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ALoner
Jonathan McKenzie is the last human being on earth and he likes it that way.
A mysterious disease has killed everyone so quickly that no governments could react, no news organizations were even aware it was happening. It was all over in less than a day.
Now he is alone. He must fend for himself and adjust to the changing conditions of an absent civilization using only his considerable skills and wits.
Then, just as he is comfortable and happy in being utterly and completely alone, he meets some survivors who want to start the human race that he despised so much over again.
One of these is a strange young girl who steals his heart and takes him on a journey of discovery around the empty world. A journey that will end in an way he could never imagine in his wildest dreams.
A mysterious disease has killed everyone so quickly that no governments could react, no news organizations were even aware it was happening. It was all over in less than a day.
Now he is alone. He must fend for himself and adjust to the changing conditions of an absent civilization using only his considerable skills and wits.
Then, just as he is comfortable and happy in being utterly and completely alone, he meets some survivors who want to start the human race that he despised so much over again.
One of these is a strange young girl who steals his heart and takes him on a journey of discovery around the empty world. A journey that will end in an way he could never imagine in his wildest dreams.
396 pages, Paperback
First published August 3, 2012
3 people are currently reading
7 people want to read
About the author
Ed Morawski
39 books46 followersMy books do not always fit into established genres - most of them have elements of sci-fi, mystery, crime, action, and especially - romance. I will warn that my idea of 'romance' is not typical, but more along the lines of strong women and men making sacrifices for them.
While my books are not a series in any sense of the word, many are connected through characters and events. I will also say I strive for realism and logic. My books are never fantasy, but rooted in what is actually possible,
I invite you along for the ride and hope it will be memorable.
While my books are not a series in any sense of the word, many are connected through characters and events. I will also say I strive for realism and logic. My books are never fantasy, but rooted in what is actually possible,
I invite you along for the ride and hope it will be memorable.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
January 9, 2020
Post Apocalyptic Tale With A Twist
The sole survivor of a super-bug that kills even animals, Mack or Jonathan (we never learn his full last name) at 46 faces living the rest of his natural life alone on an empty planet. Fortunately, he has considerable survival skills and a lot of the trappings of civilisation outlast the death of humanity as a whole. Then he meets other survivors and the lovely Anne...
What I enjoyed:
The difference This book presents as a classic post-apocalyptic novel ticking every box of the genre requirements, but it takes off in a very different direction below the surface. In fact, this is as much about an investigation as a survival story. Our hero wants to discover the source of the infection that wiped out most non-plant life on earth and the trail leads to some unexpected places.
The writing style. The book is written in first person and in general, the character voice is chatty and easy to run with.
The final twist. When our hero finally uncovers what caused it all, what happens is unexpected and shifts the book completely.
What I struggled with:
The irrelevancies. This book has a powerful story which is almost completely suffocated by being over-padded out. In my opinion, it could be maybe a third as long and a much better read. The opening, with page after page of detail on supercars, is just a foretaste. Later we get half-page or longer quotes on such things as how bodies decompose. The problem was a lot seemed to me to be things that had almost no bearing on the story at all, let alone any role in plot progression or character development.
The misfitting details. These were many and varied throughout the book and made me question the author's research. The internet would not survive without human intervention. Power plants and other such infrastructure would fail pretty much immediately. Women warriors would not wear full-length dresses.
Overall thoughts:
As it stands, this is a book for a fan of non-purist, survivalist post-apocalyptic dystopias. With a good edit to remove that excessive padding, it could have been a pretty superb, taut, post-apocalyptic science fantasy thriller!
The sole survivor of a super-bug that kills even animals, Mack or Jonathan (we never learn his full last name) at 46 faces living the rest of his natural life alone on an empty planet. Fortunately, he has considerable survival skills and a lot of the trappings of civilisation outlast the death of humanity as a whole. Then he meets other survivors and the lovely Anne...
What I enjoyed:
The difference This book presents as a classic post-apocalyptic novel ticking every box of the genre requirements, but it takes off in a very different direction below the surface. In fact, this is as much about an investigation as a survival story. Our hero wants to discover the source of the infection that wiped out most non-plant life on earth and the trail leads to some unexpected places.
The writing style. The book is written in first person and in general, the character voice is chatty and easy to run with.
The final twist. When our hero finally uncovers what caused it all, what happens is unexpected and shifts the book completely.
What I struggled with:
The irrelevancies. This book has a powerful story which is almost completely suffocated by being over-padded out. In my opinion, it could be maybe a third as long and a much better read. The opening, with page after page of detail on supercars, is just a foretaste. Later we get half-page or longer quotes on such things as how bodies decompose. The problem was a lot seemed to me to be things that had almost no bearing on the story at all, let alone any role in plot progression or character development.
The misfitting details. These were many and varied throughout the book and made me question the author's research. The internet would not survive without human intervention. Power plants and other such infrastructure would fail pretty much immediately. Women warriors would not wear full-length dresses.
Overall thoughts:
As it stands, this is a book for a fan of non-purist, survivalist post-apocalyptic dystopias. With a good edit to remove that excessive padding, it could have been a pretty superb, taut, post-apocalyptic science fantasy thriller!
January 7, 2020
I LOVE a good post-apocalyptic novel. This one had so many fascinating pieces. Humanity being all but wiped out in the space of 24 hours. Strange things happening to animal, bird and other life on earth. The main character slowly uncovering clues that could spell an attack from foreign powers, or even something extraterrestrial. More questions than answers. “Aloner” is an apt title as we follow the title character for more than a third of the novel without another character in sight as Mac desperately searches for some sign he is not the last person left in existence.
Morawski’s work really shines in the details when it comes to the world-building. Everything is there, from the nitty gritty of how solar panels work, to descriptions of military installations to flying drones, knowledge of commandeering various machines, large and small (I’m going to try not to spoil everything in the entire novel), but this book took us through a vast range of settings and my very favorite parts occurred when our characters were working to discover the mystery of what had happened and how to find other pockets of humanity.
The story had lots of thrilling twists and turns that I didn’t see coming, things I didn’t pick up as foreshadowing until looking back at the conclusion of the novel, and the pacing had me on the edge of my seat as we neared the end. There were moments that showed the best of humanity, and moments that showed the worst, as one might expect in any post-apocalyptic thriller. The slow reveal of information was well meted out. There were one or two story elements that surprised me (that the electrical grid didn’t experience any issues and how easy it seemed to find unspoiled food, for one), and while Ann ended up having an interesting story line, I must admit I didn’t care for her relationship with Mac as presented. However, these are small nitpicks. Morawski is overall a fine storyteller and I thoroughly ate up this post-apocalyptic tale from start to finish.
Please excuse typos/name misspellings. Entered on screen reader.
Morawski’s work really shines in the details when it comes to the world-building. Everything is there, from the nitty gritty of how solar panels work, to descriptions of military installations to flying drones, knowledge of commandeering various machines, large and small (I’m going to try not to spoil everything in the entire novel), but this book took us through a vast range of settings and my very favorite parts occurred when our characters were working to discover the mystery of what had happened and how to find other pockets of humanity.
The story had lots of thrilling twists and turns that I didn’t see coming, things I didn’t pick up as foreshadowing until looking back at the conclusion of the novel, and the pacing had me on the edge of my seat as we neared the end. There were moments that showed the best of humanity, and moments that showed the worst, as one might expect in any post-apocalyptic thriller. The slow reveal of information was well meted out. There were one or two story elements that surprised me (that the electrical grid didn’t experience any issues and how easy it seemed to find unspoiled food, for one), and while Ann ended up having an interesting story line, I must admit I didn’t care for her relationship with Mac as presented. However, these are small nitpicks. Morawski is overall a fine storyteller and I thoroughly ate up this post-apocalyptic tale from start to finish.
Please excuse typos/name misspellings. Entered on screen reader.
July 26, 2021
Interesting concept
The title certainly lives up to the name. Jonathan sees the world go apocalyptic and finds himself alone. The world building in how to survive in such conditions was very well done. I almost found myself making notes in case I woke up one morning and the world had passed me by. The pacing and character development were both good.
The story was intriguing and built a compelling view of a lone survivor and it felt quite realistic. You can tell the author did a lot of research for this work of art.
This story drew me in and I didn’t finish it until early hours of the morning.
The title certainly lives up to the name. Jonathan sees the world go apocalyptic and finds himself alone. The world building in how to survive in such conditions was very well done. I almost found myself making notes in case I woke up one morning and the world had passed me by. The pacing and character development were both good.
The story was intriguing and built a compelling view of a lone survivor and it felt quite realistic. You can tell the author did a lot of research for this work of art.
This story drew me in and I didn’t finish it until early hours of the morning.
March 20, 2015
Five Category Rating System:
Concept: Star
Writing:
Structure: Star
Credibility: Star
Character:
-------------------------
Total: 3 Stars
Audience Suitability: Adult - some profanity, moderately explicit depictions of sexual activity
"A Loner" is an apocalyptic science fiction novel presented as the journal of a survivor. The book's strengths are the thorough knowledge the author incorporated into most of its locations, machines, and protocols and its powerful narratives of action sequences. The descriptions of endeavors and accomplishments are detailed, thoughtful, and compelling. The story moves well even though the writing is a bit rough. What kept me from giving "A Loner" a higher rating were the characterizations. The central character is fairly well realized, but the other characters are somewhat stereotypical and devalued.
In the final analysis, "A Loner" proved to be an entertaining read with strong action/adventure content and a solid concept.
Concept: Star
Writing:
Structure: Star
Credibility: Star
Character:
-------------------------
Total: 3 Stars
Audience Suitability: Adult - some profanity, moderately explicit depictions of sexual activity
"A Loner" is an apocalyptic science fiction novel presented as the journal of a survivor. The book's strengths are the thorough knowledge the author incorporated into most of its locations, machines, and protocols and its powerful narratives of action sequences. The descriptions of endeavors and accomplishments are detailed, thoughtful, and compelling. The story moves well even though the writing is a bit rough. What kept me from giving "A Loner" a higher rating were the characterizations. The central character is fairly well realized, but the other characters are somewhat stereotypical and devalued.
In the final analysis, "A Loner" proved to be an entertaining read with strong action/adventure content and a solid concept.
July 14, 2021
After a devastating virus wipes out humanity Mack believes he is the only human left alive. I'm never sure how level headed anyone would be in this kind of situation. Dismissing the deaths of his wife (a loveless marriage for a few years), and teenage children (sullen, moody, and unlikeable), Mack seems to thrive in this new, empty world. He's not perfect, and makes enough mistakes to put his life in danger to keep the story interesting.
The first 40-50% of the novel is Mack on his own, building a safe space to live in while also exploring the world to find out if he is truly the only man alive. It helps that he is ex-Air Force and has a skill-set for fixing things that put the phrase 'do-it-yourself' to shame. As a bit of a techno-nerd I enjoyed learning how to fly a helicopter, pilot a drone, and navigate the Panama Canal plus plenty of other things. This isn't for everyone and does take up a good portion of the opening chapters. Once Mack discovers there are other survivors the story picks up speed and heads off in an unexpected direction. His new companions are a strange mix, but with his ability to jury-rig all kinds of technical fixes Mack proves indispensable to the group and the de-facto leader The Captain's plans.
Setting off to explore and possibly settle the world reveals new dangers and hidden secrets that threaten Mack's future in a way he never expected but perhaps always feared. Despite the ending I'd be interested to see if a sequel comes along, there is more to Mack's story as the world moves into a new future and I would like to find put what happens next.
The first 40-50% of the novel is Mack on his own, building a safe space to live in while also exploring the world to find out if he is truly the only man alive. It helps that he is ex-Air Force and has a skill-set for fixing things that put the phrase 'do-it-yourself' to shame. As a bit of a techno-nerd I enjoyed learning how to fly a helicopter, pilot a drone, and navigate the Panama Canal plus plenty of other things. This isn't for everyone and does take up a good portion of the opening chapters. Once Mack discovers there are other survivors the story picks up speed and heads off in an unexpected direction. His new companions are a strange mix, but with his ability to jury-rig all kinds of technical fixes Mack proves indispensable to the group and the de-facto leader The Captain's plans.
Setting off to explore and possibly settle the world reveals new dangers and hidden secrets that threaten Mack's future in a way he never expected but perhaps always feared. Despite the ending I'd be interested to see if a sequel comes along, there is more to Mack's story as the world moves into a new future and I would like to find put what happens next.
July 13, 2021
This was a good, solid story I rather enjoyed. It was interesting to see how Mack overcame the challenges of post-apocalyptic life and how resourceful he was. Like Mack, I was very curious as to what, exactly, the Incident was.
The main weakness was exposition. The author gave out a lot of unnecessary information. The reader doesn't need to know what routes he took to get somewhere, or how a chain gun operates, or any of that other stuff. All it does it bog things down. Skip those parts and the story flows very well.
Another thing that kind of bugged me was the captain's idea of restarting the human race - I hate to break it to him, but he's going to need way more people than he had for that to happen, and I thought it odd none of the other characters realized that, especially since one of them was a scientist. And scorpions and tarantulas are not insects.
The end was a twist, but I was about 3/4 of the way through when I figured out Anne's story, and from there figured out where the story was headed, so I kind of saw the twist coming. That twist opens up further questions that were never answered, but I can't get into that without giving away spoilers, so I won't.
All in all, this was an enjoyable story. The exposition parts that slow things down get easy to spot - and thus skip - which improves the flow and pacing. This was actually the first post-apocalyptic novel I ever sat down and read and I liked it.
The main weakness was exposition. The author gave out a lot of unnecessary information. The reader doesn't need to know what routes he took to get somewhere, or how a chain gun operates, or any of that other stuff. All it does it bog things down. Skip those parts and the story flows very well.
Another thing that kind of bugged me was the captain's idea of restarting the human race - I hate to break it to him, but he's going to need way more people than he had for that to happen, and I thought it odd none of the other characters realized that, especially since one of them was a scientist. And scorpions and tarantulas are not insects.
The end was a twist, but I was about 3/4 of the way through when I figured out Anne's story, and from there figured out where the story was headed, so I kind of saw the twist coming. That twist opens up further questions that were never answered, but I can't get into that without giving away spoilers, so I won't.
All in all, this was an enjoyable story. The exposition parts that slow things down get easy to spot - and thus skip - which improves the flow and pacing. This was actually the first post-apocalyptic novel I ever sat down and read and I liked it.
February 6, 2020
Let me start out by saying that I love dystopian stories. I’m not sure what that says about me, but I’ve read a bunch of them and have usually enjoyed them.
ALoner left me conflicted.
On the negative side of things, I hated the main character. I couldn’t bring myself to care about him, or to root for him. The story is supposed to be written as a journal, although most of the time it reads more like a first-person novel. Our MC has very strong views on right and wrong, and doesn’t care what anyone else thinks, by God! And he’s also the only one in the book capable of doing anything. Everyone else is entirely useless, except for one older guy who has a particular skill, which our MC quickly picks up. And he vastly overexplains everything, from how things work to the route numbers he’s taking to go somewhere.
On the plus side, it’s a pretty decent story. The MC is alone at the beginning of the book and spends quite a bit of time making a life for himself in the face of this. The mystery of why everyone else has died eats at him, and he takes steps to try to find out. The author keeps the mystery going, and thus, keeps the pages turning.
Overall, ALoner is a decent enough book if you can get by the MC being the one and only hero of the end of mankind. Dystopian fans will find enough here to make it worthwhile.
ALoner left me conflicted.
On the negative side of things, I hated the main character. I couldn’t bring myself to care about him, or to root for him. The story is supposed to be written as a journal, although most of the time it reads more like a first-person novel. Our MC has very strong views on right and wrong, and doesn’t care what anyone else thinks, by God! And he’s also the only one in the book capable of doing anything. Everyone else is entirely useless, except for one older guy who has a particular skill, which our MC quickly picks up. And he vastly overexplains everything, from how things work to the route numbers he’s taking to go somewhere.
On the plus side, it’s a pretty decent story. The MC is alone at the beginning of the book and spends quite a bit of time making a life for himself in the face of this. The mystery of why everyone else has died eats at him, and he takes steps to try to find out. The author keeps the mystery going, and thus, keeps the pages turning.
Overall, ALoner is a decent enough book if you can get by the MC being the one and only hero of the end of mankind. Dystopian fans will find enough here to make it worthwhile.
May 1, 2024
Post apocalyptic fiction is not one of my usual reading genres but having read one of this author’s technical books I was moved to give Aloner a try. and was pleasantly surprised.
I found the main character Jonathan McKenzie is rather unique from many viewpoints - and frankly completely misunderstood by several readers judging from their reviews. The very first line of the blurb states:
‘Jonathan McKenzie is the last human being on earth and he likes it that way.’ So this guy hates people. To him, the death of civilization and humanity is paradise, that’s what makes him unique. Yet some reviewers complain about ‘lack of emotion’ and ‘character development’. They seem to have missed the point: this is the character! What do they expect? Is it they can’t cope with a man who hates humanity? The title is ALONER.
I found the book fascinating. Too often we get stupid characters who are unable to use their brains, here we have a intelligent and skilled man who sets out to build his world the way he wants it. He learns to survive.
I was again pleasantly surprised when the plot took a major twist and his world changed yet again and again and finally some of that emotion he held so tightly leaked out until yet another final, fatal twist I didn’t see coming at all.
What a story!
