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The Pulse #1
The Pulse
A novel of when America's grid goes black
THE END OF THE ELECTRIC AGE As massive solar flares bombard the Earth, an intense electromagnetic pulse instantly destroys the power grid throughout North America. Within hours, desperate citizens panic and anarchy descends. Surrounded by chaos, Casey Drager, a student at Tulane University, must save herself from the havoc in the streets of New Orleans. Casey and two of her friends bug out to the dangerous backwaters of Mississippi where they are forced to use their survival skills to seek refuge and fight for their lives. Meanwhile, thousands of miles away, Casey's father, Artie, finds himself cut off and stranded. His Caribbean sailing vacation has turned into every parent's nightmare. Warding off pirates and tackling storms, Artie uses the stars to guide him toward his daughter. The Pulse is a compelling action-adventure novel that reveals what it would take to survive in a world lit only by firelight, where all the rules have changed and each person must fend for himself.
THE END OF THE ELECTRIC AGE As massive solar flares bombard the Earth, an intense electromagnetic pulse instantly destroys the power grid throughout North America. Within hours, desperate citizens panic and anarchy descends. Surrounded by chaos, Casey Drager, a student at Tulane University, must save herself from the havoc in the streets of New Orleans. Casey and two of her friends bug out to the dangerous backwaters of Mississippi where they are forced to use their survival skills to seek refuge and fight for their lives. Meanwhile, thousands of miles away, Casey's father, Artie, finds himself cut off and stranded. His Caribbean sailing vacation has turned into every parent's nightmare. Warding off pirates and tackling storms, Artie uses the stars to guide him toward his daughter. The Pulse is a compelling action-adventure novel that reveals what it would take to survive in a world lit only by firelight, where all the rules have changed and each person must fend for himself.
400 pages, Paperback
First published July 10, 2012
98 people are currently reading
333 people want to read
About the author
Scott B. Williams
138 books61 followersScott B. Williams has been writing about his adventures for more than twenty-five years. His published work includes dozens of magazine articles and twenty-five books, with more projects currently underway.
His interest in backpacking, sea kayaking and sailing small boats to remote places led him to pursue the wilderness survival skills that he has written about in his popular survival nonfiction books and travel narratives such as On Island Time: Kayaking the Caribbean, an account of a two-year solo kayaking expedition he undertook at age 25.
With the release of The Pulse: A Novel of Surviving the Collapse of the Grid in 2012, Scott moved into writing fiction full time. His post-apocalyptic and action & adventure stories draw heavily on his personal wilderness and ocean experiences to create believable scenarios often set in dire circumstances. To learn more about his upcoming books or to contact Scott, visit his website: www.scottbwilliams.com
His interest in backpacking, sea kayaking and sailing small boats to remote places led him to pursue the wilderness survival skills that he has written about in his popular survival nonfiction books and travel narratives such as On Island Time: Kayaking the Caribbean, an account of a two-year solo kayaking expedition he undertook at age 25.
With the release of The Pulse: A Novel of Surviving the Collapse of the Grid in 2012, Scott moved into writing fiction full time. His post-apocalyptic and action & adventure stories draw heavily on his personal wilderness and ocean experiences to create believable scenarios often set in dire circumstances. To learn more about his upcoming books or to contact Scott, visit his website: www.scottbwilliams.com
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 62 reviews
May 18, 2013
You know how it sounds fake when a a person who doesn't like you speaks civilly to you?
That's how all dialog(internal or external) in this book read. It all sounded extremely forced.
That's how all dialog(internal or external) in this book read. It all sounded extremely forced.
August 29, 2012
Oh, Mr. Williams. Who told you this book was ready for publishing? You either need a better editor, or you need to hire a ghostwriter.
I love post-apocalyptic novels, so I stuck with the book to the end. But it was a colossal waste of time. Don't bother with it.
I love post-apocalyptic novels, so I stuck with the book to the end. But it was a colossal waste of time. Don't bother with it.
December 26, 2017
Artie and his brother Larry are sailing a boat to St Thomas but near the end of the journey an EMP hits. Getting ashore safely, they plan how to get back safely to America. Artie's daughter Casey is stuck on campus in New Orleans but teams up with prepper Grant to try to leave the city.
Artie and Larry are interesting enough and I could happily have stuck with their story and read on with it, despite the info dumps about every system on the boat. I think their journey home might have had some interest. However, we alternate that with the trope filled Casey story. Ooh the world has ended and it could get scary but Grant is so HOT and this is a great excuse to hang out with him! Oh please! Her whiny friend Jessica spends the whole book complaining about her dreadful boyfriend but demands he comes with them if they go. Both girls then drag their heels over every suggestion Grant makes. If I was Grant, I'd have left them all behind instead of wasting precious time trying to convince them to go to his safe cabin! Stupid teen angst nonsense switched me off from the book and I lost all interest in it.
Artie and Larry are interesting enough and I could happily have stuck with their story and read on with it, despite the info dumps about every system on the boat. I think their journey home might have had some interest. However, we alternate that with the trope filled Casey story. Ooh the world has ended and it could get scary but Grant is so HOT and this is a great excuse to hang out with him! Oh please! Her whiny friend Jessica spends the whole book complaining about her dreadful boyfriend but demands he comes with them if they go. Both girls then drag their heels over every suggestion Grant makes. If I was Grant, I'd have left them all behind instead of wasting precious time trying to convince them to go to his safe cabin! Stupid teen angst nonsense switched me off from the book and I lost all interest in it.
September 11, 2012
Good 3/4, then they writer ran out of steam. Wound it up very quickly, like he had somewhere to be.
August 16, 2012
Great initial buildup of the story, seemed to finish too quickly and wrap in a much less descriptive manner than the rest of the book
August 24, 2022
Entertaining, but not great. I did the audio book and while it was read very clearly, it was halting with weird pauses and not much emotion.
July 8, 2022
A Fun Read, But some flaws
I am a sucker for post apocalyptic tales. The problem with them is that there are so many and they all follow much the same plot lines. This one is no different in that regard.
What it does differently is to introduce the idea of spending the apocalypse on a sailboat…which is an idea that has intrigued me for years. The author actually gets most of his sailing stuff right (not all, but most).
The ending is disappointing in that you can feel the author wanting to wind things up and we must endure the unlikely and unrealistic coming together of all the different threads in one big convenient meetup. Still, it kept my interest enough to move me on to the next installment.
Let’s see where this thing goes.
I am a sucker for post apocalyptic tales. The problem with them is that there are so many and they all follow much the same plot lines. This one is no different in that regard.
What it does differently is to introduce the idea of spending the apocalypse on a sailboat…which is an idea that has intrigued me for years. The author actually gets most of his sailing stuff right (not all, but most).
The ending is disappointing in that you can feel the author wanting to wind things up and we must endure the unlikely and unrealistic coming together of all the different threads in one big convenient meetup. Still, it kept my interest enough to move me on to the next installment.
Let’s see where this thing goes.
May 16, 2017
When a solar flare takes out all the electronics in North America, Casey is separated from her father Artie. Artie is helping his brother deliver a boat in the Caribbean and Casey is at Tulane University in New Orleans. Both find help with their friends and family and are desperate to be reunited.
The novel is full of technical information about boats, sailing and survivalist techniques. It's a little much for the story and I found myself skimming over sections about boats. The end was a bit rushed, and a bit too neatly packaged. An interesting premise, a little clunky on the execution.
The novel is full of technical information about boats, sailing and survivalist techniques. It's a little much for the story and I found myself skimming over sections about boats. The end was a bit rushed, and a bit too neatly packaged. An interesting premise, a little clunky on the execution.
January 20, 2022
Great premise and story but
This book has a good premise and a good story but the execution was a bit clunky. The dialog was a bit flaky and the ending was very predictable but overall I enjoyed it and that is what really counts.
This book has a good premise and a good story but the execution was a bit clunky. The dialog was a bit flaky and the ending was very predictable but overall I enjoyed it and that is what really counts.
January 27, 2023
Looks like I'm one of the few that actually enjoyed this book. I enjoyed the twist and turns. It made me think about what would truly happen if the grid just went black. It's pretty eye opening. I have no complaints about this one.
December 4, 2023
A wonderful tale of high adventure, nail biting action, and southern geography. There is also lots of information about sailing and tropical islands, being prepared, and the consequences of not being so. Plus for those who know, quite a few Parrothead references.
December 21, 2024
I loved the book it has been saved on my Everand shelf for a while and I finally decided to give it a go. It’s not only a good story to follow, but it also shows how much the writer knows about survival and gave me insight of what might happen if humanity was suddenly stripped of technology.
Read
June 13, 2019I've read this one and the rest in the series. Not bad for post-apocalyptic America. No zombies, thank goodness. Just some folks trying to figure out how to survive.
February 22, 2023
When something interesting finally happens 60% in, the other tucks it away and drills down on the dull plot points
December 4, 2023
I really enjoyed it!
July 17, 2012
The back cover states this is a "compelling action-adventure novel." Compelling? No. Action? Well, yes there is some of that. Adventure? No, not really.
This is more of an instruction guide where three people have an advantage over the solar flare that has put all of North America off of electricity: if it contains a computer chip, it won't work. The story is split between two brothers (one a doctor, the other a boatman) who are on a Carribean crossing when the power goes out. The boatman brother takes charge, and with the addition of a local with "de accent uz be thinkin' of in alla doze stereotypes, mon" they make their way to New Orleans. In New Orleans, the doctor's daughter leaves her college with two friends, one whose parents are acheologists, and whose trips he's been a part of, to make out of the city before Katrina looks like a party in the streets. I know nothing of survivalist stories, but I've read enough fiction to plot this out myself. You probably have too.
The action and drama is by the numbers, and author Williams has his knowledgeable characters giving too much information to others to prove their lives off the grid have been the better. All that was missing was the shot at the California lifestyle, and when that appeared early on, I knew what this book would be like. It's only in the last 50 pages that a worthy antagonist appears, and that was exciting, and the resolution of that character was good.
Was I entertained? No, not really. Imagine this as a low rent version of "The Road", minus the baby eating...and drama...and anything that would keep you entertained. Only for fans of this genre.
This is more of an instruction guide where three people have an advantage over the solar flare that has put all of North America off of electricity: if it contains a computer chip, it won't work. The story is split between two brothers (one a doctor, the other a boatman) who are on a Carribean crossing when the power goes out. The boatman brother takes charge, and with the addition of a local with "de accent uz be thinkin' of in alla doze stereotypes, mon" they make their way to New Orleans. In New Orleans, the doctor's daughter leaves her college with two friends, one whose parents are acheologists, and whose trips he's been a part of, to make out of the city before Katrina looks like a party in the streets. I know nothing of survivalist stories, but I've read enough fiction to plot this out myself. You probably have too.
The action and drama is by the numbers, and author Williams has his knowledgeable characters giving too much information to others to prove their lives off the grid have been the better. All that was missing was the shot at the California lifestyle, and when that appeared early on, I knew what this book would be like. It's only in the last 50 pages that a worthy antagonist appears, and that was exciting, and the resolution of that character was good.
Was I entertained? No, not really. Imagine this as a low rent version of "The Road", minus the baby eating...and drama...and anything that would keep you entertained. Only for fans of this genre.
July 31, 2012
Actually, I think this is probably about a 3.5 star book. I say that because it deals in subjects that interest me and with which I am familiar, namely sailing and the outdoors. I do feel however that some of the detail provided may be a bit much for the non-boat person - " ... had the rig set up with synthetic Dyneema shrouds and stays tensioned by simple dead-eyes ... and the mast stepped in a tabernacle with a pivot ...". Much of the book is expository on the art of survival and sailing information and the characters tend to carry on with a bit more detail than necessary which leads to rather stilted and artificial dialogue. The characters are somewhat of a cliche and the story gets pretty simplistic and predictable in places and quite repetitive with characters vocalizing what they had just spent some paragraphs thinking. Still, there are some surprises and suspense and while the ending is a bit improbable, the subject matter is interesting to contemplate. What would you do if the electric age ended suddenly? Probably better classified as "Young Adult" fiction, but yes, if a sequel appears I will read it.
May 13, 2018
3.5 stars.
First, I absolutely abhor the F word. While I understand that the author used it with and for reality in the day and time that we are living in, I try to not read books that contain it. Fortunately, this one I was able to pass around the language as it was only related to one character, Joey, and he wasn't in the book long. But I fear that he will show up in the series later.
There's a lot of technical info about sailing and boats and catamarans that I was and am unfamiliar with, so it, too, kind of went in one ear and out the other. And until about mid-way into the book, with the exception of sentence structure problems, I enjoyed the book quite a bit. But then the story was hurried along, and a situation occurred that I just couldn't visualize it o curing as the author described it, so the story lost a little of its allure for me. All in all, however, it was a fair book: not the best nor the worst that I have read in this genre. But I just prefer reading clean or Christian based fiction that leaves the cursing out of stories.
First, I absolutely abhor the F word. While I understand that the author used it with and for reality in the day and time that we are living in, I try to not read books that contain it. Fortunately, this one I was able to pass around the language as it was only related to one character, Joey, and he wasn't in the book long. But I fear that he will show up in the series later.
There's a lot of technical info about sailing and boats and catamarans that I was and am unfamiliar with, so it, too, kind of went in one ear and out the other. And until about mid-way into the book, with the exception of sentence structure problems, I enjoyed the book quite a bit. But then the story was hurried along, and a situation occurred that I just couldn't visualize it o curing as the author described it, so the story lost a little of its allure for me. All in all, however, it was a fair book: not the best nor the worst that I have read in this genre. But I just prefer reading clean or Christian based fiction that leaves the cursing out of stories.
August 10, 2017
I knew by the description of this book that it would be more of a survivalist book than a young adult post-apocalyptic book. I found it a bit of a disappointment because the author was trying to get his message across, and at the same time, attempting to make it faster paced. Because he tried to make it fast-paced, which it wasn’t, he didn’t leave much useful info in it but he had enough information and talking about every boring thing to make it slow. The characters didn’t particularly interest me either.
I’d recommend this book to the survivalist community, not the young adult readers who are used to fast-paced dystopian. This book would be on the light end of the survivalist spectrum, but it’s a much heavier read than any mainstream YA book I’ve picked up.
I’d recommend this book to the survivalist community, not the young adult readers who are used to fast-paced dystopian. This book would be on the light end of the survivalist spectrum, but it’s a much heavier read than any mainstream YA book I’ve picked up.
September 29, 2013
It's unfortunate that I took so much time reading this book--after the first chapter I was simply trying to finish it to be done with it.
Everything in this book is repetitive--a character will think a thought, tell that thought to another character (using almost the exact same words), and then possible repeat it again for a third character. New thought, repeat.
Having read books that describe the end of the world, and how to live in it, I was sorely disappointed in this poorly written novel. At one point I wondered if it is a self-published book, because it doesn't seem to have been read or looked at by any type of editor.
The most enjoyable part of the book was reading it aloud in an overly dramatic voice to my boyfriend...and then laughing at how ridiculous the 'storyline' is.
Everything in this book is repetitive--a character will think a thought, tell that thought to another character (using almost the exact same words), and then possible repeat it again for a third character. New thought, repeat.
Having read books that describe the end of the world, and how to live in it, I was sorely disappointed in this poorly written novel. At one point I wondered if it is a self-published book, because it doesn't seem to have been read or looked at by any type of editor.
The most enjoyable part of the book was reading it aloud in an overly dramatic voice to my boyfriend...and then laughing at how ridiculous the 'storyline' is.
September 30, 2012
While I did finish this book, I have to admit that several sections were scanned quickly as there was much repetition in the story line. The character to me seemed stiff and while articulate were not very emotional about the fact that their world as they knew it had ended. The location descriptions were spot on with their descriptions but the story line was weak. I could not find it believeable that 2 separate story lines in locations that were hundreds of miles apart and taking weeks to occur, ended with all the characters meeting up at the same location. Have read better end-of-the-world-as-we-know-it-novels.
August 29, 2013
Hmmmm where to start. It wasn't a bad book, but I think it was a poor value book. From the amazon.com description I took a chance buying this book at 9.99. I typically dont buy independent fiction for more than about 3.99 and that said, I can name at least a dozen books that I enjoyed more that I only paid 2.99 for.
At 9.99 I wont buy any more of this author's books.
The tale was good, but I didn't really get anything out of it that I havent read in 20 or more books in the genre already. I should be able to get at least one good, "mmm...I didnt think of that," but I didnt get it in this book.
At 9.99 I wont buy any more of this author's books.
The tale was good, but I didn't really get anything out of it that I havent read in 20 or more books in the genre already. I should be able to get at least one good, "mmm...I didnt think of that," but I didnt get it in this book.
March 29, 2013
This was a very simplistic version of what happens after an EMP blast and only really deals with a father trying to reunite with his college student daughter and their experiences. I thought it was rather formulaic, and the writing didn't really hold my attention. I had thought that it would be somewhere along the lines of "One Second After," but it wasn't nearly as involved. I does cover a lot of the scenarios that would happen in the event of an EMP blast, such as the looting and the criminal element coming out of the woodwork, but in an abbreviated manner.
January 25, 2016
This story was another story of a collapsed society and the efforts of those caught in the collapse to survive the chaos around them. The book is particularly interesting because it focuses on a father trying to return to find his daughter after being away on a sailing trip in the Caribbean. At the same time the daughter must survive and escape the chaos of New Orleans after the grid collapses. A major take-away from the book is the importance that having a communication plan would be following any significant natural or man-made disaster.
August 5, 2012
Interesting book. It looks at what happens if a solar flare were to take out the electrical grid of the western hemisphere. The really interesting thing is that most of the book takes place in New Orleans, southeastern Louisiana and southern Mississippi. If you live in the area, you know all the places he is writing about. The book also gives some good ideas for being prepared for such an event or for large scale emergency. I enjoyed the book.
January 1, 2013
The general idea was good. And it started out well. However, there were certain thoughts of the characters that the author just kept saying over, and over, and over, kind of preachy. I actually stopped *reading* about 1/2 to 3/4 of the way through, and just skimmed the rest because it was just too much like slogging through the same things.
The survival parts, and any action that happened were pretty interesting. It's too bad the author just didn't know when to let things go.
The survival parts, and any action that happened were pretty interesting. It's too bad the author just didn't know when to let things go.
July 29, 2013
Maybe more like 2.5. The story kept me marginally interested but I was a bit bothered by the coincidences that allowed the protagonist to "sail through" to his hopeless search for his daughter. Seemed as though the author "ran out of steam" & simply decided that Dad would find Daughter by blind dumb luck & the story could end. Daughter's escape from her "sicko suitor" was interesting to a point, but the overall resolution & end of the book was formulaic & oddly anti-climactic.
November 18, 2013
This book was so dry I couldn't even finish it. Upon further research on the author I discovered that he is more or less a "doomday prepper." This is not a novel. This is more of how the author thinks the world will "end" and how to survive it. After discovering the author's history, I promptly put it down. I had been given several cues to put it down within the first 50 pages, but I blantly ignored them in hopes it would get better. It did not.
November 8, 2013
What can I say, I'm a sucker for the genre. Bit of a low budget zombie read without the zombies. I liked the realism of the skills and techniques and the refreshing use of actual logical survival decision making, but the plot is pretty shallow. It's not for everyone, and I feel I paid too much for it at 9.99, but I enjoyed it.
March 19, 2015
Exciting premise, but the dialog was subpar. The character Grant who we were supposed to admire came off sounding like a condescending snob with everything he said, and the lines by Scully were just impossible to read due to the author attempting to translate his Caribbean accent into text. The author also wrapped up the climax/ending way too quickly and easily.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 62 reviews