Emily Heath and her friends decide to spend their summer vacation in Washington D.C. Unfortunately, the trip becomes boring fast and Emily quickly begins to regret her decision of choosing D.C. over the beach. As she contemplates her poor choice in vacation spots, a nuclear bomb is detonated in the city, and Emily receives a lethal dose of radiation poisoning. Walking Ghost Phase by DC Daugherty CreateSpace Independent Publishing December 15, 2011 Emily is now left with a bitter choice. She can suffer for three months as she slowly dies, or take part in an experimental government treatment that will save her life. The treatment comes at a high cost, however. A major side-effect is partial memory loss, and after a three month reprieve, she will be forced into an experimental army training camp. If she can last at the camp for six months, she can have her life back. Unfortunately, no one ever survives that long. While I would classify this story as science fiction, a major part of the story takes place in a mundane and relatively modern setting. The science fiction elements are used mainly as a backdrop to the interpersonal relationships between the four main characters. At its heart, this is really a story about how different people react and deal with stress, and while we see the characters grow and mature, we also see them break down and suffer. However, there are no roller coasters of emotion. The rise and fall is steady and gradual. And while this makes for a slower pace and less dramatic scenes, it does well to put the reader in the same state of mind as the characters. It's easy to empathize with both their despair and elation. My one complaint for the book as a whole is the ending. Of course, I won't give anything away here, but the ending to the book left me unsatisfied. There is a lot of information thrown at you in those last few pages and some loose ends and questions that never seem to get answered. In fact, the end was the one area of the book where I felt rushed. I found myself having to read and reread paragraphs at a time in an effort to understand what was being said, and even after finishing the book, I still felt unsure and a bit confused. That said, I still greatly enjoyed the book and encourage readers to reach their own conclusions as far as the ending is concerned.