The Nightmare Begins

by Jerry Ahern

Book Overview

World War III is now a bloody page in American history. With nuclear holocaust killing more than a quarter-billion people worldwide and the United States just a memory, John Thomas Rourke, ex-CIA... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0821724762
• ISBN13: 9780821724767
• Release Date: January 1981
• Publisher: Zebra Books
• Weight: 0.30 lbs.

Customer Reviews

Wow Exciting !!!

Get the Audiobooks, they are really very good. There is always something strange going on that you wouldn't think of. Technically and historically accurate and the narrative describes the characters magnificently. This series keeps me absorbs.

Mindless fun....

This novel is a classic from the hardcore survival days. The heroes are larger than life, the villians are evil and eat babies ( just kidding about that ), and every problem has a solution. It's a fun series that became just too campy about the 5th or 6th book, but if you're interested in firearms or survivalism, they're worth the read for what they are.

Let the fun begin

The thing with series is that the author has time to really introduce the characters, set the scene get everything set up for future novels. A good series, that is. Survivalist 2: The Nightmare Begins, is a character set up. Mr. Ahern took his time introducing another major Character, Natalia Tiermerovna, as well as several minor but important Characters, such as the new president of the United States Chambers. The thing is, if all you had were heroes in a novel, it would be rather dull. You need antagonists as well, and this novel introduces the main antagonist, Vladimir Karamatsov. He's the head of the KGB in America and as well Natalia's husband. It's been said that your hero is only as good as the antagonist is bad. The worse the villian the greater the hero. It's been so long since I read the series, I can't remember how bad this particular antagonist is. I guess as each volume comes out my memory will return. Now, in the first novel, you were introduced to John T. Rourke and his family. The action was there, but it took a back seat in setting up the events that lead to the nuclear exchange between Russia and the United States. This novel was more action packed, along with being character driven. There were far more gun battles than in Total War. The thing about a major disaster, or in this case, the nuclear holocaust, is that it shows what happens to people when everything falls apart. There are some people, folks who would never have thought of raising a fist in violence before the disaster struck, who would suddenly revert to savagery in order to survive. Maybe the shock and horror of what happened caused them to crack under pressure. Who knows. But with the venier of civilization, as well as law and order stripped away, it became a dog eat dog world, where only the strongest and most ruthless would survive. The same can be said for the real world. Look at what happened in New Orleans last year when the hurricane struck. Sure, the best of humanity shone like a star, but there was also the opposite end of the spectrum. There were those who took advantage of what happened and became predators during the short period of time when the city was all but a lawless wasteland. So, imagine what would happen on a global scale, and this is what Jerry Ahern got across in the novel. That's what set the Survivalist apart from the other series that existed back in the 80's. Even the soviet occupation forces where shown as human, not mindless butcherers. Yes, people were killed, people in the resistance, but at the same time, when John and Paul were captured by Vladimir, they were treated with human decsencey and respect. Paul's life was saved by their doctors. With the loss of infrastructure and order, there are few things left that a man can possess other than his life. One of the most important traits a man can retain is his honour. A man without honour is nothing more than a outlaw. Someone who sticks to his word, who abides by h

great fun reading with loads of action!

If you like great action/adventure reading - then this is a must! You will like the characters male and female. The hero Rourke is cool and tough, making his away across nuclear-blighted america to find his lost wife and kids, battling brigands as well as russians all the way. This is where he meets up with the russian special agent Natalia, whom males readers won't get enough of...believe me!