Reaching Home: A Post-Apocalyptic Journey

by Lars Larsen

DARK HIGHWAY HOME—BOOK TWO. REACHING HOME

AN EMP & POST-APOCALYPTIC SURVIVAL STORY

Days after the North American power grid was taken down by an electromagnetic pulse, a band of stranded people are making their perilous way from Las Vegas to the safety of their homes over two thousand miles away.

With the power grid down, North America has gone dark. Society has collapsed. Everyone is on their own, without cars, planes, phones, clean water, food, or law enforcement. Desperate, starving, thirsty people are killing for a bottle of water and food scraps.

In this dark and now-lawless landscape, Jon Kristen, a Special Forces veteran, and five of his coworkers must make their way to their homes in Seattle, Washington. Or face the consequences.

DARK HIGHWAY HOME—BOOK TWO. REACHING HOME, tells a “realistic” tale of survival and perseverance.

Genres: Post Apocalyptic

464 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 6, 2023

Reviews

[David W. Holland · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great story, but...

I liked the story line, seemed very well written and thought out, but I quickly got tired of the anti-Trump diatribes and the pro-Biden silioquies. For example, the protagonist's father says that China attacked the U.S. because of Trump's tariffs on Chinese goods. And dialog about how anti-vaxxers were so terrible, especially now that it is well known that the Covid vax did not do what it was supposed to do - namely, save lives and prevent folks from passing the virus on to others.

[Pam Shelton-Anderson · Rating 2 out of 5]

This continues with the ex-Special Forces guy that has very quickly honed his female traveling companions into a sharp paramilitary unit. Everywhere they go, they continue to meet other ex-military. I had a bit of a problem with the fact that Jon was portraying his group as U.S. military. I sort of get why he did it, but it still felt wrong. The whole sex scene whilst driving on a wintery road, seemed very far-fetched and just there for the salacious content. There were some editing errors (sheriff misspelled as sherriff, arctic as artic, mixing up Asta and Abs and when PJ is talking, calling her Jane. Not only do they meet a famous movie star, but Dawn knows the exclusive ranch owned by the Kristens since lots of actors go there to relax. What are the odds? When they finally make it to the ranch, a lot of pages of the book are now dedicated to a painstakingly detailed recap of all of their adventures from book 1 and book 2 up to this point. I scarcely need to have read anything up to that point. It ends a bit abruptly so I assume this one was not the end of the series, but don't see another on the stack. Not sure that I am interested in continuing since there are just so many occurrences of unbelievable things.

[Rachael Ashak-Benson · Rating 5 out of 5]

WISH, WISH, WISH … there was Book 3 (& 4, 5, 6, 7…) already out!

What a phenomenal beginning to a series within these 1st two books.
Loved every moment.
Lars Larsen is a master storyteller, character developer, & crystal clear world builder!
With every page swipe during Book 2, I knew I was nearing the (….temporary…) finale of the series. Which was excruciating — as this story is just so well told!
I cannot wait to read more. I could see this being one of those 12-book series, no problem!
A definite read for all those who love the post-apoc genre … &, really, for anyone who enjoys a well-written, exciting, & balanced read.
Absolutely thrilling!
Sad to leave the characters behind for now, all of whom I’ve come to know so well … but I’ll be certainly on the lookout for the next books within this extremely well-crafted series!

[denise hodges · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent Series!!!

OK,1st off for all the detractors out there about how things have turned out great for the special forces guy. And just happens to find the right stuff for the right time and do the job right. Here is something to think about. Each day about 360 days a year over 4,000 people join the military. Each day IF they are extremely lucky, 500 to 1,000 people retire after 20 years plus years of service.... Somewhere during that time frame they picked some skills Some special forces, and some are clerks But all have got some distinct skills and also discipline. The actual scenario that sets this series could happen. God forbid ever a scenario depicted in this series ever happens but it might be Mr. John Smith ( Formally a navy corpsman) or Mrs Jane Brown (USMC ret.) or Mr. Andrew Johnson ( Retired Army drill instructor) -----You get the idea----- will be the ones that pull us through. Those are the kind of people that could Keep Civilizations lights on when a disaster could blow them out. Enough Philosophy, Great series, Looking forward to the next book. Hope It comes out soon. Best regards, Bill Hodges, A fan.
Only criticism is in book two there was too much recap. 6 pages could have been done with a couple of sentences.

[Adolf von Wurttemberg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book Review:
“Reaching Home: A Post-Apocalyptic Journey (Dark Highway Home Book 2”) Kindle Edition
by Lars Larsen (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
As both a veteran and civilian pilot, the comments on the Beaver aircraft brought back fond memories of aircraft with radial engines. Back in the late 1950s my flying instructor mentioned oil draining down into the lower cylinders and how to correctly start the engine. The author even mentioned the “white smoke” when the engine first starts. Lars Larsen must have been around radial engines in his career. By the way, the “white smoke” is unburned oil vapor.
Just like “Book One” in this series, the editing, proofreading, character development and broad vocabulary usage are excellent.
Why only a “One Star” rating? For all of its merits, Larsen used the novel as a platform for left-wing, weird, wacko WOKE stuff. It is a “turn-off” when anyone praises the Biden crime family and shows total ignorance of vaccinations and their efficacy. My post-military career was in medical research and Larsen stepped into my area of expertise and got it wrong!
I recommend this novel but with the caveat of passim references to political malarkey.

[robyn dixon · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a good one...

...however, the way my keyboard interface works, I can't see what I'm typing so apologize for mistakes and for how short this will be because it deserves a longer, more detailed review.
First, Mr. Larsen is one of. the few writers in this genre to fully describe his characters -- all his characters. This really helps with these "ensemble cast" stories.
This story described an ideal situation for facing an apocalypse -- that is someone who rigidly adhered to military...travel safety AND who was outfitted with every single (top of the line) piece of gear, gun, gadget etc. At the outset.I didn't leave a review after Book 1 as it was billed as a :-) volume stories but I am nearly certain there will be a third.
There may be too much directional descriptions -- driving here this road take a left toon that road...which is not particularly helpful if you don't know the town's or state he's writing about. Nevertheless, these books are worth reading.
Respectively,

[Natasha A · Rating 3 out of 5]

I did enjoy the story. There is too much detail of various items and routes to their destination. Weapons descriptions are way over done. Plus they are very lucky and get a variety of items just about everywhere they go. No one would be that lucky. They ended up with almost every item one could possibly wish for on the road. This is a little too over the top. Either the author and/or the main male character is obsessed with his height and it constantly mentioning his measurement and comparing to others. Also many of the women are descripted as beautiful especially if they are associated with the main character. I do like all the women in the book and he does treat them with respect. Also in books of this genre usually the "good group" doesn't meet so many nice and helpful people. That was a nice addition to the story. They do have a lots of problem with many very evil people. It is a end of the world dream of what one could have during a collapse. I realize now I and my family would never survive mostly because of evil and desperate people.

[Richard Caniglia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good Action Story

I love the idea of people actually being cautious and smart in this genre of literature. Sure, there are lots of improbable circumstances that give the heroes more than enough resources to survive in style, but hey, it’s nice when the good guys win.

My only objection is to one itty bitty section of political nonsense about who was responsible for the stupid exit from Afghanistan. The author blames Trump for setting a date for withdrawal and absolves Biden from any responsibility. Fact is, Biden could have delayed the withdrawal until it could have been done intelligently—you can’t blame your predecessor when you’re in charge and have the power to change things. For a guy who can write a pretty good story, this is a polemical blind spot.

[stan mccann · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good on many levels. Well written and very realistic.

Gives you a lotto think about. The small team tactical use of Jon's SF knowledge is very realistic. I'm starting to feel like the exaggerated role of female characters is being used too much in this genre which is my favorite. A lot of gun battles which I enjoyed very much. Would have liked more survival experience and expertise but overall a great novel.
Unfortunate that he felt the need to include his political opinion that at times was quite ridiculous. For example trying to justify Biden's moronic withdrawal from Afghanistan by claiming that he just wanted to make sure
we met a timeline set by the Trump administration. This and other political dings really put me off.

