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Arisen #1-3

ARISEN, Omnibus One

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BOOK ONE - FORTRESS BRITAIN
When the Zombie Apocalypse came, one country had shut down its borders in response to a major terrorist attack. Now Fortress Britain is the last bastion of the living - with 50 million beleaguered survivors facing down a world of 7 billion animated corpses. And one international team of elite special operators - supremely trained and armed, always the most skilled, resolved, and unstoppable amongst us - are humanity's last best hope for survival...

BOOK TWO - MOGADISHU OF THE DEAD
Alpha team is tasked with one last desperate operation: they must cross the Atlantic aboard the world's only remaining supercarrier and insert by air into the very middle of a dead continent, all in search of a rumored vaccine that might bring humanity back from the brink. But their op goes dangerously wrong from the start, with the team scattered to hell and back, and their target site a dry hole. Now they must fight their way on foot through a city of 3 million ravening dead guys, in search of an underground bunker that might hold the Last Man on Earth. But these undead will not be like any Zulus they have ever fought before - and they surround the new target in a writhing ring of death 30 feet high on all sides...

BOOK THREE - THREE PARTS DEAD
Alpha team, the world's best and last surviving Tier-1 operators, are adrift on Lake Michigan - and fast drifting into what looks like a damned hostile shoreline. Deep in the National Forest nearby, a former police officer and survivalist battles to keep her family alive - and tries to decide whether the commandos of Alpha are more dangerous to her alive or dead. Meanwhile, the John F. Kennedy, the world's last floating supercarrier, is run aground off the coast of Virginia - and facing a veritable hurricane of the dead, blowing in fast. Finally, back in Fortress Britain, the terrible outbreak from the Channel Tunnel turns out not to have been so contained after all - and a death grip is beginning to close on London, and shaping up into humanity's very last stand...

The battle for humanity starts here - in the first three volumes of the most explosive and thrilling ZA series on Earth.

642 pages, Paperback

First published May 8, 2014

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343 people want to read

About the author

Glynn James

92 books477 followers
GLYNN JAMES is an author of science fiction, post-apocalyptic, dark fantasy, horror, and dystopian fiction. His love of science fiction began when he was eight years old after discovering HP Lovecraft and Richard Matheson, and then later on Terry Pratchett, Neil Gaiman, James Herbert, Clive Barker, and Stephen King.

In addition to being author of the “ALTERLIGHT” supernatural mystery thriller series, he is author of the dark sci-fi series "DIARY OF THE DISPLACED", the post-apocalyptic "THROWN AWAY" series, and co-author of the "ARISEN" series and the “DUSTFALL” series.

More info on his writing and projects can be found at -
Website - www.glynnjames.co.uk
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/glynnjamesfi...
Goodreads - https://www.goodreads.com/GlynnJames

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5 stars
491 (54%)
4 stars
252 (27%)
3 stars
127 (13%)
2 stars
26 (2%)
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12 (1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 64 reviews
Profile Image for Emina Sehic.
27 reviews
October 10, 2025
WHAT A BRILLIANT SERIES! Absolutely a MUST READ for any Dystopia/Zombie Apocalypse lovers. I’m afraid I have accidentally gotten hooked on a 15 book series and I will be finishing it 😂
Profile Image for Josh Levine.
179 reviews
March 15, 2019
This series came recommended to me because I am a huge fan of post-apocalyptic stories, to include zompoc books, and also a Brayniac (R.C. Bray fan). I have had it in my library for some time but my squirrel brain kept shifting around (as always happens with any book I listen to) my listening order.

I loved the detail about the different zombies and I really enjoyed the military aspect and details incorporated throughout. Overall, this omnibus did not disappoint although the first book had a few sections that left me feeling as though some of the detail could have been cut out. What I mean by that is there were points where a large amount of back story was provided that I felt didn't really contribute to my enjoyment of the story. All of that said, once the main character base was built I felt the story picked up quite a bit.

R.C. Bray, as usual, did a wonderful job and I will definitely be moving on to the remainder of the series as I can't wait to see what happens.
Profile Image for Douglas Owen.
Author 33 books41 followers
March 30, 2018
Finally - We have a Good Narrative
Finally, a series of books with some meat to it.

That's right I am really enjoying the series Arisen. The authors have done enough research to know what they are writing about and have taken the time to show it. Yes, I said show it, not tell it. Let me explain.

One of the growing issues with self-published books is the prevalence of authors not using descriptions, but telling you everything as if it's a known. Jim was angry, Jill was horny, and so on. With these three books the descriptions tell us what we need to know and it works well. Yes, there are some issues in the series like gas still being good after two years, but you can overlook them for a while. Maybe they'll fix that soon as well.

In this series, the authors are taking a few liberties with the whole zombie approach. They use a lot of military jargon, but you get used to it fast when they take the time to give you a little info. Through the books you get to learn the phonetic alphabet (they got it right) and how the forces tend to short cut everything (but make it long in the process). We have zombies who move slow, fast, and at light speed. The explanation is a good one and they carry it through these three books.

At 231 pages a book, the print is big. They have less than 350 words a page, thus bringing the work to about 63,000 words. A good size for one author, but could have been more with two. Each author played off their strengths and have created a wonderful world to focus on.

The first three books really do set up the world well. The series starts two yeas into the Zulu Alpha (Zombie Apocalypse) and is action packed with very little time to breath.

Fortress Britain
Book one introduces us into a world gone wrong. The ZA is in full swing and Britain is basically the only surviving nation. There are flash backs from characters to build up their past, but not so much that you're overwhelmed. It sets the stage well and we get to know what is happening.

As the world becomes an apparent toilet full, each of the main characters takes on a role of their own. Supporting roles are well thought out and make sense to someone with a little military knowledge, and for those with a lot, they will find themselves laughing at some of the little jokes throughout. Someone with no military experience or knowledge may find themselves lost at a few points or confused at why each character reacted the way they did.

In this chapter, the big plan comes into play. We find out a lot, and I'm not going to spoil it for you.

Mogadishu of the Dead
Book two takes us on a wild ride as several things unfold. A SEAL group heads into a US city, deployed from a still operational aircraft carrier (nuclear fuel - nice way around one issue). Action is well laid out and constant. Crap is happening, and the nut jobs are at it even aboard the ship. Other things happen that put mankind at risk, but let's not get too much into the story or it'll become a spoiler, and I don't want to do that this time.

We run into crap that happens, good and bad, to stall the survival. It pokes fun at "The Walking Dead" and even mentions a lot of references to other Zombie memorabilia. The characters run the gambit and pitfalls of the whole genre.

Three Parts Dead
The last book of the Omnibus tells us the authors have done some research (see nit-picking below). They have made a world more believable than most, and the pit falls facing survival are there for everyone to see. New characters are introduced and some are killed (or risen). The plot carried out through the three books is followed and a big thing happens at the end (no, I won't tell you).

Wrapping Up
Finally, we come to the part most people what to know, the end of the review. We have read all the little stuff, but that leaves the big thing, is it worth reading?

Yes!

I have read a lot of apocalypse work, and this one is up there with a smile. Something you can read and enjoy (most, that is). There are little things but not much to worry about. All in all I say, so far that is, this series is worth the read. I'm going to do the 3.5 they put out, something of a supplement side story, just to get a feel.

Nit Picking
Things that need fixing, like always. Though the authors did research, they missed things that people who have snow mobiles, boats, and other recreational vehicles know. Gas does not last! If we ever had a Zulu Alpha event, vehicles like cars and boats which run of regular gasoline (not diesel) would not be able to run for the fuel breaks down. After about a year, the gas would be unusable, or really bad at best. After two years, unless treated with a stabilizer every six months, the gas would break down.

Zombies and water don't mix. Fish love to eat. If a zombie was in the water for any length of time, the aquatic life would eat it. Yes, fish don't care. Think of a lake as an ecosystem of life. If there's food, something will eat it. Fish pick at meat, no matter what it is, and gorge themselves. If zombies were in water, they'd bloat and be a all you can eat buffet to everything in the water. Take it from a fisherman, it would last only a few weeks at best. Up north, I came across a small lake filled with pike, and a carcass of a deer in it. Not much left on the carcass after a week but bones. So take it from me, don't make the same mistake.

Ammo runs out. Yes, there will be more of it around, but how much NATO 556 do you have stored up? People would be scrambling after a year. But that's a personal thought behind weapons.

If you love ZA novels, this would be one to read.
Profile Image for Koji Sakai.
Author 11 books11 followers
February 13, 2015

I love zombie books so when I heard I get all of them in one... I jumped at it. I could never get into this one because it was too military and not enough story. Sigh, I really wanted like this one too :(
Profile Image for David.
61 reviews7 followers
July 1, 2017
Maybe I'm just burned out on zombie books, or I'm just tired of never ending series, or both...but I finished this 3 pack omnibus and won't be reading any more of this series.

To be fair, the books are solidly written and probably militarily accurate. The characters are well developed enough, though none are super memorable. The storylines flow well from one book to the next and resolve fairly well by the end of the third (and final) book of the omnibus edition. Of course they leave you with plenty of reasons to continue on to book #4.

What really turned me off were some unbelievable actions of a character towards the end of the book. No spoilers, but I don't believe anyone would do what they did.

All said, probably worth 3 1/2 stars.

Profile Image for Marcus.
764 reviews4 followers
December 22, 2017
I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review
First and foremost, this is a book about zombies and the end of the world. In my opinion, it is one of the more well written books covering an over used topic. The characters are very well written and appears to be well documented and researched, the situations aren't described as being too heroic in nature as to require a superhuman effort to escape from. There are some gory and gruesome parts included, intense human involvement, at least two romantic involvements, plenty of action, and several plot twists and cliff hangers. A good start to an interesting series.
4 reviews
April 27, 2019
Zombies!!!!! I am a Zombie fanatic, every type of zombie out there I love it!!! There are 14 books in this series and I have listened to every single one!! The zombies are the main threat in the series but to me it's not the focus. The focus is on the larger then life characters of team Alpha. A group of special forces, delta, black ops with one mission save the world. I know this might seem like your cliché military zombie book buts soooo much more then that, as an active duty sailor this series does truly dive in the hard parts of being deployed and never knowing what tomorrow holds. Loved every bit of this series.
Profile Image for Mkittysamom.
1,467 reviews53 followers
December 31, 2017
Military vs Zombies

I like that there are different zombies like Romeos and Tangos. This Trilogy is a great beginning to introduce the Alpha team on their quest to save the last of humanity..except the reader knows more than they do about the rest of the world which is really great and provides a ton of suspense. I never know what is coming around the next Bend..or next stop. It’s like being on pins and needles never knowing if one of the main characters will survive and the author weaves in new characters seamlessly! Love it!!
Profile Image for Chris.
1,069 reviews
March 13, 2018
This is one of those series that tries to be military accurate. Think of Tom Clancy level of accurate with tons of insider speak, details of tactics, and way too many characters. I read the first 3 books and this elite team is still on the same mission just slightly further along. This is like a really long video game level and each book is a checkpoint. Dont know if it is worth reading the rest.
570 reviews3 followers
May 15, 2019
Pretty good series

Let me start off by saying I love reading an omnibus edition, it is so nice to have 3 books in one and not have to stop and download the next book. The story is a good one with great characters and action. The only problem I had was the use of acronyms and military terms all the time and the authors need to explain them, sometimes the same one more than once.
486 reviews7 followers
October 21, 2020
Fine PA Action Thriller

I'm not a big fan of the zombie concept, as it defies so many scientific facts and is outright illogical. I do like a good PA novel, however, and after reading the reviews I decided to give this series a try. I was not disappointed. The writing is excellent, the characters interesting and well developed, and story is fast paced with plenty of action. I'll just have to set my logic aside and enjoy the ride!
169 reviews
February 24, 2021
Fun zombie apocalypse books. The character development is OK, but some of them are very unrelatable. Sarah in particular is baffling. She is prepared to leave her husband for one of the special ops dudes only hours after meeting the dude! She also seems completely uninterested in the safety and well-being of her only son. Huh? I guess people like that exist but I don't relate. Having said that, I'll keep reading the next volumes.
161 reviews
October 30, 2016
Need to finish

Good start all around, not up to speed with all the military speak though, but it doesn't affect my like for the book, I like the back and forth between Britain, and the military group, it flows well and doesn't confuse a person. Definitely need to keep reading these.
30 reviews
January 20, 2018
Great series

I started reading just to see if I would like the book, and I couldn't put the book down. Before I knew it, I had read the first two books. I just finished the third book. I'm hoping that I have the fourth book in my library so I can read it, or I won't get to find out what happens next.
587 reviews2 followers
June 17, 2018
OK stories

In 60+ years, this is the first Zombie-related set of books or stories I’ve read — and it will probably be the last. These tales were good and held together by the shoot-‘em-up military aspects. But, truthfully, if I’m going to throw my sense of disbelief somewhere, it ain’t gonna be on impractical Zombies.
Profile Image for Beverly.
95 reviews
February 28, 2020
I like books about the apocalypse(well not w/zombies) and all that good stuff, I am
still a little creeped out after reading these books, I must say
they were pretty good (except for blood and gore),.....shudders! Was
going to start on book 4, but I think I'll take a break for now. Will
recommend if you're into the whole zombies, blood and gore business!
Profile Image for David.
833 reviews6 followers
September 2, 2021
Very listenable first three books, well narrated by RC Bray as usual. The books flowed one into the other, then wrapped up abruptly leaving many, if not all, of the plot lines open ended. It almost felt like the end of a chapter than the end of the third book. I don't mind book series, but would like a given book to have somewhat of a complete story arc.
Profile Image for Mohamad.
122 reviews3 followers
March 27, 2018
Incredible story if you enjoy the zombie apocalypse/military angle genre. R.C. Bray of course makes it even more legendary. From this omnibus of the first three books, I'm pretty certain I want to go all the way to the 14th and final book in the series.
Profile Image for Lisa.
662 reviews4 followers
July 28, 2018
Best ZA reading I've seen

This is the second time around reading this series. These books are excellent. I haven't read anything else which compares to this series.
I Highly Recommend It.
Profile Image for Becky.
700 reviews1 follower
September 15, 2018
I really liked the concept of this series, it’s a good change to read about how an actual surviving society with all the relevant high tech equipment would cope with a zombie apocalypse rather than the usual ‘small band of survivors ‘ narrative.
83 reviews1 follower
December 4, 2018
A solid 3

Pretty good story. My complaint is the cost per entertainment. To say these three stories stand on their own is a joke. This is a good 2.99 Kindle buy, not a 10.00 buy. It's closer to six chapters instead of three books
147 reviews
January 31, 2019
Awesome!

And I don't even like zombie books or movies.
At least this one was well thought out, as logical as a zombie story can get, and the military aspects either well researched, or from personal experience. I hate it when iggerants write military stories and get stuff wrong.
Profile Image for Bradley Hadwick.
1 review1 follower
July 29, 2019
Really enjoyed this story. Very well paced and great action. Would highly recommend to any zombie genre fans looking for a different perspective than just civilians.
Really enjoyed the military aspects of the story also.
Looking forward to reading more books from the series.
Profile Image for HiddenDork.
97 reviews3 followers
December 30, 2019
I could have done with a lot less Sunday sermon in this zombie story. Its action packed with the usual cast of characters for zombie apocalypse fare. For the most part its pretty average except its also packed full of Christian proselytizing and that is beyond tedious.
Profile Image for Robert Enzenauer.
510 reviews10 followers
December 31, 2020
One of the best ZOMBIE books I have read - on par with Mayberry. And who is better equipped to fight zombies that the world's Special Operations Forces - US Green Berets, US Navy Seals, British SAS, etc.
Profile Image for Jens Clarholm.
10 reviews
August 1, 2017
Some good parts but kind of cliché when it comes to the characters. Not sure if I will continue with the series.
209 reviews11 followers
November 17, 2018
Decent read. Individual books were very short. The whole 3 book omnibus basically equaled the length of one typical book. May continue the series, have not decided yet.
Profile Image for Brandon.
556 reviews35 followers
October 15, 2019
Awesome zombie series. Not only is the action and characters superb, but there are some classic and hilarious quotes created by James.
154 reviews2 followers
January 13, 2020
Arisen Omnibus one

What an exciting and well written book! Great characters! Really got caught up in this series and looking forward to reading more.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 64 reviews

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