Hugh Howey: First Shift (2012, Penguin Random House)
164 pages
English language
Published Nov. 10, 2012 by Penguin Random House.
Good setup for a second book (which I've already started). Also a good prequel to the Wool books - recommended if you're a fan of that series. This books kept me engaged, and the dark undertones that were present in the Wool series are here as well - very entertaining.
In this prequel to the Wool Omnibus, we finally learn about the disaster that caused the creation of the silos. We get two points of view. Donald, a congressman and architect, who gets charged with designing a bunker for a nuclear waste facility in Atlanta. 60 years later, the second point of view is Troy, the leader of silo 1, woken up from cryo-freeze to work his first shift and preserve the legacy. In flashbacks and memories we find out what happened, how the book of order came about, and even get a hint of something going on at silo 18. The end is a whopping cliffhanger, that simply makes me want more more more.
Again, the writing is quite excellent, the characters are interesting, and the atmosphere is full of doom and gloom. If I have a complaint about the story, it's that I still don't fully understand what …
In this prequel to the Wool Omnibus, we finally learn about the disaster that caused the creation of the silos. We get two points of view. Donald, a congressman and architect, who gets charged with designing a bunker for a nuclear waste facility in Atlanta. 60 years later, the second point of view is Troy, the leader of silo 1, woken up from cryo-freeze to work his first shift and preserve the legacy. In flashbacks and memories we find out what happened, how the book of order came about, and even get a hint of something going on at silo 18. The end is a whopping cliffhanger, that simply makes me want more more more.
Again, the writing is quite excellent, the characters are interesting, and the atmosphere is full of doom and gloom. If I have a complaint about the story, it's that I still don't fully understand what exactly turned the land outside into the wasteland that it is now. I simply know more, but I am just not sure.
People who have read the Wool Omnibus and enjoyed it, simply must buy this prequel and read it. Pricetag's a bit heftier at 3.79 USD, but it's definitely worth it.
