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Xombies #2
Xombies: Apocalypticon
When the Agent X virus first struck, the victims became voracious killers intent on contaminating every last soul. And X spread like mad...
The entire eastern seaboard of the United States has been ravaged by the contagion, wiping out all signs of hope, faith, or rational thought. Off this desolate coast is a refitted nuclear sub, a 560-foot steel tomb cutting through dark waters and commandeered by a crew of survivors -- including Sal DeLuca, who lost his father during their flight from Agent X. When he leads a team to scavenge for food and supplies on land, he comes across a squad of seemingly welcoming mercenaries. But he's about to find himself trapped between new terrors on the surface and mutiny below.
The entire eastern seaboard of the United States has been ravaged by the contagion, wiping out all signs of hope, faith, or rational thought. Off this desolate coast is a refitted nuclear sub, a 560-foot steel tomb cutting through dark waters and commandeered by a crew of survivors -- including Sal DeLuca, who lost his father during their flight from Agent X. When he leads a team to scavenge for food and supplies on land, he comes across a squad of seemingly welcoming mercenaries. But he's about to find himself trapped between new terrors on the surface and mutiny below.
320 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 19, 2010
6 people are currently reading
251 people want to read
About the author
Walter Greatshell
16 books53 followersWalter Greatshell here. I am the author of XOMBIES (Berkley, 2004), which was re-released as XOMBIES: APOCALYPSE BLUES (2009), and followed by the sequels XOMBIES: APOCALYPTICON (2010), and XOMBIES: APOCALYPSO (2011). I am also author of the novels MAD SKILLS, ENORMITY (published under the pen name W.G. Marshall), and TERMINAL ISLAND. My short stories have appeared in the anthologies THE LIVING DEAD 2, TALES OF JACK THE RIPPER, and CTHULHU FHTAGN! My most recent works are the essay collection SPECIAL FEATURES: SHORT TAKES ON POP CULTURE FROM ANDROIDS TO ZOMBIES and the WWII saga SAFARI MINE: AN AFRICAN ODYSSEY 1928-1937.
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
March 20, 2010
I have to say that I was disappointed in this book. Having recently read the prequel I suppose that I was expecting the story to continue from where it left off, with Lulu and the other survivors struggling to find the cure for Agent X. But for me this book was all over the place. Lulu and her 'boys' were featured very little in the plot and really seemed like more of an after thought. There really was not any one character who stood out, with the exception of Sal Deluca.
The timeline kept bouncing around, to the point of confusion. We jumped from having Xombies, to having some mutation of Xombies that are so unrealistic that, imo at least, it completely took away from the plot. It was like the author decided to change the story about half way through the book. We are left with more questions than before and no resolution in sight. I understand that the author has a couple more books planned but I can't imagine where he plans to go from here. When all hope for humanity is taken away, is there really anywhere else to go?
The timeline kept bouncing around, to the point of confusion. We jumped from having Xombies, to having some mutation of Xombies that are so unrealistic that, imo at least, it completely took away from the plot. It was like the author decided to change the story about half way through the book. We are left with more questions than before and no resolution in sight. I understand that the author has a couple more books planned but I can't imagine where he plans to go from here. When all hope for humanity is taken away, is there really anywhere else to go?
June 9, 2017
Cubre otros puntos de vista de la historia del primer libro, complementa la historia. Sigue con las narraciones de los supervivientes que logran mantenerte expectante y realmente interesado. Los protagonistas viven los sucesos apocalípticos enfrentando como siempre no solo a engendros sin "vida" sino también a una humanidad corrupta y en decadencia. Sin narraciones tediosas o desenfoques de la trama principal.
December 30, 2020
I didn't realize that I was picking up the second book in a series, and I do wish I'd read the first one because this has so much crazy in it. I was expecting a zombie book and this (I feel like Stefon) had it ALL! Xombies, prison rodeos, bmx bike riding, tranvestite Kali death cult members and oh yeah--aliens. Fun and pulpy.
April 5, 2018
the first book was better
May 31, 2019
Sometimes ramping up the absurdity works in a sequel. This was not one of those times.
October 31, 2016
The perfect sequel to one of the best zombies novels ever. Mere weeks after a sudden global outburst that turns people into fast-moving blue zombies -- UNKILLABLE, blast-them-into-still-squirming-goo zombies, no less! -- a few survivors roam the oceans in a military submarine, seeking the scientist who apparently caused the whole disaster, in the hopes of finding a cure.
Without repeating my review of the first Xombies book too much, this is a fast-paced, apocalyptic science fiction novel with a goofy, wicked sense of humor; its brilliance is how it manages to walk the tightrope of wackiness (such as the opening scene of Day 1, Minute 1 of the zombie outbreak at a prison rodeo) while maintaining likable characters and serious, scary tension. In this second book, the story digs deeper into the scientific explanation and the true powers of the 'zombies' , and ends with a shocking lead-in to the final novel in the trilogy.
The only potential criticism of this book is that fans of the first book's protagonist, Lulu Pangloss, may be disappointed to find that Lulu is only a side character in "Apocalypticon", and a teenage boy is the new hero. Since the Xombie infection favors women, there's also some disturbing images of what a 99%-male zombie-survivor society might look and act like. But the Xombie trilogy doesn't go for gore and cruelty as much as it goes for absurd humor and weird, scary beauty. (After all, xombies kiss their prey, they don't bite 'em... it's the humans who are the ones doing the hacking, shooting, flamethrowing and bombing.) Best scene which it's amazing hasn't been filmed yet: a chase scene with humans on bicycles pedalling away from a horde of hundreds of running zombies. This is a wonderful action/horror/sci-fi novel.
Without repeating my review of the first Xombies book too much, this is a fast-paced, apocalyptic science fiction novel with a goofy, wicked sense of humor; its brilliance is how it manages to walk the tightrope of wackiness (such as the opening scene of Day 1, Minute 1 of the zombie outbreak at a prison rodeo) while maintaining likable characters and serious, scary tension. In this second book, the story digs deeper into the scientific explanation and the true powers of the 'zombies' , and ends with a shocking lead-in to the final novel in the trilogy.
The only potential criticism of this book is that fans of the first book's protagonist, Lulu Pangloss, may be disappointed to find that Lulu is only a side character in "Apocalypticon", and a teenage boy is the new hero. Since the Xombie infection favors women, there's also some disturbing images of what a 99%-male zombie-survivor society might look and act like. But the Xombie trilogy doesn't go for gore and cruelty as much as it goes for absurd humor and weird, scary beauty. (After all, xombies kiss their prey, they don't bite 'em... it's the humans who are the ones doing the hacking, shooting, flamethrowing and bombing.) Best scene which it's amazing hasn't been filmed yet: a chase scene with humans on bicycles pedalling away from a horde of hundreds of running zombies. This is a wonderful action/horror/sci-fi novel.
September 16, 2011
“Xombies: Apocalypticon” is author Walter Greatshell’s followup to his acclaimed Berkley novel, “Xombies”, also retitled “Xombies: Apocalypse Blues”, under the re-release by Ace. Personally, I like the original title and especially the original cover a lot better, but marketing departments have the final say in the end, right or wrong. The original printing also has some slight text differences in a character’s accent used in dialogue.
In this second story, Greatshell continues with the same characters and throws them in just as much danger as before. Only this time, they have to battle between each other as much as the outside forces of the Xombies. Food is dwindling and paranoia about the future quickly turns our submarine crew into panic mode. For a more rewarding experience, I would recommend newcomers read the first book in the series before diving into this.
Halfway through the book, Greatshell introduces a completely new concept to the zombie mythology that is, quite simply, a game changer for humans and their defensive tactics against the hoards of the undead. Here and there, I felt some descriptions or actions were a touch vague and a bit confusing, but overall it was clearly a successful novel. If you are looking for the same old zombie story, you’ll want to stay away. These are not your father’s zombies. This is a completely new and layered take on this sub-genre. Greatshell takes the rulebook on zombies and doesn’t just throw it out, he blows it up.
In this second story, Greatshell continues with the same characters and throws them in just as much danger as before. Only this time, they have to battle between each other as much as the outside forces of the Xombies. Food is dwindling and paranoia about the future quickly turns our submarine crew into panic mode. For a more rewarding experience, I would recommend newcomers read the first book in the series before diving into this.
Halfway through the book, Greatshell introduces a completely new concept to the zombie mythology that is, quite simply, a game changer for humans and their defensive tactics against the hoards of the undead. Here and there, I felt some descriptions or actions were a touch vague and a bit confusing, but overall it was clearly a successful novel. If you are looking for the same old zombie story, you’ll want to stay away. These are not your father’s zombies. This is a completely new and layered take on this sub-genre. Greatshell takes the rulebook on zombies and doesn’t just throw it out, he blows it up.
September 19, 2014
El primer libro fue narrado por Lulú, en ésta continuación, la narración es en tercera persona y brinca de una historia a otra tan abruptamente que perdí el hilo más de una vez. La historia está más centrada en Sal DeLuca y varios chicos más que lograron sobrevivir al ataque en Thule. Cada capítulo comienza con un artículo del proyecto Ménade que explica lo que fue sucediendo desde que el Agente X se propagó, en un intento de explicar los cabos que se dejaron sueltos en el primer libro.
La interacción con los Xombies fue casi nula, el problema ahora fueron los humanos, en quien confiar y en quien no. La forma del autor de describir la escenografía no me gusta mucho, ya que me costó mucho desde el primer libro imaginar los lugares donde se llevaban acabo las escenas, y eso no es común en mi. Tal vez la magia se perdió en la traducción o simplemente dejaban pasar por alto detalles importantes.
No me gustó mucho, le di tres estrellas por el simple hecho de que tampoco me disgustó, simplemente no lo disfruté como me hubiera gustado disfrutar de un libro de zombies. Sólo lo leí porque compré los dos libros al mismo tiempo, de haber leído el primer sin haber comprado el segundo, estoy casi segura de que no lo hubiera leído. No creo conseguir el tercero, aunque el libro terminó en un buen cliffhanger.
La interacción con los Xombies fue casi nula, el problema ahora fueron los humanos, en quien confiar y en quien no. La forma del autor de describir la escenografía no me gusta mucho, ya que me costó mucho desde el primer libro imaginar los lugares donde se llevaban acabo las escenas, y eso no es común en mi. Tal vez la magia se perdió en la traducción o simplemente dejaban pasar por alto detalles importantes.
No me gustó mucho, le di tres estrellas por el simple hecho de que tampoco me disgustó, simplemente no lo disfruté como me hubiera gustado disfrutar de un libro de zombies. Sólo lo leí porque compré los dos libros al mismo tiempo, de haber leído el primer sin haber comprado el segundo, estoy casi segura de que no lo hubiera leído. No creo conseguir el tercero, aunque el libro terminó en un buen cliffhanger.
October 21, 2015
I read Greatshell's first of tis series and enjoyed it enough to go on for two and three of the same. I have to say the first seemed to have the better writing and plot even tho I did have concerns about the ending. #2 is chaotic, and that is perhaps by design, tho I lean towards default. Everything is just mashed together like so many odd body parts (a small pun regarding this second work) and it makes one a little crazy trying to figure out what the heck is going. A major plot change is dropped somewhere in the middle and Lulu (the protagonist from #1) doesn't make an appreciable entrance until the tail end of the book. So many questions raised and not answered. By design? Only #3 will tell and so I read on.
February 5, 2016
Tengo varias cosas que decir acerca de este libro, así como el primero tampoco me atrapo lo suficiente y es por eso que tarde un montón en terminarlo, empezó demasiado lento, algunos capítulos eran flashback de sucesos que ya habían pasado en la primera parte pero desde la perspectiva de otros personajes y en otros nos trataban de explicar como fue surgiendo el agente x, pero al final en vez de aclararme que era en realidad y su propósito me sentía más confusa, sólo tuvo algo de acción hasta casi finalizar, acción por cierto tal vez demasiado bizarra para mí, sin mencionar que odie el desenlace de los personajes que eran mis "preferidos", en fin creo que la idea no es mala pero siento que no se desarrollo del todo bien, no me gusto y lo mas probable es que no termine la trilogía :/
July 31, 2010
I was pleasantly surprised by this book. The action was pretty well non-stop until the end, something that I've had a hard time finding lately. The characters were well played out and believable and I had no trouble following the story. I loved the twist on the traditional zombie genre. It made for a fun and interesting read. I almost couldn't put it down. And if we hadn't gone camping while I was reading it, I probably wouldn't have. I haven't read the first book, and while I probably wouldn't have to as this was pretty well self contained, I certainly intend to search it out and read it.
July 16, 2010
I started reading this book while stuck in a traffic jam. I was almost disappointed when traffic started to move. This was a jump 'right into the action' type story. While it was pretty straight forward, there was a few twists and turns of the plot that was unexpected. I can truly say I was upset when I got to the end of the book because I wasn't ready to stop reading.
July 11, 2016
I finished reading this yesterday, and I'm giving three stars for credit. It was a weird book, but the writing was cool. Maybe I would have understood it more if I'd had the previous one. I'll probably buy it just to know -what- exactly is going on now.
Read
December 7, 2010Another great chapter in the series. It flashes excellently between Lulu, the adults, and Sal and his crew. Chock-full of suspense, it has surprises at every turn.
April 2, 2011
Just kind of m'eh. I think I am wearing thin on zombie books. Maybe I need to take a 6 month hiatus and read something of more substance.
Read
October 2, 2011B22902706F
nevermind
December 16, 2011I registered a book at BookCrossing.com!
http://www.BookCrossing.com/journal/10335160
http://www.BookCrossing.com/journal/10335160
October 8, 2012
Expands on some of the more meaningful themes in book 1, adds another stripe, and several more layers of silliness. Fun read if you dig the whole z/xombies thing - and I do.
June 27, 2011
More zombie goodness from a guy who writes more like Lord of the Flies than like 28 Days.
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews