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One Second After

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One Second After

By: William R. Forstchen
Narrated by: Joe Barrett
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About this listen

A post-apocalyptic thriller of the after effects in the United States after a terrifying terrorist attack using electromagnetic pulse weapons.

In a small North Carolina town, one man struggles to save his family after America loses a war that will send it back to the Dark Ages.

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 on a real weapon—the electromagnetic 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, literally within one second.

In the tradition of On the Beach, Fail Safe, and Testament, this book, set in a typical American town, is a dire warning of what might be our future and our end.

©2009 William R. Forstchen (P)2009 Blackstone Audio, Inc. Fantasy Fiction Post-Apocalyptic Science Fiction Suspense Technothrillers Thriller Thriller & Suspense Technology Scary War Natural Disaster Military Emergency Preparedness Dystopian

Critic Reviews

"[An] entertaining apocalyptic thriller....fans of such classics as Alas, Babylon and On the Beach will have a good time as Forstchen tackles the obvious and some not-so-obvious questions the apocalypse tends to raise." ( Publishers Weekly)
All stars
Most relevant
Well read drama though only an average piece of literature. The Author has a strong drive to bring his real concerns to his readership..

A Fair Warning

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My husband and I both plan to prepare survival packs and start organising supplies and food in case of something like this happening. Its not If it will happen but When.

Plan ahead

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This book should serve to warn, frighten and promped all who read it to prepair for this type of event. We all go about our luve blisfully unaware of how fragile out society is an event that simply turned the lights out for an extended period of time.
How much food do you have in your pantry right now? maybe 3 days worth... what happens them? ...think the govenment or your frends are goibg to feed you and your family until the light come back on?. when they are in the same boat.
start thinking about what you can do ti oreoair yourself for an extended period wuth no power and just see what it takes. only those that do this mught have a chance of riding it out or at least being in a more prepaired position to get through the furst few months until that vegy garden you alwats planed can start producing simething to eat at a minmum. 6-12 months if long range stirable food should be everyones goal in this age as well as a safe place to ride it out.
Think about it.

A frightning must read for everyone

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Each book gets better.
Unfortunately the narration in first book let it down. But different Narrator in other 2.

Excellent Series.

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Story was good and well thought through. Performance was a bit lacking, and author struggled to describe any women in the story without taking about their attractiveness or weight, a bit on the nose when listened in 2024.

Intriguing but comes up short

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I found some elements of this title implausible however the vast majority was simply frightening in its simplicity.

scary

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very moving pulling at the heart
strings thought provoking and scary all at the same time

very good<br />

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It's been along time since a book has moved me like this one has.
Very realistic and terrifying
Heartbreaking and soul crushing but well written and narrated
Even if your not into this genre it is a powerful novel that tells a very possible future
Obi

Powerful book

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Based on a little-known but entirely plausible threat, One Second After deserves credit for highlighting a scenario tha will hopefully get the attention of the leaders of the Western world but if you’re gearing up for a gritty, edge-of-your-seat post-apocalyptic thrill ride, One Second After might leave you wondering if you accidentally wandered into a church bake sale instead. Prepare yourself for a heavy dose of American Christian sentimentality, a small-town
that’s perfectly summed by early references to Norman Rockwell paintings ttn a “Mad Max nightmare,” and a female lead voiced by a man doing a painfully unconvincing falsetto—like one of those Monty Python sketches where men dress up as women. It’s that kind of jarring.

I’ve listened to a solid chunk of post-apocalyptic fiction—The Road, The Passage series Swan Song—all of which pack emotional weight, complex characters, an real stakes. This one? It sort of ambles along, often getting bogged down in moralising and hometown nostalgia while the world’s supposedly falling apart.

I get the idea: the collapse of modern infrastructure is terrifying in a quiet, creeping way. But here, it’s delivered with more preach than punch. It’s like the apocalypse politely knocked and asked to come in for tea.

If you’re after a survival story that kicks you in the guts and makes you feel the collapse, I’d point you elsewhere. But if you’re keen on exploring the softer side of societal downfall—peppered with flag-waving and prayers—this might be your jam.

Disappointed

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A bit slow at the beginning but a fantastic story overall. The narration is ok and the story line really makes you want to go home and pack some rations.

Thrilling survival fiction

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