Locker Nine: A Novel of Societal Collapse

Locker Nine is well written with only a few grammatical errors and a very clear picture of how good vs evil would, almost certainly, happen in any large disaster in America. A sad shame but unfortunately true. The primary characters were well rounded and introduced. They were realistic and most were easy to relate and empathize with. I highly recommend it and am looking forward to reading book 2 of this attention grabbing series.Read via Kindle Unlimited

It was easy to bond with the heroine characters in this story. Good combination of action and emotion that kept you engaged with the plight. Minimal usage of foul language which is greatly appreciated.Enjoyed the book very much.

Pretty great start to this series - written by one of the master wordsmiths of the apocalyptic genre, Franklin Horton.It isn’t the most thrilling, fast-paced, nor imaginative of all plots.Although, I think I may now be remembering this series was written YEARS ago. If so, it was definitely cutting edge stuff at that time - the reason for the societal collapse.And relating to that specific reason — the first few chapters of the book are especially engrossing. I’d love to read a book someday that includes a much longer, deeper, backstory focused on this topic. I always find it interesting & adrenaline-fueled.(No spoilers, ya gotta go read it yourself now! ;) lolOverall, Locker Nine: Book 1 is absolutely worth the read. But it won’t knock your socks off or anything.It’s simply a solid, satisfying, extremely well written, dystopian story.With not necessarily more violence than any other book out there, but without question a higher body count!Thus — warning — do not become attached to anyone, or anything. No matter if the people, animals, or material things are central to the storyline or simply passing through.NOTHING is sacred to Horton here; nothing or no one is untouchable. lolOk! On to the second chapter of this tale. I do have a feeling the pace as well as the intensity will pick up as we go along…..

Locker Nine is the beginning of a new series in the same post-disaster setting as Franklin Horton's Borrowed World series, and like that series it sets the scene with some chapters of the terrorist cells plotting their attacks on America's vital infrastructure. After the attacks, the story focuses on college student Grace Hardwick and her efforts to get herself and her best friend Zoe home from Oxford MS to Damascus VA. Fortunately for the girls, Grace's father is a dedicated survivalist prepper who not only raised her to be tough and familiar with weapons but also left a cache of survival supplies in Oxford for her to access in case of emergency, the Locker Nine of the title, with not only gear and supplies but also maps and notes for the best routes home with trusted safehouses along the way.Interspersed with the adventures of Grace and Zoe the book also weaves the story of Ray Walker, quite a contrast as Ray is only a little older than the girls but has a completely different attitude toward life, the world, and the people he encounters. Before the terror attacks Ray's primary occupations were washing dishes and bussing tables in a restaurant, doing drugs, and playing videogames. Now he sees himself as a marauder like those in his favorite game, Grand Theft Auto, and even takes to using his screen name, Gamma Ray. Ray is otherwise completely unprepared for the disaster, so plans to make his way home from New Orleans to Eastern Tennessee by robbing and stealing supplies and vehicles along the way. He is wandering in the same direction as Grace and Zoe and it seems inevitable that their paths will eventually cross.I really liked this book, even better than those in Horton's Borrowed World series which I devoured earlier this month. Grace is just as tough in her own way as Jim, Gary, Randi, and the rest of the group from that series, but not quite such a hardcase, and I found her a more pleasant viewpoint character (although Gamma Ray's brain is mostly just disgusting). Enjoyable read, five stars!

Thoroughly enjoyed reading Locker Nine (and yes you do find out why the title of the book is Locker 9), very realistic and plausible, excellent character development and quite a few ‘I did not expect that’ moments along the way. The story takes you from the initial planning stages of a mass terrorist attack, to the inevitable and quick deterioration of law and order, following the young girl at the centre of the story, Grace as she battles to survive and make it home to her family.I’ve already downloaded the second book and started it!

I really enjoyed this book although I was a little reticent at first. Choosing a young lady as the lead character was unexpected but having two daughters my self it is a very useful addition to the genre and one I will be recommending they read

I couldn't put this book down until I finished it, I sat up reading until the morning! I was worrying about what would happen to Grace and Zoe on their dangerous journey home, would they make it? You have to read to find out! Highly recommended!

As a novel, I would rate this book a 3 at best, but given the very useful information it contains, I've bumped it up to a 4.This novel suffers from the same issues that plague a lot of prepper fiction. The story is clunky, the characters aren't very developed, the dialog doesn't flow well, and the motivations of some of the people involved aren't very .. organic.For example, the main bad guy seems to compare the whole post-collapse world to a video game. The way that this character keeps comparing his video game achievements with real world events makes me think that the writer has never played one, and is going off of what other have told him. I get that he's supposed to be some kind of psychopath, but the way in which he just gets over his own injuries, and physical challenges is not very realistic.Additionally, too many of the characters "sound" the same, are too naïve to believe, or get over violent events too quickly. It's unnatural. The bad guy's girlfriend is barely even troubled when he kills an old couple with an axe. Later, she helps him kill a guard by distracting him. This whole time her internal dialogue is not particularly concerned about these events.I get that the point of these scenarios is to illustrate how quickly bad things can happen, but the main character is a college girl who turns commando, and her naïve, empty headed friend just accepts that she's shot people dead with barely any qualms or reaction.This sort of thing happens over and over again.Last but not least, the preppers in the novel are just a little too ... prepared. The main character drives a very out-of-character truck which is ideal for the challenges she's going to face. Her dad sets her up with all the gear, food, and weaponry she could ever need right from the start. Her contacts along the way are well provisioned, and able to stay in contact with her family.At some point I wasn't even reading it as a novel anymore, but rather as more of a mildly entertaining instruction manual.

A good read, with believable characters and situations. Many current post apocalyptic stories feature super warriors pumped up with ultra-right wing indignation, this is a welcome departure.