Good, realistic, prepped/survivalist fiction is rare, and I thought I’d come across a gem of a series.

Then I could barely finish the first book, and it’s not that long.

In eventually getting through it, I can honestly say there are some very good parts and the work is reasonably well researched.

But there’s no other way to say it: this book is tainted by an undercurrent of racism, misogyny, and cultural elitism. Please note, this isn’t from just one of the characters who’s supposed to be a bigot or scoundrel, it’s from the main character and the 1st and 3rd person narration, and can be glimpsed in the creation of characters who are insultingly stereotypical. Nothing obvious or overt, just the subtle condescension that occasionally comes from white men like myself who seem to think that the world balances on their shoulders alone and everyone else needs to shut up and follow. There were plenty of times that I had to just stop listening out of sheer disgust. I kept going mostly in hope that the tone would change. SPOILER: it didn’t.

Great narration, though.