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vikingwolf's review
5.0
The zombie apocalypse has hit New York and the military are evacuating the important people while the ordinary people are left to the mercy of the zombies. McDaniels has two teams in two helicopters to evacuate a scientist and his daughter who may have the basis for a cure. When one helicopter is overrun and the other crash lands, the survivors barricade themselves into a building with a few civilians to wait for help to arrive. But the zombies outside include the other half of the team and they are plotting a way to get inside...
I'm always a fan of seeing the start of the zomie apocalypse in books so I wasn't sure if this book was going to be for me, but the author drops you right in the middle of the chaotic evacuation and it works really well. It is exciting to see the rush to get to the helicopters as the zombies and humans break through into the evacuation zone. The crash and scramble to get to safety is also really interesting. It gets you right into the plot and gives the book a really fast paced start. I liked that! I hate slow starting zombie books so this does not disappoint.
The characters interest me. McDaniels is a strong soldier and leader who has a historically difficult relationship with his senior soldier Gartrell. Gartrell believes in the mission at all costs even if the civilians are expendable because a cure is vital to human survival. McDaniels refuses to sacrifice civilians for the mission as he is a humanitarian. The thing is, you can understand both sides of this. Without the rescue of these scientists, eventually everyone will die by zombie so the cure is top priority-but you like the civilians-Earl the janitor and his daughters, so you want them to be saved. We find out that the two soldiers faced a similar dilemma in Afghanistan where McDaniels put civilians ahead of the mission and it cost lives so in my own way, I liked and had sympathy for both men. I didn't greatly like the scientists but the main focus is on the soldiers which meant my dislike, especially of snotty Regina, didn't stop me enjoying the story.
I think the tension is there throughout the book as the soldiers keep watch for signs of the zombies breaking into the building, while they wait for a rescue. The helicopter that is to come for them will have to brave a bad storm which puts them in danger. The soldiers in the city are too far away to get over there to help them. The river banks are teeming with zombies which would make river rescue dangerous. All of these scenarios add a lot of drama to the plot and you just know that the zombies will not stay outside the building forever. I love all that pent up tension throughout the plot.
Now the interesting element is the introduction of smart zombies. Let me be clear, I hate books where the zombies can talk and do all kinds of things like using guns and driving cars-they are just not zombies for me, they are advanced corpses or something! I was nervous at the thought of smart zombies in this book but I found myself loving the twist. The team whose helicopter was overrun by the dead have found their way to the building and are remembering enough of their military training to plan how to break in. As you watch their plan slowly unfold, you get really nervous for those inside the building, and again, the author just ramps up the drama. I really enjoyed this addition to the story because it sort of felt believable. I could see a newly turned zombie retaining some of its intelligence, especially military men with a massive tactical brain. Excellent!
There are things in this book that I don't normally like in this genre but I felt that the author did an excellent job of introducing these plot devices in a way that I really enjoyed. It is an action packed, tension filled plot, with great characters, twists and some very scary zombies! There isn't much more you can ask for in this genre. I've already read the next one in the series which is a novella and I enjoyed it, so I'm excited to see where the series goes after that-and I've already bought the series in paperback ready to go!
I'm always a fan of seeing the start of the zomie apocalypse in books so I wasn't sure if this book was going to be for me, but the author drops you right in the middle of the chaotic evacuation and it works really well. It is exciting to see the rush to get to the helicopters as the zombies and humans break through into the evacuation zone. The crash and scramble to get to safety is also really interesting. It gets you right into the plot and gives the book a really fast paced start. I liked that! I hate slow starting zombie books so this does not disappoint.
The characters interest me. McDaniels is a strong soldier and leader who has a historically difficult relationship with his senior soldier Gartrell. Gartrell believes in the mission at all costs even if the civilians are expendable because a cure is vital to human survival. McDaniels refuses to sacrifice civilians for the mission as he is a humanitarian. The thing is, you can understand both sides of this. Without the rescue of these scientists, eventually everyone will die by zombie so the cure is top priority-but you like the civilians-Earl the janitor and his daughters, so you want them to be saved. We find out that the two soldiers faced a similar dilemma in Afghanistan where McDaniels put civilians ahead of the mission and it cost lives so in my own way, I liked and had sympathy for both men. I didn't greatly like the scientists but the main focus is on the soldiers which meant my dislike, especially of snotty Regina, didn't stop me enjoying the story.
I think the tension is there throughout the book as the soldiers keep watch for signs of the zombies breaking into the building, while they wait for a rescue. The helicopter that is to come for them will have to brave a bad storm which puts them in danger. The soldiers in the city are too far away to get over there to help them. The river banks are teeming with zombies which would make river rescue dangerous. All of these scenarios add a lot of drama to the plot and you just know that the zombies will not stay outside the building forever. I love all that pent up tension throughout the plot.
Now the interesting element is the introduction of smart zombies. Let me be clear, I hate books where the zombies can talk and do all kinds of things like using guns and driving cars-they are just not zombies for me, they are advanced corpses or something! I was nervous at the thought of smart zombies in this book but I found myself loving the twist. The team whose helicopter was overrun by the dead have found their way to the building and are remembering enough of their military training to plan how to break in. As you watch their plan slowly unfold, you get really nervous for those inside the building, and again, the author just ramps up the drama. I really enjoyed this addition to the story because it sort of felt believable. I could see a newly turned zombie retaining some of its intelligence, especially military men with a massive tactical brain. Excellent!
There are things in this book that I don't normally like in this genre but I felt that the author did an excellent job of introducing these plot devices in a way that I really enjoyed. It is an action packed, tension filled plot, with great characters, twists and some very scary zombies! There isn't much more you can ask for in this genre. I've already read the next one in the series which is a novella and I enjoyed it, so I'm excited to see where the series goes after that-and I've already bought the series in paperback ready to go!
lucatiel's review
5.0
This was one of the better zombie books that I have read. I liked the military involvement a lot. The story was so descriptive it was easy to find myself immersed in the story. The thing I liked the most was that some of the zombies retained memory and were able to reason. This definitely made the story more compelling. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes a good zombie novel. You won't be disappointed.
patrick6367's review
2.0
Despite my rating, this one is still better than most zombie fiction. I liked the military unit scenario, and as a former military officer I'd allow that the author did a *fairly* good job with the military bit, and it kept me going for almost half the book, but it began to get a little bit silly and I lost my suspension of disbelief at the 42% completion mark and gave up. I'm a tough one to please though, so I'm giving the author props for at least keep me interested enough to get to the 42% mark.
ymiranda's review
4.0
Holy smokes, this was an intense zombie ride.
Lots of military jargon, action and dying. I will definitely read #2.
Lots of military jargon, action and dying. I will definitely read #2.
cgreen7209's review
3.0
It was just ok. For a book with military characters, I thought some of the plot was a little stupid.
raviendha's review
2.0
Storyline was pretty good but the book was WAY too technical. I did not need to know all the specifics for every gun and weapon.
There was a lot of good action but maybe a little too much because I never really connected to the characters.
Also, I didn't not like the way the Coast Guard was portrayed. I know the main characters are Army, and there is always some friction between the branches, but this was a bit too much. I want to say, without giving away the ending... the main character criticized the Coast Guard for doing exactly what he did at the beginning of the book.
Looks like there may be a sequel but I don't think I'll read it.
There was a lot of good action but maybe a little too much because I never really connected to the characters.
Also, I didn't not like the way the Coast Guard was portrayed. I know the main characters are Army, and there is always some friction between the branches, but this was a bit too much. I want to say, without giving away the ending... the main character criticized the Coast Guard for doing exactly what he did at the beginning of the book.
Looks like there may be a sequel but I don't think I'll read it.
elotil's review
1.0
Way too heavy on both military jargon and random sexist nonsense. I stopped reading when he started describing in too-intimate detail the only female character's immediate sexual arousal for no reason when a mildly cute soldier says two words to her. Didn't even get as far as the intelligent zombies or what the fuck ever.
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