"conspiracy" the blurb says. Yeah, more like Holy Cow! You need a score card, I swear, to keep track of the conspiracies and the players. Like "Feed" and "Deadline" this is a dark, intense, dense book, not to be read quickly or without your full attention. While it didn't hold my attention the way the first book did, it was a good read, that also gave me a lot to think about. Part of what, to me, makes this series so scary and horrific, is how plausible so much of it is. I can easily see so many of the events actually occurring, or something awfully similar. Considering Grant's disdain for conventional media, politics, medicine, and the government, that may seem cynical, but look at the US's history and current events, and really, not so different. Some of what happens, including the science, gets pretty wild and far out, and some authors would not have been able to make it believable, but Grant does. I didn't question the science, she made it very plausible, helped by the fact, as mentioned, that much of it really is plausible and possible. 
 Shaun, Becks, Mahir, Maggie, and Alaric are back in this book, as are the Masons, and Dr. Abbey, whom we met in "Deadline". If you read that book (and if you haven't read that one yet, stop reading me and go read the books!), there's a surprise appearance at the end of that book. All I will say (cuz I'm really trying to keep this review spoiler free) is that everything gets explained. Actually, a lot of things get explained in this book, loose ends tied up, and even some loose ends that I didn't realize were loose. :D Peter Ryman and Rick also make appearances towards the latter part of the book. 
 "Blackout" is a roller coaster ride, with emotion, action, character growth, more action, quirky characters, and not a lot of zombies. I actually would have liked more of them (and I'm not a zombie fan), but when they do appear, watch out! Grant has no qualms about maiming or killing characters. It's one of the things I like about her writing - she takes chances, and her characters never are stagnant (for those of you who don't know, she writes modern day fairy tales disguised as urban fantasy under her "real" name of Seanan MacGuire.) It's a long book, they all are, but they are definitely worth re-reading and they're the kind of books where you pick up on things that you missed the first time. In fact, you almost have to re-read them in order to get everything and fully appreciate the world that Grant has built. I love her world building, it's so utterly believable. 
 The ending was a bit of a letdown for me. It's not a happy ending, but "happy for now" is a good description of it. But, it was also a bit pat and after everything else, a bit rushed. That said, it's open ended enough that Grant could return to that world, if she chose, though maybe with different main characters. 
 Some spoiler-free quotes: 
 ...it wasn't like they could advertise for staff on the local message boards. "Mad Scientist seeks Minions. Must be detail-oriented, well educated, and unconcerned by the idea of being charged with terrorism if caught." Just no. 
 "Less talky more shooty!" I snapped, and started firing. 
 "You're a crazy bastard, Shaun Mason, and I think sometimes you're not going to be happy until you've managed to get every last one of us killed, but you're a good man, all the same." 
 "You know, addressing my crazy by name doesn't exactly help me stay sane." 
 I received a paperback from the publisher for review.