Church of the Last Lamb

by Joseph Hirsch

It's been more than a decade since the dead rose from their graves and began feasting on the living. Thankfully, Professor Jonathan Greenway and the woman he loves were given the protection offered by the U.S. Army at Fort Sagamore when things went to hell. But with supplies running low, the soldiers are starting to grow dangerously resentful toward the civilians in their midst, especially the intellectuals.

If Jon hopes to make any kind of future for himself and the love of his life, he must do the one thing he dreads: put down the books and pick up a rifle. He must also leave the safety of the fort and venture out into the land where the zombies run free, and death by devourment is a constant danger.

Church of the Last Lamb is at once a throwback to classic zombie horror works like Dawn of the Dead and more contemporary postapocalyptic fare, like 28 Days Later. And yet, despite wearing its influences on its sleeve, it blazes its own trail and offers novel horrors that will surprise even the most jaded of gore hounds.

"It's a good old-fashioned bone-and-gristle cruncher right up George A. Romero's alley, but there's more to it. The writing is crisp, punctuated with military patois and medieval violence while Greenway struggles not just to make sense of the horror, but his own place in it. Much like the experiences found in The Walking Dead and 28 Days Later, what's wrong in this world is human, not some dark force waiting to ambush a hero with a heart of gold. It's just us. Smart, bleak, and rare — a wide-eyed stare into the abyss sans hope or hysteria." - Kirkus Reviews

Genres: Horror

388 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 1, 2025

About the author

Joseph Hirsch is the author of several published books, including "Church of the Last Lamb" and "Animal World." His short stories have appeared in numerous publications, including "Not One of Us," and "3 AM Magazine." Previously he was a correspondent for "Fight Hype" covering boxing matches around the globe. He served four years in the Army, in which his travels took him to locales as disparate as Germany and Iraq. Currently, he lives in Cincinnati, Ohio. You can find him online @ www.joeyhirsch.com. Additionally, Mr. Hirsch has dreams of one day finding a box filled with money.

Reviews

[Mark Koschwitz · Rating 5 out of 5]

a nice take on the zombie story

I enjoyed this romp through the after times.
The shit has already hit the fan, and we see the day by day activities of those lucky enough to have been on, or near enough, to this Ohio military base.
Then the story moves to a more fish out of water story, of the Chum Bums (and company) and their mission to - potentially - turn the tide for humanity

[Steve Wiggins · Rating 4 out of 5]

These days the end of civilization is quite easy to imagine. Zombies are one of the common ways of envisioning the apocalypse. Church of the Last Lamb indeed has a church and references the book of Revelation. The world at this time is dominated by two warring factions, one the remnant part of civilization including the military, and the other a drug-smuggling cartel. And, of course, zombies.

The novel follows a civilian, Jon, who joins a military squad on what looks to be a suicide mission to learn the secret of the titular Church of the Last Lamb. Someone there has apparently found a formula for killing zombies without wasting ammunition. The six-man mission has to try to bring the formula back. Without expending too many bullets.

A believable set of characters make up the “Chum Bums.” Not all of them make it back, however. This is an engaging zombie novel, once the world is sketched out the action flow pretty quickly. I did write a little bit more about it on my blog (Sects and Violence in the Ancient World), avoiding spoilers there too.

[Tonja · Rating 3 out of 5]

I won a copy of this, and while it's not my usual genre, I was a fan of the Walking Dead, so this story caught my attention. It was interesting, reads kind of like a belated coming of age in a post-apocalyptic world. I have to say, though, that I just don't get the ending. Without giving any spoilers, it struck me too much of picking up a loose thread from within the story and tacking it on the end as something to head off after into the proverbial sunset. That felt lame to me, as if the author just didn't know how to end the story, and thought, "Ah ha... how about this loose thread? Kill two problems at once." That didn't work in my opinion. There were a lot of loose threads in this story, a lot of questions that were never answered. In some ways, the main character was as much of a zombie as the walking dead were, even if he didn't know it, I think. Too bad the writer didn't go further with his story. What was there was pretty imaginative.

[Asia Matelli · Rating 3 out of 5]

I won this on a Goodreads Giveaway! It was a decent story, took me longer than usual to read as it isn't my preferred genre. I do love a good Zombie story though. Many aspects of the book I can see happening IF an apocalypse were to ever happen, which is kind of frightening! The ending of the book was pretty sad, and lonely.

[Underground Voices · Rating 5 out of 5]

A zombie novel that breaks from the usual formula, offering an original perspective and a refreshing take on the genre. Easily earns its place among the standout zombie reads.

[Frank · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't usually read too many horror novels, but I won this in a Goodreads giveaway. I ultimately found it to be an entertaining read. Each of the 'Chum Bums' have their own distinct personalities, which kept me rooting for their success and survival (some more than others). I'd read more from this author.