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For Those In Peril #2
The Outbreak
Starting in Glasgow, this book weaves its tale of post-apocalyptic survival into the varied landscapes and cultures of western Scotland, ranging from bustling city streets to remote island communities. With its evocative use of real locations on both land and sea, and atmospheric depictions of the trials faced by those trying to survive as their world falls apart around them, 'The Outbreak' expands the new and unusual take on the traditional post-apocalyptic genre first introduced by the same author in his much acclaimed debut novel 'For Those In Peril On The Sea'.
While this is the second book in the 'For Those In Peril' series, it focuses on a different set of characters to those in the first. However, the characters from these two books will be united when their storylines finally collide in the third book in the series.
From the back of the book:
He was only in the city to meet an old friend, but within hours of his return, Ben’s running for his life ...
As the world watches in horror, Miami falls to the infected, and with it America. Britain seals its borders hoping to prevent the newly mutated Haitian Rabies Virus reaching its shores, but it’s too late; somewhere in Glasgow is the man who started it all and coursing through his veins is the virus he accidentally created. When he finally turns, the city doesn’t stand a chance.
Minutes later, a small group of survivors find themselves trapped between the ever-increasing hordes of infected and the soldiers seeking to contain them. The roads are barricaded, the skies patrolled, and the only way out is the river which leads from the heart of the city to the safety of the sea.
Join Ben, Tom, Daz, Claire and Sophie as they flee from the infected, first by land, then by sea. Where will they go? How will they survive? Only time will tell.
While this is the second book in the 'For Those In Peril' series, it focuses on a different set of characters to those in the first. However, the characters from these two books will be united when their storylines finally collide in the third book in the series.
From the back of the book:
He was only in the city to meet an old friend, but within hours of his return, Ben’s running for his life ...
As the world watches in horror, Miami falls to the infected, and with it America. Britain seals its borders hoping to prevent the newly mutated Haitian Rabies Virus reaching its shores, but it’s too late; somewhere in Glasgow is the man who started it all and coursing through his veins is the virus he accidentally created. When he finally turns, the city doesn’t stand a chance.
Minutes later, a small group of survivors find themselves trapped between the ever-increasing hordes of infected and the soldiers seeking to contain them. The roads are barricaded, the skies patrolled, and the only way out is the river which leads from the heart of the city to the safety of the sea.
Join Ben, Tom, Daz, Claire and Sophie as they flee from the infected, first by land, then by sea. Where will they go? How will they survive? Only time will tell.
- GenresApocalyptic
364 pages, Paperback
First published July 15, 2014
2 people are currently reading
411 people want to read
About the author
Colin M. Drysdale
21 books31 followersColin M. Drysdale was born in Glasgow, Scotland. He studied Zoology as an undergraduate at Glasgow University and has a doctorate in whale biology from the University of Aberdeen (also in Scotland). As part of his work, he has travelled extensively, and has spent time sailing around the west coast of Scotland, Newfoundland, Labrador, the Bahamas and Florida. He has also spent time in St. Helena, Vancouver island and has travelled overland across Canada and from Hong Kong to Glasgow by train.
While he was written countless academic papers and six technical books under is real name, he chose to publish his debut novel, For Those In Peril On The Sea under a pen name to help keep some separation between his non-fiction and his fiction writing.
Much of the landscapes and locations referred to in For Those In Peril On The Sea are real places that the author has visited or spent time in, especially when working in the northern Bahamas, gathering data for his doctoral thesis.
July 2014 will see the publication of his second novel, The Outbreak, which is set in the same world as For Those In Peril On The Sea, but which follows a new cast of characters as they try to escape from a city as it is over-run by the newly mutated Haitian Rabies Virus. As with the first book in this series, there is a strong element of the sea and sailing culture, although this time of the author's native Scotland rather than the sub-tropical setting of For Those In Peril On The Sea.
A third book will be added the For Those In Peril series in summer 2015, which will see the characters in the first two books united as their story lines finally collide.
As well as well as writing novel, Colin M. Drysdale has also published an anthology of short zombie and post-apocalyptic stories, which is currently available in paperback and as a Kindle ebook called Zombies Can't Swim And Other Tales Of The Undead. This contains 23 short stories, ranging in length from flash fiction to full length short stories which have previously available through his blog.
While he was written countless academic papers and six technical books under is real name, he chose to publish his debut novel, For Those In Peril On The Sea under a pen name to help keep some separation between his non-fiction and his fiction writing.
Much of the landscapes and locations referred to in For Those In Peril On The Sea are real places that the author has visited or spent time in, especially when working in the northern Bahamas, gathering data for his doctoral thesis.
July 2014 will see the publication of his second novel, The Outbreak, which is set in the same world as For Those In Peril On The Sea, but which follows a new cast of characters as they try to escape from a city as it is over-run by the newly mutated Haitian Rabies Virus. As with the first book in this series, there is a strong element of the sea and sailing culture, although this time of the author's native Scotland rather than the sub-tropical setting of For Those In Peril On The Sea.
A third book will be added the For Those In Peril series in summer 2015, which will see the characters in the first two books united as their story lines finally collide.
As well as well as writing novel, Colin M. Drysdale has also published an anthology of short zombie and post-apocalyptic stories, which is currently available in paperback and as a Kindle ebook called Zombies Can't Swim And Other Tales Of The Undead. This contains 23 short stories, ranging in length from flash fiction to full length short stories which have previously available through his blog.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
January 5, 2025
I forget precisely how I was led to this book, but remember being intrigued by the idea of a zombie apocalypse genre novel set in places I am familiar with. For its 350 pages it is a fast read, and I was certainly buoyed along by the story, but it was not a particularly satisfying or stimulating experience (other than thinking about how to review it).
The book reads like an unchallenging YA novel - nothing wrong with that - but I was exasperated by cliché (‘it’s only a flesh wound’), lack of research (a wound becoming infected, causing septic shock, then being cured by oral antibiotics, all in a matter of hours…for example), too obvious plot twists, and stunning naivety in all of the characters behaviour. And for me the characters were too thinly drawn, there wasn’t much emotional depth or realism (or for that matter any other realism) and there was little in the way of detail that would bolster plausibility that was as fragile as fibreglass walls of the (strangely nameless) boat that could have been one of the more interesting protagonists. It did begin reasonably well with some prescient insights into virulence factors, mutations and Darwinian dynamics for an emergent virus - all insightful several years before Covid - but then the omission of something as simple as the concept of quarantine was as discordant with this promising early start as it was entirely concordant with the thinness of the remainder of the plot. All that said, it was not a DNF for me, so not all bad, and I can certainly understand others enjoying it more and rating it more highly.
The book reads like an unchallenging YA novel - nothing wrong with that - but I was exasperated by cliché (‘it’s only a flesh wound’), lack of research (a wound becoming infected, causing septic shock, then being cured by oral antibiotics, all in a matter of hours…for example), too obvious plot twists, and stunning naivety in all of the characters behaviour. And for me the characters were too thinly drawn, there wasn’t much emotional depth or realism (or for that matter any other realism) and there was little in the way of detail that would bolster plausibility that was as fragile as fibreglass walls of the (strangely nameless) boat that could have been one of the more interesting protagonists. It did begin reasonably well with some prescient insights into virulence factors, mutations and Darwinian dynamics for an emergent virus - all insightful several years before Covid - but then the omission of something as simple as the concept of quarantine was as discordant with this promising early start as it was entirely concordant with the thinness of the remainder of the plot. All that said, it was not a DNF for me, so not all bad, and I can certainly understand others enjoying it more and rating it more highly.
December 9, 2016
Winner of the Best Indie Book Award!
September 20, 2014
Easily the worst book I've read this year, if not ever. Got this book from a Goodreads giveaway, as a way for new authors to gain exposure I guess. I didn't have high expectation, knowing it was free, but it managed to stomp the **** out of my low expectation.
I got to reading it because I like disaster zombie novels. From the beginning, it was evident that the book suffers from what most zombie novels do: the authors not wanting to write a story to an audience but rather to roleplay a doomsday scenario where they are the heroes. This is the same problem that plagued Day by Day: Armageddon. I suppose that in writing these stories, these authors actually inject a huge part of their personnas into their characters, basically living out themselves in these stories. It must have been wonderful writing these kinds of stories as they allow the writers to live out their fantasy, but unfortunate for the readers because this feeling of wonderment doesn't transfer to the people who read it.
I will not give a **** about Joe Johnson walking through a dark neighborhood all by himself if I don't know who the **** Joe Johnson is. In order for me to know Joe Johnson, I need an introduction, but then that introduction isn't enough yet. I need to know why Joe is likeable, I need to know what he is struggling with, I need to know what he fears and why should I respect him before I care what happens to him. In The Outbreak, you're introduced to a dude named Ben who is a marine biologist, who has a friend named Tom. They met up to hang out and the outbreak hits at that very instant, which started their adventure.
Ok, so let's skip the fact that both Ben and Tom both have bland backgrounds. So are they witty, funny, or say anything thought-provoking? NO! Imagine two people having a facebook conversation, and both of them are ****ing stupid, that would be the equivalent of most of the dialogue in this book. For christ's sake, look at this:
This is where the infected just ravaged the street in front of them.
Suddenly something struck me. 'Have you got anything we could use as a weapon?'
'What?" Tom looked confused. 'Why?
Why the **** do you think, Tom? Is he asking for a weapon so he can make lemonade?
'Because if we run into any of them, we'll need to be able to defend ourselves.'
'You mean like...?' Tom's voice faltered; he cleared his throat. 'You mean like kill them?' Mr. Dumbass finally jumped to a conclusion
The book could be salvaged if it was actually well-written, inviting suspense into an otherwise sleep-inducing story. The Outbreak is far from suspenseful. The author just doesn't write suspense well. His writing doesn't seem to have a sense of urgency to them. A horse, mouth foaming, galloped across the sidewalk before being slammed into by a taxi, and Tom leaped to his feet and said: "what the hell was that all about?" Then Ben replied "No idea, I wonder that spooked it."
A lot of this happened throughout the story. A scene with high tension is playing out (guts spilling, infected ripping at the people), and the characters would act like they just saw someone take a piss in public.
A blond waitress in her mid-twenties appeared through what I presumed was the door to the kitchen and hurried toward us shouting. 'Hey, we're not open yet, you need to leave
This is a scene of very fast paced action, and noticed how the little detail like the character's assumption of a kitchen door slow down the pace dramatically.
It's not that the writer is unable to grasp the strength of prose, he might be a decent writer (certainly not of narrative fiction for sure), but his writing doesn't invite panic as the kind of fiction he writes should. The dialogue is atrocious, the pacing is uneven and the story lacks a soul - it feels like something we all have read before in zombie fiction.
I admire the author's effort in conceiving this story. It is very hard to write, let alone finish a novel. I was going to hide this review on goodreads, knowing that the author visits the site, and a budding writer could do better without this harsh criticism. But I felt that in being given a free copy of the book, I'm morally obligated to post the review, even more so that I must post an honest one. This book just does not work for me.
1/10
I got to reading it because I like disaster zombie novels. From the beginning, it was evident that the book suffers from what most zombie novels do: the authors not wanting to write a story to an audience but rather to roleplay a doomsday scenario where they are the heroes. This is the same problem that plagued Day by Day: Armageddon. I suppose that in writing these stories, these authors actually inject a huge part of their personnas into their characters, basically living out themselves in these stories. It must have been wonderful writing these kinds of stories as they allow the writers to live out their fantasy, but unfortunate for the readers because this feeling of wonderment doesn't transfer to the people who read it.
I will not give a **** about Joe Johnson walking through a dark neighborhood all by himself if I don't know who the **** Joe Johnson is. In order for me to know Joe Johnson, I need an introduction, but then that introduction isn't enough yet. I need to know why Joe is likeable, I need to know what he is struggling with, I need to know what he fears and why should I respect him before I care what happens to him. In The Outbreak, you're introduced to a dude named Ben who is a marine biologist, who has a friend named Tom. They met up to hang out and the outbreak hits at that very instant, which started their adventure.
Ok, so let's skip the fact that both Ben and Tom both have bland backgrounds. So are they witty, funny, or say anything thought-provoking? NO! Imagine two people having a facebook conversation, and both of them are ****ing stupid, that would be the equivalent of most of the dialogue in this book. For christ's sake, look at this:
This is where the infected just ravaged the street in front of them.
Suddenly something struck me. 'Have you got anything we could use as a weapon?'
'What?" Tom looked confused. 'Why?
Why the **** do you think, Tom? Is he asking for a weapon so he can make lemonade?
'Because if we run into any of them, we'll need to be able to defend ourselves.'
'You mean like...?' Tom's voice faltered; he cleared his throat. 'You mean like kill them?' Mr. Dumbass finally jumped to a conclusion
The book could be salvaged if it was actually well-written, inviting suspense into an otherwise sleep-inducing story. The Outbreak is far from suspenseful. The author just doesn't write suspense well. His writing doesn't seem to have a sense of urgency to them. A horse, mouth foaming, galloped across the sidewalk before being slammed into by a taxi, and Tom leaped to his feet and said: "what the hell was that all about?" Then Ben replied "No idea, I wonder that spooked it."
A lot of this happened throughout the story. A scene with high tension is playing out (guts spilling, infected ripping at the people), and the characters would act like they just saw someone take a piss in public.
A blond waitress in her mid-twenties appeared through what I presumed was the door to the kitchen and hurried toward us shouting. 'Hey, we're not open yet, you need to leave
This is a scene of very fast paced action, and noticed how the little detail like the character's assumption of a kitchen door slow down the pace dramatically.
It's not that the writer is unable to grasp the strength of prose, he might be a decent writer (certainly not of narrative fiction for sure), but his writing doesn't invite panic as the kind of fiction he writes should. The dialogue is atrocious, the pacing is uneven and the story lacks a soul - it feels like something we all have read before in zombie fiction.
I admire the author's effort in conceiving this story. It is very hard to write, let alone finish a novel. I was going to hide this review on goodreads, knowing that the author visits the site, and a budding writer could do better without this harsh criticism. But I felt that in being given a free copy of the book, I'm morally obligated to post the review, even more so that I must post an honest one. This book just does not work for me.
1/10
August 9, 2014
This was a Goodreads Giveaway win, so firstly thank you very much, excited as always to win. It arrived extremely quickly and is a very good looking book so I couldn't wait to start.
Bear in mind this is the second book in a series and I haven't read book one I was a little cautious that I wouldn't be able to understand the plot and that it may refer to things in the first book I didn't know. I'll put that to bed straight away, as far as I am concerned this can be read as a stand alone book and I enjoyed it for exactly that.
Plot wise, there is a virus that has been let loose in the general population starting in the USA. It basically turns people into angry attacking machines, they either kill their victim or manage to infect them. Miami is overrun and in the chaos an infected carrier manages to get into Glasgow before the UK closes its borders, rapidly spreading the virus throughout the country.
A small group of survivors manage to escape from Glasgow and head to the remote scottish islands running from the infection. This is their story.
Plot wise I'll leave it there as I think anymore would start to spoil the readers enjoyment.
The author has produced a very well paced, exciting and at times extremely sad thriller. It rattles along quickly having just the right amount of descriptive detail, dialogue and technical info for it to be well explained to the uninitiated in regards to the setting (Glasgow and the remote islands), sailing and development of the characters.
His characters are well thought out, you find out just enough of their background story to keep you intrigued without it overloading the actual tale.
The characters are exactly right, you like the ones you are supposed to like, feel sympathy for the ones you are supposed to sympathise with and downright hate the ones you are supposed to hate!!!!!! It's about as perfect as you can get.
All in all I loved it and would recommend it to anyone who likes an exciting read that is very well written and keeps you enthralled right to the last page.
Thank you once again for the chance to read and review it.
Bear in mind this is the second book in a series and I haven't read book one I was a little cautious that I wouldn't be able to understand the plot and that it may refer to things in the first book I didn't know. I'll put that to bed straight away, as far as I am concerned this can be read as a stand alone book and I enjoyed it for exactly that.
Plot wise, there is a virus that has been let loose in the general population starting in the USA. It basically turns people into angry attacking machines, they either kill their victim or manage to infect them. Miami is overrun and in the chaos an infected carrier manages to get into Glasgow before the UK closes its borders, rapidly spreading the virus throughout the country.
A small group of survivors manage to escape from Glasgow and head to the remote scottish islands running from the infection. This is their story.
Plot wise I'll leave it there as I think anymore would start to spoil the readers enjoyment.
The author has produced a very well paced, exciting and at times extremely sad thriller. It rattles along quickly having just the right amount of descriptive detail, dialogue and technical info for it to be well explained to the uninitiated in regards to the setting (Glasgow and the remote islands), sailing and development of the characters.
His characters are well thought out, you find out just enough of their background story to keep you intrigued without it overloading the actual tale.
The characters are exactly right, you like the ones you are supposed to like, feel sympathy for the ones you are supposed to sympathise with and downright hate the ones you are supposed to hate!!!!!! It's about as perfect as you can get.
All in all I loved it and would recommend it to anyone who likes an exciting read that is very well written and keeps you enthralled right to the last page.
Thank you once again for the chance to read and review it.
September 29, 2014
(I received this book for free as part of Goodreads First Reads giveaways).
(This review may contain spoilers).
Although this book was the second in a series, I still found it easy to follow; probably because it was centred around a new group of characters. I also found it interesting that the characters ended up taking a boat and being on the sea. It makes a change from all of the zombie stories where the characters take a car and then wind up having to escape on foot...
Although the prologue of the book was written in third person, the rest was written in first person and the POV of only one character, which is always much easier to read. I liked Ben as a character and I also liked the relationships he formed with the other characters. It was interesting to see people who would probably have never talked in normal reality have to pull together to save themselves and each other.
I did feel that the military/navy wasn't painted in a very good light. Even the ones who weren't 'bad' seemed to lack a certain kind of intelligence. Amusingly enough, I had Captain America flashbacks with the character of Bucky. (I actually did like him).
I felt the spread of the infection came across as quite realistic. In the world we now live in, travel is so easy, that it made sense many places would be overrun by the infection before modes of travel could be cut off.
It was also interesting to see a doctor in one of the characters. I felt that a lot of research had clearly gone into this book, as well as the author drawing on his own personal experience. I felt that the characters were interesting and well-rounded and I actually cared about them. Also, despite the near misses, I felt the danger they were in was very real.
There were times when I really felt for the characters, particularly during those moments when they had to make the tough decisions. I was able to empathise with them easily and I found myself avidly reading the book to find out what would happen next. I'd probably read the other books in this series at some point.
(This review may contain spoilers).
Although this book was the second in a series, I still found it easy to follow; probably because it was centred around a new group of characters. I also found it interesting that the characters ended up taking a boat and being on the sea. It makes a change from all of the zombie stories where the characters take a car and then wind up having to escape on foot...
Although the prologue of the book was written in third person, the rest was written in first person and the POV of only one character, which is always much easier to read. I liked Ben as a character and I also liked the relationships he formed with the other characters. It was interesting to see people who would probably have never talked in normal reality have to pull together to save themselves and each other.
I did feel that the military/navy wasn't painted in a very good light. Even the ones who weren't 'bad' seemed to lack a certain kind of intelligence. Amusingly enough, I had Captain America flashbacks with the character of Bucky. (I actually did like him).
I felt the spread of the infection came across as quite realistic. In the world we now live in, travel is so easy, that it made sense many places would be overrun by the infection before modes of travel could be cut off.
It was also interesting to see a doctor in one of the characters. I felt that a lot of research had clearly gone into this book, as well as the author drawing on his own personal experience. I felt that the characters were interesting and well-rounded and I actually cared about them. Also, despite the near misses, I felt the danger they were in was very real.
There were times when I really felt for the characters, particularly during those moments when they had to make the tough decisions. I was able to empathise with them easily and I found myself avidly reading the book to find out what would happen next. I'd probably read the other books in this series at some point.
September 3, 2014
The infected...those who have contracted the horrid virus that turns one's beloved grandmother or daughter or child or the hobo on the street into a flesh-eating monster...or as many refer to them: a zombie. I am not one to read this genre and no I am not a fan of The Walking Dead that airs on television, but I have read Mr. Drysdale's first book, Those in Peril on the Sea, and was most intrigued, so here I am reading his second book on the subject, The Outbreak.
As I read about the characters taking refuge at sea to escape the infected I kept reminding myself: c'mon, this can't really happen...right? And yet when I take my dog for his last out at 10:30 every evening I find myself scanning the wood line waiting for zombies to emerge and chase me into the house. The dog? Sorry, he's on his own.
Mr. Drysdale's writing is smooth and his descriptions of the virus and the infected are life-like. His characters Ben, Tom, Daz, Claire (a doctor) Sophie and Jake (Claire's children) struggle with the reality of the virus--lives are changed in so many ways as they sail over the waters realizing that survival may be at a cost that none of them may be ready to deal with.
The Outbreak is a story that will stick with you for days-perhaps longer--it certainly did for me.
5 STARS
Please note: I received this book from the author and was not paid for my remarks.
As I read about the characters taking refuge at sea to escape the infected I kept reminding myself: c'mon, this can't really happen...right? And yet when I take my dog for his last out at 10:30 every evening I find myself scanning the wood line waiting for zombies to emerge and chase me into the house. The dog? Sorry, he's on his own.
Mr. Drysdale's writing is smooth and his descriptions of the virus and the infected are life-like. His characters Ben, Tom, Daz, Claire (a doctor) Sophie and Jake (Claire's children) struggle with the reality of the virus--lives are changed in so many ways as they sail over the waters realizing that survival may be at a cost that none of them may be ready to deal with.
The Outbreak is a story that will stick with you for days-perhaps longer--it certainly did for me.
5 STARS
Please note: I received this book from the author and was not paid for my remarks.
September 10, 2014
Goodreads firstreads - thanks so much to Goodreads and Colin.
2 stars seems mean but I've given 3 stars to books I've enjoyed much more than this - so 2 it has to be. "It was OK" really sums it up very well...
I read this in 2 days whilst ill in bed - hardly an uplifting sort of choice but I'm a fan of 'disaster' stories so this should have suited me. Unfortunately not! I found it too simplistic - the disease, the storyline, the characters - all very basic. There was nothing new or dynamic about the story - it seemed like a mish-mash of other similar disease disaster films I've seen with some elements taken from each. The information on sailing and marine life I found the most interesting which doesn't say much for the main thrust of the book! I seem to be on my own in this opinion (having looked at others' reviews) but I have to give my honest opinion and this is it! A very easy read but just too simply described and 'samey' all the way through.
2 stars seems mean but I've given 3 stars to books I've enjoyed much more than this - so 2 it has to be. "It was OK" really sums it up very well...
I read this in 2 days whilst ill in bed - hardly an uplifting sort of choice but I'm a fan of 'disaster' stories so this should have suited me. Unfortunately not! I found it too simplistic - the disease, the storyline, the characters - all very basic. There was nothing new or dynamic about the story - it seemed like a mish-mash of other similar disease disaster films I've seen with some elements taken from each. The information on sailing and marine life I found the most interesting which doesn't say much for the main thrust of the book! I seem to be on my own in this opinion (having looked at others' reviews) but I have to give my honest opinion and this is it! A very easy read but just too simply described and 'samey' all the way through.
June 18, 2015
Great book, great characters, great storyline.
This is the second book in the series, and I have since read the first book For Those In Peril On The Sea. I don't think reading them in the wrong order was a problem, as the story was set in a different place with different people. I understand that the third book will unite the characters from both books and I am looking forward to reading it.
I received the book for free through Goodreads First Reads.
This is the second book in the series, and I have since read the first book For Those In Peril On The Sea. I don't think reading them in the wrong order was a problem, as the story was set in a different place with different people. I understand that the third book will unite the characters from both books and I am looking forward to reading it.
I received the book for free through Goodreads First Reads.
Read
October 10, 2014Loved it! Although I would not have intially read this since it dealt with zombies I was glad to have won it in the giveaway. Reading it at a time when the Ebola Virus is a scare made one think of their own preservation. The story line and characters were super and one did not need to read the first to follow it. The thrill of wondering what would happen next was exciting and the reader had to finish it to discover the outcome.
Sharon Teagarden-King
Sharon Teagarden-King
November 19, 2014
same story as the first book, just different characters. he's following a rigid, almost romance novel type story arch. It's very predictable what is going to happen and who will do what. You just have to see if you can guess who will die when the Big Bad sets up the ambush.
August 26, 2014
It was a truly excellent book.
I can't wait for the next book now.
I can't wait for the next book now.
June 5, 2015
I received this book as a Goodreads Winner. I did not know how I would like this book but the story kind of grows on you. I am planning to read the first book and also the next book when published.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews