FIGHT FOR POWER

The struggle for survival in a world suddenly bereft of technology continues immediately from where The Rule of Three (2014) left off.

Adam’s community having successfully defeated a large force of murderous raiders, the neighbors celebrate safety. Ex-CIA Herb, however, warns that peace isn’t just fleeting; it’s deceptively dangerous. Along with worrying about the battle’s survivors—that those left behind guarding the raiders’ compound could regroup—he advises that without a unifying common threat, the community itself will be less easily managed. As Herb predicts, tensions rise inside their walled community over things like rations. Meanwhile, those rations are envied by outsiders who live in nearby neighborhoods, the woods or even in a small cluster of tents right outside their community’s wall. As the community’s sole pilot and therefore crucial for surveillance and reconnaissance, Adam’s all too aware that in this post-apocalyptic world, his community is an island of haves in a sea of have-nots. He struggles to help outsiders as much as possible and frequently argues against Herb’s ruthless pragmatism. Less about physical survival, in this sequel, the conflict concerns the community’s morals and soul. The middle sags as a slow burn of incidents illustrate the outside world’s destabilization, but the pace picks up in the conclusion’s twists and cliffhanger.

Although less action-packed than its predecessor, the philosophical questions and killer ending will prime readers for the next book.