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Surviving the Dead #4
Fire in Winter
“Before you embark on a journey of vengeance, dig two graves.” - Confucius.
With the dark cloud of civil war gathering on the horizon, Gabriel Garrett struggles to protect his new home and the new life he has just begun. But as he soon learns, a man’s past has a way of catching up with him, and Gabriel has more than his share of dark secrets.
When his world is shattered, he will walk a path of vengeance across a land where the dead hold sway, and the living count their lives in seconds. His enemy is the deadliest he has ever faced, and in this battle, there is no justice, no redemption, and no mercy.
There is only revenge.
With the dark cloud of civil war gathering on the horizon, Gabriel Garrett struggles to protect his new home and the new life he has just begun. But as he soon learns, a man’s past has a way of catching up with him, and Gabriel has more than his share of dark secrets.
When his world is shattered, he will walk a path of vengeance across a land where the dead hold sway, and the living count their lives in seconds. His enemy is the deadliest he has ever faced, and in this battle, there is no justice, no redemption, and no mercy.
There is only revenge.
514 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 6, 2014
227 people are currently reading
243 people want to read
About the author
James N. Cook
17 books255 followersJames N. Cook is a martial arts enthusiast, a veteran of the U.S. Navy, a former cubicle dweller, and the author of the Surviving the Dead series. He hikes, he goes camping, he travels a lot, and he has trouble staying in one spot for very long. He lives in North Carolina.
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JNCookauthor
Twitter: https://twitter.com/JamesNCook
Blog: https://survivingthedeadsite.wordpres...
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Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JNCookauthor
Twitter: https://twitter.com/JamesNCook
Blog: https://survivingthedeadsite.wordpres...
Newsletter: http://eepurl.com/hmLlKf
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews
May 30, 2014
I love this series. This was from the POV of Gabriel Garret and I so love him. This writer is so good, the series is well written, he knows his weapons and military strategy. It is also about love and Gabe surrendering to it, realizing he has to trust to love and that his very life depends on the love from his woman.
So it is about fighting the zombies, yes, a bit, but the true enemy is man. Men who are greedy, evil, cruel and just plain desperate.
This is the best of the post apocalyptic zombie reads. The characters are well drawn, the obstacles and struggles and how they are resolved are also well done.
If you like well written stories with characters you care about written by an author who knows his combat stuff, this is the book for you.
Now I will read The Passage.
So it is about fighting the zombies, yes, a bit, but the true enemy is man. Men who are greedy, evil, cruel and just plain desperate.
This is the best of the post apocalyptic zombie reads. The characters are well drawn, the obstacles and struggles and how they are resolved are also well done.
If you like well written stories with characters you care about written by an author who knows his combat stuff, this is the book for you.
Now I will read The Passage.
March 22, 2014
Fire In Winter (Surviving the Dead) (Kindle Edition)
James Cook has finally given his faithful followers more than a snippet of who and what Gabriel Garret is. For those of you who don't follow the series, Gabriel Garret is the second half of a team that began when the world ended. In the first 3 books we were given small morsels of who Gabe might be but were mostly background and about Eric Reardon and their friendship. Up to this point there is no doubt Gabe i a very well trained and informed soldier. How well trained and informed emerges slowly with the reader getting tiny slices of the complicated person Gabriel Garret is. By the end of the third book, The Warrior Within, we begin to understand that Gabe Garret is a solitary, lonely man that has seen and done too much in his life. Gabe has now found a new life and enjoying some of what he has been denied for so long. For the first time in years he is happy, content and has become quite the entrepreneur. A few harrowing scenarios and he also comes to terms that he is not getting any younger no matter what his skills, knowledge and talents are. That is made devastatingly clear when an old friend turned enemy comes looking for revenge. Fire in Winter will give us not just a small idea of how deadly Gabriel Garret can be when he is on a mission to right a wrong. We get about 99% of the story because I'm sure some was left out which isn't a bad thing since there are always secrets that sometimes need to be held back no matter how honest the person is and particularly one with a background like Gabriel Garret. I do feel the author gave him too much credit at one point then took it away when Gabe unwittingly and perhaps arrogantly believed he was better than his enemy. And maybe he is or was... but the good life, complacency and too much arrogance almost cost him more than he could ever imagine. The ending was no surprise and seemed a little rushed to me after such a long story with it flipping back and forth from present to past. And to get where he was going and the things he had to do come at price that was no surprise. How high the bill is or will be will undoubtedly be revealed in the next chapter of Surviving the Dead
James Cook has finally given his faithful followers more than a snippet of who and what Gabriel Garret is. For those of you who don't follow the series, Gabriel Garret is the second half of a team that began when the world ended. In the first 3 books we were given small morsels of who Gabe might be but were mostly background and about Eric Reardon and their friendship. Up to this point there is no doubt Gabe i a very well trained and informed soldier. How well trained and informed emerges slowly with the reader getting tiny slices of the complicated person Gabriel Garret is. By the end of the third book, The Warrior Within, we begin to understand that Gabe Garret is a solitary, lonely man that has seen and done too much in his life. Gabe has now found a new life and enjoying some of what he has been denied for so long. For the first time in years he is happy, content and has become quite the entrepreneur. A few harrowing scenarios and he also comes to terms that he is not getting any younger no matter what his skills, knowledge and talents are. That is made devastatingly clear when an old friend turned enemy comes looking for revenge. Fire in Winter will give us not just a small idea of how deadly Gabriel Garret can be when he is on a mission to right a wrong. We get about 99% of the story because I'm sure some was left out which isn't a bad thing since there are always secrets that sometimes need to be held back no matter how honest the person is and particularly one with a background like Gabriel Garret. I do feel the author gave him too much credit at one point then took it away when Gabe unwittingly and perhaps arrogantly believed he was better than his enemy. And maybe he is or was... but the good life, complacency and too much arrogance almost cost him more than he could ever imagine. The ending was no surprise and seemed a little rushed to me after such a long story with it flipping back and forth from present to past. And to get where he was going and the things he had to do come at price that was no surprise. How high the bill is or will be will undoubtedly be revealed in the next chapter of Surviving the Dead
December 3, 2018
Great survival series.
Love this book and this whole series. I did feel like I was missing Eric in this one, but it was a nice change of general perspective. Overall great read, and one of the best apocalypse book series I have read.
Love this book and this whole series. I did feel like I was missing Eric in this one, but it was a nice change of general perspective. Overall great read, and one of the best apocalypse book series I have read.
June 20, 2018
........And then there was the man in the tree!
Lol — I’ve tried to write this review, literally, six times now. Even getting all of the way to the end of the review on half of the occasions. Then — something happened. Child woke up, I got distracted, screen closed and review draft was lost (they really should fix that!!), etc., etc......
So!! I’m just going to say this time —— AWESOME BOOK!! Doesn’t just build on the rest, it takes the series to a new level. Additionally, we get to see new sides of Gabe and Eric. Their characters, along with the storyline, just keep getting richer.
Ok! Think I can post this condensed little review right now! lol
And I’m on to the next book in the series. Can’t wait!!
Lol — I’ve tried to write this review, literally, six times now. Even getting all of the way to the end of the review on half of the occasions. Then — something happened. Child woke up, I got distracted, screen closed and review draft was lost (they really should fix that!!), etc., etc......
So!! I’m just going to say this time —— AWESOME BOOK!! Doesn’t just build on the rest, it takes the series to a new level. Additionally, we get to see new sides of Gabe and Eric. Their characters, along with the storyline, just keep getting richer.
Ok! Think I can post this condensed little review right now! lol
And I’m on to the next book in the series. Can’t wait!!
March 30, 2019
Gabe!!
Really enjoyed this one. Being able to focus on an all Gabe book was really good. Liked how we got to see some backstory on our best friend! Looking forward to more dead slavers in the next book.
Really enjoyed this one. Being able to focus on an all Gabe book was really good. Liked how we got to see some backstory on our best friend! Looking forward to more dead slavers in the next book.
May 18, 2021
Another tale for zombie fan
I enjoyed the book as always. Gabriel garret takes lead and the background story continues on about the hardened warrior. A decent read for any zombie tale lover.
I enjoyed the book as always. Gabriel garret takes lead and the background story continues on about the hardened warrior. A decent read for any zombie tale lover.
March 1, 2021
An 'excellent' continuation of the story - already half way into book #5 of the series !!
July 21, 2015
Liked it
I liked this a little less than the first books: I can't really say why though. It was good but it seemed to be just dragged out, may be to add another book to the series?
It seemed to me that the writing was a little bit different. Caleb Hicks was almost always described or mentioned in an odd manner: Hicks was kind enough to detach his tactical light for me to see, not an exact quote. Well I would hope he'd be kind enough, Gabe was treating his bullet wound. It was just one example of how Hicks was written. And during the wound care after all the noise of the final fight why was there no worry of the infected?
The typos were numerous, editing seemed less in this than the previous books. I have been reading these one after another: I wouldn't be doing that if I didn't really enjoy the story as a whole as well as the characters. I am moving on to the next one right away.
It's a good story, well done, attention to detail of the tactics, the characters are well developed. You can tell that when you find yourself worrying about them making it through one crises after another. The lead character to my mind is Gabe, then Eric. They are the heroes of the story. Heroes should be larger than life and capable of many things that a real human may not endure in a Zombie Apocalypse.
I highly recommend the series.
I liked this a little less than the first books: I can't really say why though. It was good but it seemed to be just dragged out, may be to add another book to the series?
It seemed to me that the writing was a little bit different. Caleb Hicks was almost always described or mentioned in an odd manner: Hicks was kind enough to detach his tactical light for me to see, not an exact quote. Well I would hope he'd be kind enough, Gabe was treating his bullet wound. It was just one example of how Hicks was written. And during the wound care after all the noise of the final fight why was there no worry of the infected?
The typos were numerous, editing seemed less in this than the previous books. I have been reading these one after another: I wouldn't be doing that if I didn't really enjoy the story as a whole as well as the characters. I am moving on to the next one right away.
It's a good story, well done, attention to detail of the tactics, the characters are well developed. You can tell that when you find yourself worrying about them making it through one crises after another. The lead character to my mind is Gabe, then Eric. They are the heroes of the story. Heroes should be larger than life and capable of many things that a real human may not endure in a Zombie Apocalypse.
I highly recommend the series.
August 13, 2016
I loved the other Surviving the Dead books and was very excited when this one came out. There was just something about this one that lacked some of the other books' appeal. Maybe it's because the characters are settling into a more "normal" way of life. They have a town, restaurants, stores, and fewer everyday zombie problems. It was also strange to me that someone from Gabe's past shows up after all this time and after so many other people have died. That whole aspect of the story-line would have been great if I hadn't been reading a zombie apocalypse book. The story did pick up for me a little more than half-way through and seemed more like his previous books in the series. There is no denying that Cook is a very good writer and story-teller. It's obvious he cares about his craft and puts a lot of work into it. I'm still a big fan and look forward to seeing what comes next for him in his writing career!
August 16, 2016
i love this series by James Cook, he really gets a lot going on in the story!! i love his unique detail to his characters. i would like to see more guests show up from previous stories, such as Gabe (spoiler alert), saved a family i would've liked to see them at the end. all in all Mr. Cook, went above and beyond for the story and took it up a notch, w/action-i believe. The only thing that i didn't care about was i felt like there were several times Gabe made errors; now the reason this bothered me was after the first one he said he would be more careful, i know that options were limited but i guess i have to much faith in Gabe, to believe him to make so many mistakes..... All in all this was another great installment of the series!! A must read, for anyone who loves this series!!!
June 22, 2015
The twisting, turning storyline continues. After that left field romp through book four and the cognizant zombie, we revisit Gabriel and Eric. Some time (a year?) after book three and the defeat of the Free Legion we find Gabe and Eric trying to live a peaceful and somewhat normal life. The zombies are still out and about, but they play second string to the character plot. Gabe's black ops past prior to the Outbreak come back to haunt him and threaten all he has built in Hollow Rock. Old South American vendettas seemingly long forgotten rear their ugly head and threaten to separate Gabe from his! An excellent story with great characters. This book seems to have an ending, but it wouldn't surprise me if Mr. Cook squeezes another novel out of this series.
February 23, 2015
I just wrote a review for the first book in the series, and now I have to admit that I was hooked enough by the story line to buy most of the remaining books. However, this is it. The premise of the 'bad guy' in this book is ridiculous. With any good apocalypse book, you have to be willing to suspend disbelief to a degree, but this book goes so far out on a limb that I couldn't make my imagination stretch that far. Because the writing and editing were both under par for all of the books, their only saving grace was the interesting story line. Even that wasn't evident in this book. There are just too many great books out there for me to spend my money on any more of these. To Mr. Cook - if you read these reviews - PLEASE hire an editor!
October 8, 2014
This book is entirely focused on Gabriel, and gives some extended insight into his backstory. No matter what the author does to these people, they still stand strong. It being hordes of thousands of zombies, attacks from marauders - or sniping from Gabriels old enemies.
I maintain that this is one of the best dystopians serials out there, and this is perhaps the best of the books yet - but it's still painfully two-dimentional, full of weird choices - and superhuman strength in the few survivors - both physically and mentally.
I maintain that this is one of the best dystopians serials out there, and this is perhaps the best of the books yet - but it's still painfully two-dimentional, full of weird choices - and superhuman strength in the few survivors - both physically and mentally.
August 16, 2014
This is an okay follow-up to the rest of the series but where did the zombies go? This one is mostly Rambo military man vs kingpen bad guy after the world ends - which isn't bad but this author has written very creepy zombie action and tingled my spine in the past so I was a little disappointed. This series may have run its course. If you have read the rest of the series then this one is worth your time but I may or may not start the next one (if there is one.) Let's just say I'm not chomping for a follow-up.
November 1, 2015
The good the bad and the Zombies
The tales of survival got even better in this book 4 - Fire In Winter. Quality entertainment. He even gave us many many more pages to read, very generous. Oh . . The tales he told, engrossing, stimulating, and a encounter with a insanely evil monster that trumps the Zombies. The addition of a Zombie narrating it's thoughts a few times in this series is genius and keeps me wondering - will it return with more to say? Is it a rare creation that kept some of it's past memories?
The tales of survival got even better in this book 4 - Fire In Winter. Quality entertainment. He even gave us many many more pages to read, very generous. Oh . . The tales he told, engrossing, stimulating, and a encounter with a insanely evil monster that trumps the Zombies. The addition of a Zombie narrating it's thoughts a few times in this series is genius and keeps me wondering - will it return with more to say? Is it a rare creation that kept some of it's past memories?
December 24, 2015
Not was good as the rest....
This may be one of those "transition" books, it advances the plot and acts as a bridge to the rest of the series. It's difficult ultra to write a multi part serial and hit a home run all the time. Cook follows a logical post apocalyptic progression, outbreak, reaction, so piety somewhat recovers and is reborn, if a new animal. The fighting at the end is good, the first two thirds of the book didn't engage me, perhaps the Christmas season is too distracting, but I never got one of those meaty can't put it down sequences.
This may be one of those "transition" books, it advances the plot and acts as a bridge to the rest of the series. It's difficult ultra to write a multi part serial and hit a home run all the time. Cook follows a logical post apocalyptic progression, outbreak, reaction, so piety somewhat recovers and is reborn, if a new animal. The fighting at the end is good, the first two thirds of the book didn't engage me, perhaps the Christmas season is too distracting, but I never got one of those meaty can't put it down sequences.
January 18, 2017
I have really enjoyed the series so far, but will probably be stopping after Fire in Winter. I didn't mind having Gabe as the point of view, but as the characters have a more established lifestyle now, it is not longer a survival adventure series. It has become more of a guerrilla combat narrative, which is not something I was looking for. Some folks love this type of novel, and I encourage them to read on!!
August 13, 2016
loved it. I love Eric but Gave. he's my favorite. I'm glad every time I get to see more of what made him who he is today. James Cook has crafted his characters so well and with such deep emotions that I feel that I know them. what motivates them. Thank you Mr.Cook for creating a world that allows me to get lost in life love humanity and family
May 15, 2015
This was a good read and the series has been very good overall. This one, however, was not quite as good as the previous 3. Don't get me wrong, it's still good. It just didn't hold my attention like the previous in the series.
June 3, 2015
Book 4 was fantastic as expected and i enjoyed Gabriel's perspective.
I think i enjoyed the fact he can lead a man to think he's to be freed, only to put a bullet in his head.
Merciless and unforgiving. That's the spirit.
I think i enjoyed the fact he can lead a man to think he's to be freed, only to put a bullet in his head.
Merciless and unforgiving. That's the spirit.
March 10, 2014
Great series, good world building and plenty if action
June 24, 2014
Easily the weakest book in the series so far, but I still enjoyed it.
April 21, 2014
Quite good, read all his books except the Passenger (yet), tho not sure about skipping so far ahead into future, feels like missed a book or two?
October 10, 2014
Great series. I burned through them.
October 2, 2014
Good book!!
August 16, 2015
From Gabe's perspective #zombie
October 29, 2014
Didn't want this series to end.....
February 9, 2015
Weakest of the series.
May 12, 2015
Excellent read
Keeps you reading the whole thing you don't want to put it down. The story keeps you wanting to read more.
Keeps you reading the whole thing you don't want to put it down. The story keeps you wanting to read more.
January 17, 2016
Another great chapter in the life of Gabe Garrett!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews