Come back in time with the first ARISEN prequel and live through the beginning of the end of the world...
Come back in time with the first ARISEN prequel and live through the beginning of the end of the world... (Can be read as a stand-alone novel, an introduction to the series, or at any point while reading the main series.)
Tucked away in a high-tech Tactical Operations Center, inside an isolated safehouse in the Horn of Africa, sits Agency analyst Zack Altringham. He is Kenyan-born, Princeton-educated, badly burnt-out - and condemned by his language and cultural skills to a lifetime of fighting America's shadow counter-terror wars.
But when another mystery epidemic breaks out, and terrifyingly quickly reaches a tipping point, chaos descends - and Zack and his team (including two former Team Six SEALs) are trapped between the millstones of the sick and the dying on one side, and heavily armed militias on the other. Soon their "safe" house is in flames, and their only remaining option is to get in their up-armored SUV and try to escape the imploding gravity well of the city, to the safety of the American military base in Djibouti. But by then, will there be anywhere safe left on Earth to escape to?
Professional Reviews
stars13 Hours Meets Night of the Living Dead
4.4 stars. The ZA kicks off in the Horn of Africa while a CIA analyst and his small team stationed in Somaliland watch it unfold. At first, the terrible conditions and constant state of turmoil in-country mask the start of the plague that is going to end the world. In the region, evidence of the outbreak of some serious illness is not all that unusual, and people are always shooting at each other, even on a good day... but it is soon apparent to the Station Chief, Zack, just what is happening. The horror of one of his pet epidemiological theories has just become an implacable reality. Humanity is going to get steamrolled.
This is a somewhat Tom-Clancy-styled outbreak story, filled with references to insider information about the intelligence community and the inner workings of the CIA, and expounding on military/intel technology. The novel appears to draw heavily on what has been written (and eventually turned into film) about the incident in Benghazi. The SEAL mythos (perhaps not undeserved) is propagated through the cool characters of the former-SEAL contractors working to protect the station's analysts. You have to love the unshakeable duo of Dugan and "Maximum Bob" even if they are a little bit more than human.
In a country where "everyone owns an AK-47," and there are multiple terrorist, militia and insurgent groups already in conflict, the growing epidemic touches a spark to the powder keg. The action ramps up quickly. The dread grows. Things get hectic and very desperate. The undead swarm in ever growing numbers as options dwindle, and it is increasingly evident that the cavalry aren't coming because they are joining the ranks of the unliving....
Bottom Line: Well worth your time and money. This is a very readable zombie outbreak story definitively set within the context of the Global War on Terror and its follow-on(s). Exciting and tense, with interesting, well-written characters and rocking combat sequences, it is hard to put down. It has a good deal more depth than usual for the Military Fiction style of Zombie Novel. Much to love for Zombie Fans!
A Great combo of: Strikeback & Dawn of the Dead
First off, yes, I am a zombie junkie. Especially since I got my Kindle Keyboard 2 1/2 yrs ago. Second, I am Michael Stephen Fuchs fan as well. 3rd, I did not receive this book for free for a review, I paid $2.99 for it the day it came out! I have read and enjoyed a few other books by this author: Just Don't Shoot Me In The Ass,D-Boys,Counter-Assault (D-Boys #2), and of course, the 1st book in the Arisen series: Arisen, Book One - Fortress Britain. I have the 2nd book in the Arisen series (Arisen, Book Two - Mogadishu of the Dead) on my Kindle, but have not read it yet. When this prequel came out I jumped on this one first. Fuchs teamed up with Glynn James for the first two Arisen books, but is the solo author of Genesis. I love special forces/operator military thrillers, like D-Boys & Counter-Assault. Another author of special ops thrillers I enjoy is Freddy Hansen, author of Ghost of Winter INCEPTION (Modern Warfare Series 1 SAS Black Ops Part 2). I also love a good zombie thriller, like Resurrection:Zombie Epic by Tim Curran. Well, with the Arisen series I get the best of both worlds. Like a Reese's peanut butter cup (peanut butter & chocolate).
Fortress Britain starts off with the zombies already a world wide threat, the end of the world as we know it, and mankind's only hope are the top tier special forces operators of Britain & the U.S. A book written just for me it appeared. Well, Genesis (Arisen) sets up the world of Fortress Britain. It starts off with some CIA agents in an outpost in the Horn of Africa and spreads from there. Once you get past the setup part the action starts hot and heavy and does NOT let up. I read the last two thirds of the book with a smile on my face, as I just kept enjoying this thriller more & more! Arisen Genesis is sort of like a cool combination of Strike Back: The Complete First Season (Cinemax) (Blu-ray/DVD Combo + Digital Copy) and Dawn of the Dead (Unrated Director's Cut) [Blu-ray]. Zombie lovers (and who isn't?) and military thriller lovers will enjoy the Arisen series. A third book is due out next month. I got to keep on reading and catch up........!
great prequel for an amazing series
I have burned through each new book in this series as it became available. I don't think the author has been in the military, although I may be wrong about that, regardless he has captured the military and especially small special operations units perfectly. Having been in some of the places he has written about (specifically Camp Lemmonier) and seeing the author's attention to detail about the location has #1 given me confidence that he has accurately portrayed other locations (yes I get it, authors occasionally need to change things to fit their story) and #2 has kept me totally immersed in the story. The other thing I like about this series, is this series, unlike too many in this genre, the sequels are not forced, the stories are not stretched out to "justify" a second or third book. This prequel, unlike so many in the genre, is the perfect stand alone story. If you read it, it adds background to the overall tale, it also works fine as a stand alone tale. I highly recommend both this prequel and the rest of the series.
A female assassin, known as Raven and hailing from both human and alien backgrounds, shares her story with Security Chief Salina Craddock of the Earth Conglomerate Space Security Agency (ECSSA) after being captured.
Time Travel, Sacrifice, and the Fate of Humanity
He must give up his future to save it.
"A gripping tale of time travel, sacrifice, and the power of human determination."
The Starlords is a science fiction/fantasy story about ancient Starlords (old gods) or ancient aliens who along with their scions rule parts of the galaxy.
