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Downfall #2
Blackout
When the lights went out, civilization fell in hours. Now survival means becoming someone you never thought you'd be.
Sam Prescott thought escaping the burning wreckage in Nevada was the hardest part. He was wrong. Detained at a military compound in Salt Lake City, processed like cargo instead of a citizen, Sam discovers that the government isn't just managing the crisis, they're exploiting it.
Meanwhile, Adam Barlow, a Park City ski patroller conscripted for search and rescue, makes a devastating discovery. Keith, the teenage boy he swore to protect, has been taken to a secretive mountain facility where teenagers are being subjected to disturbing experiments. Haunted by guilt and driven by conscience, Adam risks everything to infiltrate the compound and finds an unexpected ally in Sam.
In the Missouri wilderness, Sam's wife Rachel has transformed from suburban mother to fierce protector. With Sam's brother Jeff, an ex-con with a violent past, she's turned an isolated cabin into a fortress. But when armed strangers discover their sanctuary, Rachel must defend her children with skills she never knew she possessed.
Two desperate journeys. One family torn apart. And a conspiracy that suggests some people knew the catastrophe was coming.
Sam Prescott thought escaping the burning wreckage in Nevada was the hardest part. He was wrong. Detained at a military compound in Salt Lake City, processed like cargo instead of a citizen, Sam discovers that the government isn't just managing the crisis, they're exploiting it.
Meanwhile, Adam Barlow, a Park City ski patroller conscripted for search and rescue, makes a devastating discovery. Keith, the teenage boy he swore to protect, has been taken to a secretive mountain facility where teenagers are being subjected to disturbing experiments. Haunted by guilt and driven by conscience, Adam risks everything to infiltrate the compound and finds an unexpected ally in Sam.
In the Missouri wilderness, Sam's wife Rachel has transformed from suburban mother to fierce protector. With Sam's brother Jeff, an ex-con with a violent past, she's turned an isolated cabin into a fortress. But when armed strangers discover their sanctuary, Rachel must defend her children with skills she never knew she possessed.
Two desperate journeys. One family torn apart. And a conspiracy that suggests some people knew the catastrophe was coming.
417 pages, Kindle Edition
Published April 10, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
April 28, 2026
Blackout: A Post-Apocalyptic EMP Survival Thriller
By: Justin Bell
Publisher: Independently Published
Published Date: April 10, 2026
ASIN: B0GL2DS4YR
Page Count: 417
Triggers: EMP disaster, government detention, disturbing experiments, violence, survival situations, armed threats, child danger, societal collapse
Star Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
What Did I Just Walk Into?
Apparently, I walked into book two, where the lights are still out, the world is still falling apart, and the government has decided this is the perfect time to be suspicious as hell. Because of course it has.
Blackout throws us right back into the wreckage of the EMP collapse, and somehow things have managed to get worse. Sam Prescott survived Nevada, which should have earned him at least one quiet meal and a nap. Instead, he ends up detained at a military compound in Salt Lake City, being processed like luggage with a pulse. Nothing says “we’re here to help” like treating survivors as cargo while hiding deeply unsettling secrets behind locked doors.
Meanwhile, Adam Barlow, a Park City ski patroller pulled into search and rescue, starts realizing the system he is working for may not be the good guy. That is always a fun little moment, isn’t it? The “oh no, I may be helping the monsters” realization. When he learns Keith has been taken to a secretive mountain facility where teenagers are being experimented on, the story goes from survival thriller to full-body nope.
And then there is Rachel, who has officially left suburban mom mode behind and entered “touch my children and find out” territory. Out in the Missouri wilderness with Jeff, Sam’s ex-con brother, she is helping turn an isolated cabin into something closer to a fortress. Honestly, good for her. Nothing builds character like the end of civilization and armed strangers sniffing around your hiding place.
Here’s What Slapped:
The tension in this book is excellent. Mr. Bell does not just repeat the disaster from book one. He expands it. The EMP collapse is still the foundation, but now we get layers of conspiracy, government exploitation, survival choices, and the terrifying question of who knew what before everything went dark.
Sam’s storyline inside the military compound brings a claustrophobic edge to the book. The outside world is dangerous, but the inside world is not exactly giving “safe and trustworthy.” There is a slow-building dread in realizing that order does not always mean protection. Sometimes it just means someone else has control of the locks.
Adam’s arc adds emotional weight because guilt is driving him, but so is conscience. He knows something is wrong, and once he starts pulling at that thread, the whole ugly sweater begins unraveling. The Keith storyline is disturbing without feeling thrown in just for shock value. It raises the stakes and gives the book that extra bite of “what in the government-funded nightmare is happening here?”
Rachel may be my favorite part, though. Her transformation feels earned. She is not suddenly invincible. She is scared, protective, and pushed into becoming someone harder because the world no longer allows softness without consequences. Watching her defend her children and adapt to danger gives the story a strong emotional center.
Jeff continues to be the morally complicated wildcard. He is violent, dangerous, and absolutely not someone you would invite to a PTA meeting, but in this world? He might be exactly who you want between your family and the people coming through the trees.
What Could’ve Been Better:
This is one of those books where there is a lot happening, so readers who want a slow, quiet apocalypse may need to buckle up and hydrate. Between the FEMA camp, the wilderness survival, the conspiracy angle, and the separate journeys, the story does not leave much room to breathe.
But honestly, that works for this kind of book. The whole point is that nobody gets to breathe. Civilization collapsed, the bad guys got organized, and apparently peace was not included in the survival kit.
Perfect for Readers Who Love:
EMP survival fiction, government conspiracy, apocalyptic thrillers, wilderness danger, morally gray protectors, family-under-threat storylines, secret facilities, disaster fiction, and books that make you rethink every “emergency plan” you never actually finished.
Sum Up:
Blackout is tense, gritty, suspenseful, and packed with enough danger to make you side-eye both the woods and the government. Mr. Justin Bell delivers a strong second installment that raises the stakes, deepens the conspiracy, and keeps the Prescott family fighting through one nightmare after another. The action is sharp, the characters are engaging, and the survival tension stays high from start to finish.
I was pulled in, stressed out, and fully invested. Which is rude, but effective.
If book one was the fall, book two is the part where everyone realizes the dark is not the worst thing out there. The real horror is what people do once the lights are gone.
Reviewed by Robin for Robin’s Review
By: Justin Bell
Publisher: Independently Published
Published Date: April 10, 2026
ASIN: B0GL2DS4YR
Page Count: 417
Triggers: EMP disaster, government detention, disturbing experiments, violence, survival situations, armed threats, child danger, societal collapse
Star Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
What Did I Just Walk Into?
Apparently, I walked into book two, where the lights are still out, the world is still falling apart, and the government has decided this is the perfect time to be suspicious as hell. Because of course it has.
Blackout throws us right back into the wreckage of the EMP collapse, and somehow things have managed to get worse. Sam Prescott survived Nevada, which should have earned him at least one quiet meal and a nap. Instead, he ends up detained at a military compound in Salt Lake City, being processed like luggage with a pulse. Nothing says “we’re here to help” like treating survivors as cargo while hiding deeply unsettling secrets behind locked doors.
Meanwhile, Adam Barlow, a Park City ski patroller pulled into search and rescue, starts realizing the system he is working for may not be the good guy. That is always a fun little moment, isn’t it? The “oh no, I may be helping the monsters” realization. When he learns Keith has been taken to a secretive mountain facility where teenagers are being experimented on, the story goes from survival thriller to full-body nope.
And then there is Rachel, who has officially left suburban mom mode behind and entered “touch my children and find out” territory. Out in the Missouri wilderness with Jeff, Sam’s ex-con brother, she is helping turn an isolated cabin into something closer to a fortress. Honestly, good for her. Nothing builds character like the end of civilization and armed strangers sniffing around your hiding place.
