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Dead Time
DEAD TIME: A ZOMBIE NOVEL
A new game show is sweeping the world. In the UK, contestants are lining up at the Mile High Tower for their chance to win ₤10,000,000,000. Nathan Baxter is in that line. Broke and desperate for money to support his family, he edges closer to his destiny. Stay alive for an hour, that's all he has to do. But so far no one has won or even come close. Can Nathan kill enough zombies to put his wife and five-year-old son on easy street for a few years? Or can he shock the nation and win the show.
A new game show is sweeping the world. In the UK, contestants are lining up at the Mile High Tower for their chance to win ₤10,000,000,000. Nathan Baxter is in that line. Broke and desperate for money to support his family, he edges closer to his destiny. Stay alive for an hour, that's all he has to do. But so far no one has won or even come close. Can Nathan kill enough zombies to put his wife and five-year-old son on easy street for a few years? Or can he shock the nation and win the show.
155 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 10, 2015
11 people are currently reading
33 people want to read
About the author
P.J. Jovanovic
10 books5 followersPaul has been writing since 2007 and had short stories published in various magazines and anthologies. He lives in Nottingham with his wife and four-year-old son in a rickety old bungalow that really could do with renovation.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
August 25, 2017
Nathan is facing the prospect of his family losing their home because of financial problems and finds himself thinking about taking part in the top game show on the network, Dead Time. For each period of time where he evades the zombies, he wins money for his family. But can he be the first person to win the big jackpot by surviving to the end?
This reminds me so much of the game zone in The Running Man, but with crazed zombie hordes instead of network stalkers. That is actually what attracted me to read the book as I loved the film with big Arnie and I do love my zombies! The contestants are sent down a tunnel into the game zone in a similar way to the film, where they have to find weapons and evade zombies. To stop you just hiding and getting paid, the rules state you have to make a zombie kill every 7.5 minutes to keep earning the money, £5000 for each kill or £10 000 000 000 for lasting a whole hour. 100 zombies start in the arena then every fifteen minutes 100 more are added, which does not improve the odds on a win. I liked the idea of the game , and the rules and I could see me watching it every week! Yes I am that twisted... There are of course, lots of zombies and tense incidents to enjoy. There is also unexpected humour in the case of the head honcho and his overspending wife!
The opening 25% introduces the characters as they go through the selection process to check fitness and intelligence, before being told all the rules. Once we get into the game zone, we follow the contestants and it becomes a very fast paced zombie ride. Each man choses different tactics and there are a few nice twists as the story develops.
The only down side to me was not liking Nathan much. He is rude and obnoxious to everyone from the moment he applies, which was annoying because he wasn't forced to apply. Yelling an f bomb at a worker who knocks on his door and threatening everyone in sight did not make me like him. However, it didn't matter much because once he is in with the zombies, that side of him isn't seen any more so I was able to forget it and move on without it spoiling the story. There is not a massive amount of character development but it wasn't really needed with this plot-you learn enough about them to move the story on and that was fine with me.
Overall I thought it was a decent zombie read which I would recommend.
This reminds me so much of the game zone in The Running Man, but with crazed zombie hordes instead of network stalkers. That is actually what attracted me to read the book as I loved the film with big Arnie and I do love my zombies! The contestants are sent down a tunnel into the game zone in a similar way to the film, where they have to find weapons and evade zombies. To stop you just hiding and getting paid, the rules state you have to make a zombie kill every 7.5 minutes to keep earning the money, £5000 for each kill or £10 000 000 000 for lasting a whole hour. 100 zombies start in the arena then every fifteen minutes 100 more are added, which does not improve the odds on a win. I liked the idea of the game , and the rules and I could see me watching it every week! Yes I am that twisted... There are of course, lots of zombies and tense incidents to enjoy. There is also unexpected humour in the case of the head honcho and his overspending wife!
The opening 25% introduces the characters as they go through the selection process to check fitness and intelligence, before being told all the rules. Once we get into the game zone, we follow the contestants and it becomes a very fast paced zombie ride. Each man choses different tactics and there are a few nice twists as the story develops.
The only down side to me was not liking Nathan much. He is rude and obnoxious to everyone from the moment he applies, which was annoying because he wasn't forced to apply. Yelling an f bomb at a worker who knocks on his door and threatening everyone in sight did not make me like him. However, it didn't matter much because once he is in with the zombies, that side of him isn't seen any more so I was able to forget it and move on without it spoiling the story. There is not a massive amount of character development but it wasn't really needed with this plot-you learn enough about them to move the story on and that was fine with me.
Overall I thought it was a decent zombie read which I would recommend.
July 7, 2018
Walking Dead Mixed With Survivor
Loved it. Absolutely no spoilers whatsoever. You'll have to read it yourself and well worth the read. Couldn't put it down. Will definitely recommend to family friends and fellow readers.
Loved it. Absolutely no spoilers whatsoever. You'll have to read it yourself and well worth the read. Couldn't put it down. Will definitely recommend to family friends and fellow readers.
March 16, 2017
I liked this.
Lots of action in this one. What would you do if the only way to keep your family from starving was risk your life fighting zombies? Find out what happened when this is the only choice left to good men.
Lots of action in this one. What would you do if the only way to keep your family from starving was risk your life fighting zombies? Find out what happened when this is the only choice left to good men.
April 10, 2016
The basic idea of this book is familiar, and one that I've enjoyed before. The writer does bring a few twists and turns to the storyline.
Nathan is unemployed. If he doesn't do something soon, he and his family will end up on the streets. The future depicted here is dark, with a wide chasm between the rich and the poor. No matter how honest and hardworking the people are, they are all a hair's breadth away from poverty. Crime is rampant, and despicable measures are (unsuccessfully) taken to curb it.
One of those measure is a show called Dead Time where criminals are infected with a disease that makes them violently crazy, and let loose to kill or be killed by contestants.
With no other options, Nathan decides to sign up as a contestant.
I liked Nathan well enough. He's committed to doing whatever it takes to help his wife and son. Many scenes are gory, but also show Nathan and the other contestants using their heads to try and survive.
There are a couple of nice twists that surprised me. And the worldbuilding is well done. Overall, it was a fun and exciting read.
Nathan is unemployed. If he doesn't do something soon, he and his family will end up on the streets. The future depicted here is dark, with a wide chasm between the rich and the poor. No matter how honest and hardworking the people are, they are all a hair's breadth away from poverty. Crime is rampant, and despicable measures are (unsuccessfully) taken to curb it.
One of those measure is a show called Dead Time where criminals are infected with a disease that makes them violently crazy, and let loose to kill or be killed by contestants.
With no other options, Nathan decides to sign up as a contestant.
I liked Nathan well enough. He's committed to doing whatever it takes to help his wife and son. Many scenes are gory, but also show Nathan and the other contestants using their heads to try and survive.
There are a couple of nice twists that surprised me. And the worldbuilding is well done. Overall, it was a fun and exciting read.
December 27, 2015
A Good Story
This was a good story but not as original as I had hoped. While there were different characters facing different opponents, the premise itself is not a new one. Despite having a pretty good idea of the outcome it was well written enough, with a very likeable family at the core of the tale, that I did read thru the book quickly to see how things did turn out. Since this was not a new story in the core aspects I gave it three stars because it was still written in a way which created a clear picture and was a fun read.
At the end of this book were a small selection of short stories. These I found to be both original and intriguing. If my review was solely on the short stories I read I may have even gone as high as five stars, thus my middle ground choice of four. I look forward to reading something else by this author to see what can be done with a totally original full length novel, or a collection of short stories.
This was a good story but not as original as I had hoped. While there were different characters facing different opponents, the premise itself is not a new one. Despite having a pretty good idea of the outcome it was well written enough, with a very likeable family at the core of the tale, that I did read thru the book quickly to see how things did turn out. Since this was not a new story in the core aspects I gave it three stars because it was still written in a way which created a clear picture and was a fun read.
At the end of this book were a small selection of short stories. These I found to be both original and intriguing. If my review was solely on the short stories I read I may have even gone as high as five stars, thus my middle ground choice of four. I look forward to reading something else by this author to see what can be done with a totally original full length novel, or a collection of short stories.
December 10, 2016
FreeTime- A Zombie Fallout
They say there is a use for everything an they are right. Mankind is slowly starving and there are no jobs to be had. So the rich few have invented a new game. Tossing the poor out to fight and survive against the ZOMBIE HOARDS. Can the poor survive? HOW AND WHY? THE WILL MANKIND HAS TO SURVIVE ! I RECOMMEND
They say there is a use for everything an they are right. Mankind is slowly starving and there are no jobs to be had. So the rich few have invented a new game. Tossing the poor out to fight and survive against the ZOMBIE HOARDS. Can the poor survive? HOW AND WHY? THE WILL MANKIND HAS TO SURVIVE ! I RECOMMEND
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews