“Washburn brings a new kind of terror.”

—Marc Cameron

THIS IS NOT A TEST

It begins with a computer malfunction. A 737 passenger jet drops from the sky from 34,000 feet. Then another. And another. At the same time, the unthinkable happens in our nuclear power plants. Water pumps fail. Nuclear cores melt. Untold millions could die…

THIS IS THE FUTURE OF TERROR

With each passing hour, orchestrated cyber attacks unleash a massive wave of death and utter destruction. Chemical plants explode. Floodgates burst open. Power grids self-destruct. From Wall Street to Washington, the fear is going viral—and the panic could lead to the total annihilation of America.

THIS IS WORLD WAR 3.0

Missiles and guns are useless. Generals and diplomats are powerless. America’s last hope lies with two specially trained FBI agents: Hank Goodnight and computer programmer Paige Randall, who must penetrate the darkest recesses of the web and infiltrate the twisted network of a faceless enemy. And dare to fight fire with fire—apocalypse be damned…

“Leaves you breathless.”

—Marc Cameron, bestselling author of National Security and Day Zero

“Like a nuclear reactor, this story heats up fast!”

—Anderson Harp, author of Retribution and Born of War

NOTHING CAN PREPARE YOU…

It strikes without warning. A massive geomagnetic solar storm that destroys every power grid in the northern hemisphere. North America is without lights, electricity, phones, and navigation systems. In one week, the human race is flung back to the Dark Ages.

NOTHING CAN SAVE YOU…

In Boulder, Colorado, weather technicians watch in horror as civilization collapses around them. Planes are falling out of the skies. Cars are dead. Pandemonium and terror grip the Northern Hemisphere. As nuclear reactors across North America face inevitable meltdowns, the U.S. President remains powerless in a heavily guarded White House. From London to Boston to Anchorage, there is no food, no water, no hope. It's every man for himself… and it will only get worse.

SURVIVAL IS EVERYTHING.

Only one man—army veteran Zeke Marshall—is prepared to handle a nightmare like this. But when he tries to reunite with his family in Dallas—across a lawless terrain as deadly as any battlefield—he discovers there are worse things in life than war. And there are terrible and unthinkable things he'll have to do to survive…

AND SO IT BEGINS…

In the United States, the Department of Defense and the NSA computer networks have been hacked. A nuclear-armed CIA drone has lost all flight control. North Korea… Iran… Russia… and soon the gates of Hell will open.

DEFCON 1—FULL SCALE NUCLEAR WAR

Humanity’s most terrifying nightmare has become reality. Bombs are detonated, missiles are launched, counterstrikes are ordered, and within minutes, untold thousands of megatons have left countless millions dead or dying. Devastation of biblical proportions has fallen over the land… and the USA has been hit the hardest.

NOW THE SURVIVORS ARE ON THEIR OWN…

The death toll is incalculable. Following the devastation, there is no law, no power, no communication. But there are survivors. And now the real battle begins, on the ground, hand to hand, person to person. Can those who remain survive long enough to rebuild a world… or will it just take a little longer for them to die?

“Leaves you breathless.”—Marc Cameron, bestselling author of National Security and Day Zero

“Like a nuclear reactor, this story heats up fast!”—Anderson Harp, author of Retribution and Born of War (on Powerless)About the Author

Tim Washburn graduated from the University of Oklahoma with a BA in Journalism and currently lives in Edmond, Oklahoma.