Robin's Review

Better Dead than Red
by Nic Roads

Four friends.
A Deserted Island.
And an undead nightmare they can't escape.

Living on the streets of Oklahoma, Brian Williams is haunted by a long history of personal failures. But he’s offered one last chance to repair his broken past.

A mysterious organization is recruiting test subjects for a scientific experiment. Participants will receive a generous cash reward, more than enough for Brian to finally rebuild his life. Along with a handful of his homeless friends, Brian jumps at the opportunity. But there’s a catch.

To earn the reward, Brian and his motley crew must hike through the jungle of a faraway deserted island… but unbeknownst to the group, something unspeakable and relentless will hunt them down.

A hellish, undead nightmare awaits Brian and his friends, deep in the jungle, when their casual hike turns into a bloody, desperate quest for survival. Will they make it out alive?

Better Dead Then Red is a standalone zombie apocalypse novella set in Nic Roads’ expanding, hair-raising, post-apocalyptic Zombie Vale series. If you like smart, edge-of-your-seat and high-octane zombie thrillers like Mark Tufo’s Zombie Fallout, David Simpson’s Zombie Road, and Christopher Artinian’s The End of Everything, discover Nic Roads’ addictive new undead universe. You won’t be able to stop reading.

* THIS BOOK CONTAINS MATURE SUBJECT MATTER, LANGUAGE, AND GRAPHIC VIOLENCE

Robin's Review: This was a well written “cozy” zombie apocalypse story. “Cozy” meaning I could read it over and over again and enjoy each time. It’s that comfortable.
The plot was such a new and creative take on the zombie genre. What a thrilling surprise. I found it to be fast paced so much I was like just one more chapter and then just one more again until I read it all in one sitting. Oops who needs sleep, right?

It was easy to read and filled with action and exciting adventure that like I said I couldn’t put it down. It was also funny and touching at times.
The characters were unique and interesting with their own little quirks. I was so invested in them that I rooted for them all the way.
Finally, what made the story was the characters and the bond they shared. Overall, a superb story. Mr. Nic Roads I will read your books every time.

These are such epic lines:

“What the heck rhymed with zombie apocalypse? “Hmm… Nazi solar eclipse?”

“Anything out there gonna try to beat me, heat me… eat me, then excrete me?”

“Just because you’re paranoid doesn’t mean they aren’t after you.”

“Fast zombies?” he asked, trying to ignore the graininess in his mouth. “They have them… in different speeds?”

“Forget all those old ones where they come out of the ground, movin’ like junkies. Zombies nowadays, they run around like they’re tryin’ out for the damn Olympics.”

And that being said the author summed it up nicely when he wrote:

“Here they were, a bunch of forgettable homeless folk. Blindly taking part in a secret experiment on a remote, off-grid tropical island. All overseen by a group of mysterious scientists and anonymous bureaucrats.”

Walk With Me Into the Dark