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The Doomsday Bunker
From the bestselling authors of Black Friday, Tyranny, and Stand Your Ground comes a shattering novel of the last days of civilization and the final battle for humanity . . .
DON T OPEN TILL DOOMSDAY
Six weeks ago, former US Marine Patrick Larkin purchased shares in a massive high-tech, state of the art underground missile silo for his family. It was a decision based on easing his wildest, most unimaginable nuclear fears. But then reality strikes with devastating suddenness, razing cities in a searing flash across the nation, all of it witnessed by terrified Americans on TV and the Internet. No one knows who pulled the trigger. No one knows if the last day on Earth will ever end. But Larkin and his family are the lucky ones or so they think . . .
Holed up in their fortified sanctuary, with a maximum capacity of three hundred people, the bunker is pushed to its limits and so are the people locked inside. Tensions rise. Panic erupts. Outside, armed marauders surround the bunker and they want in. Larkin has to convince the others they must work together as a team to survive. And they must kill without mercy to stay alive . . .
MAYBE THE DEAD ARE REALLY THE LUCKY ONES . . . ."
DON T OPEN TILL DOOMSDAY
Six weeks ago, former US Marine Patrick Larkin purchased shares in a massive high-tech, state of the art underground missile silo for his family. It was a decision based on easing his wildest, most unimaginable nuclear fears. But then reality strikes with devastating suddenness, razing cities in a searing flash across the nation, all of it witnessed by terrified Americans on TV and the Internet. No one knows who pulled the trigger. No one knows if the last day on Earth will ever end. But Larkin and his family are the lucky ones or so they think . . .
Holed up in their fortified sanctuary, with a maximum capacity of three hundred people, the bunker is pushed to its limits and so are the people locked inside. Tensions rise. Panic erupts. Outside, armed marauders surround the bunker and they want in. Larkin has to convince the others they must work together as a team to survive. And they must kill without mercy to stay alive . . .
MAYBE THE DEAD ARE REALLY THE LUCKY ONES . . . ."
408 pages, Mass Market Paperback
Published September 26, 2017
64 people are currently reading
436 people want to read
About the author
William W. Johnstone
1,041 books1,393 followersWilliam W. Johnstone is the #1 bestselling Western writer in America and the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of hundreds of books, with over 50 million copies sold. Born in southern Missouri, he was raised with strong moral and family values by his minister father, and tutored by his schoolteacher mother. He left school at fifteen to work in a carnival and then as a deputy sheriff before serving in the army. He went on to become known as "the Greatest Western writer of the 21st Century." Visit him online at WilliamJohnstone.net.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews
January 10, 2023
This is a well done if fairly standard story of a group of people who survive a nuclear war by buying space in a missile silo that's been turned into a survival bunker. It's quite like a number of apocalyptic novels that were quite popular in the 1950's, after the Japan bombings in WWII, and it's a real shame that Pat Frank and Nevil Shute and countless more sf genre titles are still quite relevant and timely so many years in their future. The politics and philosophies of the characters were all a bit too extremely far right-wing and conservative for me (I almost gave up on page 19 where we're told that protagonist Patrick "was just old enough and just enough of a reactionary that he had never been completely comfortable about shaking hands with women, although for the most part he had gotten used to it in the service." I mean, what the heck does that even mean? I thought fear of girl-cooties ended with the Eisenhower administration.), but I persevered and overall found it to be a nice survivalist adventure if you cross your eyes and don't ask too many questions. (Spoiler: Absolute power doesn't only corrupt absolutely; it also makes the leader bibblingily barmy.) Some of the characters were quite engaging, and the dynamics of the society they try to build underground was interesting. William Johnstone wrote a long series of post-nuclear war adventure novels forty or so years ago called Ashes which I enjoyed at the time, and it was interesting to compare what I remember of them with this new book that bears his name. (Johnstone died twenty years ago, and since then he's been the most prolific author since Nora Roberts and James Patterson... there should be a ghost-writing joke in there somewhere, fill in your own...) It was an enjoyable novel that made some good (if perhaps somewhat over-simplified) points (though I disagreed with a lot of it), had a weak ending, but kept me happily turning pages until I got there.
September 19, 2022
A former Marine buys a slot for his family in a Doomsday Bunker, to prepare for the end times. The end times come, but human nature doesn't change a bit.
December 10, 2025
I love apocalyptic fiction. The EOTWAWKI is always fascinating to me, regardless of sub-genre (horror, Sci-fi, military, prepper, Christian last days or zombie). This is not a great novel but William J. Johnstone's The Doomsday Bunker is a great throwback to 1980's era apocalyptic fiction. Both the style and the premise are identical to something Jerry Ahern (The Survivalist) or one of his peers might have written. Unfortunately, the character development is also reminiscent of that era. Hence, the book is populated by too many bland caricatures meant to represent various types of Americans who might be thrown together in a disaster crisis of epic proportions. The plot is simple: Man buys massive government bunker; convinces people to purchase their own space inside (including our protagonist, USMC veteran Patrick Larkin); doomsday comes in the form of a nuclear strike; people fight to get inside the bunker; then they fight each other inside the bunker; then they fight people from outside the bunker; then they fight to leave the bunker. The end. It's occasionally boring and predictable, hence the 3-star review, but it's not a bad diversion. If you are a fan of this genre you will find the pre- and post-apocalyptic world-building interesting to read. I felt the nuclear strike and post-apocalyptic world to be a bit pedestrian.
There is a lot of politically conservative nail-biting along the way. Johnstone had a conservative libertarian worldview and there are endless descriptions of the consequences of the liberal agenda adding to the pre-disaster crisis... without adding much to the plot... except as a sop to please Johnstone fans (To be fair, the publisher note in the front-piece suggests that, since William Johnstone's passing, his niece J.A. Johnstone is the one who wrote the final manuscript using William's outlines and drafts). As a conservative-evangelical-veteran type myself I don't mind much. But others may. Another reason for a three star review.
The book's disappointment for me came toward the end as I realized the bunker leader, Graham Moultrie, was supposed to turn into this complex ego-maniac, morally-conflicted cult-type leader. A sort of post-apocalyptic Colonel Kurtz from Apocalypse Now/Heart of Darkness (both of which are referenced and which I love). There simply wasn't enough character evolution or psychological tension in this novel for that to happen... so it didn't. Although Moultrie was clearly meant to be portrayed that way (Which could have been SO fun!). Probably because William Johnstone... and JA Johnstone for that matter, simply are not those kind of writers. Which will be fine for most people who aren't those kind of readers either.
The Doomsday Bunker is a decent read. Not great but worthy of a rainy afternoon. Especially if the end of the world is your thing. If it is, enjoy!
There is a lot of politically conservative nail-biting along the way. Johnstone had a conservative libertarian worldview and there are endless descriptions of the consequences of the liberal agenda adding to the pre-disaster crisis... without adding much to the plot... except as a sop to please Johnstone fans (To be fair, the publisher note in the front-piece suggests that, since William Johnstone's passing, his niece J.A. Johnstone is the one who wrote the final manuscript using William's outlines and drafts). As a conservative-evangelical-veteran type myself I don't mind much. But others may. Another reason for a three star review.
The book's disappointment for me came toward the end as I realized the bunker leader, Graham Moultrie, was supposed to turn into this complex ego-maniac, morally-conflicted cult-type leader. A sort of post-apocalyptic Colonel Kurtz from Apocalypse Now/Heart of Darkness (both of which are referenced and which I love). There simply wasn't enough character evolution or psychological tension in this novel for that to happen... so it didn't. Although Moultrie was clearly meant to be portrayed that way (Which could have been SO fun!). Probably because William Johnstone... and JA Johnstone for that matter, simply are not those kind of writers. Which will be fine for most people who aren't those kind of readers either.
The Doomsday Bunker is a decent read. Not great but worthy of a rainy afternoon. Especially if the end of the world is your thing. If it is, enjoy!
May 9, 2018
Picked this up expecting a post-apocalyptic survival story, what I got instead was a fearmongering, right-wing boosting power fantasy.
Tip for those who aspire to write books: if you can't leave your beliefs out in your works, maybe you should mention those beliefs prominently in the summaries so normal people know to avoid them. Or better yet, stick to writing YouTube comments on the Info Wars channel instead, I'm sure you'd feel much more at home.
The entire first half of this book is terrorism fearmongering, bashing the "weak" kowtowing president, how the entire world is taking advantage of poor USA and how the media is ignoring the threat of islamic terror attacks (try to read that again and parse it).
Unlike the dumb sheep-like civilian masses, only savvy heroic saints such as the protagonist can truly see how dire the situation has become. The latter is clearly the author's self-insert fantasy: he's ex-military but still in shape and ready to kick ass, as the author reminds you countless times.
He cares deeply for his family, which is also explicitly pointed out to you literally tens of times: he wouldn't want to live without them and would gladly throw away his own life to protect them. Because when a man is selfless and heroic, you need to spell that out ad infinitum so the reader gets it because surely there is no other way to depict that.
The saying "show, don't tell" exists for a reason, but hey who cares about that?
Meanwhile the leftist antagonists are made to be insufferably obnoxious and ungrateful to the point they might as well have been lobotomized. They do illogical suicidal/homicidal actions toward the people that saved them, because we all know that's what liberals are like, right?
Other stuff like constant Second Amendment exaltation, SJW bashing, foreign boogeymen threats and more, comes free of charge as well.
Clearly the book appeals to a small certain audience judging from the ratings, but if you're not part of said audience and you still want to read it for some reason, I highly recommend simply skipping the first half and starting at the second part.
That way you avoid most of the author's fearmongering drivel and you're left with a mediocre story.
Tip for those who aspire to write books: if you can't leave your beliefs out in your works, maybe you should mention those beliefs prominently in the summaries so normal people know to avoid them. Or better yet, stick to writing YouTube comments on the Info Wars channel instead, I'm sure you'd feel much more at home.
The entire first half of this book is terrorism fearmongering, bashing the "weak" kowtowing president, how the entire world is taking advantage of poor USA and how the media is ignoring the threat of islamic terror attacks (try to read that again and parse it).
Unlike the dumb sheep-like civilian masses, only savvy heroic saints such as the protagonist can truly see how dire the situation has become. The latter is clearly the author's self-insert fantasy: he's ex-military but still in shape and ready to kick ass, as the author reminds you countless times.
He cares deeply for his family, which is also explicitly pointed out to you literally tens of times: he wouldn't want to live without them and would gladly throw away his own life to protect them. Because when a man is selfless and heroic, you need to spell that out ad infinitum so the reader gets it because surely there is no other way to depict that.
The saying "show, don't tell" exists for a reason, but hey who cares about that?
Meanwhile the leftist antagonists are made to be insufferably obnoxious and ungrateful to the point they might as well have been lobotomized. They do illogical suicidal/homicidal actions toward the people that saved them, because we all know that's what liberals are like, right?
Other stuff like constant Second Amendment exaltation, SJW bashing, foreign boogeymen threats and more, comes free of charge as well.
Clearly the book appeals to a small certain audience judging from the ratings, but if you're not part of said audience and you still want to read it for some reason, I highly recommend simply skipping the first half and starting at the second part.
That way you avoid most of the author's fearmongering drivel and you're left with a mediocre story.
February 2, 2018
I have never read any of William W Johnstone's work before as I am not much of a western fan, but I can honestly say that I was quite impressed with this book. What can I say except this book read like it was taken from real life and for me was a fun roller coaster ride from start to finish. While there were no zombies in this book, it did a good job of showing how people let their true colors come out in a crisis. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to be entertained and educated at the same time
December 18, 2019
Really good as far as wanting to continue story and liking this sort of plot/environment but the author has a clear agenda in the form of "pwning the snowflake libs" I was wondering why the many mentions of an ar-15. There is a character that he uses as a punching bag and mentions often when they have no part in the current part of the plot at all. He would reference, I bet beth would really hate all this talk about ar-15s and I bet she regrets not bowing down to us and our ar-15s when we let her enter the bunker with us real tough men with our many ar-15s we plan to use in this bunker.
There was a very funny (because it was out of place) line where a panic takes over all the bunker survivors and a non character announces, this sucks more than the Dallas Cowboys football team.
I was half way through and wishing it was authored by a non trump aligned (easy assumption) gun loving "tough guy" trying to prove how his fantasy would really stick it to the libs like dumb Beth who doesn't contribute to the bunker or story besides being constantly used as a target for the authors strongly injected conservative insanity, so I could enjoy it a bit more.
It became mostly me reading to see when the next appearance of the authors own voice would again appear with the insanity fantasy rhetoric of fox news.
There was a very funny (because it was out of place) line where a panic takes over all the bunker survivors and a non character announces, this sucks more than the Dallas Cowboys football team.
I was half way through and wishing it was authored by a non trump aligned (easy assumption) gun loving "tough guy" trying to prove how his fantasy would really stick it to the libs like dumb Beth who doesn't contribute to the bunker or story besides being constantly used as a target for the authors strongly injected conservative insanity, so I could enjoy it a bit more.
It became mostly me reading to see when the next appearance of the authors own voice would again appear with the insanity fantasy rhetoric of fox news.
February 27, 2019
Since William W. Johnston's passed away his wife J A. Johnson has worked to complete books that in the works. Having been a long time fan of Johnston's (read the entire Out Of The Ashes series years ago) I can say that who ever is writing for Mr. Johnston is doing a pretty good job. This book definitely sounding a lot like Mr. Johnston's writings
There seemed to be a lot of time spent on characters at the beginning.. about 130 pages out of 408 which could have been edited out IMO. Generally I like good character development but I found myself bored with this and started skimming. All in all it was an interesting premise about 400 people locked in a converted silo which is their doomsday bunker. As is so typical of these types of books a former U. S Marine is one of our protagonists along with his family. It was an enjoyable read all in all but it took too long to get to where it was an enivitable decision... to leave the bunker and try to live in the destroyed by nuclear bombs world. I would so love another book as a follow up to this one to tell us how those people survived
There seemed to be a lot of time spent on characters at the beginning.. about 130 pages out of 408 which could have been edited out IMO. Generally I like good character development but I found myself bored with this and started skimming. All in all it was an interesting premise about 400 people locked in a converted silo which is their doomsday bunker. As is so typical of these types of books a former U. S Marine is one of our protagonists along with his family. It was an enjoyable read all in all but it took too long to get to where it was an enivitable decision... to leave the bunker and try to live in the destroyed by nuclear bombs world. I would so love another book as a follow up to this one to tell us how those people survived
November 14, 2019
First, I very much dislike these dystopian tales. The real Johnstone assembled a library of books based on the idea. Now a member of the Johnstone stable of ghost writers takes on the subject. Nearly 20 years after the original run, this time a set of characters set themselves in a giant tin can. Also with massive technological differences taken into count. Not well taken into account and far too much leeway is given that technology wouldn't be more involved in the story. This is among the many flaws that make this story more ridiculous than not.
Still, interesting dynamics are presented that has me still considering actual outcomes if the situation occurs.
The book is teeming with very good Johnstone-type characters. More recent Johnstone ghost writers have not been crafting as good characters in books coming out of the stable as in decades past. Setting is weaker as technology seems less understood and often the story seems to actually be set in a giant tin can.
Bottom line: i don't recommend the book. 5 out of ten points.
Still, interesting dynamics are presented that has me still considering actual outcomes if the situation occurs.
The book is teeming with very good Johnstone-type characters. More recent Johnstone ghost writers have not been crafting as good characters in books coming out of the stable as in decades past. Setting is weaker as technology seems less understood and often the story seems to actually be set in a giant tin can.
Bottom line: i don't recommend the book. 5 out of ten points.
March 11, 2018
While Bill Johnstone might not be around anymore, I think this story would have made him proud. A realistic and well-paced scenario that was quite addictive to read. I did find a rather large continuity error where a character does not know about a secret that is kept from them but the next chapter they seem to have discovered it without the reader knowing how, as if a chapter or section was accidentally removed or edited out. Other than that, I really enjoyed this and would welcome a sequel to see what happens with the surviving characters. Interacting online with Bill many years ago on various message boards, I was reluctant to pick up anything that was just using his name to sell books. However, this book had many aspects about it that Bill would have written himself and I plan on picking up more titles by J.A. Johnstone because of this. The man might be gone, but his legacy lives on!
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July 31, 2018If I could give this a rating that had negative stars, I would. Since I can't, this gets no stars at all. The idea behind the story was a good, one, but, it got lost in the political opinions and snide commentary. It was painfully cumbersome to wade through this to even attempt to enjoy this, which is why it took me forever and a day to finish this. I would start to read for a few pages and get annoyed and go read something else instead. Also, the constant reminder of how much the main character loved his wife and family over and over and over again got REALLY tedious. The reader can pick up on it the first times and does not need to be stated every few pages of this 400 page book. I cannot in good faith recommend this book to anyone. If you're looking for a good end of the world series, go read "The Remaining" by D.J. Molles instead. It's much better than whatever this was.
November 8, 2023
Mr. Johnstone has crafted another good adventure. The Doomsday Bunker has believable characters who are very good at what must be done but not so much as to take away from the story. A last ditch survival community built into a disused missile silo and able to house a couple hundred soles. When the unthinkable happens and nuclear war spans the globe the community starts to break down after many months. When survivors are discovered on the surface the situation breaks down entirely and a new beginning must be contemplated.
Like other books by this author this one is pure entertainment geared to a certain audience that will entertain and make you not want to put it down.
Like other books by this author this one is pure entertainment geared to a certain audience that will entertain and make you not want to put it down.
September 25, 2017
This was a not to be put down put.....started it on the way to the lake....every minute I was able I had it open and was burning thru it!!
It is scary that currently you could almost see something stupid like this happening what with what is going on in parts of the world.....are we really that dumb as to put ourselves into this type of situation.....
Makes one think but also worry.....great read and will be on the look out for more from this author as this was my first time reading him!!
I hope everyone that reads it stops and thinks about it!!
It is scary that currently you could almost see something stupid like this happening what with what is going on in parts of the world.....are we really that dumb as to put ourselves into this type of situation.....
Makes one think but also worry.....great read and will be on the look out for more from this author as this was my first time reading him!!
I hope everyone that reads it stops and thinks about it!!
May 10, 2023
Such a good book; the story moves really quickly & you don’t want to put it down. It is a little disturbing of how many things have actually happened that are in the book. (It was published in 2017, & it’s now 2023.) Example: Tensions between Europe/United States & Russia have escalated, especially with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. I’ve already recommended the books to numerous friends. But most importantly, it makes you think… maybe we should be a little more prepared & a little more food independent… maybe we need to relearn some of the survival skills of our ancestors…
June 16, 2018
Not a particularly well written book, fifth or sixth grade level like most mass produced books, but engaging story. I almost didn't finish, but as I had nothing else to read, after I got halfway through I wanted to find out what happens.
Typical scenario in dire circumstances where seclusion, high stress and emotional elements make people act in ways they wouldn't if they weren't struggling to survive.
Typical scenario in dire circumstances where seclusion, high stress and emotional elements make people act in ways they wouldn't if they weren't struggling to survive.
May 4, 2020
I am a fan of post-apocalyptic stories. This one was a bit different from others I've read, but I was totally engaged. There was good character development which made you care what happened to these people. I will admit as others have commented on that there is some definite political leaning that in my opinion was not really necessary. I still enjoyed the story line and hope I never have to deal with the situation they did.
June 29, 2024
This book was slow to get started about page85 it started building.
Unfortunately the story was actually very predictable in how it played out.
I became annoyed with the not subtle current events politics, world enemies against the USA and even the minimal male superiority hint about women not being “allowed” to do a man’s job to protect. 🙄
By the end I just wanted it to end.
Will not be recommending or passing my copy to a friend.
Unfortunately the story was actually very predictable in how it played out.
I became annoyed with the not subtle current events politics, world enemies against the USA and even the minimal male superiority hint about women not being “allowed” to do a man’s job to protect. 🙄
By the end I just wanted it to end.
Will not be recommending or passing my copy to a friend.
December 6, 2020
Oh wow this book was awful, but man it was funny. From the main character that was completely perfect and always made the right decisions to the blatant sexism and racism, this book was extremely fun to laugh at. If you are a Baby Boomer, you would probably like this book. If you think women deserve equal rights, probably not.