I found the main character Jonathan McKenzie is rather unique from many viewpoints - and frankly completely misunderstood by several readers judging from their reviews. The very first line of the blurb states:
‘Jonathan McKenzie is the last human being on earth and he likes it that way.’ So this guy hates people. To him, the death of civilization and humanity is paradise, that’s what makes him unique. Yet some reviewers complain about ‘lack of emotion’ and ‘character development’. They seem to have missed the point: this is the character! What do they expect? Is it they can’t cope with a man who hates humanity? The title is ALONER.
I found the book fascinating. Too often we get stupid characters who are unable to use their brains, here we have a intelligent and skilled man who sets out to build his world the way he wants it. He learns to survive.
I was again pleasantly surprised when the plot took a major twist and his world changed yet again and again and finally some of that emotion he held so tightly leaked out until yet another final, fatal twist I didn’t see coming at all.
What a story!
July 30, 2021
The best parts of this book for me were the explanations of how the hero learned to fly a military drone, fly a helicopter, and sail a naval ship, often by jury-rigging solutions. If that sounds like stuff you'd enjoy, this might be the book for you. The hero is the lone survivor in his region of an Incident that has killed everyone around him, and maybe everyone in the world. Is that truly the case? How can he learn if others survived, and what happened to kill everyone? These questions drive the story, and motivate the lead character. I was less a fan of the author's casual attitude towards how a biosphere functions. The sloppiness made his world less believable for me. But I was satisfied with the plot twist at the end. It helped explain much.
March 31, 2024
There is an old adage that those who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones. Ed Morawski appears to be one of those authors who doesn't practice what he preaches.
This book ALoner is possibly the worst I have ever read. The character development is nonexistent. This book lacks editing of any kind and is padded to the extent that the author can't plot a 396 page story. Not to mention that there is nothing unique about this post-apocolyptic premise where the protagonist is the last person to be left alive, only to discover that he actually isn't. Wow, well done Ed. Ripping off stories from others.
This book ALoner is possibly the worst I have ever read. The character development is nonexistent. This book lacks editing of any kind and is padded to the extent that the author can't plot a 396 page story. Not to mention that there is nothing unique about this post-apocolyptic premise where the protagonist is the last person to be left alive, only to discover that he actually isn't. Wow, well done Ed. Ripping off stories from others.
September 27, 2023
Interesting book if not a little clunky in character development. The protagonist came across as being too emotionally detached considering the magnitude of his situation; I'd have liked a bit more empathy than gung ho indifference. Some of the story points were unintentionally funny given how unlikely some of it was. There was also too much of what appeared to be copy and pasting info bites that were obvious and some of the post apocalyptic, 'facts' left something to be desired. All in all though I found it an enjoyable enough to read from start to finish.
October 31, 2014
Over the past few years, I have read a few post-apocalyptic novels. Some really captured the fear and uncertainty of the moment, while others focused on society aftermath or even effects (zombies, etc).
ALoner was a nice chronicle of one persons life after an apocalyptic event. The main character isn't sure why he is still alive and tries to use every available resource around him to survive and discover the truth. I liked the storyline and think this could be a solid novel for readers, but it has some flaws.
First of all, the book has some great detail, but the author uses too much exposition and explaining many of the technical aspects of what the main character was doing. I'm an electrical engineer and all the specifics provided for setting up electrical connections and even battery operated devices was too much. It really slowed down the pacing and kept me from getting to the niche of the story.
Also, there were some tense issues I discovered. The book is a chronicle or diary of events of the main character, but it read to much like "I did this, so I did that." I did like many of the actions scenes and could see myself involved.
One last thing, a month after the big event that wipes out most of everyone, things like Google searches and internet access would be gone. The power and internet grids won't stay active for that long.
ALoner was a nice chronicle of one persons life after an apocalyptic event. The main character isn't sure why he is still alive and tries to use every available resource around him to survive and discover the truth. I liked the storyline and think this could be a solid novel for readers, but it has some flaws.
First of all, the book has some great detail, but the author uses too much exposition and explaining many of the technical aspects of what the main character was doing. I'm an electrical engineer and all the specifics provided for setting up electrical connections and even battery operated devices was too much. It really slowed down the pacing and kept me from getting to the niche of the story.
Also, there were some tense issues I discovered. The book is a chronicle or diary of events of the main character, but it read to much like "I did this, so I did that." I did like many of the actions scenes and could see myself involved.
One last thing, a month after the big event that wipes out most of everyone, things like Google searches and internet access would be gone. The power and internet grids won't stay active for that long.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews