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Darmageddon: The Living Dead Series, Book 3
Dar and her band of survivors must flee for their lives after a terrorist blows up the fence protecting their Boston camp. Departing in two eighteen wheelers, the group heads to Washington State to find Dar’s family.
A caravan of army troops, led by egomaniacal General Townsend, arrive in Boston to take control of the camp only to find it in ruins. His to capture the President of the United States and Annabelle, one of the few ‘ghosts’ in the world who can walk freely among the dead without fear of attack.
Hungry and in need of rest after being pursued by Townsend, the survivors take refuge in a walled-in Amish compound. But all is not what it seems there. The compound, which has its own ‘ghost’, is bitterly divided and separated into two camps by a zombie-filled ditch. Dar realizes that if the Amish don’t soon change their traditional ways, they will die at the hands of the dead. Little does anyone know that a militant group of Amish youth has been secretly planning to overthrow their elders and take control.
Desperate to capture the survivors, General Townsend has plans on becoming the next President of the U.S. But first he must capture Annabelle and President Roberts so that the transfer of power is constitutional. The only obstacle in his path is the Chinese tank battalion pursuing him and his troops.
The Amish feud comes to a head. After an outbreak occurs on the other side of the ditch, Dar and her survivors quickly put up a fence to keep the zombies from entering. They must then set up an ambush and surprise Townsend and his troops.
After suffering a humiliating defeat at the hands of the survivors, Townsend manages to escape in his Hummer. He is captured and taken prisoner by the Chinese army. Rather than treating him as a POW, the Chinese view him as their new conquering leader. With winter looming, and no food to sustain his army, he and his Chinese troops return to the Amish camp and settle in for winter until they can resume their search for the survivors.
On the advice of Virgil Snow, an MIT professor, the group travels to Gentel Labs in Minnesota where Snow once worked. Run by a brilliant, charismatic biologist named Calloway, the walled-in compound appears impenetrable.
But the facility hides a house of horrors. Having lost his humanity during the apocalypse, Calloway has spent years trying to develop a cure for the plague. Chained zombies line every wall of the facility; guinea pigs for his nefarious research. Hybrid zombie children run freely through the facility. After unleashing an experimental virus onto the horde, the severity of the plague goes from bad to worse, and the slow zombies morph into Olympic sprinters.
Dar and her group must flee yet again. A Lakota Indian named Tony advises them to head to the Black Hills of South Dakota where a vast series of wind caves might serve to protect them. A mysterious undertone given off by the wind tunnels somehow keeps the horde at bay. Dar experiences a sense of community with the Lakota. It is a return to the days when they lived freely off the land, and Dar settles down to raise her son only to make a startling discovery.
A caravan of army troops, led by egomaniacal General Townsend, arrive in Boston to take control of the camp only to find it in ruins. His to capture the President of the United States and Annabelle, one of the few ‘ghosts’ in the world who can walk freely among the dead without fear of attack.
Hungry and in need of rest after being pursued by Townsend, the survivors take refuge in a walled-in Amish compound. But all is not what it seems there. The compound, which has its own ‘ghost’, is bitterly divided and separated into two camps by a zombie-filled ditch. Dar realizes that if the Amish don’t soon change their traditional ways, they will die at the hands of the dead. Little does anyone know that a militant group of Amish youth has been secretly planning to overthrow their elders and take control.
Desperate to capture the survivors, General Townsend has plans on becoming the next President of the U.S. But first he must capture Annabelle and President Roberts so that the transfer of power is constitutional. The only obstacle in his path is the Chinese tank battalion pursuing him and his troops.
The Amish feud comes to a head. After an outbreak occurs on the other side of the ditch, Dar and her survivors quickly put up a fence to keep the zombies from entering. They must then set up an ambush and surprise Townsend and his troops.
After suffering a humiliating defeat at the hands of the survivors, Townsend manages to escape in his Hummer. He is captured and taken prisoner by the Chinese army. Rather than treating him as a POW, the Chinese view him as their new conquering leader. With winter looming, and no food to sustain his army, he and his Chinese troops return to the Amish camp and settle in for winter until they can resume their search for the survivors.
On the advice of Virgil Snow, an MIT professor, the group travels to Gentel Labs in Minnesota where Snow once worked. Run by a brilliant, charismatic biologist named Calloway, the walled-in compound appears impenetrable.
But the facility hides a house of horrors. Having lost his humanity during the apocalypse, Calloway has spent years trying to develop a cure for the plague. Chained zombies line every wall of the facility; guinea pigs for his nefarious research. Hybrid zombie children run freely through the facility. After unleashing an experimental virus onto the horde, the severity of the plague goes from bad to worse, and the slow zombies morph into Olympic sprinters.
Dar and her group must flee yet again. A Lakota Indian named Tony advises them to head to the Black Hills of South Dakota where a vast series of wind caves might serve to protect them. A mysterious undertone given off by the wind tunnels somehow keeps the horde at bay. Dar experiences a sense of community with the Lakota. It is a return to the days when they lived freely off the land, and Dar settles down to raise her son only to make a startling discovery.
- GenresZombies
355 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2014
10 people want to read
About the author
Joseph Souza
18 books88 followersJoseph Souza's award-winning short stories have been published in various literary journals throughout the country. Winner of the Andre Dubus Award for short fiction, he also won Honorable Mention for the Al Blanchard Award and the 2013 Maine Literary Award. His mystery, UNPAVED SURFACES, was published by Kindle Press in 2015 and was an Amazon bestseller. NEED TO FIND YOU, his crime thriller set in Portland, was the first novel to go direct-to-publish by Kindle Press. His new domestic thriller, THE NEIGHBOR (Kensington) will be published April 24, 2018. Visit josephsouza.net for more information about his work.
He lives near Portland, Maine with his wife and two children and enjoys running, cooking and playing golf when not writing.
Joseph can be contacted at souzajf@hotmail.com and on Twitter @josephsouza3. You can also visit his website to read more about Joseph. www.josephsouza.net.
He lives near Portland, Maine with his wife and two children and enjoys running, cooking and playing golf when not writing.
Joseph can be contacted at souzajf@hotmail.com and on Twitter @josephsouza3. You can also visit his website to read more about Joseph. www.josephsouza.net.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
August 10, 2017
The end
Wow, so this is the end of the series. So many unanswered questions and open stories. I want to know more! But of course this is how all "end of the world" stories end. No happy ending for everyone. But it was a good read and interesting story of how these zombies were created. Now off to my next zombie story (yeah I'm kind of obsessed)
Wow, so this is the end of the series. So many unanswered questions and open stories. I want to know more! But of course this is how all "end of the world" stories end. No happy ending for everyone. But it was a good read and interesting story of how these zombies were created. Now off to my next zombie story (yeah I'm kind of obsessed)
March 31, 2018
Good book
Not going to be a classic like Moby Dick, etc., but is a good entertaining read. I chose a 4 star rating because, if you enjoy reading books about zombies, this book will keep your interest without having to try to understand complicated scientific terms. Hoping there’s a 4th book in this series.
Not going to be a classic like Moby Dick, etc., but is a good entertaining read. I chose a 4 star rating because, if you enjoy reading books about zombies, this book will keep your interest without having to try to understand complicated scientific terms. Hoping there’s a 4th book in this series.
July 22, 2022
Good read!
I enjoyed this series it got long in parts and dragged on a little long for me but I did enjoy the story!
I enjoyed this series it got long in parts and dragged on a little long for me but I did enjoy the story!
June 16, 2014
We often talk about someone hitting their stride, finding a rhythm, getting in their groove - that ethereal combination that just works. Though his first two books in the Reawakening series are not bad or unentertaining, they had some issues that pointed to Mr. Souza trying to find the right voice for the story he was telling. In Darmageddon, I think he's found it.
The third book in The Living Dead starts with Dar, Anabelle, and their group of ex-Bostonians fleeing, with the President in tow, from the ruins of the city destroyed by Mike Brabas. Dar and her charges are intent on getting to Washington State where they believe refuge might await them, but a power-hungry General is close on their tail for his own reasons. As he chases them, the group struggles against both the zombies and his soldiers, while their own supplies continue to dwindle. As with the other books in the series, the zombies continue to evolve as the story progresses, which I very much enjoy about the series.
The story, which builds on the arc and scope of the first two books, feels more dynamic and satisfying than its predecessors. While the plots of the other books were fun, Darmageddon takes the concept of the series to another level of polish and then unleashes it on a larger arena. This grandness allows the story to breathe and grow organically while rarely becoming unfocused. The scope also feels less claustrophobic and static than the other books did.
As with the other books in the series, the writing and editing are good. I've said it before that Mr. Souza knows the mechanics of prose (some typos aside) and he has been able to describe action from Book 1. My only complaint would be the litany of sentences about zombies being mowed down by vehicles or being reduced to a pink mist by gunfire or hand weapons (which begs the question of why more people aren't infected). Though it's a forgivable fault, it does get a little repetitive by the end of the story.
What really comes through in this book though is a much more natural style of dialogue. The characters sound authentic, and their words feels more polished without being melodramatic or wooden. The are a few times where things revert back to being more in line with the first two books, but these are few and far between. If anything, the dialogue really shines this time, accentuating the good action writing and making the characters seem more real as a result.
There are a few missteps, however. While some of the scientific and philosophical discussions of the zombies is a nice way to tie things back to the first book, it continues to be a bit heavy for the layman. Conversely, the author's knowledge of military equipment falls a bit short. It's not to the point that it interferes with enjoyment of the book, but it's definitely apparent. Finally, there are some story aspects fall a bit flat, either in terms of believability or necessity. The general's rationale for trying to capture the president of a defunct nation, as well as the sub-plot with the Chinese characters, are examples of this. These are much more minor quibbles of “reality” in a zombie book than some of the issues in the previous books.
At the end, the book is the epitome of what a sequel should be. It stays true to the original tenor of the series, improves those elements that are familiar, and then injects something new into it.
The third book in The Living Dead starts with Dar, Anabelle, and their group of ex-Bostonians fleeing, with the President in tow, from the ruins of the city destroyed by Mike Brabas. Dar and her charges are intent on getting to Washington State where they believe refuge might await them, but a power-hungry General is close on their tail for his own reasons. As he chases them, the group struggles against both the zombies and his soldiers, while their own supplies continue to dwindle. As with the other books in the series, the zombies continue to evolve as the story progresses, which I very much enjoy about the series.
The story, which builds on the arc and scope of the first two books, feels more dynamic and satisfying than its predecessors. While the plots of the other books were fun, Darmageddon takes the concept of the series to another level of polish and then unleashes it on a larger arena. This grandness allows the story to breathe and grow organically while rarely becoming unfocused. The scope also feels less claustrophobic and static than the other books did.
As with the other books in the series, the writing and editing are good. I've said it before that Mr. Souza knows the mechanics of prose (some typos aside) and he has been able to describe action from Book 1. My only complaint would be the litany of sentences about zombies being mowed down by vehicles or being reduced to a pink mist by gunfire or hand weapons (which begs the question of why more people aren't infected). Though it's a forgivable fault, it does get a little repetitive by the end of the story.
What really comes through in this book though is a much more natural style of dialogue. The characters sound authentic, and their words feels more polished without being melodramatic or wooden. The are a few times where things revert back to being more in line with the first two books, but these are few and far between. If anything, the dialogue really shines this time, accentuating the good action writing and making the characters seem more real as a result.
There are a few missteps, however. While some of the scientific and philosophical discussions of the zombies is a nice way to tie things back to the first book, it continues to be a bit heavy for the layman. Conversely, the author's knowledge of military equipment falls a bit short. It's not to the point that it interferes with enjoyment of the book, but it's definitely apparent. Finally, there are some story aspects fall a bit flat, either in terms of believability or necessity. The general's rationale for trying to capture the president of a defunct nation, as well as the sub-plot with the Chinese characters, are examples of this. These are much more minor quibbles of “reality” in a zombie book than some of the issues in the previous books.
At the end, the book is the epitome of what a sequel should be. It stays true to the original tenor of the series, improves those elements that are familiar, and then injects something new into it.
March 19, 2014
Dar and her band of survivors must flee for their lives after a terrorist blows up the fence protecting their Boston camp. Departing what was they home for quite some time, the group heads to Washington State to find Dar’s family. Hot on their heels is the egomaniacal General Townsend who has set his sites on two things Dar has...the President of the United States and the "ghost" Annabelle, a girl who can walk freely among the dead.
This cross country journey across America with the undead at their heels and General Townsend not far behind is only made more difficult when Dar's little band learn of yet another threat to their existence. The Chinese have taken it upon themselves to attack, but for what purpose no one is sure. Meanwhile on the advice of MIT professor, Virgil Snow, Dar's group travels to Gentel Labs in Minnesota where Virgil believes there may be some information as to what started this plague and, ultimately, what might stop it. Add in a pit stop to a feuding Amish settlement and you have the makings of a Darmageddon by Joseph Souza
Well, our crazy psycho leader, Dar is at it again, leading her band of followers away from what was once their sanctuary in the Boston Commons, but which is now overrun with the undead, into the unknown headed in the direction of Washington state where a supposed settlement has been established and supposedly Dar's family. We stick with many of the same characters we ended Darpocalypse with and learn a bit more about each of them and a few additional characters are added into the world that is Darmageddon. The road is rougher, the undead seems a lot more plentiful and the human threats are much bigger and more intense then you could imagine.
In book one, The Reawakening, I hated Dar, truly hated her and wanted her to die...I'll admit this fact. Then book two, Darpocalypse comes my way and I was scared, but I got over it and enjoyed the book and some additional knowledge as to who is Dar. So when I was able to get my hands on the final book, Darmageddon I wasn't worried at all, I was looking forward to seeing where things went from where we left off and how it would all wrap up. Now, let me say, I did feel there was slightly a bit much going on all at once at one point in time. Kind of a....REALLY?! Are up seriously expecting me to believe this? type of thing. But, I continued reading and am glad I did. I enjoyed how the author ended the book and definitely feel that this is a trilogy worth reading. It's filled with lots of violence and action, had great dialogue and a unique twist to the undead menace.
This cross country journey across America with the undead at their heels and General Townsend not far behind is only made more difficult when Dar's little band learn of yet another threat to their existence. The Chinese have taken it upon themselves to attack, but for what purpose no one is sure. Meanwhile on the advice of MIT professor, Virgil Snow, Dar's group travels to Gentel Labs in Minnesota where Virgil believes there may be some information as to what started this plague and, ultimately, what might stop it. Add in a pit stop to a feuding Amish settlement and you have the makings of a Darmageddon by Joseph Souza
Well, our crazy psycho leader, Dar is at it again, leading her band of followers away from what was once their sanctuary in the Boston Commons, but which is now overrun with the undead, into the unknown headed in the direction of Washington state where a supposed settlement has been established and supposedly Dar's family. We stick with many of the same characters we ended Darpocalypse with and learn a bit more about each of them and a few additional characters are added into the world that is Darmageddon. The road is rougher, the undead seems a lot more plentiful and the human threats are much bigger and more intense then you could imagine.
In book one, The Reawakening, I hated Dar, truly hated her and wanted her to die...I'll admit this fact. Then book two, Darpocalypse comes my way and I was scared, but I got over it and enjoyed the book and some additional knowledge as to who is Dar. So when I was able to get my hands on the final book, Darmageddon I wasn't worried at all, I was looking forward to seeing where things went from where we left off and how it would all wrap up. Now, let me say, I did feel there was slightly a bit much going on all at once at one point in time. Kind of a....REALLY?! Are up seriously expecting me to believe this? type of thing. But, I continued reading and am glad I did. I enjoyed how the author ended the book and definitely feel that this is a trilogy worth reading. It's filled with lots of violence and action, had great dialogue and a unique twist to the undead menace.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews