E-Day

E-Day, Book 1

By: Nicholas Sansbury Smith

Narrated by: R.C. Bray

Artificial intelligence is our last hope of saving the war-ravaged Earth in this near-future science-fiction thriller from the apocalyptic mind of New York Times best-selling author Nicholas Sansbury Smith (Hell Divers, The Extinction Cycle, Orbs).

The most advanced soldiers in human history are about to become obsolete.

Engines. Genetically modified warriors that keep the great Nova Alliance war machine churning against the enemy Coalition. Most days, Engines are all that stand between salvation and chaos. Led by legendary Engine Captain Akira Hayashi, Shadow Squad has fought on the frontlines for a decade. They are on the brink of victory when the Coalition launches a series of desperate and devastating attacks that cripple the Nova Alliance restoration sites vital to save the dying planet.

As the sites burn and Earth’s hope of salvation fades, Shadow Squad is equipped with neural implants to connect them to Apeiron, the first hybrid human-AI entity. She is coded for what Captain Hayashi believes is an impossible task - peace. But war isn’t the only threat to the Earth. Apeiron has uncovered a deadly secret with implications that could end all life. This rapidly approaching threat can be stopped only if humanity bands together on what will become known as E-Day, a pivotal moment that will determine the evolution - or the extinction - of the entire human race.

©2021 Nicholas Sansbury Smith (P)2021 Recorded Books

R. C. Bray is a storyteller. There are few better.

I have enjoyed a number of books written by author Nicholas Sansbury Smith. I have enjoyed them all. The stories are classics battles of good vs evil, even though the lines are not always clear. They are filled with epic personalities, heroes and villains. The future is not so pretty in Smith's books, but there is always hope. Couple this book with the great Audible narrations of R. C. Bray and you will have top notch entertainment.

E-Day

AI is salvation, or is it? This is a question that has broken earth into two factions. The world is in a state of collapse with a awful disease running ramped through the world called SANDS, Systematic Amyotrophic Nervous Disorder, that kills harshly and quickly and climate change that has ravaged the earth. When Dr. Jason Crichton puts his sister's mind into a operating system after she dies of SANDS, he believes she will help him save the world.

This Japanese influenced book is as exciting and suspenseful as a roller coaster. Author Nicholas Smith takes us on a wild, action packed, ride as we all hold our breath waiting to see what happens next. My favorite characters are Okami a mech/wolfdog who helps shadow squad and Ghost who is always happy no matter what circumstances shadow squad finds themselves in. By the way I had the audio version with narrator R.C. Bray who is as awesome as ever but I really enjoyed his tenor voice doing the singing for Ghost of shadow squad. I enjoy how Mr. Bray transforms my world into that of the story and makes me feel as though I am really there fighting and surviving, it is easy to see why Bray and Smith team up a lot.

Listened straight through today

This one might be better than Hell Divers! Totally unique, action-packed, twists, turns, and Bray was singing in it! This series is going to be epic!

A.I. Is Salvation…?

Nicholas Sansbury Smith and R.C. Bray back together again. I mean, even just knowing that will help bolster sales of this book – but if I back away from my fandom of both and just look at this book critically, it’s probably Smith’s best work to date. I’ve read quite a few books from NSS over the years from Extinction Cycle to Hell Divers to Trackers to Sons of War. Each world has its own unique feel to it. Each one has insanely well built out characters and plotlines. But, sometimes you can tell when an author puts their heart and soul into a book. I think that E-Day is that book for Smith. Every page and every chapter I could feel Smith’s soul coming out through his words. E-Day was written with so much love and so much attention to detail that it just jumps off the page.

Now, backing up a bit from that introduction, knowing how much I like Smith’s other work – I jumped into E-Day without a ton of information. I knew that there was going to be AI in it along with all of the other things mentioned above, but I wanted to go into it as blind as I could so that every new thing would surprise me. I’m glad that I did because this book was just excellent from beginning to end. But even with that said, there were some parts of it that surprised me (in a good way). E-Day contains a lot of interesting characters along with interesting sects/groups. It also utilizes a lot of history to “show” who each group was. My particular favorite was the amount of Samurai influence that was in this book. I don’t know why, but I didn’t expect it, and because of that it made me enjoy the influence even more.

