Blake Crouch’s latest release isn’t exactly new, but it could not have come at a better time. Originally self-published in 2011, RUN deals with subject matter that is all too relevant in our highly combustible society. Crouch dedicates the book to his readers who have been there since the beginning, and the present he is extolling is a novel of dark ferocity that will haunt your waking dreams.

An epidemic that causes unbridled rage began five days earlier, and those who are afflicted are imposing mass destruction on those who are not. It has gotten so bad that even after the power went out, names of innocent people and families were broadcast over both radio and television airwaves so that the raging mobs can find and eliminate them with extreme prejudice. It is like the film The Purge, but here the violence lasts forever, not just for one night.

"Crouch has produced a tale of horror that is directly out of our worst paranoid dreams. Even more frightening, it depicts a nightmare that most of us can believe to be entirely feasible."

When philosophy teacher Jack Colclough hears his name and address broadcast, he and his wife, Dee, along with their children, Naomi and Cole, flee their Albuquerque home in the middle of the night toward destinations that are not yet known. They don’t know where to run nor do they understand how far-reaching this deadly madness is.

What makes this nightmare that much more personal for the family is that Cole seems to be unaffected. While he was staying at a friend’s house one night, he saw “the light” --- some type of electronic pulse or power not of this planet. It becomes apparent that those who do not have the light on them are to be eliminated. Even at such a young age, Cole realizes that this is happening merely by chance; his family is in danger and among the hated since they don't see the light. I thought Crouch’s subtext for believers vs. non-believers was just brilliant, and the concept can be applied in multiple ways.

At one point, the Colcloughs settle in an abandoned home that has a shortwave radio. Jack is able to reach someone from Ireland who says that they are not affected by whatever is happening, but all of the US seems to be impacted, and major cities have already fallen. Their plight continues without them being able to trust anyone. At one point, they receive word of a settlement in southern Canada that is safe for those on the run. This is where they set their compass on --- if they can make it out of the continental US in one piece.

Crouch infuses the narrative with so much adrenaline that readers barely will be able to catch their breath. The Colcloughs are a microcosm of what is happening around the country. Each confrontation they have is worse than the one prior, as if they were dropped into “The Walking Dead.”

RUN contains a great quote from Leonard Cohen that really captures its spirit: “There is no decent place to stand in a massacre.” Just thinking about that gives one an unsettling feeling. This is why the book is so effective. Crouch has produced a tale of horror that is directly out of our worst paranoid dreams. Even more frightening, it depicts a nightmare that most of us can believe to be entirely feasible.