The First

by Angela Dunham

Nora Marcelin never asked for magic, but she discovers her untapped powers in the most tragic of ways—by accidentally resurrecting her mother during the pandemic. But her miracle has dire consequences. A supernatural infection begins to spread, awakening the dead as relentless zombies.

Guided by ancient Haitian lore and the secrets of voodoo, Nora must unravel the mysteries of her newfound abilities before the city is overrun. In a race against time, she confronts dark forces and uncovers hidden truths that will challenge everything she knows about life, death, and magic.

 

The First is a gripping horror story that weaves together the enchantment of New Orleans with the haunting legacy of its mystical traditions.

27 pages, Paperback

Published August 15, 2024

About the author

Angela Dunham was born and raised in Florida and has had a passion for creative writing since childhood. Her love of all things magic and macabre inspired her to write stories in which the two coexist.

Angela's books are a mix of fast-paced action and suspense, with underlying themes of found family and the transformative power of love. Angela's writing spans genres, with a focus on paranormal, urban fantasy, and horror. Angela writes complex and snarky characters that leave her readers coming back for more.

Angela is Halloween-obsessed and loves to tell stories about the things that go bump in the night. When Angela isn't writing, you can find her reading a good book, wrangling her adorable son, or drinking an iced chai tea latte.

Reviews

[Hallie · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

A magical take on a pandemic turned zombie apocalypse.

The plot:

Nora loses her mother to a virus dubbed the Red Death and in her grief an unknown magic awakens in her and she mistakenly brings her mother back from the dead. Only for her mother to turn into a bloody thirsty, deadly zombie. The First zombie of the apocalypse. Nora on a search for answers about her powers and questions about whether vaccines played a part, she finds herself in New Orleans looking for answers while zombies still flood the streets killing everything in their path.

My thoughts:

I thought the plot was interesting and unique. This was a very short horror story being only 25 pages long. I do wish it was a little longer I feel like a lot more could have been done with this one but none the less I was intrigued, just left wanting more. The story ended pretty abruptly with no real answers just continued questions. I did like the dip into the horror genre though.

Tropes:

• Super short story
• Pandemic
• Zombie apocalypse
• Horror/thriller/suspense
• Grief
... And more

[Christin Calure · Rating 4 out of 5]

interesting horror short. especially with the current world climate we went through but I liked the bits of lore thrown in.