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The Survivors #3
Winter
The worst has happened. Humanity has fallen. There is no future. There is no hope. A virus has wiped out our species, with the exception of the lucky few who are immune. But now, a vicious new enemy has emerged, one that threatens everything that we're trying so hard to build.
In its darkest hour, humanity needs a hero. I've decided I will be that hero. If I have to die in the process, I can accept that, but I cannot go to my grave without knowing I have done everything possible to save my species and the people that I care about.
We cannot - no, we will not! - let this virus become our extinction event. We will endure. We will rebuild. It may take us generations, but the world we leave for our children will not be the one our parents left for us. Heroes are not born, they are created, when ordinary men and women to step forward and perform extraordinary deeds in the name of the greater good.
My name is Sandrine McDermott. I was named to honour my grandmother, and I will make her proud. I am no longer just a survivor.
***
Author’s Note:
Although this book does feature the undead, it is not intended to be horror. The Survivors is a little bit apocalyptic, a bit dystopian, a bit science-fiction, a bit zombie horror, but above all else it is a love story. To quote the very first blogger that got her hands on it: “(The Survivors is) a layered, touching, powerful story of humanity and survival.”
The story takes place in the Waikato region of New Zealand, ten years on after a killer plague erased the majority of our species from the face of the earth. 99.5% of humanity is either dead, or has been reduced to the (mostly) harmless, lumbering undead. The few people lucky enough to be immune to the disease have spent the last ten years struggling to live amongst the ruins of a dead society.
For some people, the time hasn’t been so bad. For other people – like our heroine and narrator, Sandrine McDermott – the last ten years have been a living hell. Without rules to keep people civilized, there’s nothing to keep a lone female safe except her own wits. Sometimes, that’s just not enough.
Life has not been kind to her. In fact, it’s safe to say that fate’s been kind of a bastard. However, it’s also a whimsical bastard. When Sandy injures herself and is forced to go looking for the medication she needs to survive, she finds herself on the receiving end of kindness in the last place she expects. She’s forced her to reassess her place in the world, and her own humanity.
The Survivors is a four-part tale that follows Sandy’s evolution from the psychologically-damaged wreck that she at the beginning of the story, to the true heroine that we need to preserve our species from extinction.
Somehow, some way, she must go from being one of the hopeless wanderers, to being our hope for a new tomorrow.
In its darkest hour, humanity needs a hero. I've decided I will be that hero. If I have to die in the process, I can accept that, but I cannot go to my grave without knowing I have done everything possible to save my species and the people that I care about.
We cannot - no, we will not! - let this virus become our extinction event. We will endure. We will rebuild. It may take us generations, but the world we leave for our children will not be the one our parents left for us. Heroes are not born, they are created, when ordinary men and women to step forward and perform extraordinary deeds in the name of the greater good.
My name is Sandrine McDermott. I was named to honour my grandmother, and I will make her proud. I am no longer just a survivor.
***
Author’s Note:
Although this book does feature the undead, it is not intended to be horror. The Survivors is a little bit apocalyptic, a bit dystopian, a bit science-fiction, a bit zombie horror, but above all else it is a love story. To quote the very first blogger that got her hands on it: “(The Survivors is) a layered, touching, powerful story of humanity and survival.”
The story takes place in the Waikato region of New Zealand, ten years on after a killer plague erased the majority of our species from the face of the earth. 99.5% of humanity is either dead, or has been reduced to the (mostly) harmless, lumbering undead. The few people lucky enough to be immune to the disease have spent the last ten years struggling to live amongst the ruins of a dead society.
For some people, the time hasn’t been so bad. For other people – like our heroine and narrator, Sandrine McDermott – the last ten years have been a living hell. Without rules to keep people civilized, there’s nothing to keep a lone female safe except her own wits. Sometimes, that’s just not enough.
Life has not been kind to her. In fact, it’s safe to say that fate’s been kind of a bastard. However, it’s also a whimsical bastard. When Sandy injures herself and is forced to go looking for the medication she needs to survive, she finds herself on the receiving end of kindness in the last place she expects. She’s forced her to reassess her place in the world, and her own humanity.
The Survivors is a four-part tale that follows Sandy’s evolution from the psychologically-damaged wreck that she at the beginning of the story, to the true heroine that we need to preserve our species from extinction.
Somehow, some way, she must go from being one of the hopeless wanderers, to being our hope for a new tomorrow.
ebook
First published July 26, 2014
44 people are currently reading
55 people want to read
About the author
V.L. Dreyer
16 books73 followersVictoria L. Dreyer is an international best-selling author based out of Auckland, New Zealand. She is best known for her post-apocalyptic series, The Survivors, as well as the Immortelle series under her pen name, Abigail Hawk. Her earlier works cover numerous graphic novels, including Tour Girls In The 23rd Century and The Gyrath's Gate Chronicles and an assortment of essays and short stories.
Ms Dreyer grew up in a home that valued literacy above all else, and she learned her love of books during childhood. At the age of 14, she penned her first novel in the form of the original draft of the The Gyrath’s Gate Chronicles, which is in the process of being adapted to graphic novel format. Shortly after high school, she co-founded the graphic novel publisher Blue Scar Productions with the aid of Alexandra “Blue” Saunders. Between the two of them, they recruited sixteen volunteers united by their love of comic books. Although Blue Scar Productions ceased to operate as a commercial entity in November 2011, Ms Dreyer has since gone on to produce more works under her own name. Her preferred genres are science fiction, post-apocalyptic survival, and romance - and sometimes all three at once.
Ms Dreyer suffers from an advanced form of Meniere's Disease, which has left her with a hearing impairment. Despite this, she still loves talking to her readers. In her free time, she is an avid reader, enjoys freelance writing and photography, and loves to explore an assortment of handicrafts.
Ms Dreyer grew up in a home that valued literacy above all else, and she learned her love of books during childhood. At the age of 14, she penned her first novel in the form of the original draft of the The Gyrath’s Gate Chronicles, which is in the process of being adapted to graphic novel format. Shortly after high school, she co-founded the graphic novel publisher Blue Scar Productions with the aid of Alexandra “Blue” Saunders. Between the two of them, they recruited sixteen volunteers united by their love of comic books. Although Blue Scar Productions ceased to operate as a commercial entity in November 2011, Ms Dreyer has since gone on to produce more works under her own name. Her preferred genres are science fiction, post-apocalyptic survival, and romance - and sometimes all three at once.
Ms Dreyer suffers from an advanced form of Meniere's Disease, which has left her with a hearing impairment. Despite this, she still loves talking to her readers. In her free time, she is an avid reader, enjoys freelance writing and photography, and loves to explore an assortment of handicrafts.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
October 8, 2022
2022
Somewhere along the way Sandy has the bright idea of saving humanity no starting a community. She goes from a scarred woman who prefers to be alone to growing a caravan of survivors full of women and children. The group makes the decision to head south in hopes they can escape the newly changed infected who operate more like crazed zombies. In the after nowhere is safe but there is safety in numbers which luckily they now have. From narrowly avoiding an erupting volcano to their travels through gang country, the danger only brings the group closer and acts as a motivator for them all proving the need for a better future. The time of living in the after is over, now it’s time to rebuild and jumpstart civilization again.
Somewhere along the way Sandy has the bright idea of saving humanity no starting a community. She goes from a scarred woman who prefers to be alone to growing a caravan of survivors full of women and children. The group makes the decision to head south in hopes they can escape the newly changed infected who operate more like crazed zombies. In the after nowhere is safe but there is safety in numbers which luckily they now have. From narrowly avoiding an erupting volcano to their travels through gang country, the danger only brings the group closer and acts as a motivator for them all proving the need for a better future. The time of living in the after is over, now it’s time to rebuild and jumpstart civilization again.
September 15, 2014
This series just keeps getting better and better. The story line is well written and easy to follow. The story has so much action, mystery, suspense, and romance. Yes they are running from mutated zombies, but the characters and their relationships is what makes this series so amazing. The characters are so easy to become invested in. I feel like I know these characters and I care what happens to each and every one of them. The group is traveling to rebuild society. They are rediscovering civilization and wants to create a loving and nurturing environment for everyone to flourish. I am rooting for them and I can't wait to find out where Dreyer takes us next!
January 10, 2015
The story gets better with each book I love seeing more of these characters and their determination to live
January 16, 2019
Even better
Much better than book two with more variety to the action and more balance and less repetitive romance I look forward to the last book
Much better than book two with more variety to the action and more balance and less repetitive romance I look forward to the last book
September 19, 2015
Better than the last one... there was much less "Sandy and Michael have seeexxx" going on, which is a really good thing.
However, the fact that honey-guy Gavin showed up was a little too much. She already ran into her sister...
And also. I'm not a fan of the whole "we have a prophet" thing. It's just... so random and out of place.
I'm still deeply invested in their goal, though. It is pretty awesome.
However, the fact that honey-guy Gavin showed up was a little too much. She already ran into her sister...
And also. I'm not a fan of the whole "we have a prophet" thing. It's just... so random and out of place.
I'm still deeply invested in their goal, though. It is pretty awesome.
June 28, 2017
Very interesting series about the survivors of a plague. Much more, but do not want to spoil the reading for others.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews