After the Machines: After the Machines. Episode One: Awakening (PDF)

In the ruins of our world, a new order arose, an order controlled by the very machines humankind created. The end for us came not from a massive global war but from something unthinkable, incomprehensible. The machines simply replaced us and we let them, and so, in the end, humanity went out not with a bang, but with a whimper. No shots fired. No bombs dropped. No cities destroyed. We ended and the machines began-or at least that is what the few human survivors of the machine apocalypse believe. Select Praise for This Mortal Coil. After the Machines: "e;A gripping tale. Perfectly paced and brilliantly plotted."e; - Cathy Thompson, author. "e;Stanek's written many good, even great, books. This one's exceptional. Read it!"e; - Shannon Hale, author. "e;Builds and builds to a crescendo. Part Stephen King, part Suzanne Collins, part Max Brooks, 100% phenomenal!"e; - David Eastman, author. "e;Wonderful action writing. Fast, fun, and smart."e; - Margaret Brown, author. "e;I can see why Rothfuss doesn't want people to read Stanek. Stanek's a much more capable writer."e; - Emily Asimov, author. "e;Anyone who enjoyed The Hunger Games, World War Z, or The Maze Runner is going to enjoy this book."e; - Lisa Gardner, author. "e;What an amazing book! Unique and innovative, captivating to the end."e; - Mary Osborne, author. "e;This one's memorable and fascinating heroine is someone you're going to love as much as Katniss Everdeen."e; - Sandra Brown, author.