Biters/The Reborn - Harry Shannon/Brett J. Talley - Two tales of post apocalyptic life

4 of 5 Stars    Review copy

This is the fourth entry into the successful doubledown series of books from Journalstone Publishing.  The idea is to combine the work of an established writer with a relative newcomer in a single volume. This time it's life after the apocalypse.

FIrst up is Biters from Harry Shannon who knows a thing or two about zombies.  His series featuring Sheriff Penny Miller, The Hungry, co-written with Stephen W. Booth, just released its fifth book, All Hell Breaks Loose, and there are more on the way.

In Biters, Harry tells the story of a man who would like nothing more than to recapture a bit of his life from before.  It's a simple tale of choices and the results of those decisions...with Zombies.  I recently came to the conclusion that the best zombie stories are those where there is a solid story without zombies which is just made better with zombies.  Much the way any meal is made better with bacon.  Biters is such a story.

The second book in this doubledownf release is The Reborn. Set in a post apocalyptic future, the primary storyline deals with the capacity to determine DNA strands which lead to the rebirth of killers and then eliminating the threat before they can be reborn.

"It was the Kensington paper that changed everything, the Kensington paper that ushered in a new era for mankind, the Kensington paper that shook to their very foundations religion, politics, government, and philosophy.  For it was the Kensington paper that first hypothesized the existence of The Reborn."  This lead to the Warren-Rostov act which "declared The Reborn -- those who had been murders, rapists, or worse -- unworthy of life, making it unlawful to give birth to such a person."

I found the story of The Reborn to be imaginative and enjoyable, but I was left scratching my head over all of the additional storylines involving Khan, a charismatic leader rising in China, the limited nuclear exchange between China and the US, and the ensuing chaos.  For me, none of that added anything to the tale.  But, that's just my opinion.

Overall, Journalstone Publications has delivered another entertaining book in their doubledown series and I ceratinly look forward to the next.

Biters/The Reborn is scheduled for release on April 11, 2014 and is available now for pre-order fron the Journalstone website and Amazon.com.  The book will be available in both print and ekectronic formats.

Recommended.