When the lights go out no one is safe…
A planet without power.
When a solar storm hits the earth, the lights go out across the planet. But this time the blackout won’t be over soon – it could last for years. Aubrey and her stepson now face the biggest challenge of their lives.
A society without rules.
Soon they hear rumours of riots, the struggle for food becomes real, and even within their small communities, the rule of law is collapsing. Aubrey’s estranged brother Thom, a self-made billionaire who abandoned her years ago, retreats to a gilded desert bunker where he can ride out the crisis in perfect luxury.
A race to build a better world…
But the complicated history between the siblings is far from over, and what feels like the end of the world is just the beginning of a personal reckoning long overdue…
Aurora by David Koepp stood out as being something a little bit different from other books I have read and I really enjoyed it. I started out thinking it was science fiction but it is scarily realistic and a thriller element is added to keep the pages turning at lightning speed.
The main part of the story is a coronal mass ejection (CME) hitting earth and taking out the power. The book starts by telling us about The Carrington Event, the CME that hit earth in 1859, and expected to occur every 150 years. Three little words at the end of that section chilled me to the bone: "We are overdue."
The scene is set and I was already thinking how real this could be. Scientists check and double check their data, governments refuse to believe the scale of the event, and billionaires race to their bunkers. Aubrey and Thom are siblings but their lives couldn't be more different. When the world goes dark, Aubrey is stuck in Aurora, Illinois with a layabout stepson and Thom is in his state of the art bunker in California.
I love how the different character storylines flow and intermingle; I thought I wouldn't remember who certain characters were but they each have a role to play and fit into the story perfectly. Just seeing how different people react to such massive challenges is so interesting to read - it's amazing how people can react to change and it's heartwarming to see that instead of being selfish, it's better to work together. Of course, some people are only looking out for themselves and they will never change.
The writing is so vivid and the storyline is so gripping that I'm not surprised it's being made into a film. I could have read so much more than the 400 pages included in the book, in fact I was disappointed to reach the end as I wanted to find out more.
Scarily realistic, Aurora is gripping, thrilling and eye-opening; I can't wait to watch it on the big screen.
I received an ARC to read and review for the blog tour and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.
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