Sunset Rising by S.M. McEachern
(Sunset Rising #1)
Publication date: November 12th 2013
Genres: Dystopia, Young Adult
Synopsis:
February
2024: Desperate to find refuge from the nuclear storm, a group of
civilians discover a secret government bio-dome. Greeted by a hail
of bullets and told to turn back, the frantic refugees stand their
ground and are grudgingly permitted entry. But the price of admission is
high.
283 years later… Life as a slave in the Pit had never
been easy, but for seventeen-year-old Sunny O’Donnell it was quickly
careening out of control. Her mother was killed in the annual spring
Cull, leaving her alone with a father who decided to give up on
life. It’s not that she blamed him for grieving, but if they didn’t
earn enough credits to keep their place inside the Pit, they would be
kicked out into a world still teeming with radiation. That left her to
earn the credits for both of them. It didn’t help that her boyfriend,
Reyes Crowe, was pressuring her to get married and abandon her father.
Sunny didn’t
think life could get any worse, until she was forced upstairs to
the Dome to serve and entertain the elite at a bachelor party. That's
where she met Leisel Holt, the president's daughter, and her fiancé,
Jack Kenner. Now Sunny is wanted for treason. If they catch her, she'll
be executed.
She thought Leisel's betrayal was the end for her…but it turns out it was just the beginning.
Sunset Rising is Book One of a series.
Purchase:
--Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Sunset-Rising-S-M-McEachern-ebook/dp/B009G3ZIO0
And now...some tips and advice
In the (un)Likely
Event of an Apocalypse
The Apocalypse. The end of civilization as we know it. Maybe
even the complete annihilation of the Earth.
The thought is terrifying and has fascinated generations for
decades. There have been thousands of predictions on how, why and when the
world as we know it will come to an abrupt end. It’s the stuff that blockbuster
films and best selling novels are made of (mine included!). But could an
apocalypse actually happen? What are the
odds? And more importantly, can the human race survive the end of the world? As
the author of a post-apocalyptic series, I’ve actually done some research on
apocalyptic scenarios and here are a few of my thoughts:
Nuclear War: Anyone who has read my novel, “Sunset
Rising”, knows nuclear war is my apocalypse of choice (I say tongue in cheek). Consider
the domino effect of just one nuclear explosion set off above a city: a)
buildings and dwellings leveled and set on fire; b) the instantaneous death of
anyone inhabiting the city; c) as the city is engulfed in flames, oil and gas
stores (in vehicles and tanks) explode; e) the cloud from the firestorm rises into
the atmosphere, blocking out the suns rays—the beginning of a nuclear winter;
f) radiation fall-out. One nuclear warhead exploding over one city has the
capability to wipe out millions of people.
There are more than 17,000 known nuclear weapons in the world, many of which are more powerful
than the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima.
In the (un)likely event of a global nuclear war, you might
want to be digging out a bunker in your backyard and stocking it with canned
food and clean water… In the meantime, you can join campaigns and groups
dedicated to abolishing nuclear weapons globally.
Earth hit by an
asteroid: How big does an asteroid
need to be to cause global destruction? NASA says anywhere from 1 to 2 km in
diameter and up will likely end civilization.
Regional damage at the collision site would cause the most immediate
destruction, but it’s the resulting “impact winter” possibly followed by an
“ultraviolet spring” that would end life as we know it. For comparison, the
asteroid responsible for the mass extinction of the dinosaurs was approximately
10 kilometers (6 miles) in diameter.
So what are the odds of Earth suffering a meteorite impact? Pretty
good, actually. Asteroids have collided
with our planet in the past so there’s every reason to expect it will be hit
again. In fact, on March 5, 2014, a
meteor approximately 98 feet in diameter—big enough to cause regional
damage—passed between the Earth and Moon.
In the (un)likely event of a meteorite impact, those people
who already have a bunker dug-out to survive the nuclear war have the best
chance for survival. Although, if you live in a coastal area subject to
tsunamis from the event, forget the bunker and head to high ground. If you’d
like a heads-up before the big bang, check in with the “Near Earth Object
Program” here:
http://neo.jpl.nasa.gov/risk/
Zombies: Can a zombie apocalypse actually happen?! The
movie, “I am Legend” made it somewhat believable since people were turned into
zombies via a rabies-type virus. And
here’s the other thing that makes “I am Legend” mind-blowingly scary—the
zombies could run fast! Biologists keep
warning us we’re overdue for a pandemic. Could the zombie flu be the next one?
In the (un)likely event of a zombie apocalypse, you’ll need
to be in good physical shape, know how to use a rifle, and make sure you’re a
fast runner…or at least faster than your mate ;)
Well, those are just a few ways our civilization could
suffer an apocalypse. Are you prepared?
Enter the giveaway for a chance to win a $30 Gift Card!
AUTHOR BIO
S.M.
McEachern (also known as Susan) comes from the rocky shores of Canada’s
East Coast. As a resident of Halifax during her early adult years, she
attended Dalhousie University and earned an Honors Degree in
International Development Studies with a focus on ocean
development. Throughout her academic studies and early career, Susan
had the privilege to work with many developing countries on resource
management projects.
Becoming an author has been a lifelong
dream for Susan. “Sunset Rising” is her debut novel and the first of
many she plans to write.
