Title: Year Zero Vol. 0

Author: Daniel Kraus, Goran Sudžuka

Publisher: Artists, Writers, and Artisans 2023

Genre: Graphic Novel Horror

Pages: 128

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Spooky Season

Where I Got It: Library

In this action-packed prelude to the hit series, acclaimed horror writer Daniel Kraus (George Romero's The Living Dead, The Autumnal) unveils four globe-spanning tales from the earliest days of the zombie apocalypse when even the wildest rumors couldn't measure up to the horror to come. A streetwise Russian cop patrols the back alleys of the opportunistic black market that emerges in response to the crisis...a North Korean soldier observes strange happenings on the DMZ...An E.R. nurse in the rural South fights to protect her hospital from threats without and within...A transgender flight attendant who has observed disturbing clues as she crisscrosses the globe keeps a wary eye on the passenger in seat 23C.

I somehow completely missed this series. I absolutely love zombie stories so I definitely needed to grab this one. I didn’t even realize that this is prequel, but it was still a fun ride to see the beginnings of a zombie apocalypse. We follow a few characters as they slowly get the sense that something terrible is happening. The Korean storyline was my favorite. We get a few very introspective conversations and monologues by those characters. I really loved the reveals as the stories progressed. I most definitely need to keep reading this series.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Title: Whalefall

Author: Daniel Kraus

Publisher: MTV Books 2023

Genre: Thriller

Pages: 327

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges:

Jay Gardiner has given himself a fool’s errand—to find the remains of his deceased father in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Monastery Beach. He knows it’s a long shot, but Jay feels it’s the only way for him to lift the weight of guilt he has carried since his dad’s death by suicide the previous year.

The dive begins well enough, but the sudden appearance of a giant squid puts Jay in very real jeopardy, made infinitely worse by the arrival of a sperm whale looking to feed. Suddenly, Jay is caught in the squid’s tentacles and drawn into the whale’s mouth where he is pulled into the first of its four stomachs. He quickly realizes he has only one hour before his oxygen tanks run out—one hour to defeat his demons and escape the belly of a whale.

Another mediocre read for me this week. I picked this up on th suggestion of a couple of lists with new horror style books for 2023. Ultimately, I wasn’t a huge fan. This read more like a thriller with long chapters of flashbacks and introspection. We didn’t get a sense of building dread that I really love in my horror novels. Instead, the whale swallows Jay pretty quickly and then we slowly have to follow his stream of consciousness and struggle to survive. There are a few parts that turned extremely gory, like even I was a bit grossed out. Overall, I just don’t think I really connected to this story and ended up with a “Meh” reaction at the end.

Next up on the TBR pile: