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The Snow: A Post-Apocalyptic Survival Thriller
It came with the snow. Overnight the world changed.Bodies lie unburied. Gangs of bestial semi-humans roam the streets hunting for prey. But for one man, the end was a new beginning.
Snowbound, in an isolated cottage, Jonathan Richards wakes from illness to discover that the world he knew has gone. He sets out on a perilous journey across Britain, searching for safety – but finding only death, destruction and danger.
The Snow takes you into a post-apocalyptic world where survival is the only goal. But survival at what cost?
Trust no one. Your life depends on it.
Snowbound, in an isolated cottage, Jonathan Richards wakes from illness to discover that the world he knew has gone. He sets out on a perilous journey across Britain, searching for safety – but finding only death, destruction and danger.
The Snow takes you into a post-apocalyptic world where survival is the only goal. But survival at what cost?
Trust no one. Your life depends on it.
236 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 17, 2020
129 people are currently reading
51 people want to read
About the author
Huw Collingbourne
28 books22 followersHuw Collingbourne is a writer, programming instructor and software developer. He is the author of a number of fiction and factual books. His novels include the Kill Job series (gritty 1960s Cold War and crime) The Exodus Plague post-apocalyptic thrillers and The 1980s Murder Mysteries (crime capers).
In the 1980s Huw was a pop music journalist and he interviewed many of the 'New Romantic' stars such as Boy George, Adam Ant, Duran Duran, Spandau Ballet and Depeche Mode. In the 1990s he published the 'adult humour' magazine, 18 Rated, which was immediately banned by all leading UK newsagents (who obviously failed to see the joke).
Huw's programming books including The Little Book Of C, The Little Book Of Pointers, The Little Book of Recursion, The Little Book Of C#, The Little Book Of Ruby and The Book Of Ruby. He has programmed in a broad range of languages since the early 1980s. He has written programming and technical columns for numerous computer magazines in the UK including PC Plus, PC Pro and Computer Shopper. He is author of the cult adventure game, The Golden Wombat Of Destiny.
Huw has, at various times, been a magazine editor, publisher and TV presenter. He has an MA in English and a 2nd dan black belt in the Japanese martial art of Aikido - the latter skill useful when attempting to control his huge, hairy and amazingly strong Pyrenean Mountain Dogs.
In the 1980s Huw was a pop music journalist and he interviewed many of the 'New Romantic' stars such as Boy George, Adam Ant, Duran Duran, Spandau Ballet and Depeche Mode. In the 1990s he published the 'adult humour' magazine, 18 Rated, which was immediately banned by all leading UK newsagents (who obviously failed to see the joke).
Huw's programming books including The Little Book Of C, The Little Book Of Pointers, The Little Book of Recursion, The Little Book Of C#, The Little Book Of Ruby and The Book Of Ruby. He has programmed in a broad range of languages since the early 1980s. He has written programming and technical columns for numerous computer magazines in the UK including PC Plus, PC Pro and Computer Shopper. He is author of the cult adventure game, The Golden Wombat Of Destiny.
Huw has, at various times, been a magazine editor, publisher and TV presenter. He has an MA in English and a 2nd dan black belt in the Japanese martial art of Aikido - the latter skill useful when attempting to control his huge, hairy and amazingly strong Pyrenean Mountain Dogs.
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
May 6, 2021
The best word to describe this book is leisurely. It's a slow ride through a Britain that has fallen due to a disease brought by the snow.
After Jonathan recovers from being sick, he starts looking for other people. There's no electricity or water, and he figures everything will get back to normal once the snow thaws. It takes a while for him to believe the truth, because it seems so impossible. Eventually, he starts driving around Britain with a couple of friends, and a dog.
That's about it. Horrible things happen, but nothing really bad happens to Jonathan and friends. They don't have to fight for anything, no daring escapes, no real gore. But. There is humor, and Jonathan is pretty likeable, and the journey was okay. The story just ended, but it wasn't a cliffhanger - there's no cliffs in this book.
Don't get me wrong. It was pleasant enough, but not what I'm expecting from the end of the world.
After Jonathan recovers from being sick, he starts looking for other people. There's no electricity or water, and he figures everything will get back to normal once the snow thaws. It takes a while for him to believe the truth, because it seems so impossible. Eventually, he starts driving around Britain with a couple of friends, and a dog.
That's about it. Horrible things happen, but nothing really bad happens to Jonathan and friends. They don't have to fight for anything, no daring escapes, no real gore. But. There is humor, and Jonathan is pretty likeable, and the journey was okay. The story just ended, but it wasn't a cliffhanger - there's no cliffs in this book.
Don't get me wrong. It was pleasant enough, but not what I'm expecting from the end of the world.
May 22, 2021
What an absolute gem of a book! If like me you like well written post apocalyptic fiction then look no further because you've found it.
Britain is swaddled in snow. Jonathan Richards wakes in his country cottage after an illness to first find that he is snowbound and then to realise that the world as he is knew it has disappeared.
Gangs of humans wander the streets, causing chaos and destruction for no known reason and always on the look out for prey.
Jonathan soon sets out on a journey to find normalcy and safety and finding a lot of death and danger along the way.
I really enjoyed the feeling of suspense and the settings of this book. Everything you come to associate with post apocalyptic fiction is explored within the story and the places Jonathan stays and the people he on the journey are vivid, often eccentric characters.
I have a few small nitpick, the main ones being that what comes with the snow is hard to believe in at this stage, I felt the snow was a great dramatic affect but why have the snow and 'what comes with it'? The idea of the end of the world brought about by natural events is not uncommon, neither is 'what comes with it'. So why not either or? To be fair I sense this will be explained in later books.
The other nitpick is the side characters. 224 pages later and I had know real sense of the people who travel through the story with Jonathan. Rather I have far more of a sense of the people they meet a long the way. I hope this will also be addressed in later books.
I believe this is a self published book and unfortunately it too suffered with grammatical errors but far less than some of the self published book I've read before.
But the writing and the prose was absolutely everything I wanted from this story. The plot was well crafted and thorough and Jonathan may well be in my top favourite characters simply because he is such a middle of the road, ordinary kind of guy but with such strength of character.
January 3, 2025
Different apocaliptic story.
this is a totally different kind of apocalipse. A disease that kills a lot of people leaves most young who survive, for lack of other words I would say crazy. The story is plausible, well written, with a little bit of mystery. The thing that I, maybe not dislike, but rather put me off was the descriptions of the roads. I mean if you live there, I guess it could be awesome to read all the details and street names. However, when you don’t, it becomes a jungle of words. Still, overall I liked it. I would recommend to lovers of apocalipse stories since it is different from the usual zombies and EMP.
this is a totally different kind of apocalipse. A disease that kills a lot of people leaves most young who survive, for lack of other words I would say crazy. The story is plausible, well written, with a little bit of mystery. The thing that I, maybe not dislike, but rather put me off was the descriptions of the roads. I mean if you live there, I guess it could be awesome to read all the details and street names. However, when you don’t, it becomes a jungle of words. Still, overall I liked it. I would recommend to lovers of apocalipse stories since it is different from the usual zombies and EMP.
May 15, 2021
A 1st for me by Huw Collingbourne
Some lovely characters introduced throughout the journey.
All as interesting as the next, however Professor Smith , well I've never laughed so much reading an Apocalyptic Thriller and I've read many. The one liners, the matter of fact mannerisms. Now his identity has been revealed I hope the Professor remains as amusing.
Overall the storyline is good the unanswered events, like how and why did Percy die.
Definitely not a gruesome story but enjoyable all the same
Some lovely characters introduced throughout the journey.
All as interesting as the next, however Professor Smith , well I've never laughed so much reading an Apocalyptic Thriller and I've read many. The one liners, the matter of fact mannerisms. Now his identity has been revealed I hope the Professor remains as amusing.
Overall the storyline is good the unanswered events, like how and why did Percy die.
Definitely not a gruesome story but enjoyable all the same
May 13, 2025
Jonathan Richards wakes from illness in his remote cottage to find the world transformed by a relentless blizzard. As he ventures out, he discovers a Britain ravaged by death, destruction, and gangs of semi-human predators. His journey becomes a perilous quest for safety in a post-apocalyptic landscape.
This was an engaging read with a strong atmospheric setting. The snow-covered, desolate Britain was vividly portrayed, creating a sense of isolation and dread. Jonathan's encounters with the remnants of humanity added tension and intrigue to the narrative.
However, while the premise was compelling, I felt the pacing was uneven at times. Some sections dragged, and the ending seemed abrupt, leaving certain plot threads unresolved. Despite these issues, the novel offered a fresh take on the post-apocalyptic genre and kept me invested in Jonathan's journey and I'm intrigued to see where the rest of the series goes.
a chilling survival tale with a gripping setting, though it falters slightly in execution.
This was an engaging read with a strong atmospheric setting. The snow-covered, desolate Britain was vividly portrayed, creating a sense of isolation and dread. Jonathan's encounters with the remnants of humanity added tension and intrigue to the narrative.
However, while the premise was compelling, I felt the pacing was uneven at times. Some sections dragged, and the ending seemed abrupt, leaving certain plot threads unresolved. Despite these issues, the novel offered a fresh take on the post-apocalyptic genre and kept me invested in Jonathan's journey and I'm intrigued to see where the rest of the series goes.
a chilling survival tale with a gripping setting, though it falters slightly in execution.
August 19, 2021
Easy reading plague type book.
Some witty and likeable characters that make this book easy to like and keep you wanting to follow their journey. Unlike other books where people might turn violent, this one doesn’t depress me with too much realistic cruelty.
I love post apocalyptic books and books about plague or natural disaster but can get really dragged down with the over-riding nastiness of how humankind is presumed to succumb. So far, this book is refreshingly light and keeps me feeling hopeful that it may end up as a “good will win” outcome…. It’s only the first book of the series though so we’ll see…
Some witty and likeable characters that make this book easy to like and keep you wanting to follow their journey. Unlike other books where people might turn violent, this one doesn’t depress me with too much realistic cruelty.
I love post apocalyptic books and books about plague or natural disaster but can get really dragged down with the over-riding nastiness of how humankind is presumed to succumb. So far, this book is refreshingly light and keeps me feeling hopeful that it may end up as a “good will win” outcome…. It’s only the first book of the series though so we’ll see…
April 6, 2021
This was a weird one, I kind of selected it on a whim, thinking that it would be a survival in the snow type book but it wasn't. I was however, pleasantly surprised.
It starts off a bit slow but once it gets going it's quite enjoyable. A different take on the virus and end of the world scenario where people aren't zombies, but the younger generation seem to be infected with a rage and lack of humanity. Very good. I enjoyed this and look forward to starting the next one!
It starts off a bit slow but once it gets going it's quite enjoyable. A different take on the virus and end of the world scenario where people aren't zombies, but the younger generation seem to be infected with a rage and lack of humanity. Very good. I enjoyed this and look forward to starting the next one!
April 8, 2021
I love an end of the world/apocalypse book and seeing as this one is set in England rather than the usual American one it made it already gave The Snow an upper hand with me, I enjoyed reading the book and got it done in a few days it’s written well and some strange characters which were funny, I’ve got the second book to start tonight so hopefully it’s as good!!
June 21, 2021
Just too slow for me, and not at all exciting. There are so many of this type of book out there, this wasn't the worst but it did waste my time. Maybe the rest in the series will improve, but I doubt it, the characters are just unbelievable, and frankly if they all got killed in the next book, that would be a good thing and no one would care........
June 16, 2021
Very Enjoyable
A really good story with humour and horror, just the type I love. Typically British humour without all the snarling and sneering you would see in other books of this type. I can't wait for the next book
A really good story with humour and horror, just the type I love. Typically British humour without all the snarling and sneering you would see in other books of this type. I can't wait for the next book
June 21, 2021
Personally Not Dystopian but a Boring long Drinking Session
Tried the book because was about English places
but for me if wasn’t worth reading; please save your time and read something more relevant.
Tried the book because was about English places
but for me if wasn’t worth reading; please save your time and read something more relevant.
May 17, 2023
Surviving Winter
This book is excellent. Once you start reading it - you can't put it down. It's not only about surviving the snow, ice and the freezing cold. This story is being able to conquer all the obstacles put in your way and to make out the best of the best. A1+++++++++
This book is excellent. Once you start reading it - you can't put it down. It's not only about surviving the snow, ice and the freezing cold. This story is being able to conquer all the obstacles put in your way and to make out the best of the best. A1+++++++++
January 26, 2021
The exodus plague
Deadly Flu, beast of the east snow from Siberia. Killing off the elderly, turning th young into marauding gangs. With a twist in the tale. Laughable, engrossing.
Deadly Flu, beast of the east snow from Siberia. Killing off the elderly, turning th young into marauding gangs. With a twist in the tale. Laughable, engrossing.
March 22, 2021
Confused
I’m not to sure about this book even tho I’ve read it you still don’t know what or how it has actually happened
I’m not to sure about this book even tho I’ve read it you still don’t know what or how it has actually happened
July 7, 2021
Ok
Not terrible but not as good as I had hoped. Hope it's a slow burner. Will give book two a go
Not terrible but not as good as I had hoped. Hope it's a slow burner. Will give book two a go
September 6, 2021
An excellent post apocalyptic tale
I thoroughly enjoyed this (end of the world as we know it) book and want to get on with reading the rest in the series.
I thoroughly enjoyed this (end of the world as we know it) book and want to get on with reading the rest in the series.
March 27, 2025
Quick read
Fast paced and engaging. Well rounded characters, great interactions. The cliffhanger at the end has me running to the next book!
Fast paced and engaging. Well rounded characters, great interactions. The cliffhanger at the end has me running to the next book!
April 6, 2021
This was a lovely surprise, a completed different twist on an apocalypse... well written and lots of twisty roads... enjoyed this book
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews