Civil Terror: Gridlock

Jake Bendel Thrillers #1

by J. Luke Bennecke

The autonomous vehicle revolution has arrived. So have the terrorists.

Meet Jake Bendel, a civil engineer in the state of California. Tired of slogging through the infamous LA traffic to get to and from work, he and a team of experts have designed a roadway system for self-driving cars -- negating thousands of traffic-related deaths each year and reducing commute times to minutes instead of hours.

The elation stops when a Syrian terrorist group weaponizes the system and devises a scheme to kill off thousands of Americans in one day. A brilliant psychopath, the leader of the cell, Viktor, hears the voices of both his deceased mother and his god, who influence his every move. While he and his brothers ruthlessly annihilate Americans, all in the name of Allah, Viktor plants evidence and sways the public into convicting Jake of these horrendous crimes against humanity.

One rogue FBI agent believes Jake is innocent. The two discover a mole buried deep inside the FBI and go off the grid to stop Viktor from attacking thousands of innocent drivers in what promises to be the mother of all terror. Can they stop him in time?

A gripping tale from the first page to the last, Civil Terror: Gridlock will pull you to the edge of your seat as your blood pressure skyrockets and you are a taken along a journey that twists and turns its way to the finish line.

Genres: Mystery, Science Fiction, Fiction, Thriller, Post Apocalyptic

463 pages, Paperback

First published March 5, 2018

About the author

J. Luke Bennecke is a veteran civil engineer with a well-spent career helping people by improving Southern California roadways. He has a civil engineering degree, an MBA, a private pilot's certificate, and is CEO of an engineering firm. In his role as philanthropist, he awards scholarships annually to high school seniors.

In addition to his debut novel, bestseller and award-winning Civil Terror: Gridlock, Bennecke has written several other novels and screenplays, a creative process he thoroughly enjoys. His second Jake Bendel thriller, Waterborne, was published originally in 2021 by Black Rose Writing and received several awards. Echo From a Bayou is his newest published suspense thriller with a supernatural twist.

Bennecke resides in Southern California with his wife of over 33 years and three spunky cats. In his leisure time he enjoys traveling, golfing, voiceover acting, and spending time with his grown daughters.

Bennecke is a member of International Thriller Writers and looks forward to attending ThrillerFest every year in New York.

Reviews

["Avonna · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fun, action-packed thriller with a civil engineer stepping up as the protagonist to save the day.

The hero is unlikely, but I cheered for him all the way. The FBI agents were not believable, but their incompetence was necessary for the hero and his friends to save the day. I felt the evil antagonists were over the top and stereotypes, but since I took this entire read as an action-packed, entertaining thriller outside of reality, it worked for me.

I am looking forward to more.

[Amy Ingalls · Rating 3 out of 5]

I won a copy of this book in a Goodreads Giveaway.

Something odd happened while reading this book. I was reading on the Kindle app on my laptop, where the book has sat, unread, since I won it. However, I like using Word runner on the Kindle app on my phone, so I downloaded the book. It wasn't the same-- I now had two different versions of this book. I did see in the reviews that the author was going to revamp the book, and I happened to have the before and after. Since I am an anal person, I spent about 75 pages with phone and computer both open, practically reading the book twice. Anyway, that was yesterday. Today, I kept that laptop closed and just read from the phone, which I believe had the newer, improved version. It cut out some miscellaneous things (levels of consciousness, I am looking at you) and added more chapter breaks and time/date headers, making the action timeline clearer.

The writing was a bit clunky in parts:

"Now," Jake shouted as he stood, pain shooting from his ribs, and forcing the doctor out. (page 360 in my Kindle addition)

Some of the figurative language choices were a bit odd to me as well.

That being said, the idea of an engineer being the MC and having to save the country is brilliant. Also, the idea of driving being automated and someone hacking in is terrifying, and something I have been saying for years. Uh-uh, no thank you.

This book read like an over-to-top action flick, something my husband would watch, and even if some of the scenarios were implausible, I did enjoy the ride.

[Sandy Lender · Rating 1 out of 5]

First, let me say that the premise for this book is fantastic. I loved the idea of blending autonomous vehicle technology with "the grid" and technology DOTs have in place currently for the purpose of streamlining traffic and reducing (or actually eliminating) traffic accidents/fatalities. It's a future we're likely to see in a decade or so, and the idea of a terrorist cell hacking in to manipulate the system once it's set up is a perfect thriller novel...

I attempted to get into this book three times. I wanted to love it. I wanted to get swept up in it and get swirled into an action-adventure-thriller-mystery novel that put a civil engineer in the driver's seat. On this third attempt, I got to page 84 before I gave up.

I can't tell what year the story is supposed to be taking place, but a professor mentions colleagues hiding in bomb shelters they built in the sixties; this puts a limit on how far in the future the action can realistically be happening, yet the main character (Jake) not once in 84 pages attempts to access the Internet via a smart phone...and he's made it very clear that he MUST get on a computer and access the Internet ASAP to start solving problems.

The mechanics of storytelling matter to me, and too many quirky phrasings took me out of the story. Examples: (from page 8, when contemplating being kept in a safehouse) "Similar to the way a dehydrated desert wanderer would crave an entire pool full of cool water, he desired more than anything to be free again and to make sure his family was safe." (from page 9) "He loved his country, but after what he had been through, his faith had been shattered like a cheap wine glass on a Spanish-tile floor." (from page 25, describing the terrorist) "With his sixty-two-year-old arms crossed over his plain white cotton shirt which hung loosely on his chest, and his gray beard with streaks of black running throughout, he swayed back and forth like the pendulum of a grandfather clock on meth." (from page 59, when Jake is talking to two new FBI agents) "They stared at him like hot-headed football coaches at a quarterback who'd thrown a third interception."

In just the first 84 pages, a guard pulls a "hood" out of thin air and an FBI agent pulls a hat and shades out of thin air. It was glaring enough that it bothered me and I stopped to make a note in the margin: "things keep appearing out of thin air". Jake and the professor he goes to visit (and I found it improbable that his FBI agent friend would risk letting him go to a meeting alone, given the danger he's in) have similar problems with cursing. The first time the characters use a "non-curse word," it's almost striking because the narrative and the dialogue are speckled with expletives and unnecessary cursing. It makes the reader think, "oh, hey, this guy must be a goody two shoes and we're getting that signal by the use of a silly word," and then the next time he speaks he uses an f-bomb. So...no. Not a goody two shoes...just strange.

These are things that pulled me from the story, which was being explained and re-explained by Jake and the FBI characters again and again. I fully understand that Jake was part of a team of six engineers who developed an awesome transportation system that took many years and multiple millions of dollars to build and implement. Then a terrorist got in through a back door in the coding and at least five thousand people (as of page 84) are dead. The terrorist is a bad guy. Bad.Guy. But on page 84, the author goes too far for me. I had put up with the needless swearing, the bizarre similes, the wordiness, the cliche FBI characters, Jake's illness every time he was in a small moving vehicle (well, almost every time), the repetition, and a number of grammar mistakes, but when the author stooped to racial slurs on page 84...I quit. I get that the terrorist is to be portrayed as a mentally unstable and totally unlikable dude...but that doesn't mean I have to read those kinds of words. I don't want them in my brain.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

Couldn't put it down

The plot was definitely thought provoking. As an older citizen who is an engineer by education and work experience i was intrigued by this story. I don't know if I could trust a self driving car. This world belongs to the upcoming generation and good luck

[Michele · Rating 5 out of 5]

Every time I hear about cars that drive themselves--I shudder. Yeah traffic can be horrendous--in New York as well as California where this story is based. This dystopian novel will make you think three times before you think that driverless vehicles are a good idea!

A bunch of brilliant civil engineers have devised highways that control the vehicles--no more traffic jams. Great you think--hum but what if a psycho terrorist decides to change a bit of the programming? Massive accidents and death--There is only one of the engineers alive and he has been blamed for the entire mess.

His wife has been killed--his daughter is missing and he and a really good hacker are the only ones who might be able to stop the next terrorist act from occurring. Jake teams up with an FBI agent (somewhat) to try and find the terrorist(s).

How will all this end? I will not be telling you--just get ready for the ride of your life--this book will keep you reading and guessing until the very end.

I received a paperback edition of this book for enjoyment purposes and a possible review.
Civil Terror: Gridlock

[Carleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A thriller on so many levels

What a read! It is terrifying to read this book because the reader can easily picture this happening in today's society. The author keeps the reader on their toes and wanting to find out more. There are moments that seem confusing but it all makes sense after a while. Keep with the story, it only gets better. I would highly recommend this book to mature readers. There are many concepts in this book that the reader can identify actually occurring in our world today. This actually makes this book all the more terrifying. The author pulls the reader into this book and you become enmeshed with the characters. If you are one to experience nightmares, I would read this book during the daylight hours. This is definitely a book you won't want to put down!

[Hannah Hale · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting and somewhat educational

This is a very enticing story that shows the reader the potential dangers of terrorism in our country. While frightening at times due to the potential for the events actually happening in our current world, the book is also somewhat educational in teaching and showing the signs to prevent such an attack. This book is very well written and keeps the reader interested and wanting to know just what will happen next!

[Sandra Vdplaats · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was fascinated by the title of this book: Civil Terror Gridlock, and to be honest, that was also the reason I chose this novel: Gridlock is, in fact, the title of a Dr Who episode, and one of my favourite; it is set in the distant future on New Earth, with the planet's inhabitants spending much of their lives in their cars, floating in their cars in an underground traffic jam.

The author also highlights at the beginning of the book how many traffic deaths there are every year in the US alone, and that a self-driving system - Sür Network - is being set up.

I tried several times to finish reading the book, but each time I got stuck halfway through. This is certainly not the author's fault - the writing style is fantastic and, as mentioned, I find the concept fascinating. I don't have a driving licence myself.

[Barb · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh, how I wish I’d read this before “Waterborne” as I would have better understood the characters and the continuing plot lines. So if you are so inclined, read this one first. I thoroughly enjoyed civil engineer Jake Bendel and FBI agent Cavanaugh’s race to stop terrorist Viktor Johnston’s plan to kill millions of Americans. Since I read the second book, some of the plot tension was alleviated but it still was a fun escape for a few hours. It helped that I had lived in southern California & was familiar with the area and the highway system.

[Kate · Rating 5 out of 5]

It isn’t far-fetched that, not too long into the future, self driving cars are no longer just being tested, but are actually used as an efficient way to reduce traffic congestion and solve highway gridlock problems.

Civil Engineer J. Luke Bennecke’s Civil Terror: Gridlockthrills with an oh-so potentially true page turner about what might happen if we don’t account for the risks inherent in handing over such an important function to computers… which can fail or be maliciously hacked.

The fast paced story centers around Civil Engineer Jake Bendel, who has relished success as a member of a team of six who designed and implemented a national self-driving network. But a terrorist cell compromises the system, wreaking havoc and a rapidly rising death toll. What’s more, the media makes Jake out to be the scapegoat, threatening his chances of finding the true culprits — who are now bent on killing him and everyone in his life.

The first in a four book series, Civil Terror: Gridlock is a cautionary tale at the intersection of advances in the self-driving automobile industry and our nation’s very real fear of extreme religious terrorism. It is excellent at interspersing action with sequences of strategy. Only the sporadic “higher consciousness” theology insertions seemed unnecessary (and a bit preachy).

It may be fictional, but Civil Terror: Gridlock is a very plausible and timely scenario that offers readers both adventure and anxiety. Written so realistically by an actual Civil Engineer, and with just enough distrust of the powers that be: FBI, police, press… readers will find themselves eagerly awaiting the inevitable sequel.

*The reviewer received an advance copy of this book for the purposes of this review.

[Chessy The Cat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jake Bendel doesn’t remember how he got to the FBI safehouse. What he does knows is that his roadway system for self-driving cars is killing people. And, the world has been led to believe that he is behind it. Will he and a rogue FBI agent be able to find and stop whomever the real culprits are before the unthinkable happens?

Bennecke’s first novel, Gridlock is the first of the Civil Terror series. It is set in the near future but with an old-world nemesis. All Jake, a civil engineer, ever wanted was to make the world a better place, a safer place. Now, his technology is being turned into a weapon of mass destruction. By whom? How? And to what end? His daughter is missing, and she believes him to be dead. The FBI isn’t so sure that he is innocent. FBI Special Agent Jose Cavanaugh feels that Jake is a pawn in someone’s hideous scheme to murder thousands of Americans. Even after being removed from Jake’s part of the case he continues working to help find those responsible.

This is a gripping tale of terrorism with an unlikely protagonist. It is intriguing as well as captivating.

5 out of 5 stars for the re-release version.

[Debbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Of you like thrillers and twist and turns you will enjoy this book.
Jake Bendel is a Civil Engineer who has spent his career helping people by improving transportation system in California he and his team of six design a roadway system which involved self driving cars hoping to end thousands of traffic deaths and reducing commute time. Until a terrorist weaponizes the system and wants to kill thousands of Americans simply by the computer codes. One by one the team members are killed and only one is left Jake Bendel. I enjoyed reading this mystery thriller and you will too. Find out what happens ⭐

[Debra B · Rating 5 out of 5]

When you consider the current state of world affairs and recent news articles about self-driving automobile mishaps, the premise for this book isn't out of the realm of reality in a futuristic society. The characters were well thought out and very believable. I was drawn in from the first chapter and couldn't put this book down. I look forward to reading more from this author!

[Debi Stout · Rating 3 out of 5]

Civil Terror: Gridlock is a fast-paced story that centers around Jake Bendel who is a successful civil engineer. He's a member of a team of six who designed and put into action a national self-driving network. This group of civil engineers have devised highways that control the vehicles -- meaning no more traffic jams. 

A terrorist cell impairs the system, which causes widespread destruction and a rising death toll. Jake ends up being the scapegoat of the media's uproar since he is the only civil engineer remaining alive.  This threatens his chances of finding the true criminals and increases his chance of getting killed by those same criminals who have already killed his wife.  Jake's daughter is missing and he and a really good hacker are the only ones who might be able to stop the next terrorist act from occurring.

Maybe Christmas just isn't the best time to be reading a book like this one, I'm just not sure. While I understand this book will be the first in a series of four books,  I'm not so sure this book was for me and I don't think I could read the rest of the series either.  You'll have to decide for yourself if the book is for you.  I don't think futuristic highways and self-moving cars are my "thing".  Another issue that seemed to be odd to me is this: Both the author himself and the protagonist in this story (Jake) live in California, they both work as civil engineers, they both went to the same schools, have older daughter..... hmmmmmmmm... 

J. Luke Bennecke is a native Californian and a 25-year veteran civil engineer who has spent his career helping people by improving transportation systems in Southern California. Like most commuters, he longs for the day when traffic congestion is a thing of the past and highway fatalities are a distant memory. He has a BS in civil engineering from Cal Poly Pomona, an MBA from Cal State San Bernardino, a private pilot's certificate, and is a partner in the successful firm, Southstar Engineering, based in Riverside. 

He has been happily married to the woman of his dreams, Tammy, for two-and-a-half-decades and enjoys spending time with his grown daughters.

I was provided with a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for my review.  I was not required to post a positive review, just an honest one, which I have done.

[Literary Reviewer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dr. Jake Bendel, a pioneering civil engineer, and his team of experts embark on a colossal project to create self-driving cars, aiming to eliminate traffic congestion and accidents. With billions of dollars invested, the groundbreaking technology was widely accepted and integrated into all road networks. However, devastating terrorist attacks soon claimed the lives of thousands of innocent people, leaving Jake to question what went wrong.

As evidence surfaces incriminating Jake as the mastermind behind the attacks, he finds himself imprisoned for his alleged involvement. Jake was part of a team of expert engineers known as the Super Six, of which he is the only surviving member. In time, the team realizes that their technology has been hijacked by terrorists to cause severe damage to the country. An ingenious individual had penetrated the software and was responsible for the catastrophic mishaps. The FBI collaborates with Jake to uncover the root cause of the problem and neutralize any further attacks, faking Jake’s death to facilitate their investigation.

J. Luke Bennecke’s Civil Terror: Gridlock is a thrilling work of fiction that provides insight into the future of advanced AI. The novel explores the pros and cons of utilizing self-driving vehicles and depicts the intelligent and patriotic Jake as its main character and protagonist. While he sometimes struggles with his emotions, his overall goodness shines through.

Viktor, the intriguing and malevolent genius and antagonist of the story, captured my attention the most. I was surprised by how someone could be brainwashed into committing heinous crimes in the name of religion. His intelligence could have been better utilized if not for his association with the wrong people. The characterization is top-notch, and while I enjoyed the novel, I feel that the plot accelerated too quickly in the middle.

Civil Terror: Gridlock is a gripping technothriller that boasts exceptional editing, a good story, and an engaging plot. I highly recommend this book to anyone who fancies a thrilling, action-packed read filled with conspiracy theories and terrorist plots unfolding.

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received an ARC through "NetGalley" and I am voluntarily leaving an honest review.

This is a story about terrorist attack technological advances that were developed to make driving safer. The initial attack result in several thousand victims injured or killed. Another attack is even worse. The terrorist also attempted to kill all of the members of the Super Six. They almost succeeded, but one member was still alive, Jake Bendel. Jake was pulled out of the fire by an FBI agent named Jose Cavanaugh. Cavanaugh placed Jake in a safe house for his protection. It finally came time for Jake to be moved and he was then taken to FBI hdqts in L.A. Because the terrorists had planted false information with the media, Jake was their main suspect. When they arrived, Cavanaugh was immediately needed because one of the agents had the boss as a hostage. The crisis ended. but the boss took Cavanaugh off the case.

Two other agents were assigned as Jake's minders. Jake was also concerned about his daughter since he hadn't heard from her. He left the new safe house to find her. Once he returned with her, he was more at ease helping. Jake ultimately received help from Paige and David as the searched for Viktor, the terrorist responsible for the attacks. More events were planned and Jake and his team raced to stop them from creating more deaths. One major event was scheduled and Jake along with Paige wound up going to Big Bear to find Viktor. Once they arrived, they were captured and eventually delivered to Viktor to dispose of them.

To discover how Viktor played a role, what events Jake was being blamed for, who Machael was and how everything played out in the end, then you need to read this book.

[Violet · Rating 3 out of 5]

I couldn't finish this book, and its prob for the best . It has an interesting premise. The highways and traffic of the US finally becomes automated through the 100 % use of self driving cars making traveling on highways 99% safer. Until the system is hacked, killing 6000 drivers in one colossal event.

I found the character Jake unlikable, worse he's practically based off of the author. Both author and Jake live in California, work as civil engineers, went to the same schools, have older daughter and etc . For all intents and purposes they are the same person.

In the author's defense a 25 year old black girl probably wasn't his intended audience. This book is probably more for the crowd that's in there 40s + , white, college educated , Christian and conservative . I do think the author had good intentions he wanted to write an interesting book about Civil engineers, a career that many people know little about.

[Cheryl · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked this book. It was fast paced. Although, this is a time where the story started moving so fast that I did have a bit of trouble in the beginning keeping all of the characters straight that were coming at me instantly. The main lead, Jake is good. He was interesting and had a good personality.

The concept for this book is believable. With today's world and all of the things that we relay on for technology, is not that far off to believe that someone(s) could hack into a system and cause havoc. I read a book a while ago about how easy it could be for someone to take down our power system and cause a wide spread power blackout.

While I did like this book, at times it seemed to go on very long. In fact, the book could have been about a hundred pages less and still kept the overall aesthetics of the story without missing anything. On the other hand I could see this book being made into a movie.

[Louise · Rating 4 out of 5]

The perspectives switch between Jake and Viktor to demonstrate both sides of the story. Jake contributes to saving multiple lives by amending the traffic routes. However, the one factor Jake cannot control is a terror attack. The story is fast-paced and action-packed as Jake, Cavanaugh, and colleagues attempt to stop a forthcoming attack.


I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Tammie Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

This one makes you think twice about getting a self-driving car! Bennecke does a great job of explaining how the new tech works and shows how it can be weaponized if controls are in the wrong hands. I also like how familiar the setting feels since I grew up in Southern California and recognize a lot of the places and freeways in the book.

[Ky-ndly · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed the plot device but not the constant use of confusing computer jargon and the insufferable and innumerable statements by Jake blaming himself for the deaths of innocent human beings rather than the terrorists...only to change his mind, over and over, and correctly place the blame on the guilty parties.

[my · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this a while back, but I remember it being an enjoyable read. I don't think I've ever read a book where the protagonist is a civil engineer before. Pretty neat and definitely gave me a greater interest in civil engineering which I believe is one of the authors motivations. In another life, I could see myself being a civilization engineer -- that's pretty cool!

[Rick Molitor · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overwhelmed

This might have been a goid book if there was not so much crammed into it. The story was pretty good but everything in the book was over the top. It was like someone was trying to impress you instead of just telling a good story.

[Connie Murphy · Rating 2 out of 5]

A bit predictable...and I wasn't so impressed with the crazed former co-worker hearing Allah in his head tell him to kill everyone. I was hoping for so much more.

[Nancy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I won this in a Goodreads giveaway.
Good premise but a bit too much with the crazed Muslim terrorist. The constant catastrophes for the protagonist was a bit over the top too.

[Patricia Mccammon · Rating 3 out of 5]

A scary scenario. Self-driving cars and terrorists attacks. Well written book possibly a little too technical but that's just my opinion. Won this in a giveaway

[Jamy Welch · Rating 5 out of 5]

book two not marked

Great but I read book two first, why wasn’t the top of every paged marked like book one? Still page turner even if read incorrect order.

[Greg D]

DNF

[Nancy Fagan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Intrigue

Loved it. Fast paced with lots going on. An opening left for a possible book two. I recommend the book.

[Lavender]

Placeholder

I won this book via Goodreads Giveaways.