Not with a Bang
By Temi Oh
S&S/Saga Press, July 14, 2026, 352pp.
The Short of It:
Doomsdayers rejoice.
The Rest of It:
The Minton family has had a rough go of it. Marcus loses his job and becomes obsessed with stockpiling resources and digging a doomsday bunker for his family. As his family watches his antics, the family slowly falls apart.
Two daughters and their mother watch in horror as a cataclysmic event turns their world upside down. A magnetic force arrives on the wedding day of the eldest daughter, throwing everyone into panic mode. Anything metal is picked up and tossed, including body piercings, surgical devices, and the like. Bodies lie strewn everywhere, and one daughter has gone missing.
With the family torn apart and scattered in different locations, the bunker Marcus built is not useful at all. Instead, it becomes a target for those who want what is inside. Marcus prepared his family for survival but failed to think twice about boasting about his supplies, ultimately putting everyone at risk.
As each family member does what they can to survive, their internal thoughts keep them moving forward through a situation where a resolution is not immediately apparent.
What was great:
- Pacing
- Authenticity
- Briar’s point of view
Overall, this was quite readable without being dark or depressing. I wanted more of the family’s interactions before they were split apart. I think that would have lent a more personal note to the story. No matter how you imagine the world ending, the way civilization falls apart within minutes is, I fear, accurately depicted.
Recommend.
Source: Review copy provided by the publisher.
Disclosure: This post contains Bookshop.org affiliate links.
Hmmm…this one sounds a little scary, Ti! Hope you are doing well!
A neighbor of the school where I taught had a 1950s bomb shelter in his backyard. He used to dress it up like it was the 1950s so that I could bring my students over for a field trip. It led to awesome discussions.
This also reminds me of the Simpsons episode where Ned Flanders builds a shelter and the entire town ends up trying to get in.
There was a Twilight Zone episode with that subject too. If you had supplies and a shelter you’d have to keep it quiet because people do desperate things when there is no other choice. I always think of the earthquake kit that I had, but could not get to during the Northridge quake.
Bomb shelters were very much part of everyday life for thirty years in Northern Sri Lanka. Now thankfully a thing of the past. This story sounds very possible though frightening.
Just like that episode of the Twilight Zone.. I believe if people knew of your prep and that you had a bunker you’d be a target for vandals. You’d have to keep it a secret. Especially if kids are involved. They’d tell everyone.
Maybe the plot seems a little too real world … whoa. Things fall apart in a hurry. We have a prepper room …. but less a storage closet than a bunker, lol.
Hey, my little pup had to be put down the day before my bday. This past Friday. My heart is broken. Came home and she was in distress. A wonderful in-home vet came when she heard her on the phone. It was peaceful and perfect. Still heartbroken. Sixteen years.
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This one sounds like this could be harrowing indeed. I am glad that it was well done and didn’t seem overwhelming.
The subject matter was handled well but you can’t prepare for all scenarios. I kept thinking of the awesome earthquake kit that I had when the big Northridge quake hit and how I could not get to it because the ceiling collapsed over it.
You definitely cannot plan for everything.