The Jakarta Pandemic by Steven Konkoly is a fantastic Post Apocalyptic novel. A new strain of the H1 influenza virus starts spreading like wildfire across the globe with the death toll building at an alarming rate. Alex the contemporary upper-middle-class american protagonist, his wife Kate and their two young children live in a four-bedroom, two-and-a-half bath colonial-style home of recent vintage in a subdivision in southern Maine full of doctors and lawyers and business executives.

The story follows Alex: a pharmaceutical sales rep who loves his wife and kids and who is slightly disgusted with his job. So far, so normal. Alex, however, is also ex-military with some guns and lots of supplies in the basement and just enough salt to co-opt his employer’s flu vaccine samples for those in need when the pandemic hits Maine. We’ve all dreamed of the perfect exit from a demeaning job and Alex’s coup de grace does not disappoint. What follows is a fascinating account of the disintegration of a suburban neighborhood as a deadly influenza descends. Lack of food and water quickly become more threatening than the virus itself. The scenes of denial and desperation among Alex and Kate’s neighbors are particularly well done, and the build-up to the inevitable deadly show-down is intense and absorbing.

The author did his homework on both the influenza virus’s history and what it take to be prepared for long term emergency situations. While the Jakarta Pandemic can be deadly serious, it also can make you laugh with the banter between husband and wife and the ribbing between good friends. There are thrillers out there from more well known authors for three times this price and they don’t come close to the story telling here. I'm looking forward to reading the next installment of this story: The Perseid Collapse.

Takes place up here... May have to check it out.

It sucks these books always come out in a series.  I understand they have to make money but I feel like they just milk it along...a la 299 days.

I agree that some books shouldn't be a series but I'm on the second book and it's an easy and interesting read so far.

I'm just cheap and don't want to keep paying for the whole series

I've read them all the last one just dropped on the 14th. Not sure how Im liking this last one but just got into it so we will see.

Overall they we're decent. Couple of them had parts that read like military deployment manuals though.

I liked it.

I read this a couple of years ago.  (thought it was a stand alone book at the time)  OK , but nothing great.  I'd give it 7/10 or so.  

There were parts where I thought that the main character was a complete idiot.