REVIEW: Chimera

PLOT: Afghanistan veteran Jim Chapel has been enlisted in a new war. This time it's in his own backyard... and even more deadly. A small band of fugitives escapes from a secret upstate New York military facility, leaving a trail of bodies in its wake. Each fugitive has a target—an innocent civilian—and will not stop until that target has been eliminated. Wounded Special Forces veteran Jim Chapel has been stuck behind a desk rather than out in the field, but medical technology has finally caught up with his ambitions. Coupled with his unstoppable determination, it will take him back to where he thrives: the thick of the action. Drafted into a new war, this time in our homeland, Chapel is tasked with hunting a group of escapees from a top secret military compound—all extremely deadly, genetically modified killers—and unraveling the mystery behind their existence. Aided by an enigmatic woman named Angel and a courageous, beautiful veterinarian, Chapel begins a cross-country hunt to stop the murders. But are the killers really rogues, or are they part of a sinister conspiracy that reaches into the highest levels?

REVIEW: I've wanted to read a lot of David Wellington's books for awhile, because he writes about awesome things. He has a series of werewolf books, zombie books, and a larger series of vampire books. Some of his books are actually available online to read as serials, which is really cool of an author to do. It gives someone who is interested in his work, a chance to preview his earlier writing and then go for the big stuff if they like his style. I for one, never got around to reading any of the serials, but rather just hopped into this book. This was recommended to me because of my serious love for Jonathan Maberry's Joe Ledger series, of which I still have one more book left to read. In Wellington's Chimera we're introduced to a war hero that has a lot of the same mental constructs as a Ledger-like character, but not quite the same physical makeup.

What mostly makes Chimera interesting is the fact that our protagonist, Jim Chapel, is a tough as nails combat veteran that is recruited for a top secret mission, but he's at a disadvantage to most. Though, Mr. Chapel would be first to correct me in saying that he's not a disadvantage, he just has a different way of doing things. Chapel is missing an arm that he lost in Afghanistan, but he's been fitted for a high tech artificial limb that has enabled him to get by in the world. It works just like a regular arm, but it's mechanical and relies on his brain to be controlled. This part of Jim Chapel is what draws the desire for the reader to read Chapel's story, because you want this guy to come out on top and win. I thought this was a really cool addition to the story and provided me a reason to really root for Jim. However, his position marks him as the underdog in the story, but he never quite feels like he reaches complete despair in this book like other leading protagonists in similar books.

What I wasn't much of a fan of in this book was the fact that it never seemed like the suspense of the story fully caught on. The Joe Ledger books were a breeze for me, so much so that I was able to finish each of the first four in a week. This book took me a little longer to read, because it just was never able to fully suck me in. There was never any true, all hope is lost, desperation laid upon Jim Chapel even though his mission was top secret and extremely difficult. It just all seemed too easy, and clear cut, and it never quite sucks the reader fully into the book vortex that us readers often find ourselves in. I think shorter stories would benefit Jim Chapel, and David Wellington's writing. I'm looking forward to reading the two that are already out apparently, called Minotaur and Myrmidon.

The suspense was there, but it never fully takes hold in the story which causes a few of the scenes to drag out and take away from the building of tension. The chimeras are a legitimate threat, but they never take shape or become more than a pawn played in a larger game. I think I would have been much happier had there been more of a clear cut villain that actually had some say on the pages. The other thing I didn't much care for was Jim and Julia's extra-curricular activities on more than one occasion throughout the book. I'm not big for scenes of romance in my books, but I could have forgiven these after all was said and done. The scenes sort of felt forced, and it was a good example of how parts of the story took away from the building of suspense. Save it for the end of the book Wellington, because Chapel sure as hell deserved a good night in bed by the end of his mission. I would recommend this to fans of Joe Ledger or any other paranormal hunting military hero. While it doesn't quite present the crispest science fiction thriller, there is plenty of action and a damn fine hero in the making waiting for readers in these pages.

RATED : ( R )

WRITING : ( 7 / 10 )

STORY : ( 8 / 10 )

COVER : ( 6 / 10 )

AWESOME : ( 7 / 10 )

FINAL RATING : ( 7 / 10 )

REVIEW: The New Deadwardians

PLOT: In post-Victorian England, nearly everyone of the upper classes has voluntarily become a vampire in order to escape the lower classes who are all zombies. Into this simmering cauldron is thrust Chief Inspector George Suttle, a lonely detective who's got the slowest beat in London: investigating murders in a world where everyone is already dead! When the body of a young aristocrat washes up on the banks of the Thames, Suttle's quest for the truth will take him from the darkest sewers to the gleaming halls of power, and reveal the rotten heart at the center of this strange world.

REVIEW: Anything British is usually not my cup of tea, but I wanted to read this because of the involvement of zombies, obviously. I wasn't expecting to love the story, but I figured that I would at least enjoy the undead aspects of the story. What I got was a very well-rounded tale of Chief Inspector George Suttle, who is one of the young, which most of us would call a vampire. He sets upon a case to solve the murder of a well off man in the new Deadwardian Age, and in doing so begins the investigation into his own life after spending countless years losing any desire to do so. What this graphic novel does really well is support its protagonist Suttle, as his story is told through narration of his own and then the events that take place in his surroundings. Funny enough that it was the love story aspect of this book that I took a liking to, as usually that's something that when included in a story of horror or undeath, I do not find suiting. But for this story, it was perfectly aligned with Suttle's investigation into a murder, as well as his own existence. The art is not exactly phenomenal in this book, as I've seen some others point out in their own reviews, but it does a good enough job to help the story along. It's not the most detailed work, but it is all there, and the zombies and vampires all have their particular looks. I would most definitely say that if you are a fan of British mystery, the undead, and adult graphic novels, you should pick up this book. Even if British oriented stories aren't your thing, this may be worth checking out, as I found it entirely enjoyable and I'm hoping that Dan Abnett has an opportunity to continue the splendid story of George Suttle, the Young who renews his desire for life and happiness in solving Scotland Yard's new kind of crime.

WRITING : ( 8 / 10 )

ARTWORK : ( 5 / 10 )

STORY : ( 9 / 10 )

COVERS : ( 8 / 10 )

AWESOME : ( 7 / 10 )

FINAL RATING : ( 7 / 10 )

REVIEW: Fiend

PLOT: There’s more than one kind of monster. When Chase Daniels first sees the little girl in umbrella socks tearing open the Rottweiler, he's not too concerned. As a longtime meth addict, he’s no stranger to horrifying, drug-fueled hallucinations. But as he and his fellow junkies soon discover, the little girl is no illusion. The end of the world really has arrived. The funny thing is, Chase’s life was over long before the apocalypse got here, his existence already reduced to a stinking basement apartment and a filthy mattress and an endless grind of buying and selling and using. He’s lied and cheated and stolen and broken his parents’ hearts a thousand times. And he threw away his only shot at sobriety a long time ago, when he chose the embrace of the drug over the woman he still loves. And if your life’s already shattered beyond any normal hopes of redemption…well, maybe the end of the world is an opportunity. Maybe it’s a last chance for Chase to hit restart and become the man he once dreamed of being. Soon he’s fighting to reconnect with his lost love and dreaming of becoming her hero among civilization’s ruins. But is salvation just another pipe dream?

REVIEW: I had requested this from the library for obvious reasons, it has zombies in it. I had forgotten that upon requesting it, it had also been about meth users in a zombie apocalypse. I was quickly greeted with very dark and gritty narration, that leaves nothing to the imagination when it comes to the use of methamphetamine. Chase Daniels is a meth user, and when he sees a little girl with umbrella socks opening up a rottweiler for her first meal, he thinks he's just hallucinating. As time goes on, the visions become more and more real and Chase realizes it isn't the drugs making these visions appear, it's actually happening. Chase and his buddy Typewriter, A.K.A. John, embark on a journey of survival in more ways than one, quickly after this book begins. At first the book is difficult to follow, with the two main characters bantering back and forth, because the author chose to use a different style in terms of writing dialogue. There are no quotes around any of the words spoken by any of the characters, but rather it is led by a "he said" or "she said" type line. I found this to be somewhat refreshing and a different take, and I'm curious as to the reason of said decision but it did take some getting used to.

The zombies in the book are definitely a little different from the usual as well, as for some reason these zombies chuckle or giggle. This is how our characters are able to differentiate between the walking dead and the spun out human beings they encounter on their journey. There's a lot left to the imagination in terms of how this apocalypse arrived and why it is that these people are shambling, yet giggling, walking dead. I'm curious as to the hidden meaning of a lot of things in this book, as I have a feeling there are a few. I noticed upon finishing the book that Peter Stenson is a recovering addict, and I'm going to assume it's from use of methamphetamine but I'm not sure because there was no clarification of that on the back of the book. It really shows though in terms of the descriptions when our main characters are using drugs, preparing drugs, or rattling off rapid fire thoughts they have while high on meth. While it can at times be disturbing, it's a very rattling and seemingly true perspective through the eyes of a meth addict. The meth use is prominent through the book, so if drug use is something that bothers you, you should definitely shy away from this book. The thoughts are often times irrational, erratic, and downright absurd from our main character Chase, but it's all part of the dream that he's living out in real life.

I find myself caught between really liking this book, but also questioning why so much was left up to interpretation or was inconclusive. The book kind of just ends and you wonder what happens to Chase Daniels after such an excruciating journey through his addiction, solving other people's problems through his meth visions, and of course the zombies, A.K.A. Chucklers. I like a lot about the book, as it was very different and definitely was a different zombie tale that stands out from the rest of the craze that has recently swept the bookshelves. Peter Stenson weaves an incredibly macabre story of a meth addict in a post apocalyptic world, and you can't help but to keep turning the pages to find out what the character is going to do, or think, next. I would recommend this to the most hardcore fans of zombie fiction, and even drug fiction and meth takes the front seat in this ride. The zombies are definitely there, but I don't feel that it's the true focus of the story. The battle inside Chase over his meth addiction, and the battle outside for the people around him are at the forefront of the emotional impact this story has, and even though it all sounds like a ridiculous premise I was pretty impressed. If you're sad that Breaking Bad is coming to a close in the next two weeks, and you have to wait a month until the fourth season of The Walking Dead premieres, this is probably the perfect book to satisfy your addiction and pass the time.

RATED : ( R )

WRITING : ( 9 / 10 )

STORY : ( 7 / 10 )

COVER : ( 9 / 10 )

AWESOME : ( 9 / 10 )

FINAL RATING : ( 8 / 10 )

REVIEW: Plague Town

PLOT: Ashley was just trying to get through a tough day when the world turned upside down. A terrifying virus appears, quickly becoming a pandemic that leaves its victims, not dead, but far worse. Attacked by zombies, Ashley discovers that she is a 'Wild-Card' -- immune to the virus -- and she is recruited to fight back and try to control the outbreak.

REVIEW: I have been wanting to read this series for a long time because it's one of the higher rated zombie series out. At first, I fell in love with Plague Town because of the chatty protagonist, Ashley Parker. She is very reminiscent of someone like Buffy but in a world full of zombies. Her sarcasm and quick thinking really provide a lot of entertainment at the beginning of the book. However, as Plague Town progresses it is plagued with a lot of unnecessary dialogue and just little to no action. I'm not an action fiend but I just don't feel like there was a whole lot to the story and it was just Ashley and the Wild Cards against the apocalypse. Also, the story with Ashley and Gabriel is just strange and I will never understand how these relationships come to be in books when the lead male interest is a dick. This is urban fantasy, with zombies, and a charming female lead but outside of that there really wasn't much left to enjoy, at least for me. Definitely for fans of zombies and Buffy the Vampire Slayer, but I don't know about who else.

RATED : ( R )

WRITING : ( 6 / 10 )

STORY : ( 3 / 10 )

COVER : ( 5 / 10 )

AWESOME : ( 4 / 10 )

FINAL RATING : ( 4 / 10 )

REVIEW: The Dragon Factory

PLOT: Joe Ledger and the DMS (Department of Military Sciences) go up against two competing groups of geneticists. One side is creating exotic transgenic monsters and genetically enhanced mercenary armies; the other is using 21st century technology to continue the Nazi Master Race program begun by Josef Mengele. Both sides want to see the DMS destroyed, and they've drawn first blood. Neither side is prepared for Joe Ledger as he leads Echo Team to war under a black flag.

REVIEW: Well here we are a little over a month past since I last read Joe Ledger, that being the first book in the series titled Patient Zero. I picked up the first book because it was highly rated on a lot of zombie fiction lists and I thought I would give it a shot, and I was so surprised at how awesome it was that I hadn't had enough yet. Thus, The Dragon Factory was picked up and read and now I need even more Ledger. This book was to prove that I didn't just like the first one because of the zombies, and seemingly that wasn't the case. Jonathan Maberry has created one hell of an action-packed and suspenseful series with Joe Ledger and continues to impress me with his writing.

It's just another day on the block with Joe Ledger in The Dragon Factory, dragged into a world and life-threatening situation when old Nazi science finds a home in the hands of modern terrorists. The best thing about these books are the plausible and scientific explanation to the terrorist plots dreamed up to take out the world. It's not as simple as "there was a virus, and then everyone's corpse re-animated" and "they put some gorilla in the guy, now he's strong". There are legitimate, but still fictional, explanations of the terrors that the villains committ in these books. Joe Ledger, Mr. Church, and the DMS never back down from a fight though, and even going against aspiring Nazi scientists they find a way to do their jobs.

This book is, to me, much more terrifying than the first book. The concept of resurrected Nazi science has always intrigued me, especially after reading and seeing the movie Hellboy (directed by Guillermo del Toro, who has Pacific Rim opening this weekend by the way). Nazis and Nazi theories have pretty much become extinct in our day and age, but the thought that there are probably people out there that desire to bring those ideals back to our modern world is definitely disturbing. Whether this is fiction or not, one can imagine a world threatened by Nazi idealists and truly capable terrorists. Science is such a scary thing to most because it's hard to understand if you don't know the science behind the science, but with it almost anything can be possible and I think that's what this book tries to show. Stuff that happens in this book, could not be so far off in the real world (not talking my lifetime, but possibly my children or children's children). I think that's what makes The Dragon Factory so unsettling at times, because you know crazy genetically enhanced people with a white supremacist agenda could commit such a violent and evil act against the human race. There are real people in the world today that kill others for their beliefs and for the people they are, and Maberry does an excellent job of putting that fear that we keep in the back of our minds, into the front.


The villains in the book are great, Hecate and Paris Jakoby along with their father Cyrus are a group of radical terrorists hellbent on causing destruction and mayhem with their newfound technologies and sciences. The threats that Maberry is constantly writing into these Joe Ledger books so far are so plausible and realistic, and even though it has to do with new, inventive and sometimes improbable science, it scares the crap out of you because it seems minimally possible in our wacky world. It's so crazy to see the things they come up with in the book, and the first genetically created creature from the villains in the book is a unicorn. Yes, The Dragon Factory utilizes unicorns and that's only a small taste of what else it has to offer. I highly recommend the Joe Ledger series to anyone who's a fan of badassery ranging from Jack Bauer to Jack Reacher, and you would have to read Patient Zero at all to understand the goings on in The Dragon Factory. Next up is The King of Plagues, book 3 in the series, as I continue to work my way up to the latest entry in the series Extinction Machine! Which I know wonder if it has anything to do with the Extinction Wave, in The Dragon Factory! Jonathan Maberry, continue to write and amaze me, wow.

RATED : ( R )

WRITING : ( 10 / 10 )

STORY : ( 10 / 10 )

COVER : ( 9 / 10 )

AWESOME : ( 10 / 10 )

FINAL RATING : ( 10 / 10 )

REVIEW: Apocalypse Cow

PLOT: Forget the cud. They want blood. It began with a cow that just wouldn't die. It would become an epidemic that transformed Britain's livestock into sneezing, slavering, flesh-craving four-legged zombies. And if that wasn't bad enough, the fate of the nation seems to rest on the shoulders of three unlikely heroes: an abattoir worker whose love life is non-existent thanks to the stench of death that clings to him, a teenage vegan with eczema and a weird crush on his maths teacher, and an inept journalist who wouldn't recognize a scoop if she tripped over one. As the nation descends into chaos, can they pool their resources, unlock a cure, and save the world? Three losers.Overwhelming odds.One outcome . . . Yup, we're screwed.

REVIEW: Obviously I picked up Apocalypse Cow because it was a book about zombies, and cleverly titled to show that the author had a sense of humor. One would assume that this book would be beyond silly, and not really worth much at all but for a few laughs. The cover, title, and plot summary makes you think this is just some B-level trash. In all honesty however, this book was entertaining as hell. I haven't read a book so genuinely fun and exciting since something like Wayside School back in the days of elementary school. Michael Logan did an outstanding job at making a story of zombies or infection unique, creative, and it stands out as some of the best work in the genre.

The book definitely kind of reads like a B-movie in the horror genre, but there's something about Logan's writing that is just laugh-out-loud hysterical. I haven't been tempted to laugh frequently when reading a book, or even as often as I did while reading Apocalypse Cow and that really speaks volumes for how great this book is. It's not just a silly book, and it's not full of only laughs and witty writing. The book is equally as disgusting and horrifying as it is hilarious, and it goes to show why Michael Logan won the Terry Pratchett Prize for this book even though it's his very first full-length novel. I was so impressed by Logan's writing, especially being that it was his first novel ever written. Everything was present at the beginning of the book to get you reading, all of the humor and comedy draws the reader in. Then as the book progresses, it gets more intense and a lot more metaphorical as the story shapes up. It is really such a perfectly layered work of fiction, it makes you wonder how Michael Logan has never published a full book before.

There's so much content in this book, and I wish I could talk about it more in depth to explain how this could be one of the greatest horror/comedy experiences I've ever had. I'm a huge fan of horror/comedy film, and to be as impressed by this as I am by one of my favorite films Shaun of the Dead, I'd say Michael Logan did a great job. There is plenty of blood and gore here, there are plenty of characters with variety to empathize with. Geldof (the Gray) was a very likable, innocent, but intelligent protagonist who serves as the main voice of the story. Lesley is your ditzy blonde character in typical horror fashion, and Terry is your bad ass guy that has to be the ring leader at times to get things done in the apocalypse. The greatest characters in this book however, are the infected animals. There are some outrageous and completely wacky scenes with these creatures, and their entrances into their scenes were always classic. From cows to pigs, and squirrels to rats, there was no shortage of animal gags and gross-outs. I would highly recommend Apocalypse Cow to anyone looking for a good book of laughter, a unique take on the zombie genre, or just a downright entertaining book. Don't let the cover and title fool you, this book won the Terry Pratchett for a reason. May Michael Logan milk the success of this book for as long as he wants, it is well-deserved, but please bring us some more this greatness please!

RATED : ( R )

WRITING : ( 9 / 10 )

STORY : ( 8 / 10 ) 

COVER : ( 9 / 10 )

AWESOME : ( 10 / 10 )

FINAL RATING : ( 9 / 10 )

REVIEW: Patient Zero

PLOT: When you have to kill the same terrorist twice in one week there's either something wrong with your world or something wrong with your skills... and there's nothing wrong with Joe Ledger's skills. And that's both a good, and a bad thing. It's good because he's a Baltimore detective that has just been secretly recruited by the government to lead a new taskforce created to deal with the problems that Homeland Security can't handle. This rapid response group is called the Department of Military Sciences or the DMS for short. It's bad because his first mission is to help stop a group of terrorists from releasing a dreadful bio-weapon that can turn ordinary people into zombies. The fate of the world hangs in the balance...

REVIEW: Let me just start by saying that I only picked up Patient Zero because of, well, zombies. On my quest to read everything and anything zombie I was constantly told to pick this book up. For months I'd had the sequel The Dragon Factory sitting on my shelf but not until I finally went to read it did I realize that it had a predecessor. My, oh my, am I glad that I read its predecessor first because now I cannot freaking wait to jump into the second Joe Ledger novel The Dragon Factory.

Joe Ledger is a badass beyond measure. If you put literary character Jack Reacher together with the likes of TV hero Jack Bauer, you still only have about half of what Ledger is. Joe is an absolute machine, and if there is one thing Maberry did without flaw it was create this unbelievably badass character. When Joe is fighting the baddies, you can tell that Maberry is at his strongest. Often times when action is written, it's really hard to follow fluidly so that it comes out looking as awesome in the reader's imagination as it did the writer's. Jonathan Maberry is the master of writing awesome Joe Ledger fight scenes, because he writes them so well you just read it non-stop and it flows together so well it's as if you're watching some kung fu master before your very eyes on the page. The first time that Joe's fighting style is analyzed by Mr. Church, who I'll get to in a second, it's very obvious that Maberry knew what he was doing with Joe from the start. I can't recall a literary character as downright heroic and unstoppable as Joe Ledger, he simply makes this book all on his own.

The thing about Patient Zero though is that there isn't just one character that is written very well. Every single character is written with perfection, and I could not get over how many quirks each individual character had, and how much personality everyone had. Typically I'm not a fan of multi-character storylines, and there aren't here either, though Joe has a terrific supporting cast. Joe's buddy Rudy is a perfect balance for it to be believable that they are best friends, despite incredibly different careers and thought processes. Mr. Church who hires Joe for the DMS is just incredibly chilling on every page, even though he's technically on the good side. His fascination with cheap cookies is such a simple trait to add, but it works so well with his character. Also, Joe's team that he ends up leading around from place to place to stop the terrorist threats all have a bit of character to them.

Even the baddies all have unbelievably fleshed out traits, and El Mujahid who is the main villain is so cold, and so evil it's just so easy to believe. Though he's not in the book for maybe more than 20% of the time, his storyline is flowing along with Joe's all the same. It's just such a well-written book the way all of the villains including El Mujahid, his wife Amirah, Sebastian Gault, his buddy Toys, and others are all perfectly placed within the story and only deal with certain characters in the book. To not reveal much to ruin the story, but not all of the bad guys ever get the chance to meet Joe and I think that's what makes this battle of good vs. evil so special.

Back to why I picked this book up, zombies. Yes, there are zombies in your typical sense but they come about from an unusual threat not seen in zombie fiction, at least to me so far in my new interest of the subject. The terrorists have found a way to manufacture a virus that they plan to attack America with and just set us back to 0. The possibility of this actually happening, while it is science fiction, is actually somewhat high. I would not put it past our technology and intelligence today to come up with something so hanus and actually have the capability and determination to use it for a cause. Just imagine a season of TV's 24, but instead of a day it's a week long, and instead of terrorists using bombs they're using bio-weapons, and instead of Jack Bauer, there is... Joe Ledger.

Do yourself a favor, fan of zombies or not folks. Go pick up this book and give it a read, I promise you won't be disappointed. This is definitely in my new top 3 for all-time favorite fiction, and I have a feeling it's going to remain there for quite awhile. It's a superbly written thriller, a cleverly written tale of horror, and a suspenseful story. Well worth the time and money spent, and now my sights are set on the latest entry in the Joe Ledger series Extinction Machine, which came out March 2013! Bravo, Jonathan Maberry, bravo!

RATED : ( R )

WRITING : ( 9 / 10 )

STORY : ( 10 / 10 )

COVER : ( 8 / 10 )

AWESOME : ( 10 / 10 )

FINAL RATING : ( 10 / 10 )