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The Judas Syndrome

(The Judas Syndrome #1)

Michael Poeltl (Goodreads Author)

3.38 · Rating details · 87 ratings · 21 reviews

In a world devastated by an apocalyptic event,
the bonds of friendship are tested in the haze of
unrelenting depression, and paranoia.

Will you know who your friends are?

The Judas Syndrome is a frightening portrait of a possible future end.

Joel and his friends are on the verge of graduation and excited and optimistic about their futures. But when they return from a camping ...more

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Paperback, 184 pages

Published July 29th 2009 by Michael Poeltl (first published June 25th 2009)

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Aug 24, 2009 Katie rated it it was amazing

I did not think this would be my "type" of book, but I could not put it down. I became absolutely fascinated with the characters and their development as human beings. I found myself turning the pages with more and more anticipating as to how the story would unfold. I would absolutely recommend this novel to anyone, and I can not wait to read more from this author ...more

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Jul 24, 2009 Lisa Poeltl rated it really liked it

A very entertaining yet dark look at life after the apocalypse, through the eyes of teenagers who must navigate their new environment. I liked the undertones of religion, and the ever-present question of whether to keep hope alive in a seemingless hopeless environment. A cross between The Road and Lord of the Flies.

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Feb 04, 2011 Keryl Raist rated it really liked it

Shelves: indie-book-review

Okay, so supposedly, when you see a bad review, it's a case of the book not living up to the expectations of whomever purchased it. That makes sense. You rarely see reviews that state something like, "I absolutely loathe horror stories. So in a masochistic fit I picked up Seven Co-eds Get Horribly Murdered In A Haunted House. It was a horror story. I hated it." (And if you do write that review, you deserve to be smacked upside the back of the head Gibb's style.)

No, usually bad reviews go somethi ...more

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Mar 25, 2010 Eva Marie rated it liked it

Recommended to Eva Marie by: Felicia

Shelves: b-fiction, end-of-the-world, preqs-seqs-series

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. There are a few things that confused me about this book but overall I did enjoy it and I'd like to read the sequel that I saw that the author is writing.
In my opinion there were a few too many characters. They were hard for me to keep straight most times. By the middle I had a decent grasp on each and I have to say that each brought something to the story, but there definitely were many of them.
As for the few things I didn't understand - they were relatively minor but at the same time I did no ...more

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Aug 10, 2009 Jeannie rated it it was amazing

This was such a good read, I was really impressed with the story line. It's a dark and brooding tale yet hope is interlaced throughout, at least up until the ending when things take a turn for the worst. I had trouble putting it down the first night and finished it in one day. That says a lot to me when I just can't let go of a story and finding out what is going to happen next. After finishing this book I couldn't get it out of my head and doubt I ever do. ...more

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Jun 28, 2009 Rose rated it it was amazing

Although I don't usually read apocalyptic fiction, the internet buzz about The Judas Syndrome was so intense that I decided to check it out. I'm glad I did!

The Judas Syndrome is the story of a small group of teenagers who go on a camping trip to escape the pressures of school and jobs, only to find a burned-out, dead world upon return. Eternal night descends upon the globe. Darwinism rules the day, and only the strong survive.

Highly recommended. ...more

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Aug 24, 2009 Felicia A rated it it was ok

Shelves: teotwawki, apocalypse-of-some-sort

This book was sent to me by a GoodReads friend (THANKS JEANNIE!) who thought I would enjoy it. It was not an awful story and I am glad I read it, and was grateful for the recommendation.

That said, I had a lot of problems with it. I love post-apocalyptic books, the whole survival angle of regular people dealing with life post-catastrophe-of-the-day. In this book, the main group of survivors, some teenagers, did a BANG UP JOB of living and taking care of themselves after the disaster. Too good of This book was sent to me by a GoodReads friend (THANKS JEANNIE!) who thought I would enjoy it. It was not an awful story and I am glad I read it, and was grateful for the recommendation.

That said, I had a lot of problems with it. I love post-apocalyptic books, the whole survival angle of regular people dealing with life post-catastrophe-of-the-day. In this book, the main group of survivors, some teenagers, did a BANG UP JOB of living and taking care of themselves after the disaster. Too good of a job.

They had been camping in a remote location when the disaster happened, and made their way back to town after the fact. They set up shop in the home of one of the teens, whose house just happened to be almost a complete bio-dome: water, electricity, heat, food storage, etc., were not problems for them as long as they regularly scaveneged to keep stocked. Lucky them. SMART them.

Now, I am not saying kids/teens are stupid, but seriously, what teenagers that you know immediately begin to not only grow food, but become expert soldiers and marksmen and approach a life or death disaster situation like a veteran military officer??? They even won several battle skirmishes by approaching the battles as trained, battle hardened soldiers. At the age of 17. Uh huh.

These kids immediately collected weapons, ammo, set up guards, built fences, maintained a hydroponic farm, intelligently dealt with serious battle wounds, it goes on and on. Even the way these kids spoke was not believable. The majority of the teens spoke with the voice of a seasoned middle aged man or woman and had a maturity far beyond their years. I tried suspending my belief, of course, but I just couldn't believe that these KIDS would have reacted like this.

In the background of all this are ghosts, mysticism, religion, angels, a talking, stalking three legged skunk, emerging cults, and lots and lots of drugs. Now, the drugs part was quite believable. I could really believe that a group of kids whose world as they know it had just ended - and who were serious potheads before the disaster - would definitely have tried their best to stay zooted. And oh, did they! Despite spending nearly every waking moment high as a kite, they still managed to outlive and live better than any other survivor they came across.

There was not a lot of character development beyond two or three characters. Seriously, I kept forgetting who was who and just how many kids were in the house because they were that undeveloped.

The "voice" of most of the kids was just not believable: "I made a deal with the devil once, Gareth. I did it to avoid a confrontation and play the odds that we'd all come out of this inquisition of your unscathed. I see you in a different light now. I see you for what you really are: a small man, an angry man, a man possessed. You wouldn't have been happy coming here and questioning us without having fabricated something from nothing and sacrificing one of us to satiate your sick sense of self worth."

Yeah. Like, the teens I know, would, like, say something like this in, like, the same situation: "Dude! Like, what's wrong with you, man? Like back up, OK, man? Like, you go your way, man, and we'll go ours. Cool?" Or else they would be blubbering puddles of fear, crying for their moms.

And the ending? Just didn't really get that at all, but I won't ruin it for anyone else.

...more

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Sep 06, 2012 Micki Peluso rated it it was amazing

Exciting new Apacolypse book, September 3, 2012
By Micki Peluso (New York, USA)
This review is from: The Judas Syndrome: Book one in The Judas Syndrome series (Paperback)

The Judas Syndrome
A trilogy by Michael Poeltl

Joel Speaks:

Joel is about to graduate from high school when his life is turned upside down; along with a group of friends he's known since Kindergarten days. In three weeks his life will never be the same. Until that day, his last days of summer are spent with his closely knit group Exciting new Apacolypse book, September 3, 2012
By Micki Peluso (New York, USA)
This review is from: The Judas Syndrome: Book one in The Judas Syndrome series (Paperback)

The Judas Syndrome
A trilogy by Michael Poeltl

Joel Speaks:

Joel is about to graduate from high school when his life is turned upside down; along with a group of friends he's known since Kindergarten days. In three weeks his life will never be the same. Until that day, his last days of summer are spent with his closely knit group of 14 friends, doing what teenagers are wont to do--party, drink, do some drugs, have sex, and lastly, take their ritual camping trip in the mountains. And that's when it happens . . . .

Meanwhile the Grimm Reaper is spreading his maniacal threats across the world, which the media plays on, to make a frightened, wary public stay glued to their communication devices. So far it's only threats, causing most people to become apathetic to his rants, including Joel and most of his friends.

After a great time camping out, except for a few strange visions blamed on drug use, the group packs up for home. They drive through something slick that looks like a combination of ashes and black snow. Joel convinces his girlfriend, Sara, Connor, Earl and the rest to go to his home which is closest. Upon reaching the house, they all call on their cell phones and land lines but communications are cut off. Joel grabs the newspaper from the mailbox and reads the headline: "The Reaper Cometh". It is happening--the Apocalypse is here.

Connor, gifted with `second sight', tells the group that a drawing Kevin has sketched is the "Guardian Angel" he'd seen two years ago. Oddly, most of the group recognizes the figure on the drawing. So now they have an angel and with Joel designated as group leader, they begin their journey toward survival. The friend's initial drive to their homes is a horror as they discover their parents' dead or missing, leaving them all in devastated shock. They quickly become a group of survivalists in a world gone crazy. Driving through nearby empty towns, devoid of life, they search for food, gas and weapons. After being attacked by two different groups of ragtag survivors, they turn Joel's home into a fortress. Joel wonders if his mother, vacationing in Australia is alive; how widespread is the destruction--where is the Army--where are the people?

Days turn to weeks, then months. Gil, one of their good buddies, can't recover from the shock of his parent's gruesome deaths, and hangs himself. The girls weep, the guys try, without success, to hide their emotions. The invincibility of the teenagers has been shattered.

Author Michael Poeltl brings book one of his page-turning, outstanding stories to a dramatic, unforeseen close. Spellbound readers will want to read, "Rebirth", second in this ongoing series . . . followed by "Revelation", the final book of this unforgettable trilogy.

Reviewer: Micki Peluso, writer, journalist and author of . . . And the Whippoorwill Sang ...more

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Apr 01, 2011 J.H. Sked rated it really liked it · review of another edition

This is the review I first posted on Amazon a while back, with a few additional thoughts added at the bottom:
This is a pretty intense book that I think will polarise readers - they are either going to love it or hate it.
It deals openly with a number of subjects that more conservative readers will be uncomfortable with, including fairly prolific drug use and some fairly harsh language. Although the main character and his friends are teenagers, this is not a children's book by any means.

For me t ...more

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Aug 28, 2011 Denna rated it liked it

I almost decided to pass on writing up this review because I had such mixed feelings about the novel. I actually started and stopped reading about three times before I finally finished. It wasn’t any one thing that bothered me, but a combination of several. It should have, and could have, been a great story. I’ve always enjoyed reading survival types and surviving a nuclear war would certainly be a tough one. Many possibilities for potential problems to crop up.

So we have a group of teenagers wh I almost decided to pass on writing up this review because I had such mixed feelings about the novel. I actually started and stopped reading about three times before I finally finished. It wasn’t any one thing that bothered me, but a combination of several. It should have, and could have, been a great story. I’ve always enjoyed reading survival types and surviving a nuclear war would certainly be a tough one. Many possibilities for potential problems to crop up.

So we have a group of teenagers who decided to go camping on the perfect weekend to miss out on the big bang. But they return home to total chaos. This part was okay, even the three-legged skunk that makes an occasional appearance. At this point details start to get a bit sticky for me. I think it might have been different if the connection to the main character Joel could have been stronger, which is surprising when it comes to a first person narrative. Instead of living inside Joel’s head I felt like I was being told what he was thinking, leaving me emotionally detached. His fear and confusion didn’t jump across the pages to me. With no real connection to the main character there wasn't a lot of hope for more with the others. Jake was probably the only one I somewhat cared about and this was because I could relate to the flaws in his personality. He became real. The others did not. Each character should have had a specific place in the story, but all of them could easily have traded places and I wouldn’t have known the difference.

Some of what these kids did came across as realistic, but unfortunately, a lot of it didn’t. I felt fixes to problems were thrown in for convenience to make things easier for the author. A couple of examples: they just happen to walk into a barn and find everything they need there to grow their own food. After a nuclear war, growing food is going to be a problem, hunger a huge issue. It could have been used to add depth to the story, but instead they are handed an easy way out. Then, when they start to run out of fuel needed to keep the household and vehicles going, they just happen to run into a semi truck filled with the stuff. My reaction was, “Really, seriously.” It sorely tested my ability to suspend disbelief.

But, even after all of these problem areas, and the months it took me to actually finish this story, I ended the first novel curious about where the second one would lead. I’d like to learn whether the remaining friends grow closer together or continue to fall apart. For that reason I’ll give it a three star rating rather than the two I was leaning toward and hope for better in the second one. Bottom line—a so-so story, not great, but certainly not bad. The writing itself is fairly good and this probably helped me overlook some of the problems. I might not make a sprint toward the second one, but I will read it.
...more

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Sep 30, 2011 Todd Fonseca rated it really liked it

The Judas Syndrome – After the Apocalypse…

Rating: 4 of 5 stars

Author: Michael Poeltl
Format: Kindle, Paperback

After weeks of planning, Joel and his girlfriend Sara, along with their group of teenage friends travel hours away from their rural hometown for a weekend of camping and partying. Miles from civilization and off the grid, they enjoy their reprieve from everyday life. But once they begin their journey back, they find no cell service and the radio stations are nothing but static. As they ar The Judas Syndrome – After the Apocalypse…

Rating: 4 of 5 stars

Author: Michael Poeltl
Format: Kindle, Paperback

After weeks of planning, Joel and his girlfriend Sara, along with their group of teenage friends travel hours away from their rural hometown for a weekend of camping and partying. Miles from civilization and off the grid, they enjoy their reprieve from everyday life. But once they begin their journey back, they find no cell service and the radio stations are nothing but static. As they arrive home, they realize the unimaginable has happened. Nuclear weapons have been unleashed on the world and life as they had known it is forever over.

Michael Poeltl's "The Judas Syndrome" is a look into what happens to a group of friends who must rely on each other for survival after the end of the world. This is a bit of a cross between "Mad Max" meets "Lord of the Flies". Poeltl does a masterful job of describing the conditions one might have to endure in such a horrible situation as well as the way each character degenerates as a result. This is a troubling novel that reminded me a little of Stephen Kind's "Under the Dome" in its character study. This first novel in the series focuses in many ways how the worst comes out in each of the characters. The next novel in the series - Rebirth - is almost the opposite bringing out the best in most (but that is another review). There are some supernatural elements that occasionally appear here which give the novel an extra dose of intrigue and amp up the creepy factor which enhance the mood. Unfortunately, these aren't resolved at the book's conclusion which was a bit frustrating but fortunately they return and evolve nicely in book 2.

"The Judas Syndrome" was one of those books I just couldn't put down. Told from Joel's first person perspective, Poeltl does a nice job conveying the complexities of all the characters which is occasionally challenging from this perspective. If you like book one like I did, you'll like book 2 even more. "The Judas Syndrome" is $2.99 on kindle.

Note: A complementary copy of this work was provided in return for a review.
...more

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Apr 01, 2011 Jaidis Shaw rated it liked it

There must be a balance between books and their endings. Some must end happily and others are destined to go the darker route, such as The Judas Syndrome by Michael Poeltl. We are introduced to your average teenagers that are carefree and optimistic about their futures. In an attempt to put off summer jobs and escape the gloom brought on by threats of the apocalypse, the group of teens gather for a camping weekend. Upon returning home, the teens are forced to discover that the threats came true ...more

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Apr 21, 2010 Sonia rated it did not like it

Shelves: e-book, have

The start of this book begins like an ensemble cast horror flick. A bunch of kids on the cusp of graduation decide to have a last hurrah during a weekend trip in the woods. Thank goodness that they do, because while on the trip their town is obliterated - oh except for Joel's house, which conveniently has a gennie.

I had several problems with the book.

It was really far-fetched that a group of pot smoking, booze swilling, drug hazed teenagers would be capable or motivated to do ANYTHING they manag ...more

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Oct 08, 2011 Kat rated it liked it

Shelves: apocalypse, udate

3.5 stars

I love post-apocalyptic books, and the idea of a group of teenagers being left alone after a seemingly worldwide nuclear terrorist attack to fend for themselves is a story-line made in my personal book heaven. And in the beginning they react exactly as you would expect a group of teenagers to react thrust into a scary, rapidly changing world - they pretty much go on a permanent bender (hey, I'm sure it wouldn't just be teenagers overindulging in the face of the extinction of humanity! ...more

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Mar 08, 2011 s0nicfreak rated it liked it

This is a good story that is worth reading. I would give this a higher rating if not for a few flaws.

It is believable that a group of teens in a post-apocalyptic world would do lots of drugs. It is believable that a group of teens that already know how to shoot, camp, and garden could survive in a post-apocalyptic world. It is also believable that teens can be mature and intelligent, and that even teens that seem immature can show their maturity when it counts. However, when all these things com ...more

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Apr 13, 2013 Stefan Vucak rated it really liked it

The Judas Syndrome provides an intriguing window into life after a nuclear war. The story focuses on Joel and his group, and the sometimes tense relationship among them brought on by the war’s aftermath, survival, and ongoing drug use that makes life bearable. There is minimal plotting in this straightforward story, but that is done out of necessity, told from Joel’s perspective. Some scenes are slow moving and under the circumstances, survival of Joel’s group is highly improbable, but if the re ...more

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Mar 17, 2011 Ferdrayt rated it really liked it

The Judas Syndrome starts with a group of young adults on a camping trip before school. A cloud hangs over the trip, namely a terrorist's threat of a nuclear holocaust. The trip itself gives the reader a chance to know these youths and how they react under normal circumstances. When they return, they find that the terrorists have struck, their homes and families are destroyed, and the world is in chaos.

How they respond makes up the bulk of the story. They must contend with poisonous rain, lack o ...more

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Feb 21, 2013 Alicia Dinar rated it it was amazing

"I Loved this book! It's now one of my favourites; It's high attachement to character components are hypnosis, and Micheal does well in this novel with moving the readers' emotions and theories of foreshadowing in every which way, making it almost impossible to put down. Well worth the read for anyone, of any genre!" -Alicia ...more

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Apr 04, 2013 T. Jackson rated it really liked it

Shelves: apocalypse, near-future, suspense, 4-stars, hard-copy

Wow! Not what I expected. Not sure what to expect. Great story. The author really paints a picture. Can't wait to read the next book. ...more

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Mar 09, 2010 Michael Poeltl rated it it was amazing · (Review from the author)

Shelves: apocalyptic-ficition

This book was imagined one summer's day from the rooftop of the very house featured in the book. The house and property were real. The people, not so much, at least that's what I have to say. It's the first time in my adult life that a story idea really resonated with me, and I watched the whole thing unfold before me. It took me a year to write this book, but ten more to do anything with it. I'm glad I did. Reader response had me turn the book into a trilogy. Then new stories came to mind. And ...more

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Sep 11, 2012 Albert rated it really liked it

This is one that had me on the fence the entire time I read it. I could not decide whether or not I hated it, loved it or both. This book, if you make it past the first couple of chapters, will have you wrapped up and wanting more. The author does introduce an abundance of characters that make the mind spin but I believe these were more to "place hold" the story. All in all this is a great find and you will not be disappointed. ...more

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Ann Taylor rated it really liked it
May 23, 2012

Jul 24, 2009 Michael Poeltl rated it it was amazing · (Review from the author) · review of another edition

Shelves: apocalyptic-ficition

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Jan 29, 2012

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Sep 26, 2012

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Jan 15, 2016

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May 08, 2019

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About Michael Poeltl

Michael Poeltl

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"A well built fantasy world with likable characters." - A.I. Insurrection - The General's War - Goodreads
"The characters are 3-dimensional and realistic, with believable flaws, motivations and goals, doubts and beliefs.." - A.I. Insurrection - The General's War - Goodreads
"A great read for anyone who enjoys extensively built worlds." - A.I. Insurrection - The General's War - Goodreads
"The immense ...more

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“The guns reminded me that this was just an attempt to punch holes in the darkness that enveloped us now.” — 11 likes

“The storm long past, the night sky was beset with stars. Pointing upward, I asked her to pick a point of light and stay with it. Standing up, I eased Sara to her feet. Whispering into her ear, I asked, “Have you ever stood under a star... and felt the earth move under your feet?” — 10 likes

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(The Judas Syndrome #1)

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