The Wayward Journey

by Nathan Jefferson

If you like survivalist, post-apocalyptic, dystopian and TEOTWAWKI books, this book is right up your alley.

With the economy slowing down and inflation heating up, John takes a new job to help make ends meet at home after his wife is laid off from her high paying job. This new job requires him to travel across the country and work long hours away from home. While on one fateful trip away, the heartland of the country is rocked by a series of devastating earthquakes that cripple the nation by destroying massive amounts of infrastructure, killing and injuring hundreds of thousands, and displacing millions of inhabitants.

Now, John is stranded nearly 2,000 miles away from home with no easy way to make it back to his loving family in need. In his attempt to get home, he battles against the flow of refugees fleeing the devastated area and encounters many perilous--and sometimes deadly--trials along the way.

Genres: Post Apocalyptic, Apocalyptic

272 pages, Paperback

First published May 9, 2013

About the author

Nathan Hale Jefferson wishes to help spread the ideas of liberty and freedom through his writing by giving examples of what could happen in different situations that infringe upon a persons unalienable rights. With this goal he still strives to keep political and religious views in check and subdued in his writing, leaving those to the readers themselves to determine, and tries to focus more on freedom, family and community.

Reviews

[Joyce]

I won this book in a Goodreads giveaway. I would have purchased it anyway, it was on my to read list. Loved it. Interesting perspective in case you're ever caught in a SHTF scenario away from home. I also liked the overall scenario...not a flare, not nuclear, but results of political ramifications between countries. It's intersting to see how it plays out and what goods and services go first. It needs a part two, and if that ever comes, count me in!

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

I got this book as a "First Reads" through this website. I was notified that I had been selected to read it and it came in the mail within 1 week. WOW! That was fast! I give this book 3 stars. I like the story, but the beginning was...for lack of a better word, clunky. The dialogue between the protagonist, John, and his wife, Margaret was lacking life. Margaret, in particular was poorly developed. There are several grammar issues in the writing as well as some confusion that comes from missed errors in the writing. That said, the story absolutely does achieve the author's goal of making readers think about freedom, liberty and unalienable rights. It also can make you think about how tenuous our civilization is when its truly based on society's agreement, overall, to follow laws and specific courtesies to our neighbors. In short, in the book, the country is plagued by hyper-inflation, unemployment is high and people are frightened and in many cases, rioting. John is on a business trip across the country from his home in Ohio when a devastating earthquake causes tremendous damage to the heartland of the US. The impact on the nation and even the world following such devastation is explored in the story. We follow John's progress across the country in an effort to be reunited with his family. We also check in with his wife periodically throughout. At the introduction of the character, Garret, it took a few pages for his connection to make sense. I found myself flipping back, wondering what I had missed prior to finding that connection. I think this could be corrected by putting the location at the beginning of each chapter. Had I known that I was in Ohio, I could have made the leap that he was a neighbor. About 3/4 of the way through the book, the author finds his footing in the writing and I found myself more engaged in the story. It does end a bit abruptly. The reader is left wanting some justice for some of the less savory characters and I guess since the author plans a sequel, that was the idea. The book really needs a good editor, but as-is, it was still worth the read.

[Jared Rasic · Rating 2 out of 5]

I received this book as a First Reads winner. I love any sort of post-pre apocalyptic stuff and am a sucker for the genre as a whole. This novel dos an excellent job setting up America's decline, but populates the world with incredibly frustrating, 2-dimensional characters. Every news report Nathan Jefferson writes is fantastic and, ultimately, believable, but his hero John Washington is insufferably boring and never struck me as anything other than an author surrogate. The entire book reads as Jefferson being very fascinated with what could come from American economic collapse and a massive earthquake along the New Madrid fault line, but that he would rather be writing speculative non-fiction rather than being a storyteller. The clunky aspect of the first few chapters does wear off after awhile and the flow makes the pages fly by, but since we're in the first book of a trilogy, there's no ending to speak of other than a convergence. Jefferson becomes a better writer as the book goes on, so I have a feeling like the next book in the series will be a marked improvement.

[Katarina Nolte · Rating 5 out of 5]

An adventure trilogy about a hypothetical near future scenario involving hydraulic fracturing, earthquakes, hyperinflation. A survival amidst doom novel about an engineer and his family trying to adapt to a rapidly changing world. Certainly a timely story in the light of the recent political and economic developments. The book answers some of the questions many of us may be wondering about. ... Book Review: The Wayward Journey By Nathan Hale Jefferson » Katarina Nolte
http://katarinanolte.com/WordPressBlo...

[Brad Theado · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book and I was unable to put it down. I liked the characters. Liked the story. Can't wait for the sequel.

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book. I liked the protagonist John. He was a good man who had to make some difficult decisions so that he could get back to his family. I am definitely looking forward to the sequel.