Now, I can’t talk too much about the actual plot points, especially the turning points of the book (the last quarter of it or so was a mad sprint to the finish with lots of reveals and surprises). But just know that as someone who has read 20+ Smith books, this book still had a lot of parts that surprised me. I will say, especially the part where I figured out what E-Day stood for was the biggest shock of them all. I didn’t realize I spent most of the book trying to figure out why he called it that, but once he mentions it (almost casually in the book), I was, for lack of better words, shook.

Now, I don’t even have to talk about R.C. Bray’s narration – I mean, he’s one of the top-selling narrators for a reason. But, if, for some reason, you still need a selling point at this point in my review… Bray sings numerous times in this book. Yeah? Enough said.

Great and different series.

What a great and different story, really enjoyed it. can't wait for the others, must read a new awesome story.

Amazing! The best military sci-fi of the year! Military Syfy of the year!

E-Day is the first book in the trilogy with the same name by best-selling and award-winning author Nicholas Sansbury Smith. In a not too distant, but very dark, future, humanity is on the brink of extinction, our world is divided between those who believe in artificial intelligence and those who hate it. The two sides are fighting in a never-ending war, inflicting as much pain on one another without even realizing that they should unite.

This is the best military sci-fi audiobook that I listened to this year and I was completely blown away by the superb writing, the unforgettable characters, and of course, the well-thought-out story arc.
I listened to E-Day obsessively and finished it in just two days. Even more interesting is that while I wasn’t listening, I found myself thinking about the struggles humanity faces in this grim future depicted by the talented Mr. Nicholas Sansbury Smith.
He writes like Don Winslow and plots like Mark Greaney, so once you start your adventure, you won’t be able to press pause.
Add to all I said above the fact that the audiobook version of E-Day is exquisitely performed by R.C. Bray, one of the best narrators in the audiobooks industry, and you will be totally and immediately transported into this post-apocalyptic future that you’ll never forget.
R.C. Bray is the perfect choice for this series and universe because he is definitely the most sought-after voice for military thrillers and sci-fi stories.
Nicholas Sansbury Smith has quickly become one of my favorite authors and I can’t wait to experience the next chapter of this extremely entertaining trilogy. Insanely paced, gripping, unputdownable, and chillingly thrilling, E-Day is the first iteration in what promises to be a blockbuster saga that will entertain military Sci-Fi fans for generations to come.
I hope that you found this review interesting and will consider leaving a helpful vote below. Thank you! Take care, stay safe, and don't forget, always listen with your heart.

Incredible!

The characters all have depth, the world building was well paced, story was enthralling.

I wanted to like this one....but

The premise behind it is good, but it becomes quite redundant with situations where the main protagonist encounters a new threat, his crew has trouble dealing with it, then they overcome it. After that every other encounter with the threat is relatively easy. The book goes on like that from on crisis to another, neglecting any meaningful character development. All the characters are very 2-dimensional (with the exception of the main character, and even that is thin).
RC Bray is great as usual, but there's only so much you can do if the source material is weak.

Prepare for the Shadow Squad...

This book is more than a military sci-fi read; it is 'history meets current events' can't stop listening saga. A true warrior in mind, body, and soul takes on a diabolical 'Hitler-esc' insane scientist, in a world where humans use technology for both good and bad. NSS is one of the best writers of Mil-SF today. I feel lucky to have 'stumbled' across his work, and with Audible, my commutes are enjoyable. I also listen while I work in the yard, and boy could I use an engine out there...
Cheers to the beginning of another epic series, and can't wait for the next one. R.C. Bray is one of the best hand's down! I raise my glass and toast NSS & Bray! Mazel tov!

Move over Skynet, there's a new AI in town!

Nicholas Sansbury Smith and RC Bray totally deliver on this look at the future of humanity and our relationship with AI and technology. This is a great story about a great scientist with all of the right intentions to save humanity. We know all about intentions and where they can lead. The AI, Apeiron/Petra is an interesting and likeable character who only wants to save the world. The antagonist Dr. Otto Cross is Apeiron's nemesis whose cruelty rivals any villains' we've seen before.
Shadow Squad and their leader Akira are totally believable future warriors. RC Bray brings the characters to life with his amazing ability to switch back and forth. When Ghost sings you may be reminded of a beer can from another universe, but only in the best way ;-) Akira's devotion to the ancient Japanese warrior traditions and his family are 100% on point.
My only complaint about this book is that book #2 isn't available yet (I told you NSS ;-) ).
If I could give it six stars I would!