The Melting

They Came with the Snow #2

by Christopher Coleman

The quest is no longer just to survive, it's to escape.

The snow is melting, and the crabs are growing more violent.

At the base of a blocked-off bridge spanning the South River, Dominic and his friends plan a daunting journey to flee Warren County and the monsters that came when the snow fell.

But the crabs aren't the only danger they face.

There are other forces at work, forces with a secret as inhuman and terrifying as the crabs themselves.

And these forces are determined to never let the group leave.

Genres: Horror, Zombies, Science Fiction, Post Apocalyptic, Apocalyptic, Fiction

240 pages, ebook

First published July 23, 2018

About the author

Christopher Coleman lives in Maryland with his wife and two children. He is a graduate of the University of Maryland with a degree in English Literature. A fan of classic and modern horror and thriller movies, his favorite movies are Rosemary's Baby and The Ring. When he's not writing fiction, you can find him reading, taking his kids to and from various sporting activities or watching horror movies with his wife who shares his affinity for the horror genre. His books will creep you out and leave you scared to turn off the lights and go to sleep.

Reviews

[Louie the Mustache Matos · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Melting by Christopher Coleman is Book II of the They Came with the Snow series. The first book ended with a cliffhanger that is resolved very quickly in this second book. Which means that anything that I say in this review from here on may contain spoilers so if you wish to read further, you have been warned. In any case I will not reveal spoilers for this book, purposefully.

An apocalyptic event has occurred with the prerequisite gathering of souls, a disparate group of survivors with distinct personalities and motivations. As these things go generally there is a main character whose story we follow, and the ancillary characters add to the tension and drama as necessary. One major positive is that here in this story, an ending is provided, so no cliffhanger ending and there is opportunity to continue the story. For me, I am fine with ending my reading here, despite that everything is not completely resolved.

[Regina the Constant Reader · Rating 4 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ -Kindle Book

Book #2 in the They Came with the Snow series. This series could have easily ended with this book as it wrapped up just about everything.

[Netanella · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Melting is indie author Chris Coleman's follow up to the shorter and much tenser piece, They Came With The Snow. The story focuses on one man's adventure as he finds himself trapped in a mad science experiment gone wrong, where two counties are closed off from the outside world and the majority of the inhabits have been mutated into homogeneous white creatures with black eyes and sharp teeth.

They're referred to as crabs. So here we go, an albino crab, blending into the white sand:



I was entertained with this story, but I really wanted more. And I really had a dislike for our protagonist, a philandering English college professor who survives the snow, only to become the smart guy on the block who not only solves the mystery of the snow crabs, but also learns the many uses of fire. (Can you tell I really, really didn't like this flawed character?)

Since I'm on a roll, I'd like to state that I was particularly annoyed that not only did he cheat on his wife with a young co-ed, who quickly died by crab after she became annoying, he then started flirting with the next young thing that came around, a girl by the name of Danielle. Ugh.

I liked the story. But I need a new hero.

[NicholeReadsWithCats · Rating 4 out of 5]

Much improved over They Came With the Snow. The end was a little unpredictable but the suspense throughout was fun, good buildup to the end. Much better character development than They Came With the Snow. I don't see myself reading the third installment.

[Kathy · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was actually included with the first book, They Came With The Snow. It was much longer, and followed our group of surviors as they search for other normal people, and an answer to what happened when the bomb went off and why. Several scenes where they have to fight off the "crabs" and some of the group gets separated. Will they be able to find each other again? Meanwhile, one group finds the government headquarters and starts demanding answers.

[Laura Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first book was shorter and super creepy. I had hopes this one would be creepy too. And it was. It was also filled with new characters. Some were meat for the crab thingies. And some were more central to the story. Of those, many didn’t make it. A few hung in there for a while. And some had surprises for me.

I shouldn’t have been that surprised. The weird winter weather and crab like things that used the snow to hide in while they hunted had to come from somewhere. Outerspace? Something escaped from a lab? Something unleashed to remake the world? Or, what? I can’t spoil it for you. Would I say the cause of these things surprised me? Nope. Read too many books and seen too many movies for it to do that. I did like how the author twisted it. Especially on how the creatures behaved and reacted to outside stimulus.

The author gives a good ending. Some of you might not like it as much as I did. I feel he left it open to interpretation and a possible third book, but he did give this an ending.

Did I enjoy this book? Yes. I especially liked the character dynamics, and the scenes with the creatures really made my hair stand up. Would I recommend this book? Sure enough. Especially to those who enjoy an apocalyptic scenario with their horror and monsters.

[Alicia Huxtable · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loving this series

I don't know why this series has pulled me in so much, but I am thoroughly enjoying it........maybe it's because it's different........and NOT zombies

[William · Rating 4 out of 5]

Entertaining horror listening 🎶🔰

This kindle e-book novel is from my Kindle Unlimited account book two of four

An experiment is being done on the peninsula and friends are being killed by the crabs. They have uncovered the source and the fun begins.

I would recommend this series and author to 👍 readers of fantasy world 🌎 adventure thriller novels 👍🔰. 2024 👒😤

[Sandra Knapp · Rating 4 out of 5]

Since I had read the first book of this series (They Came With The Snow) I had some recollection of what had transpired earlier. It had been a while back, so the first couple of chapters more or less brought me up to date.

After that it was off an running. Fast paced with plenty of suspense and action throughout, and it came to a reasonable ending too, considering the story is still not completely finished when you come to the end of this 2nd section. But it made sense and if I never get to read the final section, I will still have come to some resolution.

What you never learn is exactly who is responsible. Guess that comes with the last and final part of the story. I did enjoy it though, very much. So if you like "creature features" and Sci-fi you should enjoy this story too.

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

GOOD READ.

Good book, read in 2 settings, very interesting and different, will read the rest of the series. Very captivating, good

[Heidi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked this book even better than the first one! A lot more is learned about the horrific explosion, the snow, and the creatures that took over the small college town. There are a lot of surprises along the way as we follow Dominic along on his attempt to escape the town with his fellow survivors. I love the characters and plot in this well written post-apocalyptic tale. I received an arc of this book from the author.

[Sara · Rating 2 out of 5]

This year I’ve decided that I will no longer force march myself through books I’m not enjoying. This is my first dnf of the year. I don’t really like the main character or the writing style. I can see how others could though. 🤷🏼‍♀️ One to my next great adventure!

[❤ArtfullySinful❤ · Rating 4 out of 5]

But I guess that's the truth isn't it? You don't know us.

Witnessing the world through Professor Dominic Daniels eyes, he stares at the new fridgi tundra which is his life and realizes maybe life isn't the same worth living as before. Willing to throw it all away in a suicidal mission where the creature stands before him, once his loving wife and now a hungry and agitated beast Danielle fires the lone shot to save his life and force shock into him, saving his life. Together with fellow survivors of the experiment that cost the town of Warren County so many lives, none of them are willing to lose one another, until they are separated on the Water. Danielle, Tom and James board the designer yacht and struggling to fight the hypothermia settling in after saving Jame's life from the crabs, Dom separates himself allowing them the distraction to survive. Landing on the mainland, this is where he discovers Bren Abramowitx, Stephanie Smalley, Stanton and Stewart Jones, fellow soldiers who were kicked form their platoons and abandoned for reasons that never surfaced.

What do we do if the world is over?

After he is proving himself a valuable asset, he witnessed the fall of several friends, eventually landing on the doorstep of D&W, the company responsible for this entire catastrophic epidemic. But getting in won't be without casualties. It's discovered Stella is the one responsible of the entire disaster, much to the leis she tried to feed the others into believing. As Dom fights to survive, he is brought together with Tom and James, Danielle seemingly escaped and never heard from since. As A helicopter lands, he's reunited with Smalley and Jones, and together with James and Tom, they try and leave the forbidden lands, and enter into the greener world beyond the barrier.

Experimentation is a messy thing sometimes.

Where will life take the group from here, as the cover up for the world seemingly ending was a bombing gone wrong, sometimes America openly agreed to, never imagining the violence the Crabs showed when cornered and terrified.

Feel free to hide.....

[Karen Siddall · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dominic returns to his home to determine his wife’s fate but his traveling companions from the strip center prevent him from sacrificing himself for guilt over not being there when “The Event” happened. The group continues on to escape the area they envision as Ground Zero only to discover every avenue out of the county by land is blockaded and the main bridge barricaded, impassable, and loaded with “crabs” or the ghostly, white creatures that used to be their fellow citizens. They decide to cross the river out of the cordoned-off area using one of the numerous abandoned boats found near the bridge.

On their way across the water in an old, unstable motorboat, they stop to investigate a large luxury yacht left afloat midstream. With the “crabs” in the water attacking the old motorboat, Dominic leaves his companions on the larger ship and lures the "crabs" away from them downstream. Wet and freezing, he is able to get to the opposite shore to the pier for a seafood restaurant. As he’s searching for things he and his friends can use though, he’s captured by four soldiers and taken away in their RV for questioning.

As it turns out, Dominic knows more about what has happened to the world than the soldiers. They, too, have been separated from their units, and have figured out that they were ditched on purpose. As they accept Dominic as part of their group and head back to try to find out what has happened to Dominic’s friends, they discover the headquarters of the organization that Dominic believes may be responsible for “The Event” and the destruction of life as they know it.

Continuing straight from Book 1, the action and horror never quits. What has actually happened unfolds slowly but readers will have to wait for Book 3 to get the rest of the story. I recommend this book and series for readers that like horror stories and post-apocalyptic tales. This is a good one!

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this. It's a fast and easy read. Coleman has the power to keep the reader engaged while moving briskly through the plot. True, there isn't much deep introspective dialogue or any off-the-chart emotional scenes (often making it hard to empathize with the characters) but I can see that there isn't time for such theatrics considering the circumstances, and leaving these out gives the reader the ability to focus on the fear. This being said, if Coleman did add another one hundred pages, this story can easily accommodate said emotional context and draw the reader in further.

Like the first story, the paths of the protagonist and co. are smooth, not bogged down nor held back, but in this one, Coleman adds the visceral sensory perception of the characters and a detailed description of the setting giving the reader a knee-jerk reaction to tense moments in a highly tangible atmosphere. I will take away points (not that there's an actual point system) for an often confusing description of settings, the incredibly stupid choices made by some of the characters, and the multiple Deus ex Machina moments that save Dom. Dude is entirely too lucky for me to really worry about him.

There are things that are left wanting, but the book is good. Engaging. Fast-paced. Original. Definitely worth the read.

[Pam Baddeley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Volume 2 of the series is much longer. Dominic, and the group of survivors he joined in book 1, attempt to escape the area where the snow and the hostile crab creatures reign, only to find the bridge out is barricaded. They take to the river in a small craft and encounter more evidence of the crab intelligence, always hostile to humans. In further adventures, Dominic meets more survivors and eventually finds his way to the base where the threat originates, with some surprising revelations and a finish which leaves the way open for a further volume.

Plus points are that action is quite well described and the rough and ready characters of the soldiers he meets are fairly convincing. Less so are Dominic's persistently foolish behaviour which he drags other people into: why explore the yacht when you are trying to get across to the far bank especially when crab creatures are massing overhead on a bridge and then take to the water with obvious killing intent? He does other rather stupid things too, though has a charmed life and also turns into an action hero at times which wasn't that convincing. I also got lost in the end section with the geography of the base and its construction: who thought it was a good idea to keep murderous creatures in a pen which had walls they could climb over? So I found it a mixed bag and am awarding it 3 stars.

[Cathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received a free copy of this book from the author. I had the opportunity to review or not.

This follow up to They Came With the Snow was delightful. Spooky, dangerous, action-filled and edge of the seat thriller. Although some of the situations were a bit contrived, the author mixed enough of the unexpected to hold my attention and pique my curiosity while peeking between the fingers on my hand. The descriptions were well done with good imaging.

The storytelling was true to the expectations from the first book with improved pacing. We pick up where we left off with the group trying to find a way out of the affected area. But the crabs have learned some trick of their own and find ways to prevent their escape. The heroic professor feels obligated to save the group and heads off to find a way. The group acquires a yacht and their job is to stay safe until Dom gets back. Which almost happens.

If you like spooky, nail-biting adventure, grab The Melting. You will be glad you did

[Bonnie Dale Keck · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kindle Unlimited, again like the other like it well enough BUT I am NOT a 'horror' genre reader, just looked at it because ir was him, and because have read his other books. If you like/read horror then your experience may differ of course.


From the author of They Came with the Snow comes The Melting, book two in the They Came with the Snow series.

In The Melting, the survivors will face new and frightening obstacles that will challenge friendships and humankind's determination to live.

The monsters that came with the snow aren't the only monsters the survivors will have to face and defeat.

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm not really sure about this series, part of me enjoyed the unusual take on the post-apocalyptic genre with is reminiscences of zombie stories, except with snow creatures. However, there were a number of moments where the plot didn't make much sense, and I'm struggling to understand the point behind the book. Yes we get more detail and answers compared with book 1, but it still leaves a lot of questions, and despite its conclusion I can only assume that there is more to come from this series.
As far as spelling and grammar errors go, I was extremely irritated with the writers' persistent use of were instead we're, and as such I am grateful that my copy of this book was free.

[Jim · Rating 2 out of 5]

To my surprise, the second book actually managed to improve on all the faults of the first one (poor writing, unlikable main character for example). And yet, the incomprehensible rules around the biology of the creatures, their motivations, and their weakness managed to bring down the book overall again. It was just too distracting to get caught up in the plot because I found myself constantly trying to puzzle out the connective tissue of critical plot points with the crabs' origin and purpose. The author ramped up the action a tad bit more which helped nudge to in the direction of book 3.

[Christina Collins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book one was short and gave me a cliffhanger that had me questioning as to what happened to Dominic, but thankfully I ordered book 2. The Melting is an amazing story, well written and incredible plot as the author took us readers who have read it, onto an adventure. I clearly enjoyed it and even envisioned the whole story in my mind. I mean, imagine something like this DOES HAPPEN? Let's just hope it never does. It's very thrilling and interesting. I had a wonderful time reading this and I highly recommend both books 1 and 2. I even suggested visualizing the whole story while reading, its like the best film being shown within your mind. I would love a movie out of this, to be honest. I would've loved a book 3 yet, just both books were outstanding enough. If you haven't read books 1 and 2, I suggest you get them and start reading them. :)

[Denise Sparks · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Great Ending To A Horrible Event!

The Melting continues the story of an event apocalypse centered on a county named Warren. Dominic meets new friends but leaves behind Tom, Danielle, and James. Jones and Smalley help Dom and go to the place where it all began. They meet Pam and Sydney and proceed to enter the huge lab section where are the action hapoens. Dom finds Stella, Tom, and James but learns Danielle escaped. Tom, Dominic, Pam, James, Jones, Smalley, and Sydney win and escape but the best is reading how.

[Johann · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Sequel...Even Better!!

Continuing from the 1st book, Dominic and his group are still trying to survive this new landscape that has invaded their town. The 'Crabs' that used to be people are still all over the place and it seems that there is no hope left. But the group has learned about a certain building that could answer the burning questions they have concerning their new life. However, could this place hold their salvation or is it just another frozen hell...pick this up, but only after you've read the first one. Loved it!!

[Matthew Cole · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book to follow the good novella. While continuing where we left off from the novella, we also get introduced to a whole bunch of new characters. The mystery of what happened that caused this event lingers throughout the whole book as well. Thankfully, unlike LOST, we actually get some decent answers to some questions we have without having to wait to the end of the series. A LOT happens in this second book, to where I’m a little shocked there are two more books in this series. And I can’t wait to read them!

[Sharon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Greed and power corrupt

I'm not sure why I am drawn to novels of apocalyptic happening. Perhaps it is due to the nature of our current times. The ignorance of those in power, the denial of climate change a pervasive greed for money power and control. This is the spinoff from a novella by this author and it delivers a compelling message about corporate greed in league with the military. The monsters are both terrifying and sad.

[Josette Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

What now?

I always wonder when you hear of some crazy story in the news if it is not something like this book. Dom and his friends are only trying to survive in the new world of chaos. But now the creatures are acting different. I would like to think I would do anything to survive in an apocalyptic world but I am not sure how difficult it might be. There was a lot of craziness in this book as well as “ go get ‘em moments”. Now I am off to read the List.

[Bridget Hollister · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story is a lot like Stephen King's "The Mist" but with that said it was still exciting and hard to put down in parts.

One thing that bothers me though. I really wish authors would have their books proofread. When I come across an error (typo or grammar), my right eyebrow arches, my eye twitches, my neck bends and turns in unnatural positions and I forget what I've just read.

If it weren't for the typos, I would have rated the book higher.

[Cattie Whaley · Rating 4 out of 5]

On the edge of your seat kind of read

In this second installment of They Came With The Snow, Dominic and the crew are trying to find a way out of the experimental area while trying to stay away from the crabs. What happens when they get separated? Who is behind this insane experiment? So many questions are answered and some karma is dished out. Very fast and thrilling read. Highly recommend

[Aileen Dodge · Rating 3 out of 5]

1st book was way short this was

Drawn out!!! Very weak story line!!! The first part should have been sold in a collection of short stories, and that should have ended the story. The 2nd part sold as a book was certainly longer but was just a drawn out detailed explanation of the events in the short story. Disappointing to say the least.

[Jaime Andrews · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay so the story is good. Great idea and different. But for the love, why can no one edit anymore? And speaking of ???? Why? So? Many? QUESTION MARKS!!!!!!!!????? So many sentences with pointless question marks. Was very distracting and I found myself finishing the book only because I was halfway done.