Without Warning

I think I like the Australian cover above more than the below American version. But, I think the latter will bring more readers. It has a certain Tom Clancy-Dale Brown-Stephen Coonts feel that will hook the techno-thriller junkies. And not to slight Mr. Birmingham, this is a techno-thriller with a major hanging curve ball.

Most of the North America population is killed by an unspeakable disaster. (I almost said decimated until I remembered the meaning of that word and more than ten percent of the population died) Also this area is rendered uninhabitable by the same event. That said, some pockets of America live on and the bulk of its military power is outside of the country waiting to make war on Iraq. Needless to say this is where our history diverges. We lived through five more years of the Bush administration and it is gone in this book. Looking at several characters over the course of a day, a week and a month following the event, the reader is treated to how the world could change without an American presence. Mr. Birmingham does a commendable job in laying out his world and thinking of some problems never addressed in similar books. The twists and turns were fun and this book read quickly and well. In some ways, I'd say the writing was superior to the World War 2.0 books. But he follows the same premise of shaking up not just a civilization, but the world with the changes he envisions.

This book could be read as a stand-alone, but a sequel is promised. Hopefully it won't take too long and will be as fun as this was.