February 15, 2021
A good book although at times I thought I was reading a daily newspaper, as to the book being the same as the events that are actually happing today. I believe Johnstone may have had a vision about the future when he wrote this. This was the first book of his I've ever read that hasn't been a Western, but it was still a pretty good read.
February 23, 2023
Quick easy read. Kind of a 21st century Lord of the Flies, without the preaching.
May need to read more by Mr. Johnstone(s). Picked this up to see what I thought of his/their writing, and was entertained enough to explore more. Definitely can see maturity compared to his old "Ashes" stories, which were also entertaining.
May need to read more by Mr. Johnstone(s). Picked this up to see what I thought of his/their writing, and was entertained enough to explore more. Definitely can see maturity compared to his old "Ashes" stories, which were also entertaining.
October 16, 2017
Makes you think!
This book relates a story that unfortunately could happen at any time. The USA had better wake up and return to the God of our Fathers, before something like this happens!
This book relates a story that unfortunately could happen at any time. The USA had better wake up and return to the God of our Fathers, before something like this happens!
June 22, 2018
The world is increasingly unstable. People invest in a place in a former missile silo site. The nukes don't wait until the silo site underground is ready. Some turmoil underground. Will the outside world be liveable again?
September 16, 2019
The Doomsday Bunker, by William Johnstone, is one of my favorite books. It is realistic, while also having a hint of fiction. It was published on September 26th in 2007. William Johnstone was born on October 28th in 1938 and died on February 4th 2004. He died before he could finish writing the book, so his niece, who he taught how to write books, finished it.
It takes place in Dallas, Texas and is about a former marine and his family. Patrick Larkin, the protagonist, and his family, of which includes, his wife, daughter, son in law, and their 2 kids. When countries start to shoot nukes at each other, it’s a race against time to get to the bunker. Luckily, the entire family makes it there, but others aren’t so lucky. The 400 people in the bunker must work together to survive, or be torn apart trying. For all they know, they’re the last people on Earth.
This book is the book that got me into the post-apocalyptic genre. Overall, I rate it a 4/5, while being boring in some parts, it made up for with storytelling. I feel like someone that likes the ‘end of the world’ type genre would enjoy this. The author is known for, Westerns, Horror, Sci-Fi, and Military genres, so if you like those genres, check out his other books.
It takes place in Dallas, Texas and is about a former marine and his family. Patrick Larkin, the protagonist, and his family, of which includes, his wife, daughter, son in law, and their 2 kids. When countries start to shoot nukes at each other, it’s a race against time to get to the bunker. Luckily, the entire family makes it there, but others aren’t so lucky. The 400 people in the bunker must work together to survive, or be torn apart trying. For all they know, they’re the last people on Earth.
This book is the book that got me into the post-apocalyptic genre. Overall, I rate it a 4/5, while being boring in some parts, it made up for with storytelling. I feel like someone that likes the ‘end of the world’ type genre would enjoy this. The author is known for, Westerns, Horror, Sci-Fi, and Military genres, so if you like those genres, check out his other books.
October 19, 2017
Love these over the top books by Wm Johnstone. They are always a guaranteed good read! If you like action books, you will like this book!
October 29, 2017
Dark and apocolyptic, a hard read. Void of most hope, only a small glimmer in the final pages. Most characters were not well developed. Hard to finish this one.
January 8, 2018
Published 2017. Just ok. No new inspiration here and movie of the week plotting (once you get past the liberal/left wing bashing).
August 2, 2018
Decent book. A little boring in places.
February 10, 2019
A must-read novel!
Loved this book, could not put it down! It has definitely helped me think differently about prepping for a disaster. I just started my own family's bug out bags!
Loved this book, could not put it down! It has definitely helped me think differently about prepping for a disaster. I just started my own family's bug out bags!
January 24, 2020
Hoping for a second book! Fast read, captivating.
March 15, 2023
Pretty good post-apocalyptic thriller. I do question how they got so many left-wing liberals to buy into a survilval compound in the first place. It was a good read.
April 14, 2023
Written in 2017 but so relevant today.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews