So so good

This was such a good book. I like how it is so detailed and so well written. This is something that could very well happen anytime and we would all be lost because everything is electronic. Great narration. Really Really good.

3 of 3 people found this review helpful

Large cast of characters!

North Korea up to no good again dropped an EMP on us. The lower 48 goes dark, bringing down the grid and throwing us back into the 1800s. Funny how the bad guys were always the Middle East and now it’s North Korea. The story switches between a few couples and several families, all looking for obscurity and safety. Our main family, Lance and Joy from McKinney, Texas pick up several more survivors and head to family-owned Saddle Ranch in Loveland, Texas. Bill and Sarah at Saddle Ranch, which is more of a compound than a ranch, have quite a few visitors staying with them already. Close by is the Church of the West with their own followers in western Green Valley, Colorado. In nearby Raton, New Mexico live the Jenkins family; older son David with his mother and father, Beatrice and Dean, and David’s son Mark. James and Janice Van Leaf also live close by Raton. They've always wanted a large family and through odd circumstances, some of their wishes come true. As you can see there are a large number of characters to keep track of, which seems daunting at times. The story is interesting and there is plenty of background in this first volume. Towards the end, an introduction for volume two comes across the radio of a religious zealot known as The Chosen One out of Topeka, Kansas. More thrills and adventure to come. I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

A little slow

I initially thought this book was going to blow my mind, it started out fast paced and drew my in quickly but soon slowed down after the first few chapters. There were some parts throughout the book where things got interesting but overall I felt like it was too slow for my liking.

The narrator has a subtle mid western accident, I wouldn't have caught it until I heard the way he pronounced "garage" and "sorry" along with other words here and there which took my focus off the book. Overall his tone of voice was very game show like, he'd make a great game show host!


I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Phenomenal narration!

Families First is a fun, post apocalyptic adventure. I love that the story remains believable throughout and doesn't venture into the fantastical.

Hopefully the next book in the series develops the characters a bit more. They are currently generic good guy or generic bad guy. There is a lot of them too, so it's sometimes a struggle to keep track of all of them since they are all basically the same. Most of us don't read these type of stories for the depth of the characters, and the narrator adds so much it's hardly noticeable.

That brings me to the best part of the Families First audiobook. Frank Block does a spectacular job narrating this story. He adds so much personality to all the characters that one can't help but become close with them. It's a truely wonderful performance. I can't wait to hear more done by him.

I highly recommend this audiobook.

stay together

One family. divided by miles must gather allies and come together after an Emp destroys the power grid. Pretty straightforward story, gathering people together to overcome a lawless world. One quibble, the story takes place in Texas and Colorado but the narrator seems Canadian and everytime he says Garage, which happens a lot, it makes me wince. The rest of his narration is good, its just that one word.

amazing

the book was really well done and the audio version I've listened to many apocalyptic books and this one had some good sound effects for gunshots automobile sounds doors closing haven't heard that before.

I really enjoyed this audio

The first 15 minutes I was having a hard time getting into the narrators voice. The last 5 books I’ve listened to have had the same narrator. Though he is great it was good to hear someone elses voice. After about 15 minutes I was into the story.
There are three groups running at the same time. Different so not hard to keep up with.
No big surprise it’s post EMP. The main character(s) are in a large Tx. City and trying to get to the mountains where a relative has land. No brash let’s kill everyone and make our stand. Like the title says it’s all about family. Hard to argue with that.
The fights are realistic and have men and women in situations that would really happen a few days after an EMP. No one is a navy seal with 7 tours under there belt.
In one spot they help two young children. I debated back and forth would I have done that. Then it occurred to me it doesn’t matter what I think I would do post apocalypse, the story is not about me. I did like that they realize if the stores are going to be looted, let’s do it first for our family. But don’t steal directly from someone. Abandoned Big box store is ok, some guys house or his store he is protecting is off limits. That’s realistic.
There is some short praying which a family from TX would be doing. There is some cussing which a group from TX would be doing in the real world.
I didn’t see any stealing from other books. I’ve listened to or read 67 post apocalyptic books the last 10 years.
The story flowed evenly.
I don’t see a Volume#2 in audible but I will get it when it comes out. There is a huge amount of room for the stories to expand so I expect at least a trilogy.
Lastly is 8+ hours. Lately I’ve seen books coming out at 2-3 hours. Here you Get your moneys worth.
*I did not receive this book free nor am I on the authors Facebook etc.. I just really enjoyed it.
DaJo. NC

Just Ok Story and Performance

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review. This review is for the audio copy of Families First: A Post-Apocalyptic Next-World Series, Volume 1 by Lance K Ewing, and narrated by Frank Block. This was just barely ok to me. The story is in my favorite genre so I may have high expectations. But, it failed to get me into it and involved the way most of the EOTWAWKI books I have read/listened to do. It was like a beginners foray into the story line. Character development was consistent but I disagreed with much of the actions and decisions they made. The author makes references to other writers of this genre and it seems like he was trying to adopt their different styles. Narration by Frank Block also failed to help get me into the story. It his accent and pronunciation kept being distracting to me and I found myself correcting the way he said certain words. This was consistent throughout the book. I am sorry to say that I had to finish the book on x2 speed. This would be good for beginners venturing out into this genre but I cannot recommend for the veteran reader/listener.

It was good.

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

Okay, so I enjoyed the story. I didn’t enjoy the sound effects though... I like to listen to audiobooks when I drive (as a lot of people do) and they weren’t really pleasant to hear. Other than that, I liked the book itself.

Enjoyed the Book, Loved the Narrator

"I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review."

I’ve been reading a number of post apocalyptic stories of late, and found this one to be interesting and unique. It follows three separate tracks, which afforded a look at multiple perspectives; the only downside was it being a little hard to keep track of all the characters. There is violence, but it wasn’t over the top given the genre. This is the first book in a series, and I’ll look forward to the next chapter being released on Audible.

Narration was really well done. I particularly enjoyed the sound effects that were interwoven during certain scenes.