Massachusetts Fall (In The October Fall World)

by Phineas Strange · February 2025

You may know me as Phineas Strange — but I also write under the name Michael McDonald. My wife writes as Karen McDonald. The Fall Series is a collection of post-apocalyptic fiction set within the October Fall World. Four standalone series, twelve books in total, that can be read in any order you choose. Whether you start in Indiana, Boston, New Hampshire, or Massachusetts, you'll find yourself dropped into a world forever changed, following ordinary people navigating extraordinary circumstances. Each series is its own story, its own community, its own fight to survive. But they all share the same broken world — and the same belief that even in the darkest of times, people find ways to endure. If stories about resilience, survival, and the stubborn persistence of hope speak to you, I think you'll feel right at home here. If you enjoy these twelve books, I'd also encourage you to explore the entire In The October Fall World series — multiple authors, multiple stories, all centered around one cataclysmic event. It's a shared universe unlike anything else in post-apocalyptic fiction. Available from Raventhorne Books on Amazon.

— Phineas Strange

About Massachusetts Fall (In The October Fall World)

In the aftermath of a devastating EMP attack that cripples the United States, Matt Bradley is stranded 100 miles from home. Desperate to get home to his wife, Catherine, and their three young children, he is left with no choice but to walk. Back in Lexington, Massachusetts, Catherine is left to fend for herself and their children as their Boston suburb descends into chaos. Aided by her friend and neighbor Ellen, Catherine makes plans to escape to their cabin in the mountains. Meanwhile, their eccentric neighbor, Brian Kirby, attempts to insert himself into Catherine’s life, offering help that may be more sinister than supportive. As Matt battles the odds to return to his family, Catherine must navigate a dangerous new world and the unsettling attention of Brian. Massachusetts Fall is the story of ordinary Americans trying to navigate a nation-wide disaster while facing an uncertain future together.

Phineas Strange

Phineas Strange and Michael McDonald are both pen names for the same New England author. Phineas Strange has a lifelong fascination with the unexplained, the true, and the weird. He writes A Curious Compendium of Strange Events, which explores documented supernatural phenomena with the eye of a skeptic and the heart of a true believer, and Stone Walls & Steeples, a true crime series that brings forgotten New England victims back into the light — one region, one era, one state at a time. Michael McDonald and Karen McDonald write post-apocalyptic fiction set within the October Fall World — four standalone series, twelve books in total. The author grew up in the Midwest, met his New England born wife while she was in college and they transplanted to New England. They also lived overseas for twelve years — which explains a lot.

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