Keith Knapp

After a random series of electrical power ups and downs, everything electric dies in Chicagoland. With no way to communicate with the world, let alone each other, individuals struggle to make sense of what is happen around them. During short, quick chapters, the focus shifts between a full ensemble cast covering all strata of Westmont society. Amidst the initial confusion, the sinister Man in the Dark Coat uses his telepathic Voice to create a truly apocalyptic battle between the forces of evil and innocence. Those who can hear the Voice, the Changed, can also apparently rise from any normally fatal injury to continue to carry out The Man in the Dark Coat's agenda. Groups of survivors form and are torn apart as loved ones and new allies fall under the sway of the Voice. For Chicagoland readers, the detailed backdrop of Westmont, Illinois creates a greater sense of immediacy and connection to Knapp's very believable suburban survivors. Meanwhile, the Man in the Dark Coat invokes the Randall Flagg character from Stephen King's The Stand. However, Knapp's apocalypse has a much more paranormal beginning which leads to the final battle for humanity's soul.… (mehr)