[Amy Whitten · Rating 5 out of 5]

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐+

Great book! I enjoyed it as much as the first book and cannot wait for the third book! Another grandslam.

I just want to remark about seeing some reviews that were claiming that the book was a (former) President Trump basher...does the book make some remarks about former President Trump? Yes. Does the book also make some comments about our current President, Joe Biden? Also, yes. Honestly, there are not that many comments. The comments that are in the book are not over done, in my opinion, and I do not want to hear political mumbo jumbo when reading. It is hard to tell either way what the author's political preferences are.

[Bob · Rating 5 out of 5]

Much Better Than #1

The writer, or close friend or relative, knows enough detail about the Northwest, that I believe he's spent more than a little bit of time there. Then, he or someone knows enough about old planes to know which would be best in a computer/electrical-denied world.

Not nearly as many battles and large tragedies, but a lot more up close and personal wet work. There are also several happy places. Families reunited, the prospect of being grandparents, friendships exploding into love - stuff like that, but just enough to make this story a bit less dark.

This gets a solid recommendation, and I only have to wait three weeks for book three to arrive.

[Dr Rev · Rating 1 out of 5]

HOLY GOD WHAT CRAP!!
the first book was a skim, I couldn't even skim this book, total crap. By page 15 I could take it anymore and flipped to 50, it got even worse!!
Couldn't be possible to get worse?
It did
Garbage garbage garbage is something a teen aged boy who is a meth addict in blm would come up with.
What anti American crap
It's like an explosion of faggy commie bullshit
Block this so called author and find out where the publisher lives
Something has to be done about this level of sewage.
Dotr

[Ronald Sallow · Rating 4 out of 5]

I rarely write reviews however I felt I had to complement on these 2 by Larson. Basically I enjoyed the story. Certainly enough action and the story line kept me involved. I found myself turning off the TV so I could read. The one negative comment I have is the authors consistent to go into boring, unnecessary, page filling description of everyone he met. I don't care if the character is a female 5'8" with long blond hair dressed in a white top and brown pants (ect, ect, ect,) This constant practice found me skipping pages just to get past it.

[Katie M · Rating 1 out of 5]

Liberal garbage with a decent story line

Oh 300k dead.from covid in my town...trump bad...love watching Rachael maddow...gotta toss in a few F bombs every other paragraph, constantly addressing guy as master chief like people would even know, God is completely left out, and huge emphasis on how tall and pretty team is. Its like CNN rewrote One Second After except they find perfect equipment each day. You will feel compelled to read second book just to see if after time they let up on ridiculous rhetoric and be left dissapointed.

[April · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have now read many Post-Apocalyptic books. And This series is the absolute best one I have read. I appreciated all of the down to earth explanations of would happen with an EMP attack. The author does an absolutely excellent job with a wide variety of education about how quickly society would collapse, how and why. The characters and relationships are far better developed than many EMP books I have read. He does a good job at some exploration into how different people will cope with such huge changes, how they will decide what actions to take without any police or any other law enforcement. And, this series is one of the very very few that doesn't have a black/white clear political agenda. I have noticed other reviews criticized his writing because of this. I was grateful for it. I truly hope Lars Larsen continues to write, and I eagerly await his next book.

[Jon P. Clancy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Disappointed with Mr Larson

I will not be reading anymore of his books the story was fair but the left leaning political BS got in the way of the story. I read several hundred books a year this is the first one I wanted to quit at the first reading of his political BS. It ruined the story I finished it so I could be sure of the left leaning political crap that it is always someone else's fault.

[Aloma Arp · Rating 4 out of 5]

And the excitement continues.

I actually thought this book lost some of the stories momentum for me by retelling the story too much. I think the repeating of the events that had happened just seem to be fillers in a book where the author was rushing to meet a deadline. I still love the book but I hope the next one finds some more interesting episodes like the first book. I still gave it 4 stars because I want to see what happens next.

[Linda A. Kimble · Rating 1 out of 5]

Good road map

If you want a road map with a few short stories this is the book for you. Its about a guy who is "super soldier" and plays hero while making women into "soldiers" and getting them to safety.
If the author wants a bigger following he needs to drop the hate President Trump and conservative pitch he keeps bringing up. There are a lot of us out here and we aren't the bad guys.

[Crislee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Like the series so far...

But...most Foresters don't believe the flawed theory that humans are responsible for climate change. They do know its a cycle and has always been a cycle. And we currently have more trees (in the USA) than we did in 1900. How do I know? Im married to one. One with 36 years of experience and a Master's degree.
Anyway, I can't expect an author to get such things right. Not a lot of forester out there to ask. But it bugged me.

[Nina Bush · Rating 4 out of 5]

One step forward

This book was really well written. The characters are well developed and keep you involved in the story. The only thing I didn't like was the constant left politics. I almost stopped reading. Both the first book and this one. I hope it's not in the third book. It's an insult to my intelligence and my common courtesy.

[Susan Rogers · Rating 1 out of 5]

Cut out the politics!

Wish I could understand why an author who has great writing skills has to ruin a decent story by tossing in personal politics. I don't read fiction to be schooled on someone's political preferences... I read to be entertained and maybe to learn something new. The politics were an incredible turn-off.

[Brian · Rating 5 out of 5]

Leave politics out

Some people think it Trump was still in office none of this would have happened. Thanks letting me say my piece. That being said love the pace of the book, pretty accurate in describing the journey, we've been there and it brought back some fine memories. Again, thanks!

[Barbara Booth · Rating 2 out of 5]

Tired

I gave it a fair shot. A third of the way in the second book I'd had enough. I don't like when an author puts their political views in. I guess I expect unbiased writting apparently that's not going to happen here. Make it believable not this fairy tale where their all prepared with every thing.

[Michael Guidry · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is too far fetched. The group stumbles upon one treasure after another as side quests pop up on their journey. A journey to reach the protagonist rich daddy. One gets the feeling that they are in a warped post apocalyptic world of Warcraft game. This is the worst prepper novel I have ever read.

[James · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another Survival Story

However, it’s a good one. I’m looking forward to the next episode. It holds up well. I can see events unfolding like that. I have no doubt that people will turn into monsters in that situation. It becomes kill or be killed and he who hesitates is lost. Looking forward to the next episode. I recommend it.

[Reg Baker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book 2 is a continuation of book 1. The author stretched it out with a lot of unnecessary verbiage repeating over and over such things as who seats where in the vehicles, how the women needed to stop every 20 minutes for a "pee break" and what every person they met were wearing and what they looked like. Very monotonous. The digs about Trump got old fast.

[mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reaching Home

A continuing story of an EMP attack. Of course, all the stars align and terrible situations come right in the best possible ways. This is actually what I can see happening in our real world, right now. Amazingly, there are not many errors in grammar or punctuation.
I really like the story line and the author's way of telling his story.

[Samantha Skinner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Keeping me reading...

This is easy to read but I'm not buying how every person Jon collected was a woman. As a feminist, I'm not complaining that it's full of bad arse women though! I give it 5 stars because I'm anxiously awaiting the 3rd instalment and thus fairly entertained. If you do like these books, read Robert Coles' books, similar but next level to this.

[Brian Adams · Rating 1 out of 5]

Severely suffering from Trump Derangement Syndrome

The scribbler of this leftist tome has deeply held liberal bias . If you can promote CNN and Rachel Marrow there is little doubt that much of your writing is shining with the fever of liberalism. I would not recommend this book or series. And do not recommend this author.

[Bob Prol · Rating 4 out of 5]

The writing is really good, but the protagonist seems to just get luckier and luckier as the story unfolds. Running into family friends, perfect fits for his parents’s ranch, and the ability to enter highly populated areas by plane and escape with everything they need, and killing almost every bad person they encounter. All while not sustaining any significant injuries.