Blackout by Robison Wells

The basics

Title: Blackout

Author:

Series: Blackout #1

- Blackout (2013)
- Dead Zone (2014)

Add it: Goodreads

Goodreads Summary:

Laura and Alec are trained terrorists.

Jack and Aubrey are high school students.

There was no reason for them to ever meet.

But now, a mysterious virus is spreading throughout America, infecting teenagers with impossible powers. And these four are about to find their lives intertwined in a complex web of deception, loyalty, and catastrophic danger—where one wrong choice could trigger an explosion that ends it all.

Read a full summary of Blackout by Robison Wells below. If you can’t remember what happened in Blackout and you need a refresher, then you’re in the right place.

in short

Alex, Laura, Dan, Jack, and Aubrey all have powers. The latter two are considered the “good” guys, whereas the other three are part of a terrorist organisation that is taking down America. They’re all caught, although only Aubrey, Jack, and Laura are recruited by the government to use their powers for good. Laura helps Aubrey and Jack out and they find Dan. Aubrey and Jack realise the others are part of the terrorist group. Dan’s mother is killed in Chicago under Alec’s orders, and he loses his shit and creates an avalanche, which he and Laura seem to be caught in. Aubrey and Jack turn themselves in and are then recruited to find Alec again after Russia invades Alaska.

what happened in Blackout?

  • Alec, Laura, and Dan go to Lake Powell and crumble the dam. These three work for a terrorist group and are trying to cause chaos in the USA.
  • There’s a dance at Aubrey’s school. Soldiers turn up and rudely interrupt. They make the students line up and then one of the students starts to fight back. Jack helps Aubrey get out of there as they’re testing people and Aubrey is able to disappear.
  • Everyone between the ages of thirteen and twenty are to be tested for superpowers.
  • Jack and Aubrey are caught by the government soldiers, who promise to treat them with respect. The reason they’re hunting for and testing teenagers is that all of the known terrorists so far have been teenagers as well. They are taken to a camp.
  • Alec, Laura, and Dan go to a national park and some rangers come across them. Laura uses her super-strength to stop them from reporting them. Alec and Laura discuss the virus, which has apparently mutated and is spreading like crazy throughout the USA. Laura kills the second ranger, Gina.
  • Aubrey tests Negative for the virus but PLOT TWIST, Jack is Positive. He’s taken away with the other teens who turned out to be Positive. He’s put in a cell. He meets someone called Eddie who says that they (the soldiers) come and take the teens eventually.
  • There’s an avalanche that Alec and Laura are caught in. Alec is injured and separated from the others. He gets taken to the camp by the soldiers and he meets Aubrey. Aubrey thinks he went to school at Mount Pleasant with her.
  • Laura shows up and is taken to the prison where Jack is being held. She demonstrates her power but refuses to help break them out.
  • The terrorists known down Golden Gate Bridge.
  • Aubrey sneaks around and an alarm goes off. She goes to sleep in a storage room. When she wakes up, there are soldiers nearby. Someone radios in and tells the soldiers that Aubrey is right by them, but they can’t see her. She gets knocked out.
  • Jack meets Dr. Eastman, who tells him that he does have the Erebus virus. They talk about the symptoms of the virus – positives and negatives. Then Eastman starts testing Jack to see what his power is. They finally figure out that he has enhanced senses; he can hear them through soundproof glass and see across a dark room.
  • Aubrey is interrogated by Dr. Eastman, who tells her about Jack and Nicole.
  • Jack completes some tests and Josi tells him that it looks like these people want them to join their army and fight the terrorists. Aubrey is also recruited. They all start their training and are referred to as Lambdas.
  • Alec is let out of the camp and a bus takes him to Salt Lake.
  • Aubrey and Jack have their final test, which is a sort of recon mission. There’s a Lambda causing destruction and they are required to stop her. She’s a little girl. Aubrey knocks her out.
  • There’s a meeting with all the Lambda soldiers and they are given bracelets that “prove” they’re clean. Jack and Aubrey are recruited together with Laura. There are twenty six Lambda soldiers all together.
  • They get to a warzone and Laura goes missing. They try to find her as the mission fails. The terrorists collapse the Space Needle. Laura gets shot. Aubrey and Jack drive off with her. They talk about what to do next. They suggest fleeing the country.
  • Laura tells Jack and Aubrey about Alec and Dan. She wants Aubrey to find them. They head out.
  • A cop pulls them over and Aubrey lies and says they’re finding family in San Francisco.
  • Aubrey confronts Laura about remembering Alec. She realises that Alec is the same Alec that she met in quarantine.

how did it end?

Laura, Aubrey, and Jack find Dan. Jack and Aubrey realise that the others are keeping something from them. Jack sees Aubrey’s phone, where she has been secretly talking to Dan. He realises they are part of the terrorist organisation. Aubrey tells Dan that Chicago was hit and he loses it, because his mother was living in Chicago. The blog posts in between the chapters were secret messages from Alec, stating what their next target should be. Dan creates an avalanche and he and Laura seem to get caught in it. Jack and Aubrey turn themselves in. They’re imprisoned for almost a week, with Aubrey talking to Jack through the walls, until they’re pulled out and recruited to find Alec. The cliffhanger is Russia invading Alaska.

Powers

Laura: Extreme strength.
Dan: Rock manipulation.
Alec: Memory implantation or mind control.
Aubrey: Brain manipulation (your brain doesn’t register that she’s there).
Jack: Enhanced senses.
Eddie: “Hot breath”.
Josi: Enhanced memory and comprehension.
Nicole: Controls pheromones.

This is a full plot summary of what happened in Blackout by Robison Wells. Check out our recap list for more recaps. If you can’t find what you need, you can request a recap from us!

Comments:

  • Lexie says:

    In the how did it end Laura was working with Dan not Aubrey.

  • Jessie King says:

    This is the best book I have ever read in my whole life I can’t wait to read the rest of the books my Robison Wells :):):):)

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