The Dark Age (Survivors of the Pulse, #2)

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The Dark Age (Survivors of the Pulse #2)

by Jeff W. Horton (Goodreads Author)

4.11 of 5 stars 4.11 · rating details · 36 ratings · 13 reviews

Suppose you learned that an ancient prophecy about an artifact, said to be powerful enough to dramatically change the world, was true. Would you risk everything to find it?

It has been five-hundred years since the Pulse caused the Great Collapse, ending the Golden Age, and civilization on planet Earth. Humanity has waited ever since for a long-anticipated sign from God, whi...more

Paperback, 333 pages

Published July 15th 2011 by World Castle Publishing (first published June 19th 2011)

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Nov 11, 2012 Leona Olson rated it 5 of 5 stars

The Dark Age Survivors Of The Pulse by Jeff Horton
The Dark Age
Survivors Of The Pulse
By
Jeff W. Horton
World Castle Publishing
Pensacola, Florida
Copyright © Jeff W. Horton 2011
ISBN: 9781937085872
Library of Congress Catalogue Number 2011928105
First Edition World Castle Publishing July 15, 2011http://www.worldcastlepublishing.com
Licensing Notes
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner
whatsoever without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations...more

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Jul 16, 2012 Sheila rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: christian, cultural, current_issues, scifi-fantasy, spiritual, suspense

An EMP pulse has plunged earth’s civilizations into a dark age. For 500 years the Effect has lingered in the sky. But now a new age is dawning, either to terror or to hope.

Jeff W. Horton imagines a fascinating post-apocalyptic future history in The Dark Age, Survivors of the Pulse. Some of the premises may seem a little odd but they fit the form of the novel perfectly, rather like rules to an adventure board game. Forces of light and dark gather for war across the countryside. Seven items must b...more

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Oct 14, 2011 L_manning rated it 4 of 5 stars

After "The Pulse," an EMP disaster has destroyed all technology on the planet, mankind has sunk into a new Dark Age. Without technology people struggled to survive, and the great cities of old were largely abandoned except by roaming packs of "urbas," wild people who will kill anything in their path. There is one united Christian church and a mysterious warrior clan. There is also an evil tyrant named Kraken, who is bent on taking over the world by any means necessary. The church and the warrior...more After "The Pulse," an EMP disaster has destroyed all technology on the planet, mankind has sunk into a new Dark Age. Without technology people struggled to survive, and the great cities of old were largely abandoned except by roaming packs of "urbas," wild people who will kill anything in their path. There is one united Christian church and a mysterious warrior clan. There is also an evil tyrant named Kraken, who is bent on taking over the world by any means necessary. The church and the warriors have united to find an ancient artifact called the Oracle, that it is said will bring the world into another Golden Age. It will take a combination of brains and cunning for a group of brave men to find the Oracle and bring great hope to humanity.

I found this book fascinating. It really draws you in from the beginning. The world is scarily believable. I know people have discussed what an massive EMP could do to the world, and this book takes that to an extreme. The world is in a Dark Age, and people are just struggling to survive. They wish for a better world though. Through hints and riddles, a group of people are able to go out and find a vital relic of sorts that survived The Pulse. With this, they are hoping to not have to fight for survival but instead thrive. This book covers the search for this artifact and deals with the battle with Kraken. Kraken is a despot who is determined to have everyone and everything under his rule. His cruel methods make him a formidable enemy for sure. Our heroes face much peril, and you can't help but cheer for them as they journey.

The characters were interesting. I particularly liked Alex, an archaeologist of sorts and Farrell, a great warrior with an interesting past. This book also had a really good pace. Things moved along at a fairly fast clip, but it was never too fast. Another interesting aspect to this book was the talk of religion. It seemed to have a fairly Christian viewpoint, and characters were often discussing the role of religion in their world. There is some action and some romance. I really enjoyed this book. It seemed like a frightening yet believable possibly reality. It was a really great read.

