Apocalypse

The Wasteland Chronicles #1

by Kyle West

In the year 2030, the meteor Ragnarok impacted Earth, rending the world a wasteland. Billions died, the sky went crimson, and the world entered an ice age from which it will not emerge for centuries.

By 2060, what is left of the United States exists underground in the Bunkers. Where once there were 144, now only four are left - fallen for reasons of starvation, rebellion, or worse. For in the wake of Ragnarok are new and sinister threats, threats which do not yet have a name...

Born into this post-apocalyptic world is sixteen-year-old Alex Keener, who has lived his entire life underground in U.S. Bunker 108. But when a stranger is let into the Bunker from the wastes, in defiance of protocol, all hell breaks loose...and Alex's life will never be same again

Apocalypse is the first book in seven part series. The next two books, Origins and Evolution, are already published. Book Four, Revelation, will be out 9/30/2013.

Genres: Science Fiction, Post Apocalyptic, Dystopia, Horror, Zombies, Apocalyptic, Fiction

176 pages, Paperback

First published March 7, 2013

About the author

I'm Kyle West, author of the Wasteland Chronicles, Xenoworld Saga, Starsea Cycle, and more. I try to write books with lots of action and crazy twists to keep you turning the pages. Every book of mine can be categorized as "science fantasy," blending elements from both genres.

Reviews

[Fouracescw . · Rating 1 out of 5]

First this is a novella, and should the white space be removed, it would be a short one at that. Combined with the need for a good editor & a few more re-writes, and you have something that reads more like a high school project than an eBook selling for $11. Inconsequential elements are just thrown at the page, in the hopes that something will stick with the reader. If it is worth writing about, the details need to be fleshed out so they paint a mental picture for the reader.

"A couple of kids were playing ping pong in the corner. I sat in a chair in another corner, and watched some of my classmates play basketball."

Those two sentences end a paragraph in Chapter two. There is no layout of the rooms, or how or where the basketball was being played. Was there a full court, or only a small area with a basket on the ground?

They are meant to help establish the setting, but utterly fail to do so due to the sparse, sporadic details that seem more of an afterthought than a comprehensive plan on the part of the author. This issue plagues the whole book, and robs it of any life. It is 2D trying to imitate the 3D world.

[Kriss · Rating 3 out of 5]

Think Fallout (any of the games) meets Jeremiah meets Thunderdome & a touch of Eli...whip it up with xenosludge into a slurry with a side of Escape from LA and Zombieland & some good old fashioned alien unknown 195-60 genre conventions ... Ya!

Quick paced, nothing really new. Though the return of old B-movie and PA is comfortable, having everything piled in with zombies is a bit much.

A decent entertainment and beach read for enthusiasts of all the above. If it was a movie, Rifftrax would love it!!

[Olethros · Rating 3 out of 5]

-A falta de un apocalipsis, igual dos.-

Género. Ciencia-Ficción.

Lo que nos cuenta. En el año 2070, Alex Keener cumplió ayer los dieciséis años y, como es tradición en el Bunker 108, se le considera lo suficientemente adulto para su salida al páramo exterior en misión de reconocimiento, un lugar peligroso por lo que las reglas son disparar primero y preguntar después si uno se encuentra con habitantes de las tierras baldías, aunque los encuentros con ellos no son algo demasiado habitual. Alex sale con Michael, ya veterano, a recorrer la zona que rodea el Bunker 108, en lo que una vez fue California antes de que el meteorito Ragnarok acabase con la práctica totalidad de la vida y la civilización en el 2030. Cuando encuentran a un hombre gravemente herido con el símbolo del Bunker 114, deciden llevarlo con ellos de vuelta, pero Alex está seguro de haber visto a una mujer vigilándolos. Tras estabilizar al herido, se descubre que está infectado con un xenovirus sobre el que el Bunker 108 lleva investigando mucho tiempo. Primer libro de la serie The Wasteland Chronicles.

¿Quiere saber más de este libro, sin spoilers? Visite:

http://librosdeolethros.blogspot.com/...

[Autumn · Rating 2 out of 5]

Updating my reviews here. You can find the dates I started and finished this book and the review for this book on my BookLikes.

It was an interesting take on the virus zombie apocalypse, but it was poorly done. Poor grammar, spelling... it was like reading a high school student's first draft. This was a freebie on Amazon, and the only reason it got two stars instead of one was that it was free. Had I paid for this crap, I would have been incredibly angry.

[Kyle West · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just read my own book on my birthday. That's so meta.

Actually, I'm just reading this to sort of "remember" everything, along with the rest of the series, so I can see if there needs to be anything added to Book 6. Just to sort of get a feel for the series as it stands.

[Stuart Keane · Rating 4 out of 5]

People who know me, my tastes and my demented mind will acknowledge that I love a dystopian thriller. The end of the world is, for me, a topic that never gets boring. There's so much untapped potential in any novel that approaches this subject, mainly because...well, lets face it, we will never see the apocalypse in our lifetime. And no one has ever lived through one. This leaves the field open to interpretation which, in the right hands, is a lot of fun.

Kyle West keeps it simple. Part Fallout, part Mad Max, this novel details the escapades of one man, Alex Keener, who escapes from Bunker 108 after a catastrophic viral outbreak. Having never traversed the wastelands beyond the Bunker walls, Alex is forced to grow up fast. The wasteland is an unforgiving place full of danger, threat and the formidable xenovirus...not to mention the Raiders, Wastelanders and the scorched Earth itself. It's not the place for a person who's been underground for sixteen years...

This book is fast-paced, fluid and lean. I love dystopian thrillers but part of the thrill for me is the vision. West doesn't drop too much in the way of detail in this novel (so we can imagine it ourselves? I hope so) but in some aspects, it felt as if we were just stringing scenes together to reach the next set piece. Where this wasn't a bad thing, having some vivid details to go on (scenery, landscapes etc.) wouldn't have harmed the book any. I'm pretty morbid in the sense that destroyed landscapes, scorched cities and a dead civilisation are my cup of tea. There's something beautiful yet tragic about these scenes...and I felt West missed a few glorious opportunities here.

4* then. Mainly because of the lack of detail, a personal issue for me really. However, this is the first in seven books from Kyle West so maybe he still has time to get the detail in. It's a great book that hits the dystopian nail on the head. If you like your books lean, thrilling, a little spooky and fast-paced, this is for you. And at the moment, it's free on Amazon! You can't go wrong. I'll be picking up more books in this series. A great effort.

[Prin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Basically some meteor crashed onto Earth and now some pink slime is turning everything into giant zombies. The only way to kill it is to shoot it in the head (Walking Dead style).

It is a very short read so i was never bored but it was just too ridiculous at times-even after hiding your inner critic in the closet. Alex, a scrawny boy who lived his entire life in a bunker is suddenly so completely badass that he shoots these xenovirus transformed monsters and even people without batting an eyelash. Did Alex, Samuel and Makara believe they would travel from California to Colorado on just one hydrogen tank? Shouldn't they have carried the tanks from the other vehicles instead of allowing Brux to chase after them with those very same vehicles(Recons). Khloe died from just a scratch but Alex and Makara are tackling beasts to the ground and killing giant arachnids without a single scratch.

The idea that America has become a wasteland with raiders and gangs is quite intriguing but Kyle West never capitalizes of this. The desolation and vastness of the wasteland is never felt through the characters but rather just told by the author. They characters also seem to make there way from point A to point B relatively quickly; again dimishing the idea of a great vast wasteland.

This book's savior is that it is so short that it does not give you time to reflect on on its shortfalls. I hope the other books in the series are great improvements over this first installment.

[Empress Reece (Hooked on Books) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Apocalypse is the first book in a seven book series called The Wasteland Chronicles. It's about a post-apocalyptic world after the U.S. was hit by this huge meteor called Ragnarok that also carried a deadly virus called Xenovirus. As the virus spreads, the survivors that were living in Bunkers have been forced to live in the harsh wasteland. This was another pleasant surprise that I found in the Kobo store. It's action packed and the pacing is on point and the story is a good length -not too long, not too short. Another good thing about it is - it's free! The first three books in this series (The Wasteland Chronicles Omnibus) are actually free so if you like dystopia/post-apocalyptic survival stories you should check it out. I know Amazon & Kobo both have it.

A really great start of a series! I'll definitely be continuing on to book #2!

[Shernell Joseph · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am currently body reading this with my sister.And I'm not sure I want to continue, but i'm forced to.

This is a quick read, but so much happened that it felt a bit longer than it actually is. I don't hate the story, I like that it is a bit complex.I just not connected to the characters and the environment or world building.

On to book two.

[Brian's Book Blog · Rating 5 out of 5]

The wasteland can be a very scary place

Alex Keener just turned 16 and one of the first things that young adults inside of Bunker 108 do when they turn 16 is to go outside for a routine recon run. Things aren't like a normal recon, though, he quickly finds out that there is a lot more going on than he imagined. Follow Alex as he has to make important decision after important decision.

The narration for Apocalypse was done by Graham Halstead and he does a really great job. I honestly do not know Halstead's age, but I do know that he was able to portray a young male really well. His voice for Alex was perfect. Part angsty teenager and part new adult. The production quality is perfect with no issues at all.

The first thing that I noticed was the parallels to the video game Fallout's universe. There were many numbered bunkers where certain citizens were able to hide out from something dangerous. In Apocalypse they were "US Bunkers" and in Fallout, they were Vaults. I honestly was so convinced that this could potentially be fan-fiction based in the same universe that I had to look up Kyle West's description. It's not based in the same Wasteland, but there are some similarities that Fallout players will really enjoy. Other parallels include what they called the outside "The Wasteland" and those who live there "The Wastelanders." I'm sure there were others, but the story itself was so good that I found myself forgetting about most of these details.

The "Xenovirus" that plays a background part to most of the story is really interesting. So is the history of "Ragnarok" the reason that all of the people have run to the bunkers. Sometimes post-apocalyptic books go so much into detail about the people that they forget to explain why they are in the predicament that they are in the first place. West really knocks it out of the park with his explanations.

The main character Alex goes through a bunch of things and I mean a lot, that forces him to grow in many ways very quickly. He is a likable character who you find yourself as the reader rooting for him to succeed against seemingly impossible odds time and again.

Overall, the book had a very gritty feel which the narration added too. Not a bad kind of grit, but the good kind that all good post-apocalyptic books have in common. Be on the lookout for Kyle West and his novels. I think that he has something special.

To see more reviews like this, check out Brian's Book Blog

[Mỹ Khương · Rating 5 out of 5]

First and foremost, I'd like to send my thanks to Kyle West, who sent me an e-version of this book. Apocalyptic books have always been my favorite, and this book did not let me down. I love the way first narration was used in this book, because it helped depict the protagonist's - Alex's - dimensions of emotion, which has always mesmerized me ever since The Hunger Games. The plot, however, is a little predictable. But who cares about that when you're so hooked in this book? What can I say, I LOVE IT. 5 stars!

[Abi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Took me a while to get into this, but it was an okay read overall.

[Natasa · Rating 5 out of 5]

just loved it! a little bit short though and don't really like the idea of having to read 6 more books ...

[Tara · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a quick, rather uninvolved read. There needed to be a lot of editing and the dialogue wasn't realistic but overall, not too bad.

[Terri · Rating 4 out of 5]

a nice quick read, it did remind me and make me think about books i have previously read. ocasionally the editing and wording annoyed me but i still enjoyed it.

[Ronnie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I downloaded this book (well, the omnibus that contains this book) for free from BookBub. It jumped to the front of my queue due to a 2021 reading challenge: read something by an author with the same initials as you.

This book was fine, I guess. The writing was a little repetitive, in a "I forgot what I wrote" kind of way (at one point, a character starts a story stating she was 7 when it happened. After, a different character was like "wow, you must have been what? Seven? Eight?" Some descriptions were repeated). For being told in first person, we get a lot of character slips into what other characters are thinking or their motivations.

The characters were kind of flat. I couldn't tell you a single character trait of Alex, the main character, other than "he was there." The main female character seems badass, until she starts screaming all the time for no reason (wakes up alone in a bunker, with absolutely nothing worrisome happening nearby? Bam, screaming). The relationship with Khloe was... Questionable, at best.

The plot seemed fineish, though hardly original, and the pacing seemed janky.


Previously, I might have continued on with the whole series (or, at the very least, the two other books included in the omnibus), but I'm making a concerted effort to only continue series that I'm actively enjoying (instead of only quitting the ones that I actively hate. This fell squarely in the middle of "meh"), so I will not be continuing the series. Will be nice to be able to delete the whole series off my massive TBR list though.

[Dave · Rating 5 out of 5]

Whenever I finish an audiobook and then read reviews of the written copy where there are complaints about grammar and editing it is often the case the voice actor of the audio version has corrected those issues. That's what happened with "Apocalypse." I didn't notice any of the writing or editing problems mentioned in reviews of the written copy because my copy was from Audible and the actor read it without the problems. Hence, I liked this book and gave it five stars. However, the voice actor sounded smarmy and it took a long time to get used to him.

This story is so similar to Fallout that I consulted an AI chatbot to see whether this book is credited with influencing Fallout. I was told it only influenced Fallout in that Apocalypse and Fallout share dystopian tropes. I find that hard to believe. This book was published prior to Fallout, at least the streaming series, and the two share many, many identical situations. So many, in fact, that one of them has to be a copyright violation of the other. That aside, I love the Fallout series and enjoyed reading this very similar book.

[Stephen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Virus

A really good end of the world book that just felt different from others I have read. Before I started I thought it might be Zombie-based but it was much different. The author breaks down the events very well and gives us a timeline for the apocalypse. Much of the origins are done to flashbacks, which keeps you from being overpowered with too much at one time. We start with a good core of characters that changes throughout and ends with a somewhat new group. You can like and appreciate these characters as they strive to survive and try to find a way to combat, what is happening to the planet. I hope that these books continue to get better as the story progresses. A worthwhile read.

[Bri · Rating 4 out of 5]

The author is Kyle West and he wrote “Apocalypse”. It was published December 5, 2012. It is a High fantasy for people 15 years and older. There is an invasion of monsters and a boy named Alex Keener. He leaves his bunker for the first time at age 16. After a meteor hits his world. He goes on an adventure to find bunker 1. On his way to find bunker one he has to survive with all the monsters around. The book really keeps you engaged and wanting to read more. The author does a good job at explaining the monsters they come across. Also the experience they go through on their adventure. For there desperate attempt for survival. The author could have done better at trying to continue the story line. I would recommend the book to anyone that likes fantasy or anyone who like reading. If you enjoy reading about monsters or mythical like I do. I would read this book.

[Fly · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book read like a tutorial on how to write a Mary Sue

[Ginger · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is the perfect example of the sci fi post apocalyptic action books and movies I grew up loving. Suspend disbelief, root for inexperienced characters to become essentially savers of the world, and danger at every turn with viruses, monsters, and evil enemies… can’t go wrong. Not everything has to be the next great literature to last through the ages. It was fun and I’ll read the next one asap!

[Di · Rating 5 out of 5]

I went into this knowing nothing about the book. Just happened to find the 3 book box set free (still is free 2.17.24). A little slow for the genre this is, but it is totally worth it. This is a different take on zombies and the Apocalypse. I am buddying this with my oldest daughter and a friend and I can't wait to continue the series next month.

[Edwin · Rating 3 out of 5]

later

[Ben · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cool premise, poor execution. Lackluster flow, nonsensical plot elements, character development was hardly there.

[Jonathan Echevarria · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a very fun and interesting post apocalyptic adventure.

This book reminded me a lot of a combination of the most popular post apocalyptic fiction that I've enjoyed. I could see a little bit of that Fallout series, a pinch of Mad Max, and a tiny piece of The Walking Dead sprinkled throughout this story. While I'm new to the author's work, I enjoyed how much it reminded me of my favorite stories growing up. After all I've always wanted to have more Fallout in my life and how awesome would it be if Fallout was turned into a series?

This is sort of a dream come true for me.

Some of the noticeable cons were that this was the work of a very young and inexperienced author. So while this was a fun and interesting adventure, I did come across some minor misspellings and errors. Those types of mistakes don't bother me as much as it does others though. The author himself has recognized some of these mistakes and is going to go back and fix them.

Despite all of that the book was free and I considered my time with it to be a enjoyable one.

I give this title a four and a half stars out of five.

[Andrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

Like someone who grew up with Fallout video games, the summary of the book made me really interested. Once I started reading my mind constantly went before turning the page "On the next page it will say what the water chip is broken, go get a new one" :D

At times the writing can feel simple, maybe too simple, but actually I probably liked it more than I disliked it. Simply because my imagination has a big budget (no idea from where) for environments, actors, etc., so it has much more space to run wild and make changes to make it more enjoyable for me.

Of course it made me raise an eyebrow at one point, when the dead man rose and started attacking others and died once shot in the head.. My thought was just "Zombies?? Really?? Does everything these days have to contain zombies.. well...", but later as the xenovirus is explained and some additional info provided it all starts making sense. More or less.

Personally I think it's a great book when you just want occupy the bed and relax after a long day, turning those pages are very relaxing.

[Uptown Horror Reviews · Rating 1 out of 5]

I decided to pick this book up because I read somewhere its very similar to the Fallout games, but now that Ive finished the book I can tell you that the ONLY thing this book has in common with the Fallout series is the setting.

What makes Fallout so great are the adventures you have en-route to your main mission and the sense of surprise and wonder where at the next corner literally anything could happen. "Apocalypse" by Kyle West did not have that sense of wonder at all. "Apocalypse" is a boring book with boring dialogue and boring/generic world building. Judging by the dialogue and characters, the book honestly feels like an authors attempt at their very first novel.

I was unreasonably excited to read this book and hopefully read the entire series, but halfway through this first entry I just wanted it to be over so I could move on and read something better.

[S · Rating 1 out of 5]

I should have liked this book but like another book that I read this week, it was far, far too much and the end result was far, far too little.

It's a post apocalyptic novel that features an underground bunker, tribe of people surviving the desolate wasteland, miltary vs. civilian strife and play for authority, mutant virus that turns people into zombies, escape to terrain above with evil humans where slavery is permitted, plucky, enterprising young heroine with wits, etc. etc. It is EVERY sci fi , post apocalyptic theme thrown into this hot mess of a novel.

I couldn't help but think this was written by a middle or high school student. There are many novels written for young adults that are done very well but this isn't one of them.

Completely unoriginal, poor character development, uninteresting story line and not worthy of an entire trilogy.

[Lisa Sandberg · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not sure how to review this book. It is a short read and very fast paced. Not a lot of detail about what Alex saw in the outside world for the first time in his 16 year old life or what he thought about it all. Maybe I like more detail, but then it wouldn't be a short read. :) I definitely liked the book and am anxious to read the next one in the series.

I liked how the virus affects everything and not just humans. It wasn't just about zombies, zombies, zombies. Even though I like the whole zombie apocalypse idea, this book had a whole different approach to it.

I rated it 4 stars because I think the series as a whole will be great.

On to the next book...until next time, happy reading.

[Danielle Frappier · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay I hate when I can't connect with the main character, I don't know what it was, maybe it's that Alex is a dude maybe it's cause he is a pussy but I found myself hating him. Also not really buying into the meteor virus plot maybe I just needed more explanation or maybe I've read a butt load of books like this and I'm tired of the genre. But this was okay for me. Glad I read it but didn't blow me away.