Here’s What Slapped:
The tension in this book is excellent. Mr. Bell does not just repeat the disaster from book one. He expands it. The EMP collapse is still the foundation, but now we get layers of conspiracy, government exploitation, survival choices, and the terrifying question of who knew what before everything went dark.
Sam’s storyline inside the military compound brings a claustrophobic edge to the book. The outside world is dangerous, but the inside world is not exactly giving “safe and trustworthy.” There is a slow-building dread in realizing that order does not always mean protection. Sometimes it just means someone else has control of the locks.
Adam’s arc adds emotional weight because guilt is driving him, but so is conscience. He knows something is wrong, and once he starts pulling at that thread, the whole ugly sweater begins unraveling. The Keith storyline is disturbing without feeling thrown in just for shock value. It raises the stakes and gives the book that extra bite of “what in the government-funded nightmare is happening here?”
Rachel may be my favorite part, though. Her transformation feels earned. She is not suddenly invincible. She is scared, protective, and pushed into becoming someone harder because the world no longer allows softness without consequences. Watching her defend her children and adapt to danger gives the story a strong emotional center.
Jeff continues to be the morally complicated wildcard. He is violent, dangerous, and absolutely not someone you would invite to a PTA meeting, but in this world? He might be exactly who you want between your family and the people coming through the trees.
What Could’ve Been Better:
This is one of those books where there is a lot happening, so readers who want a slow, quiet apocalypse may need to buckle up and hydrate. Between the FEMA camp, the wilderness survival, the conspiracy angle, and the separate journeys, the story does not leave much room to breathe.
But honestly, that works for this kind of book. The whole point is that nobody gets to breathe. Civilization collapsed, the bad guys got organized, and apparently peace was not included in the survival kit.
Perfect for Readers Who Love:
EMP survival fiction, government conspiracy, apocalyptic thrillers, wilderness danger, morally gray protectors, family-under-threat storylines, secret facilities, disaster fiction, and books that make you rethink every “emergency plan” you never actually finished.
Sum Up:
Blackout is tense, gritty, suspenseful, and packed with enough danger to make you side-eye both the woods and the government. Mr. Justin Bell delivers a strong second installment that raises the stakes, deepens the conspiracy, and keeps the Prescott family fighting through one nightmare after another. The action is sharp, the characters are engaging, and the survival tension stays high from start to finish.
I was pulled in, stressed out, and fully invested. Which is rude, but effective.
If book one was the fall, book two is the part where everyone realizes the dark is not the worst thing out there. The real horror is what people do once the lights are gone.
Reviewed by Robin for Robin’s Review
August 31, 2026
This is book 2 in the Downfall series. So far the series has been fantastic. There’s been a couple of weird things like saying she was making lunch when it was very clearly dinner time based on sun positioning (or lack thereof) and some stuff that seems like it just didn’t get caught/corrected during final review. Nothing crazy to change the story though.
Overall Jeff is still my favorite character. I will say though that Sam’s wife is starting to annoy me just a bit. She makes it out like Jeff is some kind of terrible murderer. What he did in the military - you can’t even bring that into the conversation. And as for the reason he actually went to prison. Yes. Yes he murdered someone. But it wasn’t just a random someone. He went out, found, and murdered the gang member(s) responsible for murdering his wife and daughter! Vengeance? Justice? Doesn’t matter. But she acts like her children aren’t safe around him when in fact, he did what most people only dream of being able to do in that type of situation. And then? She made it all about herself and it being her failure as a therapist when he murdered the gang member(s). Selfish a bit? Like anyone was going to blame the therapist. (Eye roll). Idk. I hope my stance on her changes but right now all Jeff has done is literally save her and her children’s lives MULTIPLE times. He didn’t even have to go and find them in the first place. He’s not a bad person. He’s just done some bad things.
