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Under the Breaking Sky #1-8

Zerbrochener Himmel: Die komplette apokalyptische Horrorsaga

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Über 1 Million Leser weltweit. Die komplette apokalyptische Horrorsaga in einem Band.

Um 14:44 Uhr reißt der Himmel auf.

Jeder, der hinaufschaut, erblindet — und verfällt in eine mörderische Raserei. Innerhalb von Minuten verwandeln sich Straßen, Büros und Häuser in Schlachthäuser. Die Zivilisation bricht über Nacht zusammen.

Nun müssen gewöhnliche Menschen in einer wahnsinnig gewordenen Welt ums Überleben kämpfen. Doch während sich der Riss weitet und die Infektion sich ausbreitet, könnte es keinen sicheren Ort mehr auf Erden geben.

Alle acht Bände von Zerbrochener Himmel — ein unerbittlicher, actiongeladener Survival-Thriller, perfekt für Fans von The Stand, Cell, Bird Box und The Dark.

2019 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 22, 2024

3754 people are currently reading
603 people want to read

About the author

Nick Clausen

77 books383 followers
I write stories about the apocalypse so that I don't need to work a real job. I grew up reading Stephen King and still haven't fully recovered. I'm currently ending the world in my new series Under the Breaking Sky.

Join my reader club to be kept in the loop -> nick-clausen.com

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5 stars
976 (54%)
4 stars
514 (28%)
3 stars
216 (12%)
2 stars
51 (2%)
1 star
42 (2%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 124 reviews
Profile Image for Pam Baddeley.
Author 2 books64 followers
October 11, 2024
I came across this complete set under Kindle Unlimited having just taken out a subscription. It is a different take on the zombie apocalypse and at first was interesting. A crack in the sky appears which, when people look at it, turns them blind and also into homicidal maniacs. Only a few people are immune. The blind have very good hearing and are able to zone in on victims by sound alone. They don't infect those they attack and they don't just bite: they bludgeon or kill in other ways. They can also be killed in usual ways: no having to behead them or destroy their brainstem etc as in other zombie apocalypses. People who are not immune feel a strong compulsion to look up at the crack and turn into zombies themselves. Then 'ghosts' start to appear to those people and to the immune, who try by various means to persuade them into carrying out actions that will result in the deaths of those not yet affected.

It bogged down probably about halfway, partly due to the introduction of so many characters. The early ones - Gina, Mark, John and Tommy - are all key characters who carry on throughout the linked books. However, a huge cast is eventually brought in. For some reason there are four people who have variants on the name Thomas: someone's boyfriend who is 'turned' early on, Tommy himself, Tom, an old friend of John's who appears very briefly and a Thomas who was sheltering in a church with other immune people but agrees to help Patrick, a secondary character with whom Gina teams up, escape the church and return to the safe house where Gina is sheltering with her two sons and the wife and daughter of John. It's generally not a good idea to have characters with such similar names and I must admit to forgetting who Tom was. Also, one of the main villains is Fritz but his father is Franz.

The story is set in Denmark but apart from a few references to that, especially words in a Scrabble game that some of the teens play at one point, it comes across as very American in language and setting. Given the subject matter, there is a lot of gruesome violence but some readers who are prepared for that might not like the constant swearing which got a bit tiresome. There is also a rape scene which some readers might want to avoid.

As might be expected with such a huge cast over several books, some plot threads are just dropped: for example, the government is doing gruesome experiments on the immune and, due to some of the immune fighting back, has to abandon their current HQ and relocate. The reader might expect them to figure later and cause more difficulties for the main characters, but the focus switches to the threat poised by Fritz and his organisation and that aspect of the plot just comes to an end without resolution. It was also weird that the authorities didn't sequence the genes of the immune to try to find any key factors instead of moving straight to gruesome surgeries.

There is also some psychobabble which readers might find tiresome, in relation to the 'ghosts' and how people can eventually come to terms with the traumas they represent and free themselves from them. Various characters do stupid things to advance the plot, for example, opening the front door to a character they detest and who had already caused them problems. That became tedious. With the other weaknesses - there was a lot of backstory, too many characters to keep tabs on, and it became a bit dragged out in places - I would rate it as 3 stars overall.
Profile Image for Sam.
2,578 reviews42 followers
August 18, 2024
This is excellent! For all fans of horror & apocalyptic adventures, this really hit the spot for me! A really scary idea, a great way to kill off humans! Some nasty scenes through the series, as expected in this type of story. High tension & stress, good levels of action & a great mix of characters! I do always like this authors work & I do always recommend! A good fun read with some shocking moments make it a really great escape!
9 reviews
June 16, 2024
Too many characters

First, I am a fan of Nick Clausen BUT, this giant series of a book was awful. Way too many characters and he kills almost all of them. It took forever for the story to be revealed and it was not worth the wait. Do yourself a favor and skip this one.
Profile Image for Luann.
Author 7 books5 followers
August 17, 2024
Quite a Saga

This book proves out what I’ve told my writing students over and over again, the writing doesn’t matter nearly as much as the story. Sure, there were plenty of typos in here and misused words. It takes place in Denmark so maybe English is not his first language. Either way, the story hooked me from the start. Although not a zombie story, it had the same dystopian feel of survivors against a dangerous world. At the same time it had that good against evil vibe — sort of like The Stand. If those are the kinds of things you like, then you’ll be riveted. Plus there’s plenty to it since it’s a huge series. The characters are believable and you get to know most of them well. All in all, I’d say it’s a great read for those who like these types of stories and who do t get snobbish about typos etc.
20 reviews1 follower
March 15, 2025
I don't think I have ever been glued to a series of books like I have this one. So many emotions, so much attachment to all the characters. The pace was so fast that there was no time to hear any boring bits and drift off. The twists and turns were brilliant. I've cried more than once, especially coming to the end. I usually only listen to audio books when my headaches are too bad for me to read physical books. Well my poor physical, non-fiction book (The Black Death 1346-1353) is still sat waiting for me to finish it. This series is not books you can easily put down as you need to find out what is going on with all the characters. It was a true thrill reading (Well listening) to these books. A little sad I've finished on this adventure, but will certainly look at buying other books from Nick Clausen.
Profile Image for Emily Kitchens.
32 reviews1 follower
August 28, 2024
When I started this series I had a certain idea and expectations and let me say that it absolutely DID NOT go as I expected.

Not only did I absolutely LOVE EVERYTHING about this world and these characters, I personally felt like I was in the story too.

Not ashamed to say I cried at the end.

Overwhelmingly good.
Profile Image for Mandi Phillips.
177 reviews1 follower
December 7, 2024
8 books in one which I didn't expect to read all in one go. Impossible not to though!! Really enjoyed this, fast paced and action packed I couldn't even think about moving on to a different book! Good character development throughout. Obviously need to suspend reality at times, but it's that sort of book!!
Profile Image for Unapologetic_Bookaholic.
651 reviews84 followers
December 20, 2024
This was such an immense epic series. I don't take notes during my reading, but I need to start. There are so many people, interconnected by the event they are experiencing. Together, in a way, before they even meet. I will say I thought this story was something way different than it turned out to be. The breakdown of society wasn't instant. Most apocalypse type stories have things crumbling within days. This story took its time and it paid off. This is my second series by this author. The first being Dead Meat The Complete Zombie Apocalypse Series (Dead Meat #1-9) by Nick Clausen . Next, I am reading Cadaver The Complete Zombie Apocalypse Series by Nick Clausen . I love a good apocalypse story and this author writes hit after hit imho.
8 reviews
November 17, 2024
too many characters.

It seemed like I read and read and read and only got through 30% of the book. I’m sure it was probably good, but there were just too many characters and I lost interest.
Profile Image for TenshiMari.
557 reviews1 follower
October 26, 2025
I've read Dead Meat by this author and this book is very similar. As individual books these books kinda suck, they don't have a cohesive start, middle and end. Instead it feels like a movie cut into snippets. You really need to read the entire series to get any kind of conclusion. Gina, at the start of the story, became my favourite character. Her fierce love and protection of her sons, doing whatever it takes to keep them safe, really made me love her. However, her entire holier-than-thou attitude as the series progresses really grated on me, and the entire "forgiveness" message felt very preachy. Mark started off as a character that I hated, but turned out to love him as he got his redemption arc and turned his life around for his girlfriend and child. However, one major flaw of this series is that the books simply have too many characters, and too many POVs keep getting added and removed as new characters are introduced and killed off, but a lot of the progression is very similar, they all go through variations of the same experiences in a similar order, like with facing their ghosts and such, and because of that the books feel very slow and lack forward motion because we're essentially following the same plotline through a dozen different POVs. What I liked a lot about this series, is the entire supernatural aspects of this story, it's not your typical zombie apocalypse, there's major differences, such as how the zombies aren't dead, but driven by blind violence, and their bite is not infecting other people. The crack in the sky is instead turning people. Then there's the entire "entity" that is controlling people and sending ghosts/voices that they hear to kill off the immune, which gave me huge cosmic horror vibes and was very cool but the entire "ghosts" plotline just got dragged out far too long and was very repetitive, so this was actually the part of the books that I enjoyed a lot at first and then slowly killed my interest in this series as the plotline got dragged on forever. There's also a lot of plotholes that never get answered, such as the government agency that does human experiments and then has to relocate to a different location, to be never heard of again. Instead they got replaced as the "big bad evil" by the entire cult plotline. All in all, this book felt a bit aimless at times and because of the lack of forward motion I often felt like the plot wasn't really going anywhere, which is such a waste because there's a lot of interesting things about it. I hate zombies as a horror trope, but this book brought enough fresh ideas to the table that it made them seem interesting and refreshing. I think if the series had been shorter and had less POVs it would've been a lot more enjoyable to read. It has a lot of great characters, and a lot of great ideas, the execution just left a lot to be desired.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
72 reviews
September 29, 2025
Good Zombie Story + more

The entire sequence was captivating. Lots of detailed action scenes. Good character development. Essentially, once you get past the typical zombie narrative, the saga is based on authentic flaws that all humans have.

Each character struggles with regret -- meaning that each character encounters a "ghost" unique to their past. The ghosts are invisible/unheard to all other characters and are directly derived from some form of past personal trauma.

The ghosts seek to influence and directly shape the character's present. It varies greatly how they are recognized, their authentic motivation, if they are of positive intent, whether they can be dismissed/ignored/embraced, and how forces are ultimately overcome.

Can evil be transcended? What inspires bravery? Are aliens among us?

My only gripe with this series is the name duplication of 3 completely different characters: Tommy (aka Tom-Tom) who is a major character. ...Thomas, who resides at the church. And Tom, who shares a ride amidst a dangerous highway. The latter two are minors. Needless confusion.
Profile Image for G.G..
Author 4 books239 followers
July 31, 2024
Loved the story, loved the characters. They all had their own personality. It was quite different from any other apocalypse story. I did not expect it to be what it turned out to be.

While the characters were different, some had kind of the same name. There was a Tommy also called Tom-Tom by his ghost father. There was a Tom that came in later in the books and there was a Thomas, whom I am not remembering who he was. I think it was just a distant friend or family member. It just surprised me to see that many Toms. Must be a lot of Thomas in that country.

Aside from some names, the story was quite unique. I was bugged a little by the present tense as I am not used to read in that tense and also because some sentences would have made more sense in the past tense.

I liked that each chapter was from the point of view of different characters. Sometimes the story overlapped a little, but it made it easier to understand what they were going through.

Overall, a great story and if present tense does not bother you, I would encourage you to read it.

Profile Image for Kristyna Soukupova.
23 reviews
August 5, 2024
Wow, what a story, I loved it. I can't wait to read more from this author. It was really intense and I was mad half the time but it was so worth it!

I hoped Tommy would get a better ending, but I am glad he got to the right path in the end.
The scene where the bomb went off was just too much...🥺 so sad for Patrick, I really liked his character. And Victor. As a mum, I felt it was a bit unrealistic that Gina just went on almost as if everything was normal. I know it was explained how she could do that but still..

So happy for Mark, I was really rooting for him after he sorted himself out. 🫶

I don't usually get confused when reading but I had to go back with Franz and Fritz. I thought I am reading about Fritz for a minute, but no, it's his dad. Other than that, I think it's easy to follow and all the extra characters make sense. Great story.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Sharon Leung.
587 reviews32 followers
September 24, 2024
Fully enjoyed

This is a non stop action, heart breaking, fulfilling and thrilling read. An apocalyptic tale which you find hard to even dream up, happens in a global scale. Gina a mother of twins becomes the main foundation of a group that heads to bring together like minded, to help ease the struggle and fight the evil surrounding the country. There is so much action and twists and plots that your constantly engrossed in the battle. The characters are amazing, each going through their own battles and traumas. You feel like part of the group and empathise greatly with each character. A fascinating and thought-provoking read. Thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it. Recommended!
20 reviews
August 19, 2025
Excellent Series!!

This series was amazing! When I first started this series, I had no idea how good it was going to be until I realized I was already nearly finished with the first book. The way the story just flows keeps you involved right to the very end. The characters were so believable and really relatable that they feel like old friends by the time you reach the end. I love the zombie genre and have read several different versions of the walking dead but this was a surprisingly refreshing take on what these zombies could do and it's a terrifying twist I think you'll enjoy!
Profile Image for Jamie Mcclimon.
58 reviews
January 31, 2025
Refreshingly different

I really enjoyed this series. It having a very intriguing concept is the reason I ultimately chose to start reading it. And it certainly did not disappoint. I was gripped from the get go. It kept me guessing as to what was up with the crazy enraged blind people, until it finally started to click together. Very fast paced and smooth read. Sometimes the decisions characters would make made me wonder on their sanity, but that just made it all the better. No regrets in reading this series, even with how long it is.
7 reviews
February 8, 2025
I read a lot of dystopian books and quite often by the fourth chapter. You have a pretty good idea of where it’s going. I had no idea where this was going until the book was almost over. The characterizations are very good although the format of the book where the character changes each chapter it does give a nice overlap like shuffling cards, but if you step away from the book for more than a few days at least I began to forget who the character was until I read the previous chapter or two overall it was a fun read. I didn’t get bored and I’ve already ordered two other sets of books by this author.
Profile Image for Lisa Lucas.
96 reviews9 followers
December 19, 2025
I am glad I finished it, but it was a chore at times. I liked the many different POVs and the unique apocalypse spin.

The adult characters sometimes seemed incredibly clueless and unrealistic at some points, and some characters were thrown in just to move the plot along and not serve any real purpose to the story.

The narrator was pretty good, seemed to always say PATRICKS name with derision, and did not do much changing of voice between characters, which would be difficult to give each character their own voice when there were so many!
7 reviews1 follower
June 24, 2024
Excellent series!

Well, first of all....
I think this may be only the second time I've given a 5 star rating!
This is definitely NOT the genre I normally read. I don't know what drew me to these books, but I'm so glad I purchased and read them. What a story! What an adventure! It was impossible to put down.
I will remember these characters and this story forever. I look forward to reading more books by this author, Nick Clausen.
Profile Image for Merthyr Stevens.
16 reviews
June 25, 2024
WOW!!!!!

Thank you Nick Clausen for yet another gripping, heart-pounding, all-consuming Apocalyptic series, Under the Breaking Sky!
I started this series with Blind Gods, and read the series almost continuously through to the final sentence.
An awesome storyteller who is now definitely my #1 author, and if you enjoy this genre of literature, this series is going to q right up your street!!
589 reviews3 followers
August 26, 2024
A very different book to read.

The is strange off by having crack in sky sand everyone looks up then they go blind , but the other problem is they are zombies. People are being attacked and dying from the attacks the living has to figure out how to survive . People think of them and no other , then government wants to know why some are not effected by crack . Then things get real bad , the keeps wondering and wanting more . The author did a good job with the book.
16 reviews
April 19, 2025
4 STARS not because I love the books, I did not like the books, hence I wanted to give one star. This is just because I do not like Horror books. It was well written and I had a hard time putting the books down. The female lead (Gina) was surprising not written like a man but as a mother that loves her kids and would do anything to protect them. Bravo, Nick Clausen. If you like Horror stories these are the books for you!
Profile Image for AutumnRose .
28 reviews
August 31, 2025
A series that took me completely by surprise

This genre of book is not my typical go to read and was not expecting much from it but am so grateful I took the chance on it. It completely took hold of me and transformed me into a world of apocalyptic chaos. The characters were all strong in their own right and each gave so much to the cause. The strength, courage, loss and love were all very real making it a truly believable battle against evil.
2 reviews
October 5, 2025
I don't really read horror books, came across this and decided to give it a go. I couldn't put it down, I agree it had a lot of characters in, but it kept me interested the whole way through, I did also expect to read more about the government facilities as others had started, but all in all I thoroughly enjoyed the whole book set and getting to understand all the characters and found it hard to put down.
2,073 reviews9 followers
May 26, 2024
I was very entertained by this whole series. Each book picked up where the previous book left off. The characters were complex. The twists and turns were riveting, and it was difficult to put the books down as I was so engrossed by the stories. I've listened to the individual audiobooks also. Spencer Dillehay's narration was great, and his performance enhanced the story's entertainment.
Profile Image for Letha Alexander.
17 reviews1 follower
July 3, 2024
I have always been a sucker for “apocalypse” books 😅 This series was very well written! I got attached to (almost) all of the characters and I loved their character development. A great ending that really tied up all the loose ends. A really good series overall 🙂 I plan to read more of this author’s books.
24 reviews
July 5, 2024
Unfortunately not for me

I did not finish this book unfortunately I got to 66% and gave up there wasn't enough going on or much character development and it was too heavy on the psycho babble that made no sense , which had I of carried on I don't doubt would of been explained I just couldn't get that far .sorry
Profile Image for DougSwub.
72 reviews
September 5, 2024
As if written by a teenager. Lots of similar characters to follow, becomes confusing. It's a neat premise, but falls horribly short on dialogue and delivery. Ask yourself this, would you be afraid of BLIND zombies?? umm, just walk away from them and let them fumble around. Or heck, any object is now a weapon...they are BLIND! Take your time. Now stretch this over 1,894 pages. (ohhffff)
Profile Image for Steph Sather.
20 reviews
September 6, 2024
Breaking Sky

I really can’t believe I read this series. Not something I would normally read. It was outstanding. Nothing like I thought it would be. So many twists and turns. You never really knew what would happen which makes for a great story, which it was! So much more than a zombie story. Loved it!
Profile Image for Brenda Hudson.
4 reviews3 followers
September 25, 2024
Wow!

I absolutely loved these books! I'm not a huge futuristic book fan, but I started this and couldn't stop! Amazing characters and character development! So many twists and turns. I will say, never get too too attached to someone because they may be the next to die!! I can't say enough good things about this one! I loved it!!!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 124 reviews

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