Reliance by Paul McMurrough

Release: July 31st 2020
Format: Ebook
Publisher: McMurrough
Source: Love Books Tours
Find it at: Goodreads, Amazon UK , B & N

An eruption on the Sun leaves the Earth powerless. But is it a temporary inconvenience or the start of a spiral into anarchy?
Belfast Professor Martin Monroe knows the answers. However once branded a conspiracy nut, he struggles to get anyone to listen to his warnings of the impending disaster. His only friend, Simon Wilson, still coming to terms with the loss of his wife, is the only person who will listen.

Government Communications officer, Lisa Keenan, fights against bureaucracy, and her own lack of confidence, to get the word out. She enlists the help of Martin, despite the protests of her colleagues.
With a wife and new-born child to think of, prison supervisor, Derek Henderson, must weigh duty against family and live with the consequences of his decisions.
Will the world’s total reliance on technology, and the electricity that powers it, lead to the irreversible disintegration of society on a global scale?

‘Some works of fiction are simply pure entertainment, while others go that extra mile; Reliance alerts us to just how close to the tipping-point the majority of our societies dwell.’- STEVE ROGAN – Author of The Rain Saga trilogy & Tracks

About the Author:

Paul was born and raised in Belfast. Until the age of 15 he couldn’t read. Then, when introduced to Computing at school, he forced himself to make sense of the letter spaghetti on the pages of the text books.
He went on to get a First Class honours degree in Computer Science followed by a career in Software and later IT and Business Consulting.

You may know him from Game of Thrones, where he played “Back of Head from 100 yards” or in The Fall with Jamie Dornan and Gillian Anderson where he played “Elbow at the bar” – His acting career ended soon after

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Reliance Review:

I love stories that make me think and ponder of possible conflicts that could affect our livelihood, and this book does it perfectly.

At times the story was difficult and scary to read only because of its theme. 2020 has been a challenging year for many of us, and I was wondering what would happen if an even like this actually occurred in reality. A global power cut would be disastrous and chaotic. The author writes the story in a very thrilling manner that immediately draws you in. I loved reading the details of the cause of the event. I didn’t even know of Coronal Mass Ejection and the impact of solar flares till I read this story.

As the story progresses, you start to see how the event causes a pandemic and affects people. One of the memorable scenes in the story was when Derek goes to the prison and interacts with Brian. The scene is powerful because it shows you how desperate people to survive, irrespective of their situation.

Moreover, the author keeps the pace consistent and you wonder how the story will conclude. I liked all the characters like Simon, Lisa, Eugene and Derek, and it was interesting to see how they all interact at some point. Poor Martin. He tried to warn everyone but nobody listened. My heart went out to him and I loved his friendship with Derek. The author also concludes the story in brilliant and unexpected manner related to the cast. However, at the same time, I felt the ending was a bit rushed and concluded a bit abruptly.
Overall, Reliance is a science fiction novel, but one which unnerves you because of its theme.