One Second After by William R. Forstchen

I love a good apocalyptic tale. The writing was mediocre - not bad, merely a tool to tell the tale, though the occasional sentence made me cringe - but the tale the text told was chilling and engaging. And now, of course, I'm terrified an electromagetic pulse (EMP) will be the end of my happy, electricity-filled existence, and I will die a horrible, miserable death.

So a recommended read!

People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks

Excellent book. The weakest parts were the ones set basically modern day. I really didn't care what happened to Hanna, and the ending drama felt like it sort of came out of nowhere, like the author thought some sort of twist was necessary. However, the parts in the past, tracing the different little pieces, were so fabulous that they made up for the weaknesses. Lovely prose, too.