Brutal Conquest

The Survivalist #22

by Jerry Ahern

World War III left America a toxic wasteland, its proud civilization buried in the poison ruins of nuclear attack. Its spirit all but destroyed, the small tribes of desperate nomads crushed by Soviet conquerors and their troops had little hope for freedom. Until one man dared to challenge the terrible Russian war John Thomas Rourke, ex-CIA Covert Operations Officer, weapons expert and warrior, the ultimate Survivalist.Brothers of the Gun After his brilliant attack on the combined forces of the Soviet and Fascist armies outside of Eden, Rourke and the rebels retreated to relative safety in the lush Rift Valley. Or so they thought. Ruthless mercenaries known as Land Pirates attacked them deploying their huge mobile arsenals of mega-particle beam anti-personnel weapons in a bloody surprise raid. Forced to run, Rourke and his troops were surrounded on all sides by hostile armies. The cause of America's freedom seemed doomed forever. But out of the flames of bitter defeat, democracy's greatest warrior rallied to snatch his most decisive victory!

Genres: Post Apocalyptic

256 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 2008

About the author

Jerry Ahern (born Jerome Morrell Ahern) was a science fiction and action novel author best known for his post apocalyptic survivalist series The Survivalist. The books in this series are heavy with descriptions of the weapons the protagonists use to survive and prosecute a seemingly never-ending war amongst the remnants of the superpowers from pre-apocalypse times.

Ahern was also a firearms writer, who published numerous articles in magazines such as Guns & Ammo, Handguns and Gun World.

Jerry Ahern passed away on July 24, 2012 after a long struggle with cancer.

Ahern also released books under pseudonym Axel Kilgore.

Reviews

[Mr Greig Ritchie · Rating 2 out of 5]

125 years since the end of the last book due to cryogenic sleep, and guess what? There's still Nazis to defeat. A book with guns, action, painfully convoluted love interests, oh, and Nazis in the 26th century!

[Joseph B · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Survivalist series enters its endgame with Brutal Conquest. Eden has morphed into a society of Nazi ideals, Mid-Wake has expanded to the Hawaiian Islands, and the world John has fought for over six centuries to protect stands on the brink of being gripped under Nazi control. John and Co. begin assisting those who stand with freedom to take back societies that have been poisoned by Nazi influence over the past 125ish years. They learn of a mysterious "Martin Zimmer" who terrifies the freelands and rules over Eden. A shocking reveal of his identity shakes the series to its core.

Brutal Conquest is an enjoyable deep dive into the new landscape of the Survivalist series after a time skip. Delivering fresh storylines, new characters, and laying the groundwork for the last six novels of Ahern's tenure on this series. 4 stars out of 5 stars for pulp fans.

[Little Timmy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my favorite adventure series. Dr John Thomas Rourke leads his family and friends through a post apocalyptic world fighting ever step if the way. Fantastic characters and plots. Very detailed weapon descriptions. Excellent series. My highest recommendation

[Charles · Rating 4 out of 5]

See my review under "Total War," Survivalist Book 1.