by Gunguy
The Jakarta Pandemic by Steven Konkoly is a fantastic Post Apocalyptic novel and I would rate this as one of my favorites. A new strain of the H1 influenza virus starts spreading like wildfire across the globe with the death toll building at an alarming rate. Alex the contemporary upper-middle-class american protagonist, his wife Kate and their two young children live in a four-bedroom, two-and-a-half bath colonial-style home of recent vintage in a subdivision in southern Maine full of doctors and lawyers and business executives.
The story follows Alex: a pharmaceutical sales rep who loves his wife and kids and who is slightly disgusted with his job. So far, so normal. Alex, however, is also ex-military with some guns and lots of supplies in the basement and just enough salt to co-opt his employer’s flu vaccine samples for those in need when the pandemic hits Maine. We’ve all dreamed of the perfect exit from a demeaning job and Alex’s coup de grace does not disappoint. What follows is a fascinating account of the disintegration of a suburban neighborhood as a deadly influenza descends. Lack of food and water quickly become more threatening than the virus itself. The scenes of denial and desperation among Alex and Kate’s neighbors are particularly well done, and the build-up to the inevitable deadly show-down is intense and absorbing.
The author did his homework on both the influenza virus’s history and what it take to be prepared for long term emergency situations. While the Jakarta Pandemic can be deadly serious, it also can make you laugh with the banter between husband and wife and the ribbing between good friends. There are thrillers out there from more well known authors for three times this price and they don’t come close to the story telling here.
If you are not a prepper or for that matter even if you are, pay attention as you may learn a few things in this book that could help you make the best of an emergency situation. You cannot go wrong buying this book. I cannot wait to read the next installment of this story: The Perseid Collapse.
The Jakarta Pandemic
