“One Second After” by William R. Forstchen – The Realistic Apocalypse

When we think of all the types of apocalypses which could come (zombie apocalypse, meteors, the four horsemen riding in from the skies), we often tend to omit one type of world-ending event which is disturbingly real: a large-scale electromagnetic pulse (EMP) blast capable of knocking out all electronic devices and make them obsolete.

Needless to say, this kind of technology already exists, and considering that military institutions are always 50 years ahead of what is available to the public (for example, 3d television was invented in the 50s by the U.S. Army but only declassified recently), chances are that EMPs have already been weaponized.

Well, not all of us forget this scenario, as William R. Forstchen clearly demonstrates in One Second After. To give you a brief idea of what the novel is about, it looks into a family man’s efforts to keep himself and his family alive during what may be America’s worst crisis. It was hit by a ginormous EMP blast, effectively knocking the entire country back into the Dark Ages (although I don’t think they had gas stoves or guns in the Dark Ages).

I think many of us have wondered what we would do without our electronics, but I think very few of us took the time of actually imagining what life would be like for the coming years should such an event happen on a grand scale. I have to say Forstchen gives a pretty gritty and realistic view of the subject: with resources being scarce, people devolve into survivalists, seeking to obtain as much as possible for themselves.

However, there are others who are doing their best to hang on to their humanity, sharing what they have with those in need. There are no communications, and the government is powerless to help its people. Gangs of bandits and raiders have formed, with natural selection acting at its very finest as the available technology simply isn’t enough to sustain America’s population.

To be frank, the fact that the events described in this book could potentially happen made it much scarier to me than any horror or serial killer book that I have read. If anything, this book will make you realize just how much we have come to depend on electronic devices, and after much though, I’ve come to the (ultra-shocking) conclusion that a giant EMP blast would lead us to one of the most terrifying apocalypses we could imagine; our population would slowly dwindle down as we kill each other, perish due to the many disease outbreaks bound to occur and a lack of resources.

To conclude, I heavily recommend this book for literally any kind of reader: its story sucks you right in from the start without ever letting up, the characters are intriguing, the action moves relatively fast (it’s quite interesting even when it doesn’t), and above all, the book makes you think about the direction humanity has taken in its own development. All in all, a solid reflection on the modern fall of man.

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William R. Forstchen Personal site William R. Forstchen is a native of Jew Jersey and is a historian as well as an author, having published his first novel back in 1978 under the title Boy’s Life. Currently he is a professor at Montreat College in North Carolina, and has won many awards for his bestsellers such as We Look Like Men of War.