Overall Jeff is still my favorite character. I will say though that Sam’s wife is starting to annoy me just a bit. She makes it out like Jeff is some kind of terrible murderer. What he did in the military - you can’t even bring that into the conversation. And as for the reason he actually went to prison. Yes. Yes he murdered someone. But it wasn’t just a random someone. He went out, found, and murdered the gang member(s) responsible for murdering his wife and daughter! Vengeance? Justice? Doesn’t matter. But she acts like her children aren’t safe around him when in fact, he did what most people only dream of being able to do in that type of situation. And then? She made it all about herself and it being her failure as a therapist when he murdered the gang member(s). Selfish a bit? Like anyone was going to blame the therapist. (Eye roll). Idk. I hope my stance on her changes but right now all Jeff has done is literally save her and her children’s lives MULTIPLE times. He didn’t even have to go and find them in the first place. He’s not a bad person. He’s just done some bad things.
April 11, 2026
Bell raises the bar with Blackout!!
Blackout, book 2 in the Downfall series, brings us back to the FEMA camp for Sam and Adam and the wilderness for Jeff, Sarah, Anna and Jack, all in the aftermath of the devastating EMP. The tension ratchets up expertly as Adam realizes he is in the wrong, while Jeff leads Sam's family through the wilderness.
The narrative quality is exceptional, with dynamic characters with complex motivations and the ability to surprise you, dialogue that doesn't feel forced and matches the plot & pace precisely, and the descriptions are outstanding from weather conditions to condition of corpses to inside the FEMA facility.
Overall, 5/5 stars! Highly recommended for fans of apocalyptic thrillers, technothrillers, disaster thrillers and meticulously plotted thrillers in general. Blackout, like Downfall and the series prequel Whiteout (where we initially meet Adam and Keith), will appeal to a huge cross section of readers!
Blackout, book 2 in the Downfall series, brings us back to the FEMA camp for Sam and Adam and the wilderness for Jeff, Sarah, Anna and Jack, all in the aftermath of the devastating EMP. The tension ratchets up expertly as Adam realizes he is in the wrong, while Jeff leads Sam's family through the wilderness.
The narrative quality is exceptional, with dynamic characters with complex motivations and the ability to surprise you, dialogue that doesn't feel forced and matches the plot & pace precisely, and the descriptions are outstanding from weather conditions to condition of corpses to inside the FEMA facility.
Overall, 5/5 stars! Highly recommended for fans of apocalyptic thrillers, technothrillers, disaster thrillers and meticulously plotted thrillers in general. Blackout, like Downfall and the series prequel Whiteout (where we initially meet Adam and Keith), will appeal to a huge cross section of readers!
April 14, 2026
Blackout - a review by Rosemary Kenny.
The central character Sam Prescott is isolated from his family and detained in a FEMA camp, following a globally destructive EMP event destroys electronic communications, devices and programs depending on them. Back home his fugitive brother Jeff has arrived at the homestead, determined to help his sister-in-law and the family survive against the odds...will they make it, as raiders and the weather close in?
Blackout by Justin Bell is an intense, post-apocalyptic survival-thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat anxiously reading into the night, as you long to see if the family are able to overcome hardship and danger on all sides. Great stuff - grab a copy today and buckle up for a wild ride!
The central character Sam Prescott is isolated from his family and detained in a FEMA camp, following a globally destructive EMP event destroys electronic communications, devices and programs depending on them. Back home his fugitive brother Jeff has arrived at the homestead, determined to help his sister-in-law and the family survive against the odds...will they make it, as raiders and the weather close in?
Blackout by Justin Bell is an intense, post-apocalyptic survival-thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat anxiously reading into the night, as you long to see if the family are able to overcome hardship and danger on all sides. Great stuff - grab a copy today and buckle up for a wild ride!
May 4, 2026
This continues what is an interesting apocalypse. I appreciate the prologue to recap the previous book. I used to live in Salt Lake City for a time so find that venue interesting, though am a bit bothered that the military is painted in a very harsh light (though with some nuance here and there). Garrett gets quite a cliffhanger here and I look forward to book 3.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews