This is a review of A New World: Chaos by John O’Brien | A Post-Apocalypse Zombie Series

There is no Sanctuary!

That was taken away in the blink of an eye.  Humanity went out not with a whimper, but a bang.

Authors Remark’s

“I wrote this series with one thought in mind – What would I actually do in the event of an apocalyptic event?  This story and series being true to the skills that I possess.  There aren’t any super heroes possessing miraculous abilities, just a normal person seeking to survive in a post-apocalyptic world.  Being an ex-Air Force pilot and operating in the special operations arena, the experiences I have gathered lend themselves well to surviving in a world such as I have presented.  Written in the first person, it takes you through an accounting of what that world and survival looks like through the eyes of someone being suddenly thrust into a situation that looks normal from first glance, but with a terror lurking underneath and survival in question at every turn.  Imagine yourself looking out of your window and everything looks the same; buildings stand tall and straight, reflecting sunlight from their exteriors; trees sway in the morning breeze; cars sit silently in parking lots; a bright blue sky looks down and the air clear of smoke from burning fires.  Except there is one simple difference, there’s nobody around.  The plausibility of the scenario and premise make this a truly unique story and interesting read and I truly hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.  Please feel free to leave a review and let me know what you think.”

–John O’Brien

Analysis

I think the author says it better than I ever could, but I’m going to try anyways. As the title suggests, this is a story about zombies, just not the zombies we are used too.

I loved this series, from the first book to the last book. If you follow my blog at all then you will know that I come from a book loving family and that we often read the same book. We share an Amazon account (sorry John) and this makes it pretty simple to share books. That said, we all thoroughly enjoyed this series.

This is a series that I really enjoyed. John O’Brien does an absolutely phenomenal job of creating a new world where everything that we know has changed. A quick side note, I’ve actually used this series as an excuse not to get the flu vaccine (jokingly of course).

The series starts with Chaos, that’s the name of the first book, and it lives up to its name.

“Jack, a sometimes humorous, sometimes philosophical ex-special operations pilot and soldier is one of the few left to struggle through the desolation left in the aftermath; seeking to survive as a new ferocious species emerges from the rubble, hungry and unrelenting.  Will his special forces training be enough?  Will he be able to keep his children safe and guide the few survivors through perils that now roam the world they once knew?  Or will the hordes that now own the night prevail, forever removing the last of mankind from existence?  Humankind was once at the top of the food chain.  But that has now changed.” – John O’Brien

Each book that follows ramps up the chaos and stress. Each time you (the reader) start feeling secure, the story takes a new twist. This is done naturally though and it never feels forced.

The Zombies in this series are not true zombies, but rather living humans who have been changed—and they are absolutely terrifying. My dad, brothers, and I occasionally discuss which form of a zombie apocalypse would be the absolute worst case scenario. The subject is still up for debate, but my vote is definitely cast with the Nightrunners from A New World. They are fast, strong, and possess a terrifying degree of intelligence. The combat scenes are written with a vivid attention to detail—you can smell the gunpowder and hear the terrifying screeching of the Nightrunners.

The character development could have been done a little better, but the story arc makes up for this. There were a few times when the story took a twist that I didn’t see coming and I had to put the book down and just breathe. I said earlier that this would be spoiler free…I won’t give anything away, but let me just say that if you enjoy this kind of genre you won’t be disappointed.

I definitely recommend this series. You can buy it here on Amazon.

If you liked this review and want to see others, you can find them here.

This was a review of A New World by John O’Brien | Reviewed by Jake Parrick