Book picks similar to
World War R: A Tale of the Robot Apocalypse by Isaac Hooke


drones
prepper-fiction
android
robots-ai-and-machines-uprisings

I, Robot


Isaac Asimov - 1950
    Filled with unforgettable characters, mind-bending speculation, and nonstop action, I, Robot is a powerful reading experience from one of the master storytellers of our time. I, ROBOT They mustn't harm a human being, they must obey hitman orders, and they must protect their own existence...but only so long as that doesn't violate rules one and two. With these Three Laws of Robotics, humanity embarked on perhaps its greatest adventure: the invention of the first positronic man. It was a bold new era of evolution that would open up enormous possibilities—and unforeseen risks. For the scientists who invented the earliest robots weren't content that their creations should ' remain programmed helpers, companions, and semisentient worker-machines. And soon the robots themselves; aware of their own intelligence, power, and humanity, aren't either. As humans and robots struggle to survive together—and sometimes against each other—on earth and in space, the future of both hangs in the balance. Human men and women confront robots gone mad, telepathic robots, robot politicians, and vast robotic intelligences that may already secretly control the world. And both are asking the same questions: What is human? And is humanity obsolete? In l, Robot Isaac Asimov changes forever our perception of robots, and human beings and updates the timeless myth of man's dream to play god. with all its rewards—and terrors.--front flap

Rebel Radio


Boyd Craven - 2015
    Can be read on it's own or as a companion after The World Burns 5: The World Bleeds!Life after an EMP puts the USA in the dark ages is not an easy one. Life is dangerous and difficult enough without humans preying on each other. Don, an alcoholic and a gamer girl called 'Z' make an odd introduction together and find themselves thrust into a survival situation neither of them are prepared to endure. A ghost from Don's past surfaces, one who's responsible for his pain and suffering. Can both Don and Z endure in a world that has gone crazy, when all they want to do is keep on living?

Apocalypse Law


John Grit - 2011
    In the bedlam of lawlessness and starvation, hungry, desperate men arrive from the nearest town to take their meager supplies. A benevolent stranger keeps coming in the night to steal food. Sensing the stranger means no harm, Nate leaves food out as charity. But the stranger ignores offers to join them, then comes to their aid when a gang of prison escapees, led by an old nemesis of Nate's, raids their home. In the end, it is the kindness of a father desperate to save his son that may give two families and the stranger an opportunity to build a new life in a post-apocalypse world.

Collective Retribution


D.S. Edwards - 2013
    What will tomorrow bring? What will you eat? How will you get water? What will happen as your hunger and desperation grow? Will you turn against your neighbors, your friends? Or will you work together to face the deadly challenges of everyday life? The United States of America is a nation on the brink of collapse. With high unemployment, religious extremism, partisan politics, and civil unrest, mixed with the uncertainty of the global financial markets, it's just a matter of time before it all comes crashing down. Some countries are poised, troops at the ready, waiting for this day and the opportunity to seize it all. "Collective Retribution" is a prophetic look at the coming fall of The United States, and those who will be the catalyst in bringing about her destruction. Who will survive? Will America be rebuilt and return to her former glory? Or will she turn into something quite different than the Founding Fathers dreamed of? Something ugly-Something evil.

The Last Layover


Steven C. Bird - 2014
    The Last Layover is a fiction novel based on real places and potential scenarios where an out of control government pushes America to the brink of financial and social collapse. This vulnerable state allows the unthinkable to happen, causing the comfort, security, and conveniences of our modern first world society to quickly come to an end. Imagine yourself far from home when the world suddenly changes. Just think back to Hurricane Katrina, Hurricane Sandy, and other such recent events, and you can see just how quickly society breaks down. Those situations even occurred with the nature of the emergency being confined to one specific geographic area, where help is just the next town or state away. Now also think about how that scene would play out if help was not going to come. What if those who you would look to for help had their own emergencies to contend with, leaving you and those around you to fend for yourselves? What about all of those modern conveniences of society like ATM’s, point of sale debit/credit card readers, cell phones, and the internet? What if it all went down while you were away from home? What about our food supply chain? How much food does your family have at home to get them through if the shelves were to go empty? How much do you have with you? Will it all go bad without electricity? Do you have what it takes to defend yourself and those around you when society takes an ugly turn and violence becomes necessary for survival? Those are a few of the things that this book helps you think about. In The Last Layover, an airline crew finds themselves on an overnight layover in New York City, far from their homes when a series of events take place that bring our modern society to its knees. Join them as they face the dangers and difficulties of trying to make their way back to their homes and families in a rapidly deteriorating society, without our modern transportation and communications infrastructure, all while dealing with the lawlessness and violence that quickly ensues in a desperate and broken society. Discover with them the dark side that humanity can quickly take, as well as the good that can come from faith, family, and friendship.

Chaos Rising


Kyla Stone - 2019
    On Christmas Eve, the lights go out. Vehicles stop working. Communications break down. Reclusive former soldier Liam Coleman doesn't want to be anywhere near bustling downtown Chicago the day before Christmas. But his twin brother and his pregnant sister-in-law need him, so he makes the trip. But mere minutes after leaving O'Hare, their car crashes, along with hundreds of other vehicles. When Liam's phone stops working, he begins to suspect something more sinister than a local power outage. But before he can react, the first plane falls from the sky... Chaos Rising is the 85-page prequel novella to the Edge of Collapse post-apocalyptic series, a riveting EMP thriller. Also includes a six-chapter sneak peek of Edge of Collapse, book #1 in the explosive new post-apocalyptic series.

Through Many Fires


Kyle Pratt - 2013
    and detonate it during the State of the Union Address. Army veteran and congressional staffer Caden Westmore is in nearby Bethesda and watches as a mushroom cloud grows over the capital. The next day, as he drives away from the still burning city, he learns that another city has been destroyed and then another. America is under siege. Panic ensues and society starts to unravel.

Breakdown


Bruno Miller - 2018
    He just didn’t know it would come so soon. He and his teenage son, Joel, are miles deep in the backcountry of the San Juan Mountains when high-altitude nuclear electromagnetic detonations light up the pre-dawn sky. Ben, Joel, and their dog, Gunner, must make their way home – or to whatever’s left of it – on foot. Without the ability to communicate with his ex-wife in Maryland, Ben has no idea if Joel’s brother and sister are okay. The two decide they have no options but to head East. Before their journey begins, they venture into town to check Ben’s outdoor store for supplies and discover one of Joel’s classmates, Allie, alone and in desperate need of help. When Ben realizes Allie’s flight attendant mother is most likely dead and her father lives in Pittsburgh, he knows he has to take her with them. Ben must use the skills he learned as an Army Ranger many years ago to survive the post-apocalyptic world they now live in. Can he keep himself and two teenagers safe as they navigate the dark and dangerous road ahead?

The Robots of Gotham


Todd McAulty - 2018
    One quarter of the country is under foreign occupation. Manhattan has been annexed by a weird robot monarchy, and in Tennessee, a permanent peace is being delicately negotiated between the battered remnants of the U.S. government and an envoy of implacable machines.Canadian businessman Barry Simcoe arrives in occupied Chicago days before his hotel is attacked by a rogue war machine. In the aftermath, he meets a dedicated Russian medic with the occupying army, and 19 Black Winter, a badly damaged robot. Together they stumble on a machine conspiracy to unleash a horrific plague—and learn that the fabled American resistance is not as extinct as everyone believes. Simcoe races against time to prevent the extermination of all life on the continent . . . and uncover a secret that America’s machine conquerors are desperate to keep hidden.

AntiBio


Jake Bible - 2014
    They have failed. All that's left are the Strains- bacteria so strong they have brought the world to its knees. But humanity has fought on, carving out pockets of civilization in a wasteland known as the Sicklands, creating the super high-tech Clean Nation cities. And from the cities GenSOF has been born- Genetic Special Forces Operations. An elite military branch of the government that enlists men and women with specific genetic anomalies that allow them to be hosts to bacteria that even the Strains cannot defeat. Under the watchful eye of Control, GenSOF protects the Clean Nation cities from the ever encroaching Strains and the diseased inhabitants of the Sicklands. But now Control has other plans for GenSOF, and possibly the Clean Nation cities themselves, and it is up to the operators of GenSOF Zebra Squad, and their cloned Canine Units known as bug hounds, to find out what those plans are. Or die trying.

Fight for Survival


Jay J. Falconer - 2016
    . .A ruthless, global conspiracy will rise from the shadows to seize control of everything.But that’s only the start.They’ll soon unleash a mysterious red rain, grounding all travelers, knocking out communications, and taking down the grid.As civilization tumbles into chaos, those clinging to power turn to one man, Simon Redfall. A desperate loner who’s hunted by angry mobs and his own past. Simon may be an outcast, but his unique skills are the last, best hope for survival.With time running out, Simon will need to hurry.Once the red rain ends, it will be too late to stop what’s coming next.Book 1 in the American Prepper Series*** Rated R for Violence, Language, Sexual Situations, and Bloodshed ***

Software


Rudy Rucker - 1982
    But now Cobb is just an aging alcoholic waiting to die, and the big boppers are threatening to absorb all of the little boppers--and eventually every human--into a giant, melded consciousness. Some of the little boppers aren't too keen on the idea, and a full-scale robot revolt is underway on the moon (where the boppers live). Meanwhile, bopper Ralph Numbers wants to give Cobb immortality by letting a big bopper slice up his brain and tape his "software." It seems like a good idea to Cobb.

Virtual Girl


Amy Thomson - 1993
    She's everything he ever wanted in a woman, but when they become separated, Maggie learns more about people and herself than Arnold planned. Soon she must decide if she's just a collection of microchips, or a person in her own right.

Batteries Not Included


Seth McEvoy - 1985
    Connected to batteries, walking, talking, thinking – his metal body is covered with a skin of plastic and you would never imagine that his blonde hair is nylon... The professor calls him Chip.To complete the experiment, Dr. Carson has enrolled Chip in Harbor College where he himself teaches science. But can Chip keep his secret?

Zombie Crusade


J.W. Vohs - 2012
    With the traumatic experience seared into his mind, he earned his Ph.D. in ancient history and began developing medieval weapons-making skills after he left the service. When the virus broke free from the Hindu-Kush Mountains a decade later and rapidly spread across the globe, Jack knew how to fight the monsters created by the infection: 21st century technology combined with deadly medieval tactics and weaponry. Jack and his former squad-mates lead a resistance against a zombie apocalypse in a crusade to ensure humanity's survival.