The Last Town on Earth by Thomas Mullen [Paperback: Excellent]

Paperback in Excellent condition (392 pages)

Set against the backdrop of one of the most virulent epidemics that America ever experienced the 1918 flu epidemic Thomas Mullens powerful, sweeping first novel is a tale of morality in a time of upheaval.

Deep in the mist-shrouded forests of the Pacific Northwest is a small mill town called Commonwealth, conceived as a haven for workers weary of exploitation. For Philip Worthy, the adopted son of the towns founder, it is a haven in another sense as the first place in his life hes had a loving family to call his own.

And yet, the ideals that define this outpost are being threatened from all sides. A world war is raging, and with the fear of spies rampant, the loyalty of all Americans is coming under scrutiny. Meanwhile, another shadow has fallen across the region in the form of a deadly illness striking down vast swaths of surrounding communities.

When Commonwealth votes to quarantine itself against contagion, guards are posted at the single road leading in and out of town, and Philip Worthy is among them. He will be unlucky enough to be on duty when a cold, hungry, tired and apparently ill soldier presents himself at the towns doorstep begging for sanctuary. The encounter that ensues, and the shots that are fired, will have deafening reverberations throughout Commonwealth, escalating until every human value love, patriotism, community, family, friendship not to mention the towns very survival, is imperiled.