they are your own neighbors. You feel a sense of loss when a character dies, as John has made you feel like you know them since most of them were also in the first book. You see how people change as tough times come upon them and you watch as they develop into new (changed) persons, some for the better, others not so much. You will be frightened to think that this could happen in the near future and it would make you think, would you still be alive by day 366, one year after. If you have ever thought about being a prepper, these books are almost a true life training manual telling you what to expect and what you should have done. Do your self a favor and have his next book, "The Final Day" ready to read when you complete this second novel. These books are so well written, so suspenseful, so, gripping, so real, and so articulate, you can't read just the first and second book and stop. These are the best books I have ever read, and they really open your eyes on what possibly happen in our life time. Get ready to face the future if we are attacked, and it's not pretty. Learn here and prepare.

Awesome series of books, author is amazing! You can't put this series down! When a solar flare or emp hits you will see in advance live through it in these books! Amazing everyone should read this series and wake up to what is coming in our near future, being our crooked government won't harden our power grids!

I’m sure that’s about how it plays out when everything goes to pieces.

A thrilling, action-packed, and thought-provoking sequel to Mr. Forstchen’s (well deservedly) bestselling, groundbreaking, dystopian EMP novel “One Second After,” wherein we continue to follow the saga of retired U.S. Army Colonel John Matherson as he continues to attempt to rebuild some semblance in civilisation in the aftermath of an EMP attack on the United States of America. Yet another wakeup call on why we as a nation need to start preparing for EMP **now**!!!RANDOM STREAM OF CONSCIOUSNESS NOTES AND OBSERVATIONS (and noteworthy passages)—p. 7 (Preface): “I had actually started thinking about a book regarding the threat of an EMP attack back in 2004, after a congressional committee, chaired by Congressman Roscoe Bartlett, released a report on EMP that should have served as a wake-up call to the nation; a report that the media, and therefore the general public, ignored.”—p. 8: “For those new to the concept of ‘prepping,’ I do have to forcefully say, ignore how mainstream media too often portray such people in absurd television programs. Nearly without exception I have found preppers to be decent, honest folks who think not only of themselves but also of their neighbors, community, and nation as well. If ‘the stuff’ ever does ‘hit the fan,’ pray that your neighbors are preppers.”—p. 9: “I had hoped that by now there would have been government action at the national level to better secure our power grid, create plans both for defense and for public preparedness, and a more robust foreign policy that makes clear that the acquisition by rogue nations of a weapon that could generate an EMP will NEVER be tolerated. None of this has happened. The historian in me recalls the 1930s. We watched passively as the threats grew, which exploded into our nation’s life on December 7, 1941.We are asleep again, while North Korea tests nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles, Iran is not far behind, and ISIS, a movement as brutal and psychotic as Nazism, emerges.”—p. 17: “Regardless of the loss of electricity and a national infrastructure, one thing did appear to hang on—paperwork.” Haha, alas, that’ll never die, even if and when MS PowerPoint does!—p. 20: “reivers, an old Scot/ Irish term for outlaws.”“when the so-taken-for-granted medical supply system of America had collapsed and insulin was no longer available.”—p. 25: “John decided to just turn a blind eye to the fact that her special medicinal corn bread for those who needed medication for pain management had been illegal in most states, except Colorado, prior to the Day.” Heh heh, good call, John!—p. 26: “On the Day, so many families had been cut off from children attending distant colleges, husbands and wives on business trips, elderly parents off on vacation.”—p. 37: Glock 21, great choice!Meat Loaf (the singer, that is, not the food)!—p. 38: “John chambered a round into his Glock and now had a reserve clip out and on the car seat beside him.” Um, hey John, you should’ve had a round in the chamber the entire time....—p. 48: Highly appropriate time quote of Alfred Lord Tennyson’s “Charge of the Light Brigade.”—p. 56: “It was yet another reason why, before the Day, John would shake his head when folks waxed too enthusiastically about the alleged beauty of living in the nineteenth century. They never thought about medicine and sanitation, let alone dentistry.” No kidding, eh!—p. 60: “One of the great weaknesses of the now lost digital age was its total dependence on electronic databases rather than old-fashioned backups with ink on paper.”

This author tells an amazing story. I am really in love with the characters.

Can't wait to dive in. The forst one was great

I bought all three of the books in this seires, One Second After, this one and The Final Day after reading the reviews on Amazon. I have to say that I was not disappointed and that all three books tell a story of what could easily happen if society lost all its electric & electronic equpment. One of the phrases in the books that has stuck in my mind is that we currently live in just about the most fragile society mankind has ever lived in and that, in most Westernised socities today, we are totally dependent on a very complex supply and infrastructure system and Heaven help us if anything major happens to all of that. A series of books well worth reading and totally unputdownable!

Excellente trilogie, "One second after", "One year after", "The final day", sur les conséquences d'une EMP.Les explosions type EMP (Electro magnetic pulse) sont presque totalement inconnus du grand public en France et ignorés de nos politiciens, même si quelques militaires ont tiré la sonnette d'alarme, dans le désert.Pour résumer, un missile nucléaire tiré à une certaine altitude dans l'atmosphère, au dessus d'une zone donnée, qui peut-être de la taille d'un pays ou plusieurs, peut neutraliser l'ensemble du système électrique de la zone donnée. Concrètement, cela veut dire que physiquement nous ne percevrions rien ou pas grand chose, peut-être même pas l'explosion et au premier abord, il n'y aurait rien de visible au sol sauf des transformateurs et des lignes fondus. Mais la totalité du réseau électrique s'arrêterait instantanément de fonctionner ainsi que la tous les véhicules ayant de l'électronique et bien sûr trains, avions, camions, etc.C'est à dire que seule la jeep de collection ou le tracteur de arrière grand papa pourrait continuer à rouler, plus des véhicules ou des installations spécialement protégées, mais il n'y en a quasiment pas en France. Toutes les communications téléphoniques et informatiques seraient suspendues. Le réseau et les appareils étant "fondus" (pour faire court), il faudrait des mois ou des années pour reconstruire le monde actuel, selon l'étendue de la zone ou des zones touchées.La trilogie de W. R. Forstchen raconte les conséquences d'une telle catastrophe survenant sur le continent US, vues depuis une petite ville des Blacks Montains en Virginie.W. R Forstchen est un historien, spécialiste des XVIIIème et XIXème siècle US d'où la crédibilité de son récit sociétal d'un "retour vers le passé". Pour toutes les conséquences d'un EMP, il a travaillé en collaboration avec un de ses amis, spécialiste militaire car les Américains, "eux", comme les Russes ou les Chinois ou les Israéliens travaillent sur le sujet.Le récit est extraordinaire de "réalisme", assez dur parfois, mais parfaitement cohérent sur ce qui se passerait dans un monde privé de ravitaillement, de médicaments, de communications et correspond aux prévisions des experts sur le sujet.90% de la population mourrait en 1 an, dont la presque totalité des habitants des grandes villes.Les survivants appartiendraient à de petites communautés soudées, créant leur milice de défense et mettant en place une protection de leur zone contre les réfugiés. Eh oui, c'est terrible, mais quand il n'y a plus à manger pour tout le monde et presque plus de médicaments, on arrête d'accueillir toute la misère du monde, il faut choisir entre les siens et les autres et, parmi les autres, trier les savoirs utiles en revenant à ce qui est véritablement utile dans une société. Il en fut ainsi dans toutes les sociétés pendant des millénaires. C'est à dire plus de place, ni d'espoir pour le licencié en droit , sciences po, ou en lettres mais une petite place pour le chasseur, le mécanicien, l'infirmière, le forgeron, le collectionneur d'antiquités ou l'historien des techniques.Les interrogations humaines des survivants et du héros principal, ancien colonel de l'armée US, professeur d'histoire de l'université locale, leur souci de se raccrocher à des principes tirés de la constitution US, de l'histoire US, de la religion, les rend plus vrais et donne du corps au récit, rappelant qu'aucune société ne se construit ou ne se reconstruit sans un fondement idéologique.Ok, il y a quelques guerres, un peu à la John Wayne. Un commentateur a trouvé l'attaque d'une armée de voyous peu crédible. En ce qui me concerne, je la trouve non seulement hautement crédible car les voyous croulent déjà sous les armes en tout genre, mais serait également les 1ers a être organisés en bandes armées, en mesure de piller armureries et autres lieux de stockage d'armes en cas de catastrophe.Pire, la France n'est pas les USA ou la Suisse où tout citoyen a le droit de posséder une arme y compris de guerre.En France, des séries de lois, qui auront peut-être un jour des circonstances catastrophiques, ont privé les honnêtes citoyens de presque toutes leurs armes. Ce n'est pas les fusils des chasseurs "français" et leur médiocre provision de cartouches qui iraient loin face à des AK 47 ou des colt 45 qui sont monnaie courante dans certains lieux qu'on ne citera pas. C'est donc la quasi-totalité des citoyens honnêtes qui seraient incapables de se défendre si une guerre civile survenait, quelle que cause que ce soit.Effrayant de comprendre à quel point, on serait vulnérable dans notre pays car je n'ai pu m'empêcher de faire des parallèles entre ce qui serait possible dans une petite ville des USA et dans une petite ville de France.Serait à offrir aux candidats à la présidentielle pour qu'ils réfléchissent aux conséquences gravissimes des absurdités de leurs choix et de leur bien pensance, tous partis confondus depuis 1/2 siècle.

I loved the first one, and i Got this one as soon as it came out. I was not disappointed...I didn't know how the story could develop after the "saviors" arrived.Well, Forstchen found a perfect way to expand it and build a perfect stage for book 3 (it s coming out in 6 months, but I already pre-ordered it).

The first book is about a potential threat: EMP and so on. This second book is pure but well written Novel.