Winter Fall

by Byron Tucker

On August 1st, 2019, the Yellowstone Supervolcano erupts in its most cataclysmic eruption ever, unleashing a scene of destruction such as humankind has never seen and triggering a civilization-ending volcanic winter.

The Durant family, taking an idyllic vacation to Yellowstone on the eve of its mighty eruption, are forced to fight for their lives as they make a hair-raising escape from the exploding supervolcano. They're able to reach a place of relative safety at the homestead of a relative, only to realize their struggles are just beginning ...

Join the Durants as they embark on an epic, hard-fought struggle for survival against all odds in a ruined, frozen landscape beset by hunger, lawlessness and civil war.

Genres: Science Fiction

317 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 2, 2014

Reviews

[Sheila · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book had me at the Yellowstone Caldera eruption! I admit it, I'm a sucker for volcanic doom! And this doom hits while the main character and his family are actually visiting Yellowstone National Park.

The story was a bit all over the place in some areas, but it did keep me engrossed and reading till the very end, so even though some spots were a bit silly or unrealistic, I still have to admit I enjoyed it, but then again, it had me at the Yellowstone Caldera eruption!

[♣ Spacey♣ · Rating 2 out of 5]

OK so I'm only 65% in but I feel the need to start my review, lest I forget my rant points. They are excessive for a book.

First off, I have to say this started out amazing. I wanted to see this in film so bad I actually stopped to watch a disaster movie (love me some disaster movies). Sadly, the irritants in this book got in my way like volcanic ash in my eyes...

Lets start right off the bat, like the nook did, with inconsistencies. Well, aside from not having an editor clearly (more on that soon), the main thing I noticed right off the bat was this started off with a chapter dated June 2018 about a professor and two students. Later we hear from Ryan (one of our main characters) and he, in passing, mentions the professor and students having been "a few weeks prior" (sorry my point's vague but I don't want to spoil anything).

Later as Sam's (Ryan's brother) family is getting ready for their vacation, his son Jimmy dates his journal July 2019....hmmmm.

OK, I originally passed that off and a typo. They happen. No big deal. Well. there seem to be a lot going on here. Normally I can get passed grammar and punctuation issues in books, no one's perfect. You may have to read a sentence over when a words wrong or missing but no biggie. Well, half way through, this book has missing words or wrong words at least once a page. Distracting. Things like "the" instead of "they" or "their" (OK fine). "I'm know.." instead of "I know.." (I didn't make a note of other examples but there were a few as bad as the "I'm know"). This leads me to think no one proof read this BC how can you miss those kinds of mistakes?

Also, I question how the characters speak. I've never heard an American say "you'll not" or "I'll not" in place of "you won't" or "I won't" (but what do I know, maybe people on Michigan speak this way. Yeah). Also, referring to your uncle as "uncle" and not "uncle Ryan" or Sam calling Ryan "brother" and not by his name...I have never heard people speak this way in the US. But again, maybe people in Michigan are different *skeptical face*.

It gets really distracting when they go from sounding more British then American (the only time I've heard "you'll not be going..." was Uncle Vernon telling Harry he's not going to Hogwarts that year. And I'm pretty sire they weren't in Michigan), and then saying things like "a-prayin'". Whaaaaaat? Are we suddenly down south at a hoe-down?Mind you I've also never hear anyone speak that way outside a southern redneck stereotype but...
(and who in the balls uses the phrase "silly darn"? Just...WHAT!?)

Ugh, OK. Gripe semi over. It got distracting and it got irritating (obviously).

My other gripes are with how they first portray Eliza, the 13 year old, as both stupid and apparently 6. They talk to her like she's an idiot (when they even talk to her, she literally is mentioned in passing most of the book as it related to her asthma medicine. There is more talk about her meds then about this girl, but I digress). First Dad (Sam) explains to her Mt Rushmore is "the mountain with the presidents carved in it". Is...is she stupid? Shouldn't she know this by 13? When she says she knows and lists the presidents, carved in order, she gets a condescending "very good" like she's a dog that went potty outside the house. Mind you, she's got asthma so bad she "can't ride bikes with other kids", so all she can do all summer is LEARN. Yet dad thinks she's clearly stupid and has no idea what this magical Mt Rushmore is. What dad? What is this magical thing you speak of?? Christ...

Later, all she does is scream, screech, and squeal, like a child (so maybe dad assuming she's dumb was giving her too much credit since she's clearly a 6 year old masquerading as a teen). I get they were in a scary situation but dear lord, really? That is all this girl did. I expect that from a young kid being scared, not a teen. Give teens a little credit (well, OK, Eliza wasn't given any ever, poor girl, so she never had a chance).

Also, when they get to Ryan he greets his TEENAGE (in case we forget she's 13) niece with a "golly you're such a big girl". Really? REALLY? Again, is she 13 or 6?

After this point she's basically a name and a reference to asthma meds. If ever mentioned at all.

Also, the amount of whining that went into the "1500 calorie a day" restriction was ridiculous. Whine whine whine. "We can't liiiiiive on that". Serious question, are these people morbidly obese? Seriously? The amount they eat per meal before they get restricted by Nora is obsurd. I'm no skinny Minnie myself but I can survive on 1300-1500 calories a day and not starve to death. I get maybe after being used to 5x's that for breakfast maybe it seems hard, but shit. The world as you know it is over, food is limited, why in hell are you having a breakfast that includes eggs, bacon, pancakes, waffles, bagels, muffins, ham, turkey, spare tires, kitchen sinks, etc ...? For real. The amount they eat daily is astounding to begin with and totally unrealistic for people in the middle of a crisis like a volcanic winter. But the b*tchfest about the 1500 calories was stupid. It's like the author has no idea how many calories a human can live on. I get that maybe in extreme cold a body needs more, I honestly don't know, and each body is different, but I damn well know the amount of energy spent whining about 1500 calories was stupid.

Well, I'm 66% done. I haven't given up (even though after like 30% nothing much happens, like watching paint dry sometimes here). The above points are irritating, but the plot of the story was good. I think it would have been served better with better editing and more realistic dialog. I'm curious enough about how it ends to finish it, plus I never enjoy leaving books unfinished. My gripes are not enough to make me leave this one unfinished (but they were enough to necessitate getting them out haha). Also had to take too many breaks on this one BC it gets really boring most of the time, with a huge portion being left to whine about food, or talk about dwindling asthma meds and can we sneak food and what about those asthma meds and OH MY GOD I'M GOING TO STARVE and hey, have we mentioned the asthma med thing?

I'm starting to wonder how I made it this far with all these gripes....I really did have high hopes for this one, and I do like the concept. I just didn't feel much thrill after they escaped the volcano. I wish that had lasted longer. Its like watching 2012 if all the action happened in the first 10 minutes and the next 15 hours was watching people on am arc staring at water (2012 spoiler there, sorry?). I know 2012 wasn't 15+ hours, just saying this books feels like that after the first 20-30%.... sigh.

I will at least remember the thrill of that first part. I guess I just advise readers to stop once they get to Ryan's place (another gripe- what kind of a tool builds a safe house for end of days and is like. "nope just for me, eff my mom and brother and his kids and such.."? Ugh). I hate giving books that try low ratings

This just didn't work for me aside from the concept.

[wwjdcindygmail.com · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good, solid read

for the most part, this book is well worth reading.it just needs a little stretch of imagination.I'm pretty sure the writer has never been in sub zero temps
enough to otherwise not mention the real possibility let alone reality of frost bite.same with each different episode we go on with this family.that said, I'm glad I read it.I can only relate that the situation, by common sense,could only be much worse than what's written yet the book was scary anyway.some day I hope to find that ultimate book but this one was good

[Autumn · Rating 1 out of 5]

I grabbed this through Kindle Unlimited. I tossed it in the DNF pile at 48%. Dialogue is atrocious and the two teenagers sound like they are right out of Leave It To Beaver... not modern day. The occasional chapters of the teenage son's 'diary' are very jarring and out of place.

The kicker for me was the scene where we are told that the uncle is going to teach the teenage boy to use a crossbow... then the entire description of the kid notching an arrow and the mechanics of firing the weapon are clearly for a standard bow... not a crossbow. The author needs to do a little more research.

[Stephanie H. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Good story.

I liked the overall story. But, the characters were just unbelievable. I think Ryan is the most believable and that still was a stretch, I particularly disliked the way that these women were portrayed and then mostly ignored. The dialogue didn't flow well. So good story, bad execution.

[Dean Cole · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent imagery and character development. The narrative was riveting, and I loved the scope and scale of this apocalyptic tome. I've always been fascinated by the danger represented by the Yellowstone caldera. I found Byron's portrayal insightful and imaginative, and I highly recommend it.

[Doris Marcantel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Spectacular!

Absolutely loved this book! Not too many books keep my avid attention the entire time like this one. I look forward to reading more books from this author! Dystopian excellence at its best!

[Barbie Clark · Rating 2 out of 5]

Please get this author an editor. DNF
SPOILERS:
I should’ve stopped at chapter 1 when dad referred to his son as a “red-blooded American boy”. But I continued long enough to read weird scenarios like a teenager excited about a two week trip with his parents in an RV, “all my friends are jealous”, he said (Really? Does the author know ANY teenagers?) But still, I continued, only to read more weird phrases like, “inhaling, her intoxicating scent, which was always stronger late at night” (whaaat?), and “what are you, an eating machine? You’ve been munching on chips and trail mix all day” (to a 6’3” teenager!), and “Mom will fix you a bowl of cereal and some toast” (Good grief, these kids are 13 and 16 yet mom has to put the cereal in the bowl for them?)

And yeah, they keep going to Yellowstone even after saying they would stop if there were any signs of trouble, even as there actually are signs of trouble, they just keep on going. “Yellow alert…a number of earthquakes recently and some unusual ground movement”, but sure, keep on keepin on. “nothing’s gonna stop me from taking my family to Yellowstone”. And then they get there, and on the first night there’s a 6.1 earthquake, but of course they “didn’t even feel it”. Cmon, man!! Thats a big quake to be right on top of. SMH.

I can’t even count the number of times the author wrote the word Yellowstone, as if the reader would forget where they are headed.

“Wonderful” is the authors favorite adjective.
“Thing” is his favorite noun.

They are literally fleeing for their lives, yet he sets the cruise control at the speed limit. Yellowstone is erupting, all news agencies are reporting the disaster, yet they are playing games and having “picnics”, not even bothering to monitor the news or traffic conditions.

Sam and Irene are the stupidest, most useless protagonists I’ve read in years. And then there’s the 80 year old mother!

I’m gonna stop now, I’m only 30% in and I just can’t anymore. I read the last chapter, the book ends with a smiley face, literally.

[Patti · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book because it actually went through the disaster instead of just skipping to the after effects. We got to know a few of the characters very well and learned how they each coped with their situation.

[Ralph · Rating 1 out of 5]

Had to force my way through it.

[Chris Paton · Rating 2 out of 5]

Fun dystopian nightmare book until it took a hard right into jesus bullshit in the last quarter. Boo!

[Red · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one crazy book....makes me want to upgrade my prepper stocks and then it makes me NOT want to do anything but throw them out. I'm pretty sure that I'm too old to start over, so why should I endure such torture. Back to the book....when I first started reading this first novel I was appalled at the writing style...very amateurish. The conversation sounded as though I were, well, reading it. Hokey. I thought that this would be a book I had to push myself through. I was wrong! It took me quite a while to get through it (because of the writing, and having to reread sections--LOTS of distracting errors) but I couldn't put it down. I spent a couple of long nights (made even longer by the disturbing thoughts I gleaned from the text) but I finally finished it and I'm certainly glad to place it back on my cyber shelf. I gave it a 5 star rating because, well, if it had had a little bit of "clean-up" before going to "press" it would have definitely earned it. The plot of the book is very believable. Doomsday arrives, as we've all been expecting. Ryan (the older brother) is the doomsday prepper and lives in upper Michigan. Sam (the younger brother) is taking his family (Jimmy-16 years old, Eliza-asthmatic 10 year old, Irene-wife)on a vacation to Yellowstone. Big brother warns not to go...volcano acting up. Little brother says he going anyway. Well, with no spoilers, it is an EXCITING trip back from Yellowstone to his brother's house, where they seek safety. And it stays exciting, almost to the very end. I will definitely be looking for more books from Byron Tucker as Winter Fall has been a very enjoyable and tense read.

[Brett's Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite a Ride

"Winter Fall," was quite the desperate apocalyptic ride. The American nuclear family at the center of the fiasco is obviously supposed to represent us all, making the decisions we'd make under a similar set of apocalyptic circumstances. While I understand that plot device, something to keep the reader centered when everyone else has gone mad; their denial and nativity in the face of impending doom was grating sometimes. I appreciated the positive treatment of Faith by this author. All in all I enjoyed used this book, the story, while harrowing at times, was quite exciting.

[Cyril Patrick Feerick · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book was an entertaining read, though the premise was a common enough story. It's part adventure, part post-apocalypse and part survival guide. I actually read this book a few months back and just now re-read it, and it went from being good - to being very good! Loved the writing and the character development. Mr. Tucker is a fresh, new author who displays many traits of classic end-of-the-world writers of old. I see much promise ahead and look forward to reading more. I would recommend this book to teens as well as adults.

[Tony Freeman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Get story, well told, doesn't get bogged down with rebuilding society...

I just finished Winter Fall and I have to say I really enjoyed it. It is a great story and it held my interest right to the end. And, you avoided my complaint about many books I've read in this genre. That being that once all the excitement is over the book moves into the rebuilding of society phase. They all lose my interest at that point and I sometimes don't finish the book. Your story didn't suffer that downfall. Again, I really enjoyed your story and your writing. And I can't wait for more!

[brenda hathaway · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good read but highly improbable

While the book certainly held my attention, the parts about the motor home lumbering around corners and through roadblocks seemed pretty impossible. The characters were likeable, but the dialogue was stilted in places. I would recommend this book to people who enjoy doomsday, end-of-the-world, prepper scenarios. Also would have liked the daughter's character developed a bit more.

[Nancy L Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good, could have been much better.

I enjoy end of life as we know it books and this was the first I've seen based on
a Yellowstone disaster. Cool! What followed was interesting, believable and well thought out with plenty of action.
On the downside, most of the characters, particularly females, were thinly drawn. There were distracting word usage issues, particularly over use of "as", that editing should have prevented.
Overall, recommended to fans of the genre.

[cathy moore · Rating 5 out of 5]

A different apocalypse story

Yes, this is a story of surviving the apocalypse that began with the exploding Yellowstone caldera. The Durant family faces impossible odds in their struggles to escape the horrors of Yellowstone and get to Uncle Ryan's prepped home. It doesn't stop there though. The escape story continues. In all, a great fresh story that kept my attention right to the end.

[Faith Calhoun · Rating 5 out of 5]

As it would be hard to give a bad review on such a great read...

B. Tucker nailed it as for my personal opinion on what it would be like if, or even when Yellowstone blows its top. The only thing I could comment negatively on would be that the way the 16 year old son speaks is not at all how boys of that age speak these days. It's basically the only unrealistic part about the book, in my opinion, of course

[Patricia Nightingale · Rating 2 out of 5]

Some really liked this book

I found this book boring. I bought it after reading the reviews....big mistake. Mr. Tucker has many friends. Also, if you are going to write about Michigan's Upper Peninsula, (and northern lower) you need to know how far it is to the Mackinac Bridge from Houghton. I gave it 2 stars but my stars on the kindle wouldn't light up.

[George Stewart · Rating 5 out of 5]

The kinda goof book I love and hate

I love it because it is such an exciting story to read. I hated it because it was so spell binding that laid down to read it in even at read through to sunrise th next day. While science fiction it could be to close to coming true some day. All in all an excellent read. I would like to see follow up book of how they did live on!

[marcy · Rating 2 out of 5]

A 99¢ storyline. Pretty unbelievable and why did I finish reading it?

2 stars because some one thought to write it but it was just too much nonsense. Could an event like this happen? Well, maybe, but ( spoiler) the family escaping in a hummer motor home and arriving safe and sound in another country, uninjured, skill Stupid and so I guess I am for reading. Maybe 1 star !!!!

[Deloris Mercer · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sorry I started it......Christian beware.....

Well it happened yet again. Only two stars....good story plot. Then the author had to take the name of the Lord in vain......Will not recommend....since most of my friends are Christian readers. Stopped reading the book after finding it first time.

[Glenna Bennett · Rating 5 out of 5]

This scenario hits too close to home...being I am in Kentucky and we are having a record winter.

It starts off kind of " leave it to beaver" withholds to an absolute thriller I did not want to end. Fell in love and hate with the characters...and felt like I had participated in a journey.

[Janeandjerry · Rating 5 out of 5]

Okay let's head out to Yellowstone with Sam and his family. This ride isn't going to be a very good one since we find out that the volcano erupts and causes all sorts of problems along the way. Will we all survive or will we die along the way...to find out you must first load up in the motorhome put your seatbelt on and hold on cause you're in the ride for your life

[Carol Jackson · Rating 4 out of 5]

There is hope after Yellowstone blows up

I enjoyed the storyline very much. I like the way Jimmy wrote about his view of how things happened along the way. I know it's hard to believe, but they made it to their new home on a wing and lots of prayers.

[Ashley Amber Maxfield · Rating 3 out of 5]

Now becoming a prep-er

This book makes me never want to visit Yellowstone and become a preper... go read although the story was a little week and the author at times repeated himself a bunch...

[annette austin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting look at possibilities of Yellowstone eruption

Engrossing read, keeps you turning page's till the middle of the night. A real possibility of becoming the nonfiction read of the century.

[Duke Counts · Rating 2 out of 5]

Predictable and lacking in detail.

Predictable and lacking in detail. Unrealistic and down right dull conclusions to predicaments. If you like excitement and intrigue, this is not the book for you.

[Lance · Rating 5 out of 5]

Winter before and after2019!

The book is very good! A story of a family that becomes even closer due to the dire problems of what could well happen and of what, one family's faith and acceptance could do!