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The Long Road by G. Michael Hopf
Series: The New World #2
Publication date: January 7th, 2014
Pages: 320
Synopsis (according to Goodreads):
The End was just the beginning of the new world.
Only six weeks have passed since a super-EMP attack devastated the United States, but already, life has changed dramatically. Most of America has become a wasteland filled with starving bands of people, mobs and gangs. Millions are dead and millions more are suffering, with no end in sight.
For Gordon, Samantha, Sebastian, Cruz and Barone, the turmoil and chaos they dealt with in the early weeks after the attack will seem trivial in comparison to the collapse of society that plays out before their eyes. Uncertainly abounds as they all travel different paths in search of a safe place to call home. The only thing that is definite is that The Long Road will take its toll on all of them.
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Review:
Of course, I had to read the sequel! Why would I simply read the first book and not continue on in a series that marks one of the best dystopian worlds I have ever found myself entrenched in. When asked whether I wanted to read the first book, second, or both, I naturally went for all I could get (and that was even before I knew I was going to adore them). After reading The End, I couldn't wait to find out what happened to Gordon and the rest of the motley crew of characters.
In The Long Road, Gordon, his family, and a caravan of his best and brightest neighbors are on the way to Idaho where they hope to find safety and a place to start over. Gordon's family owns property out that way and he figures that's as good a place as any to begin forming his own community. What Gordon didn't count on was that danger would lurk around every corner. He and his group have not even made it out of California before they are plagued by violence and devastation.
Whereas before Gordon's instincts worked in his favor, now they threaten to be his downfall. His desperation to always have enough resources for his people drives him to investigate a military base outside of Barstow, California. This mistake in judgment and the determination of his eight-year-old son to help his father, leads them both to be captured by a religious zealot and his psychotic followers. Now Gordon can only hope to find a way to escape with his son and find his way back to his wife, daughter, and group.
Meanwhile, the government is collapsing and Colonel Barone has set himself up to be it's new leader with the help of his Marine followers. Little does he know but the current government and a drug cartel leader both have their eyes set on running the ruined country.
Sebastian has sought out his brother's neighborhood but found only death. Others and even, almost, his own when his helicopter crashes. He is rescued by a Mormon community headed by Bishop Sorenson and his very attractive daughter. Sebastian is torn between continuing his search for his older brother and staying with the Mormon's to be the leader they so desperately need.
Gordon, Sebastian, Colonel Barone, and others all have a lot to accomplish and a long road ahead of them in all their goals.
This book was vastly different from the first book. The first book set the stage for the new world and this one was more into a concise story line of events and character development. I was more emotionally drawn to the characters than I was in the first one. I felt their plights. I was teetering on the edge of my seat most of the time, reading as fast as I could so I could know what happened to some of the fictional people I had come to admire or love. Avoiding spoilers, I absolutely sobbed my eyes out at some points in the book. My heart broke, my stomach turned, and rage coursed through my veins the likes of which I have never experienced in all the books I have read. In short, this book rocked my world.
Hopf's New Work series continues to make me appreciative of the things I have and the world of luxuries our country have. A Long Road will make it's readers who have children clutch them tight and never want to let go.
