Powerless

Usual disclaimer: I was given a print copy of Powerless by Tim Washburn for review.

As the title (and cover) imply, Powerless is the fictional account of a world wide collapse of the power grid caused by solar activity.

Author Tim Washburn takes an every-man approach to the story. It is not sensationalist doom and gloom like we see in the media today.  It is however, a very sobering book for that exact reason. Powerless, while pointing out how a government may handle such an incident, focuses more on how the average person is impacted. It does not preach about our reliance on electrically powered technology, but shows the effects.

No secret that I like post apocalyptic stories, so Powerless is right up my alley. Washburn does not rely on mass rioting and savagery to highlight the disintegration of society. He instead focuses on individual characters experiences. Some do okay, others not so much. A good balance, not an all is lost kind of story. The primary characters are honorable, even the politicians (remember, it's a fictional account). The bad guys don't get center stage.

I suppose a reader can see Powerless as a "message" book, but I don't read it that way. I read it as and action/adventure story with good characters, a believable plot, and a very entertaining presentation. Yes there is violence, but not exceedingly so. And of course there is romance and even sex (not violent, or rape). It will make you think: What would I do...? I don't think this book will inspire a wave of "prepperism", but then again?


Powerless by Tim Washburn is certainly worthy of a look. Enjoy!


Mike