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The God Virus
Suddenly, the lights went out. Not just in one town or village, but all across the world.
It was an act of cyber terrorism that plunged the world into the heart of darkness, into the 1000-year night, letting loose the demons of a billion souls, pitting dark against light, causing each person everywhere to choose sides...
Not since Stephen King’s The Stand has there been an apocalyptic thriller of such epic proportions.
Read book one of this 3-book series and see what happens when society’s thin veneer of civility is stripped away. The God Virus is gripping, seething and oozing with the best and worst humanity has to offer.
It was an act of cyber terrorism that plunged the world into the heart of darkness, into the 1000-year night, letting loose the demons of a billion souls, pitting dark against light, causing each person everywhere to choose sides...
Not since Stephen King’s The Stand has there been an apocalyptic thriller of such epic proportions.
Read book one of this 3-book series and see what happens when society’s thin veneer of civility is stripped away. The God Virus is gripping, seething and oozing with the best and worst humanity has to offer.
- GenresEbooks
262 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 12, 2012
7 people are currently reading
166 people want to read
About the author
Skip Coryell
29 books28 followersSkip Coryell now lives with his wife and children in Michigan. He works full time as a professional writer, and “The God Virus” is his eighth published book. He is an avid hunter and sportsman, a Marine Corps veteran, and a graduate of Cornerstone University.
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
March 19, 2012
I really was excited about this book, so my low rating makes me sad. Full disclosure - I won this in a goodreads giveaway. I'm reviewing it for that reason, primarily.
Where to start. Let's begin with the writing. It's really bad. I mean atrocious, at least when compared with the vast majority of professional authors out there. This reads like a poorly written fan-fic, with the main character standing in for the author. Which is, frankly, exactly what I suspect this is. I find it interesting that the book is set in the same area of the country he lives in (same states, even). The main character is a Marine Corp vet, just like the author! Seeing the Gary Stu self-insert yet? I sure am. The characterization is every bit as poor as the writing. There's no depth to them, at all. Cardboard cutouts.
The editing leaves something to be desired. He needs a good editor. Let's leave it at that.
The story isn't original. I am a HUGE fan of the apocalyptic genre, which makes the story being dull even that much more puzzling. How do you manage to make a story about the US falling into chaos dull? He manages it. I think it's a combination of the poor writing and the not-so-subtly hidden agenda of the author.
That's the final nail in the coffin for this book. The author is pushing a painfully obvious political and philosophical agenda. I don't have an issue with that, but he does it with the subtlety of a 2x4. I don't want to be preached at in my fiction.
I got curious about the author after attempting to read this book. Turns out the publishing company is owned by him. He's written a handful of other books, about half and half fiction and non-fiction. I think I understand the agenda quite a bit more clearly after looking at his website, and safe to say his stuff isn't for me.
Where to start. Let's begin with the writing. It's really bad. I mean atrocious, at least when compared with the vast majority of professional authors out there. This reads like a poorly written fan-fic, with the main character standing in for the author. Which is, frankly, exactly what I suspect this is. I find it interesting that the book is set in the same area of the country he lives in (same states, even). The main character is a Marine Corp vet, just like the author! Seeing the Gary Stu self-insert yet? I sure am. The characterization is every bit as poor as the writing. There's no depth to them, at all. Cardboard cutouts.
The editing leaves something to be desired. He needs a good editor. Let's leave it at that.
The story isn't original. I am a HUGE fan of the apocalyptic genre, which makes the story being dull even that much more puzzling. How do you manage to make a story about the US falling into chaos dull? He manages it. I think it's a combination of the poor writing and the not-so-subtly hidden agenda of the author.
That's the final nail in the coffin for this book. The author is pushing a painfully obvious political and philosophical agenda. I don't have an issue with that, but he does it with the subtlety of a 2x4. I don't want to be preached at in my fiction.
I got curious about the author after attempting to read this book. Turns out the publishing company is owned by him. He's written a handful of other books, about half and half fiction and non-fiction. I think I understand the agenda quite a bit more clearly after looking at his website, and safe to say his stuff isn't for me.
April 21, 2012
What if the lights suddenly went out all over the world as if God just flipped the switch. That is a question "The God Virus" makes you ask. What would you do once the panic set it and it was "every man for himself?"
"The God Virus" is the first of a planned trilogy. Dan Branch is a man at a crossroads in his life living in Wisconsin when the chaos strikes. Before the lights go out he receives a coded text from his Uncle Rodney in Michigan. Uncle Rodney is a survivalist who has spent his entire life preparing for the worst and had hoped to do the same for his nephew he took in at the death of his brother. Having grown up in that environment, Dan has a few tricks up his sleeve. Rodney's text is a code for Dan to drop everything and come home to Michigan. Of course for Dan this is not nearly that simple. There is the matter of Dan's philandering wife and his step son to whom Dan is the only father he has ever known.
"The God Virus" is a struggle for survival that prompts a great deal of self examination. What would you do if the modern world we have all come to depend on was suddenly plunged into a brand new dark age? How would you make do when the trucks quit running and the supermarkets all shut down. Even more important, what would you do when others equally unprepared decide that your provisions are fair game? This book is a compelling read and Coryell's best effort to date. It will leave you hungry for the next installment.
Reviewed by J. Keith Jones
Author of In Due Time & The Boys of Diamond Hill
"The God Virus" is the first of a planned trilogy. Dan Branch is a man at a crossroads in his life living in Wisconsin when the chaos strikes. Before the lights go out he receives a coded text from his Uncle Rodney in Michigan. Uncle Rodney is a survivalist who has spent his entire life preparing for the worst and had hoped to do the same for his nephew he took in at the death of his brother. Having grown up in that environment, Dan has a few tricks up his sleeve. Rodney's text is a code for Dan to drop everything and come home to Michigan. Of course for Dan this is not nearly that simple. There is the matter of Dan's philandering wife and his step son to whom Dan is the only father he has ever known.
"The God Virus" is a struggle for survival that prompts a great deal of self examination. What would you do if the modern world we have all come to depend on was suddenly plunged into a brand new dark age? How would you make do when the trucks quit running and the supermarkets all shut down. Even more important, what would you do when others equally unprepared decide that your provisions are fair game? This book is a compelling read and Coryell's best effort to date. It will leave you hungry for the next installment.
Reviewed by J. Keith Jones
Author of In Due Time & The Boys of Diamond Hill
April 6, 2012
I thought the concept of this book was great. Take power away from the people and see what happens. It's too bad this book didn't live up to the great idea of it. I was intrigued in the beginning by the blind man. I still have no idea what his real motive was aside from having power over others. After the "collapse" this story just took a nosedive. I found the amount of brand naming excessive and pointless. Not only that but all the gun and ammo lingo made me want to skim over every sentence with the word gun. I have no idea what all of that stuff means and I'm sure I'm not the only one. I thought that the dialogue was horrible and stiff. The way they talked didn't sound believable or real. For me the only good part of this book was the bare bones of the story line. It was a good idea for a book. Even with all the love drama and killing I was pretty bored throughout. The only character I really liked was Rodney. I don't like christian books either because I'm an atheist. I thought there was way too much religion going on and I'm usually pretty good at tolerating it in books. And finally, I found a massive amount of mistakes throughout the entire book. So basically this book didn't even come close to doing it for me which is a real bummer.
I received this book through a Goodreads first-reads giveaway.
I received this book through a Goodreads first-reads giveaway.
March 29, 2012
There were things I loved about this book and things that I hated.
I’ll start off by saying I don’t think this book was edited. I found so many errors throughout this book, and the editors/publishers should be embarrassed. I do often find typos in published books, but one or two in a 400 page book is understandable, a typo every couple of pages is pathetic.
Do to the errors, I found this book difficult to really enjoy. The writing was unimpressive and didn’t actually have anything that I would call a style.
I loved the idea of this story, but the execution was lacking. The plot and storyline were the only things that saved this book. It was suspenseful and I found myself needing to know what was going to happen next. I felt sorry for the characters and wanted to know that they were going to be okay.
Another aspect that I enjoyed, but may not matter to other readers, was the setting. I liked that this book was set in Wisconsin and Michigan because I’ve lived in both states and the author writes honestly about what these places are like.
FTC Disclaimer: I received this book through the Goodreads Firstreads giveaway
I’ll start off by saying I don’t think this book was edited. I found so many errors throughout this book, and the editors/publishers should be embarrassed. I do often find typos in published books, but one or two in a 400 page book is understandable, a typo every couple of pages is pathetic.
Do to the errors, I found this book difficult to really enjoy. The writing was unimpressive and didn’t actually have anything that I would call a style.
I loved the idea of this story, but the execution was lacking. The plot and storyline were the only things that saved this book. It was suspenseful and I found myself needing to know what was going to happen next. I felt sorry for the characters and wanted to know that they were going to be okay.
Another aspect that I enjoyed, but may not matter to other readers, was the setting. I liked that this book was set in Wisconsin and Michigan because I’ve lived in both states and the author writes honestly about what these places are like.
FTC Disclaimer: I received this book through the Goodreads Firstreads giveaway
March 26, 2012
Overall, I really enjoyed this book. I've never read an apocalyptic book quite like this one before and I found it a refreshing change. I think because I won a copy of the book through a Goodreads contest, it may have been an early copy and the book had a lot of errors in it. Nothing too major, deletion of quotation marks, backward quotation marks, that kind of thing. The sudden progression of the relationship between the main characters came out of no where. One chapter they were awkward and uncomfortable around each other, and two chapters later they were in love an having an impromptu wedding. It seemed a little forced to me. The book did give a realistic portrayal of what the world would be like in an apocalyptic situation and the people would react. A very gripping and compelling story and I look forward to reading the upcoming books in the series.
April 17, 2012
I am a huge fan of One Second After. If you liked that book, you will like this book.
What if all the electricity in the United States went out due to cyber tourism? How would the break down of society occur, and what would you do in the midst of it?
This book follows a family as they realize and understand what is happening and what they do to get to safety. I had to keep reading to find out what was going to happen...or what tragedy would happen next.
This book really pulled me in and I couldn't stop reading it. The story is great.
Set in Wisconsin and the upper peninsula of Michigan made this book even more enthralling, this is land I know!
I can not wait to read book two (not released yet) in this series.
What if all the electricity in the United States went out due to cyber tourism? How would the break down of society occur, and what would you do in the midst of it?
This book follows a family as they realize and understand what is happening and what they do to get to safety. I had to keep reading to find out what was going to happen...or what tragedy would happen next.
This book really pulled me in and I couldn't stop reading it. The story is great.
Set in Wisconsin and the upper peninsula of Michigan made this book even more enthralling, this is land I know!
I can not wait to read book two (not released yet) in this series.
August 17, 2017
I enjoyed the fast paced action of this book and the realistic happenings of how society would actually react had all electricity stopped.
The things I didn't enjoy were how fast *SPOLIER* Dan and Jackie fall in love. While it makes sense they would like each other it seems as though they jump on a love rocket, no pun intended, and speed into everlasting obsessive love in about 2 pages. Plus everyone is way to religious for my tastes.
Uncle Rodney is fantastic "I bought it on Ebay!"
Overall, this is a fun short read. But I think Skip should relax with how many marines are around. I GET IT, YOU WERE IN THE MARINES!!
The things I didn't enjoy were how fast *SPOLIER* Dan and Jackie fall in love. While it makes sense they would like each other it seems as though they jump on a love rocket, no pun intended, and speed into everlasting obsessive love in about 2 pages. Plus everyone is way to religious for my tastes.
Uncle Rodney is fantastic "I bought it on Ebay!"
Overall, this is a fun short read. But I think Skip should relax with how many marines are around. I GET IT, YOU WERE IN THE MARINES!!
April 23, 2015
This book was AMAZING! The power goes out around the world and everything changes. Think about it. No more facebook, no more twitter, no more tivo, netflix, the list goes on and on. Where are you going to get your food? how are you going to survive? Think about it and then ask yourself, How would I react to this? My neighbor is trying to steal my food or rape my daughter, What would I do? What would you do? READ THIS BOOK!!
March 7, 2012
Great Book! I couldn't put it down. It really made me think. What would I do? Is there something I should be doing now to prepare for something like this? We work hard to support our family. We need to think about the future. There are so many uncertainties in the world today. What if the lights all went out? I look forward to reading the next book Skip Coryell.
April 7, 2012
This book was entertaining. It was a quick read and kept my attention for sure. I love post-apocolyptic stories and will definitly read the next in the series. I have to know what happens next! There was a bit too much religion for me but it didn't change my opinion of the story. Oh and I LOVE Uncle Rodney!!! I received this book for free through a Goodreads First Reads give away.
September 8, 2012
I was hooked after a couple of pages. Likeable characters, good vs evil, oh and there is lots of evil. I enjoyed reading of WI & MI of the places I have been. Can't wait for the next book to come out!!!
March 23, 2012
This book was won through first reads give away.
This book is an amazing insight as to the minds of others and how life can change at any moment in time. It was a very good read and makes you wonder about current situations in life. Skip Coryell did a really good job on this book.
This book is an amazing insight as to the minds of others and how life can change at any moment in time. It was a very good read and makes you wonder about current situations in life. Skip Coryell did a really good job on this book.
July 1, 2012
Excellent read! Very heavy on action and teaches while it entertains. Characters are well developed and realistic and have a depth that is very enjoyable. Very good rendition of the possibilities that exist in a crisis.
February 8, 2021
A cliche in search of a novel
June 12, 2012
I won this book as a Goodreads giveaway.
There are somethings I really enjoyed about the novel. Being a Detroit girl born and raised, the references to places I spent my childhood camping and tooling around in stir up nostalgic feelings. The foundation for the story was excellent; what would the world become like if a computer virus was unleashed that caused the US to be stuck in a power outage. Perhaps this wasn't an strike of creativity, this area had in fact experienced a black out much like this in the early 2000's...but I digress. With the loss of power a power struggle begins, and so our story is written.
My momma always told me to list the positives before the negatives because if done the other way the positives almost always out weigh the negatives. So here are the negatives.
The writing was simple. At times repetitive. I was quite flustered with the authors painting of other cultures/religion. Once again as a Detroit girl I have some concern with how things were stated.The section in the novel (spoiler alert) where a marriage was consummated with a 14 year old in the room was appalling! I mean am I the only one who thought this? I can't be. That truly boarders on child abuse.
Either way the novel was easy to read and wouldn't require much attention to detail from the reader. Good overall and I probably could of given it a better score if I wasn't too turned off by the somewhat anti Muslim statements.
There are somethings I really enjoyed about the novel. Being a Detroit girl born and raised, the references to places I spent my childhood camping and tooling around in stir up nostalgic feelings. The foundation for the story was excellent; what would the world become like if a computer virus was unleashed that caused the US to be stuck in a power outage. Perhaps this wasn't an strike of creativity, this area had in fact experienced a black out much like this in the early 2000's...but I digress. With the loss of power a power struggle begins, and so our story is written.
My momma always told me to list the positives before the negatives because if done the other way the positives almost always out weigh the negatives. So here are the negatives.
The writing was simple. At times repetitive. I was quite flustered with the authors painting of other cultures/religion. Once again as a Detroit girl I have some concern with how things were stated.The section in the novel (spoiler alert) where a marriage was consummated with a 14 year old in the room was appalling! I mean am I the only one who thought this? I can't be. That truly boarders on child abuse.
Either way the novel was easy to read and wouldn't require much attention to detail from the reader. Good overall and I probably could of given it a better score if I wasn't too turned off by the somewhat anti Muslim statements.
January 10, 2013
Great family values/end of the world/apocalypse combo story. *grin* Dad and step-son essentially grow up when the end of the world arrives. Couldn't put it down. Loved the interaction, the description of how quickly a society can fall apart when, as he says, the veneer of civilization is stripped. I loved the healing of the relationship between father and son. It reads a lot like the Swiss Family Robinson, as another reviewer wrote - careful planning and years of stockpiling combined with the normal problems that occur when the plan meets reality.
"The God Virus" is a struggle for survival that prompts a great deal of self examination. What would you do if the modern world we have all come to depend on was suddenly plunged into a brand new dark age? How would you make do when the trucks quit running and the supermarkets all shut down. Even more important, what would you do when others equally unprepared decide that your provisions are fair game?
Several interesting surprises occur along the way. Looking forward to the next stories in the trilogy.
"The God Virus" is a struggle for survival that prompts a great deal of self examination. What would you do if the modern world we have all come to depend on was suddenly plunged into a brand new dark age? How would you make do when the trucks quit running and the supermarkets all shut down. Even more important, what would you do when others equally unprepared decide that your provisions are fair game?
Several interesting surprises occur along the way. Looking forward to the next stories in the trilogy.
April 6, 2012
Here's the thing about this book- it could have been great! The set up was interesting, the conflict was intriguing, and the characters were not too obnoxious...this all changed about midway through.
Up until the halfway point, I was reading an interesting book about what might happen if suddenly all the electricity in the world went out and the government collapsed. There was a little more death and killing surrounding the main character than was entirely believable (every person the main character and his son was either a murderer or a rapist...or both), but overall not a bad book. Then all of the sudden I was reading a book about a dude living in a cabin with some lady he just met finding religion. "IT'S A TRAP!"
TL;DR Too much God, not enough Virus
Up until the halfway point, I was reading an interesting book about what might happen if suddenly all the electricity in the world went out and the government collapsed. There was a little more death and killing surrounding the main character than was entirely believable (every person the main character and his son was either a murderer or a rapist...or both), but overall not a bad book. Then all of the sudden I was reading a book about a dude living in a cabin with some lady he just met finding religion. "IT'S A TRAP!"
TL;DR Too much God, not enough Virus
July 11, 2012
I live in Michiagan and was born in Wisconson, so it was cool traveling through area of these states I was familiar with. It's an interesting story, with characters that you can get to know. The story twists and turns, so I wasn't able to guess what was going to happen next. The ending of this book left me ready and wanting to get the second book in this trilogy. If you enjoy a good "end times" fictional book (short series), I recommend Skip Coryell - The God Virus!
February 25, 2012
Wow, this could really happen! Could you survive this? This is a great book to read, especially in our times.
Want to read
March 25, 2012I received the book for free through Goodreads First Reads.
March 10, 2014
Wish I'd known before starting that this was only part one!
reshelved
March 15, 2015Reshelved in light of https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews