It was a picture-perfect Fourth of July; one that heralded both celebration and pride for millions. Folks enjoyed parades and cook-outs, the playful laughter of children, and a velvet sky alive with fireworks. Afterward, they went to sleep, happy and contented, without a care in the world. Then at midnight, the sun came up, brighter than a billion sparklers and hotter than Hell unleashed. They called it The Burn. The senseless detonation of nuclear devices across the face of the earth; randomly scattered, without rhyme or reason. Civilization as we knew it was consumed in fire that day and, from the ashes, rose a horrifying phoenix of boundless evil and depravity. Those who had once clung to the shadows, because of law and moral restraint, now stepped boldly forward to stake their unholy claim... This collection of two novellas and six short stories follows the exploits of a handful of survivors in a nuclear-devastated world ruled by the dregs of the Earth: serial killers, child molesters, rapists, and cannibals, as well as radiation-evolved mutants. This is surely Ronald Kelly's most extreme work to date. Now open the cover and prepare for The Burn!