Book provided for review.
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Aug 11, 2011 Krystal rated it 4 of 5 stars

The first quality the reader will notice about this novel is the detail the author cleverly inserts. The reader will be able to picture the environment, atmosphere, and characters; he/she will understand what is going on, even though this is definitely a complicated novel. This novel is almost a typical good versus evil novel, but the author takes the concept and makes it his own. The characters are easy to get to know and the main characters are likable. There is the evil antagonist, Kraken, wh...more

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Apr 18, 2012 Tammy K. rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: christian-fiction, futuristic, science-fiction, goodreads-author, dystopian, adventure, action-combat-battle, apocalypse-post-apocalypse, read-for-review

First things first, I received a free copy of this book by the author (via goodreads.com group Shutup and Read) for a fair and honest review. However, I do not know the author personally.

I give this book three stars because it was well written, whether or not I agree with the authors spiritual views. I think three stars is an average read.

In the year 2025 a massive solar flare erupts sending an EMP pulse so strong as to totally destroy life as we know it.
500 years in the future, the world lives...more First things first, I received a free copy of this book by the author (via goodreads.com group Shutup and Read) for a fair and honest review. However, I do not know the author personally.

I give this book three stars because it was well written, whether or not I agree with the authors spiritual views. I think three stars is an average read.

In the year 2025 a massive solar flare erupts sending an EMP pulse so strong as to totally destroy life as we know it.
500 years in the future, the world lives much the same way as it did in the time of the medieval age.
The remaining population has clustered in groups. The warrior clan being founded by former military survivors. The Christian church holds itself as the keepers of the knowledge of the salvation of mankind. The evil Kraken and his followers. (who are bent on conquering the known land) and various small farm villages. The former cities of the old world are controlled by gang like bands which rob, steal from, and murder anyone who enter their domain.
Through the generations, stories have been passed down that one day a sign will come. When that sign comes, the survivors are to seek out the oracle which contains the means to bringing back civilization.
As the predicted time approaches the remaining groups of survivors band together in a two goal effort of finding the Oracle and defeating the evil Kraken.

What I liked about the book: There was plenty of action, combat scenes, each character contain sufficient back story to understand their motivations and actions.
The settings were described in such a way that it made it possible for me to easily visualize them.
It is clear the author put in a lot of time and effort into his work.
The plot was well executed and there was a fair amount of resolution in the end.
The book has a few grammar/spelling flaws, but they do not in anyway take away from the flow of the storyline. (Although the copy I got had some strange page, title, authors placements).

What did not work for me about the book. I say this gently, but mean it firmly there is a large portion of religious content. To the point that I simply had to skim over those parts. A little bit of spiritual explanation is ok, but when (as in this case) a fair amount of the books content is to spread the authors spiritual belief, it can be distracting. I am sure the author meant it to be educational and to some it might be, but it fly's in the face of my personal beliefs and I found myself feeling like I was getting lectured.

Another thing that stands out as not the best approach to appealing to a broad range of readers was the outdated way the women are talked to (and about) in this book. Example: I am sure in the 1950's it would have been acceptable to tell a woman to remember her place and do the 'womans' role (you can not be a fighter no matter how good you are at it, you must be a healer) and then mock her for asking to be treated as an equally capable individual, but those times are long gone.

I do not mind reading Christian Fiction works in general. Most of the Christian fiction that I have read (and enjoyed) tend to have the faith of their characters as secondary aspect in the plot. In that their faith is shown by their actions and in the reasoning of their decisions, rather than lengthy dialogues between the characters.

Do I recommend this book? I am sure there are others out there that will enjoy this book, likely those who like Conservative Christian fiction. (less)

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Sep 14, 2011 kimyunalesca rated it 4 of 5 stars

4.5 stars.A very well written,simple yet complicated plot that takes the readers to a time where earth and its people striving and survival seems almost impossible yet there’s always hope!

I like and enjoyed reading this! it took me and made me want the good guys to succeed the battle at the end.All the things written here seems all so real and about to happen which I hope and pray would not. The characters I love! some I hate with a passion which made them so effective all their emotions, dilemm...more

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Sep 17, 2012 Terri rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: apocalyptic-dystopian-fiction, christian-themed

500 years before an EMP took out all technology and the world descended into a new Dark Age. But now the effects of the pulse are finally wearing off and two groups (The Clansmen - warriors and The Catholic Church) are looking for pieces of a map which will lead the way to find The mysterious Oracle which is prophesied to begin the new Golden Age. However, if this power ends up in the wrong hands like the villianous Kraken, it could make the Dark Age seem wonderful in comparison.

This is the seco...more

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Apr 25, 2012 ⚝ Ŧáẅņá ⚝ rated it 3 of 5 stars

This is more of a 3.5...I am rating this book as 3.5 stars because it didn't completely hold my attention. I wanted to know what happened in the end, but I wasn't sure I wanted to sit there and actually read it. However, I would have loved loved to sit and watch this as a movie!!!!

The Story
Five-hundred years ago the sun sent out an EMP and that energy got trapped in the Earth's magnetic field causing all electrical equipment to quit working and not come back online again. The world is now living...more This is more of a 3.5...I am rating this book as 3.5 stars because it didn't completely hold my attention. I wanted to know what happened in the end, but I wasn't sure I wanted to sit there and actually read it. However, I would have loved loved to sit and watch this as a movie!!!!

The Story
Five-hundred years ago the sun sent out an EMP and that energy got trapped in the Earth's magnetic field causing all electrical equipment to quit working and not come back online again. The world is now living like they are in the Dark Ages and the church has heard of a story to bring life back to it's full glory again. Farrell is of the Warrior Clan who can fight like no other!! He is a badass. Alex and his daughter are awesome too, he is someone who searches and finds things all sneaky like....Indiana Jones-esq. Kraken is the evil bad guy who is sadistic and will turn the world into hell on earth basically. This is an epic story about God and the people who have decided to take on evil.

Likes
--I liked the storyline for the most part. It flowed well and the ideas seemed well thought out.
--The authors point of view of God stayed consistent through out and the characters were well developed and grew through out the book.

Dislikes
--I didn't like that I didn't know that this was going to be such a God-centric book, so I wasn't prepared for that and I wish I would have been. I mean, I knew it was going to have religion in it, but it was way way more than I expected.
--The fact that there were soooooo many characters right off the bat. I got a bit confused as to who was who and I probably shoulda taken notes at first.
--The conversations were sometimes a little to technical/clinical. Not how someone would actually form a sentence if they were saying it out loud....or that's how it seemed to me.

Conclusion
This is a good post-apocalyptic type of story, warriors and evil doers and sword fights and action and armies clashing in battle. Personally, not a story I wanted to read and would have rather watched as a movie. If you are in to epic battle scenes and people coming together to help the world....read this book. (less)

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Oct 01, 2011 Linda rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: young adults

Recommended to Linda by: Author

This was a well written book of the world after being in the golden age is cast into the dark ages. What the cities have deteriorated after 500 years of neglect. The time is coming to return to the Golden age, but the Oracle must be found.Against all odds the search is on.

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Jul 08, 2011 Rick F. rated it 5 of 5 stars

simply brilliant- must read- original and gripping- unique characters and situations- a major accomplishment

Rick Friedman
Founder- THE JAMES MASON COMMUNITY BOOK CLUB

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Mar 03, 2013 Valerie rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: kindle, sci-fi-and-fantasy, new-to-me-authors

Couldn't finish this one...only made it through the first 6 chapters. I love a good dystopian novel, so I was looking forward to this read. Unfortunately, the religious element in this book was way too strong for my tastes. I don't mind an occasional Biblical reference here and there, or having the faith/spirituality of the characters brought in as character-building aspects of their personalities. But religion is an integral part of the plot of this book, and I found myself feeling uncomfortabl...more

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May 24, 2012 Steven rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: jeff-horton

An extremely thought provoking journey filled with impressive action scenes, entertaining characters, and an interesting landscape to wrap the readers mind around.

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Jun 26, 2012 SM Johnson rated it 3 of 5 stars

The Dark Age was well-written and seemed well-plotted, but isn't a genre I feel particularly engaged by, so while it was very readable, I didn't love it. This could be purely because it isn't the type of story I normally enjoy. If you like epic level post-apocalyptic stories, this one might do you just fine.

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About Jeff W. Horton

Jeff Horton was born in North Dakota, the youngest son of a career Air Force master sergeant, where he spent the first four years of his life before moving to North Carolina. A voracious reader growing up, he enjoyed reading everything from comic books to The Bible, including stories by many popular authors such as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, H.G. Wells, Jules Verne, Edgar Rice Burroughs, Michael Cric...more

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