When humanity faces an undead nightmare, one man’s party turns into a race to survive. Logan has always taken things a little too seriously. So when his New Year’s Eve attempt to unwind descends into chaos, he’s the first to realize it’s no joke. After Logan and his friends miss the evacuation transport, he’s given a choice: lead the group to safety or watch all of his friends come back from the … come back from the dead…
When Logan discovers the military and government have no interest in saving them, making it to sanctuary alive may be their only hope. And after he learns his party of survivors might hold the key to a cure, the fate of humanity rests on his shoulders. But saving his species could mean sacrificing himself…
Can Logan stave off the end of the world or will one wrong decision doom humankind?
In The End is a fast-paced post-apocalyptic zombie thriller. If you like nightmarish settings, reluctant heroes, and action-packed adventures, then you’ll love GJ Stevens’ spine-chilling novel.
Buy In The End to fight for survival today!
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What an Ending!
In The End is an adrenaline-pumping zombie apocalypse adventure filled with frights, fights, flights, and occasional fun moments. I would recommend it to any fan of British zombie fiction.
The opening chapters are fast paced and exciting. The rapid collapse of everything is well described and shown through the events happening around the core group of friends who are the protagonists of this apocalyptic tale. The confusing evacuation and hints of extreme danger at the end of chapter 1 provide an excellent opening hook to this chilling zombie adventure.
Logan is the main protagonist, which is probably because he is so proactive rather than any qualification or status gained prior to this story beginning. Cassie is probably the second most important character in this novel but may well become the main protagonist in the sequel because she is also proactive and often is the one who comes to Logan’s rescue.
Cassie is much more likable than Logan, and that is mainly due to her relationship with her younger sister. However, Logan’s actions towards Cassie’s sister a short while after they meet really raised my initial opinion of his character.
I was confused by the initial descriptions of Logan’s and Cassie’s relative ages. It is mentioned that Logan has an ex-wife, and the way his group of friends is first described, I’d pictured him as middle aged. Cassie is introduced as a “young woman…having just left her teens” (page 43). However, later developments led me to rethink their relative ages.
I had no idea that Zoe and Naomi were a couple until page 159 when Logan briefly questions the nature of their relationship. I would have expected their relationship to show through their body language and speech, but instead Naomi is initially described as “Zoe’s best friend” on page 4. There is no hint of a love relationship until it becomes important for plot development.
Jack is my favorite character. Although he is a young child, he is courageous, resourceful, and proactive. Quite often he is the one who saves the adults from danger.
One of this book’s strengths is its multiple plot lines running side-by-side. You’ve got various interesting relationship plots and character development arcs that are really engaging. I particularly enjoyed Jack’s relationship arc with his sister and need to grow up quickly.
Important plot lines involve the need to escape from the danger zone, the search for a cure, the apportionment of blame, and the interesting relationship arcs. The conflicts are clear and important with high stakes all around. The whole adventure ends with quite the shock and a huge cliffhanger to be continued in the next book in this chilling series.
I loved the resolution because while certain plot lines are resolved and the conflicts overcome, there are others that are left flying loose like sparking electrical cables severed during a storm. It really made me want to begin reading the next book to discover what happens next.
The only thing I didn’t like about the resolution is that we appear to lose one of the main characters in the final moments. I had grown a little attached to that character and so was sad to see them depart the series.
It’s nice when authors add a few unique features to their zombies, a little like buying that new car fresh from the dealership and having a few extras thrown in for free. The zombies in this apocalyptic adventure differ a little from the standard, and the causes and symptoms are introduced smoothly into the story through action and dialogue.
The implied government corruption and incompetence is about right for the UK right now, and that’s something that makes this story feel all too real! I love the way in which this is demonstrated through the actions of the various military people we meet along the way.
Generally, the narrative taking us through this story is clear and immersive. It definitely shows rather than tells the story. However, sometimes during intense action scenes, the description became sparse and I sometimes became a little lost. I found myself turning back a page to try and figure out what had happened, which took me out of the story for a moment disrupting the suspension of disbelief.
For example, near the beginning from page 11 onward there is a scene where Logan, Andrew, and Toby leave their car and approach a checkpoint, leaving the rest behind in the car. Because the people left behind were not mentioned, and Andrew was only mentioned when Toby and Logan had almost reached the checkpoint, I thought they were all walking together.
However, these issues may only be mine. A lot of readers enjoy succinct prose in action scenes, and their imaginations will quickly fill any blanks.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading In The End. I read a lot of zombie apocalypse tales, so I can tell that this one is something special. I rate it 5 out of 5.
A great start to this new series! Very enjoyable story, great ideas & characters & plot! As always with this writer so well written & a joy to read! I do recommend this book & this author! You won’t be disappointed!
A well written, interesting zombie story with a cliff hanger, great characters and well narrated by Jim Harbourne. I received this book in exchange for my honest review.
This was a great addition to the genre. An entertaining read with great characters, lots of action and plenty of scary bits!
The story is a bit slow, but that’s because I am used to super fast action packed Zombie series. That does not mean the story is bad. It’s pretty good and some times slow and steady wins the race. You care enough about the characters to want to know what’s going to happen next. I look forward to reading the next book because this book left us with a big unanswered question.