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White Horse (White Horse #1)

by Alex Adams (Goodreads Author)

3.59 of 5 stars 3.59 · rating details · 1,564 ratings · 467 reviews

Thirty-year-old Zoe leads an ordinary life until the end of the world arrives. She is cleaning cages and floors at Pope Pharmaceuticals when the President of the United States announces that human beings are no longer a viable species. When Zoe realizes that everyone she loves is disappearing, she starts running. Scared and alone in a shockingly changed world, she embarks...more

Hardcover, 306 pages

Published April 17th 2012 by Atria/Emily Bestler Books (first published January 1st 2012)

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Apr 06, 2012 karen rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: icky-sex, tastes-like-people, the-end

so this is why i hate reviewing advanced readers' copies. after the thrill of "yayyyyy, i have something that youuuu don't have" wears off, i am stuck here with a book that was good, but didn't blow my mind. and now i have to be all critical about it, and it can't even defend itself yet. and it is probably one of those books that is going to be wildly successful and then i will be the lone voice in the wilderness on record as not loving it and all the internet will laugh at me.

not that i lack th...more

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May 17, 2012 Anne rated it 4 of 5 stars

Pandemic disease is only part of Adams' apocalypse. It also involves war and pesky shifts in global weather. What's more -- and to me most fascinating -- "White Horse" is a pathogen that wreaks its havoc by changing the victim's genetic structure, turning off certain switches and flipping on others. The effects of this sudden evolution range from miserable death (most of the population) to horrific somatic mutations.

A very few people seem to be immune to the plague. One is our heroine Zoe, who a...more Pandemic disease is only part of Adams' apocalypse. It also involves war and pesky shifts in global weather. What's more -- and to me most fascinating -- "White Horse" is a pathogen that wreaks its havoc by changing the victim's genetic structure, turning off certain switches and flipping on others. The effects of this sudden evolution range from miserable death (most of the population) to horrific somatic mutations.

A very few people seem to be immune to the plague. One is our heroine Zoe, who arrives home one day to find an enigmatic jar (or urn) in the middle of her living room. Pandora's box, anyone? The giver of this gift is one of the mysteries she must solve as the world starts collapsing around her and her interest in therapist Nick deepens from the professional to the personal.

I came to view the structure of this book as a sort of double helix, the past and present spiralling around each other, joined by causal and provocative links. Far from ruining the pace, this scheme enhanced it. The narrative drive of both "Then" and "Now" is propulsive -- I felt it might have become overwhelming without the braking that frequent switches in time provided. The frequent switches also enhance suspense and avoid abusing the reader's patience by lingering too long (or too briefly) in either narrative line. This aspect of the novel is masterfully handled.

Adams also succeeds in juxtaposing her stalwartly humane narrator with an antagonist who's chillingly beyond humanity. The Swiss consistently creeped me out while keeping me asking with Zoe, "What the fuck's WRONG with you?" Many secondary and minor characters also won me over, including a seemingly invulnerable Army officer, an autistic cub reporter looking to prove himself different in a good way, and the mythically altered Irini whom Zoe meets in the wilds of Greece.

Back to the mutations. Some mutants are truly monstrous -- I was especially terrified by the wolf-like post-humans Zoe and companions find in Italy, often locked into abandoned churches. Others, like Irini's sister, are more pathetic (yet, maybe if you think about it, awesome.) Still other mutations are subtle in their enormity, as we learn near the end of the novel. I get the impression that some mutations will be for the good, will allow for a true rebuilding of the toppled ecosystems.

The overall action is gritty without prurient dwelling on the violence and nastiness. Even so, this isn't a book for those with delicate sensibilities or a cheerful outlook on the extent to which humanity under dire stress can retain the civility bolstered by, well, civilization.

Not to give anything away, but there may be some patches of sunlight in this dark world. If so, Zoe's determined to find them, and what reader can't get behind that?

I have minor quibbles with some of the figurative language, which is noticeably pervasive. For the most part, it works, but it can also draw too much attention to itself, to the detriment of the narrative flow. A couple of Zooey's interactions with prominent figures also strained my credulity, as did a few of her "this I believe" speeches.

But overall, a read I'd recommend to all of us mutant-loving cynics with a sneaking streak of optimism. I think there will be sequels? I hope so! This world's got a lot more to show us.(less)

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Apr 25, 2012 Jamie Mason rated it 4 of 5 stars

If you survived the end of the world, what would you become? Surely you don't imagine you'd remain the very same you, the you that you've come to know and love (and self-loathe at intervals.) Would you become a hero? A hermit? Or perhaps a looter, or a lunatic?

What is there left after every achievement you've gained in life becomes meaningless and you're stranded on the ashy other side of all you've ever known? Once someone (or something) has pushed the reset button on civilization, who will you...more

9 likes · like · see review

Jul 28, 2012 Mrs Mommy Booknerd http://mrsmommybooknerd.blogspot.com rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: review-for-mmbbr-s

I have to tell you that this novel pulled me in from page one and held me to the very last page. Adams writes a story of a post apocalyptic time. I could not help but wonder the whole time I was reading what I would do if I woke up one day and had to face what Zoe, the main character, had to face. She is powerful and her experiences are graphic, unsettling and simply irresistible. This page turning novel takes you not only on a journey of survival, but a journey of the human condition when faced...more

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Jan 16, 2013 Taryn rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: arc, what-i-read-in-2012

[This review can also be found on Bookwanderer!]

Alex Adams' White Horse came galloping out of the herd of dystopian fiction earlier this year, accompanied by lots of positive reviews and buzz. I took a bet on it, but unfortunately, for me, what I had taken for a White Horse was, in actuality, a bob-tailed nag.

(Okay, okay...no more horse puns.)

While it initially seemed like a promising example of a post-apocalypse novel, I ended up finishing White Horse solely for the reveals. Even when reading s...more

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Jul 28, 2012 L.M. Ironside rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: eat-prose-with-spoon, literary-fiction, sci-fi

I grew up in a very religious family that was, to state things mildly, a little obsessed about "the End Times." Being constantly immersed in a culture of anticipating the Apocalypse with glee did something of a number on my head, a trauma which even well into my skeptical and atheistic adulthood can sometimes still rear up and give me a case of the cold sweats or worse. That's why it took me four months to finish this book: because it's so vividly written that I found myself having to put it dow...more I grew up in a very religious family that was, to state things mildly, a little obsessed about "the End Times." Being constantly immersed in a culture of anticipating the Apocalypse with glee did something of a number on my head, a trauma which even well into my skeptical and atheistic adulthood can sometimes still rear up and give me a case of the cold sweats or worse. That's why it took me four months to finish this book: because it's so vividly written that I found myself having to put it down again and again and give myself long breaks, or risk a long string of debilitating panic attacks.

Reader beware.

Adams creates a plausible and frightening near-future world in which humans have become...no longer human. Or most of them. I don't want to spoil it for you. And through this non-human world, one woman and her companions move and try to retain their human-ness in the face of some terrifying and bizarre circumstances.

It's gorgeously written, combining the best aspects of literary and science fiction into one delectable wordfeast. But it's not all about the words, either. The book moves at a tight pace, pulling the reader along (unless she has to take forced sanity breaks for her own good.) A less traumatized reader could easily find herself totally unable to put this one down. I had to really be mindful of my mental health as I read, and shut the book away where I couldn't find it until my overheated noggin could cool off and stop panicking.

As you may expect, I don't read a lot of Apocalyptic or Dystopian fiction. Two I have read and loved were The Road and The Hunger Games. While White Horse really isn't in the same realm as The Hunger Games (it is decidedly adult, not YA, and it's less reliant on action and more on inner struggles...though don't get me wrong, there is plenty of outside action for protagonist Zoe and her companions to face), it ought to appeal strongly to adult fans of Suzanne Collins' series. It is much more comparable to The Road in its believable and vivid portrait of society falling apart, but unlike The Road, it has, thank god, an ending full up uplifting promise, leaving the reader eager for more (and more is forthcoming.)
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Apr 23, 2012 Rose rated it 5 of 5 stars

If White Horse brings to mind a knight in shining armor coming to rescue the princess you're far from what this book is all about. If White Horse brings to mind Taylor Swift's song you're even further from it than before & you might as well give up & just read the book to find out. I loved everything about this dystopian/post-apocalyptic story. Where other books about similar topics fail this one triumphs: Zoe, the protagonist is extremely likable & as you read you want her to surviv...more If White Horse brings to mind a knight in shining armor coming to rescue the princess you're far from what this book is all about. If White Horse brings to mind Taylor Swift's song you're even further from it than before & you might as well give up & just read the book to find out. I loved everything about this dystopian/post-apocalyptic story. Where other books about similar topics fail this one triumphs: Zoe, the protagonist is extremely likable & as you read you want her to survive, to have a happy ending, whereas in other books the protagonist chick is always a whiny, cliched idiot whose interests lie more in whatever muscled lug is the hero of the story than in anything else & you half hope she gets eaten in the end or something. I liked that Zoe was strong but not unbelievable so, she had her vulnerabilities. She hurt, but worked through it in order to survive & help those she loved, she suffered losses, but they made her cling to her humanity more strongly rather than giving in to the darkness that took so many others. She loves, she fights, she protects, she grieves, she questions & most importantly she's humane & kind & persevering. The evil in this story is one of the best baddies I've encountered since The First on Buffy. It was evil but scary smart & sometimes even a bit funny, best of all it surprised me, I didn't guess who it was entirely & the outcome of its evilness on the population was a great sci-fi/horror type deal that was as interesting as it was creepy. To compliment a great story was fantastic writing. Adams has a way of phrasing things that flow so smoothly & made me actually reread certain sentences because they were so poetically fascinating. The last page brought the hugest smile to my face & the last sentence made me gasp out loud. Great ending! That there's 2 more books in the series is a great joy but it comes with a certain amount of trepidation. There's so much more that's bound to happen to Zoe. Sigh. As much as I look forward to reading the next 2 books I kind of wish it could just end here for Zoe & she could finally rest. The book is certainly good enough to stand alone without 2 more following it, but because I loved it so I'll await the next 2 anxiously. (less)

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Mar 19, 2013 Maddy rated it 4 of 5 stars

ZUM INHALT:

Wenn die Welt verloren ist, zählst nur noch du.

Die junge Zoe entdeckt in ihrer Wohnung ein merkwürdiges Glasgefäß, dessen Herkunft sie sich nicht erklären kann. Es enthält ein furchtbares Geheimnis. Denn als Zoe den Behälter öffnet, breitet sich eine geheimnisvolle Seuche aus, »White Horse«. Unzählige Menschen sterben, das Ende aller Zeiten scheint gekommen. Zoe verliert nicht nur ihre Familie, sondern auch ihren geliebten Nick, der verschwunden ist. Und sie stellt fest, dass sie von...more

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Feb 26, 2013 Christine rated it 4 of 5 stars

I received an advanced reader's copy of this from the bookstore I worked at. The summary sounded promising, so I took it home. I was not disappointed.

It switches between “Now” and “Then”- no exact dates, and there is only vague references to the types of technology and the time the story takes place in: could be in the future, could be the next five years. No telling, and that makes it very immersive to me because it keeps me pondering and searching for hints. Also each bit of “Then” is very sho...more

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Feb 21, 2013 Cathy rated it 4 of 5 stars

White Horse explores the unintended consequences of dabbling with nature, particularly weather and biology (pharmaceuticals, in particular). The author tells the story with the "then" and "now" technique, switching from one to the other to gradually construct the plot. The main character, Zoe, starts the tale in the "now," setting the scene of what the world has become-- a dangerous lawless land where governments have mostly crumbled, where people struggle to survive, where monsters lurk...creat...more

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Jan 02, 2013 Crunchyblanket rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: post-apocalyptic

For the most part, this book is a fresh and interesting take on the old 'pandemic destroys the world' trope. The pandemic in question is bizarre and fascinating - "White Horse", which horribly mutates those it doesn't succeed in killing. Later on, the blending of these mutations with ancient mythology leads to the introduction of some interesting and somewhat unsettling characters - my favourite part of the book, in fact, and an interesting twist in an otherwise fairly standard 'journey to safet...more

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Dec 08, 2012 Hanna rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: my-bookshelf

Wow. Das war das erste, was ich dachte, als ich das Buch heute Nacht zuklappte. Diese Dysopie ist so anders als alle anderen ihrer Art, zumindest als jene, die ich bis jetzt schon gelesen habe. Endlich konnte mir eine Dystopie beweisen, dass das Genre nicht auf ewig von ein und demselben Schema abhängig ist!

Die 31-Jährige Zoe ist auf der Suche nach ihrem Freund Nick - und zwar schwanger, in einer Welt, die so, wie sie einmal war, nicht mehr existiert. 90% der Menschheiit sind ausgestorben, 5% si...more Wow. Das war das erste, was ich dachte, als ich das Buch heute Nacht zuklappte. Diese Dysopie ist so anders als alle anderen ihrer Art, zumindest als jene, die ich bis jetzt schon gelesen habe. Endlich konnte mir eine Dystopie beweisen, dass das Genre nicht auf ewig von ein und demselben Schema abhängig ist!

Die 31-Jährige Zoe ist auf der Suche nach ihrem Freund Nick - und zwar schwanger, in einer Welt, die so, wie sie einmal war, nicht mehr existiert. 90% der Menschheiit sind ausgestorben, 5% sind gegen die dafür verantwortliche Seuche White Horse aus unerklärlichen Worten immun, und die restlichen 5% wurden durch White Horse schrecklich verändert, teilweise zu nicht mehr menschlichen Geschöpfen mutiert. Mitten in dieser Welt bewegt sich die Geschichte, und Zoe hat immer wieder mit den unterschielichsten Problemen zu kämpfen.

Dieses Buch ist wahrlich düster. Düster und auch abscheulich, teilweise geradezu ekelhaft. Ich zum Beispiel lese ja gerne mal beim Essen, aber das musste ich bei dieser Geschichte sein lassen. Denn wenn sich die schwangere Zoe, die kranke Lisa übergab, oder mal wieder eine Mutation auftauchte, dann kam mir das Essen gleich wieder hoch. Aber das war in meinen Augen nicht unbedingt negativ, sondern bewies eher, wie gut man sich diese düstere Welt vorstellen konnte. Es war, als hätte ich die Mutationen vor Augen, sähe den andauernden Regen, die grauen Wolken und nass-dunklen Straßen vor mir.

Und ich hatte noch kaum so ein klares Bild der Charaktere. Ich sah den abscheulichen Schweizer, der Zoe nicht in Ruhe ließ, praktisch vor mir, konnte zwar nicht genau in sein Gesicht sehen, wusste aber, was dahinter war. Zoe, mit ihren kleinen Fehlern, die so gern vertraute und beschützte, Irini, die hilfsbereite Frau, sogar Nick und Morris. Alle Charaktere konnte ich in Kategorien unterteilen, die nicht nur gut oder böse hießen, sondern auch stark oder schwach, misstrauisch oder naiv, ich hatte einfach das Gefühl, die Charaktere kennenzulernen, auch mit ihren Fehlern, die das Buch auch so düster machten.

Unheimlich gefallen hat mir eben auch die Geschichte, die endlich mal anders ist als die üblichen Dystopien. Und auch die Erzählweise. Denn es wechselte immer zwischen "Damals" und "Jetzt". Im unglücklichsten Fall hätte es verwirrend wirken können, aber die Abschnitte gingen immer gut ineinander über, man las praktisch zwei Geschichten parallel, aber es hat mich überhaupt nicht abgelenkt.

Fazit:
Adams hat ein wahres Meisterwerk unter den Dystopien geschaffen und meine Sicht dieses Genres grundlegend verändert und positiv beeinflusst. Jemand, der den Dystopien schon überdrüssig ist, sollte es unbedingt mit diesem Buch nochmals versuchen, Dystopien-Einsteiger werden begeistert sein. Wer es aber nicht so mit düsteren Romanen und leichtem Gruselfaktor hat, der sollte es bleiben lassen. Ich für meinen Teil bin aber beeindruckt!(less)

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Dec 08, 2012 Dianne rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: netgalley, adult-fiction, cancer, drama, medical-suspense, own, post-apocalyptic, survival, romance

Told between two different times, noted as THEN and NOW, by Zoe, the central figure, WHITE HORSE is a story of a world disaster engineered by the greed of a premiere pharmaceutical company in search of a cure for cancer. What was created was an indestructible cancer virus that raged quickly through the body, either killing its host or mutating them in some way. The disease was named White Horse and ordinary Zoe Marshall is one of the questionably lucky 10% who survived.

In the course of seeing a...more

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Dec 07, 2012 S.A. Bodeen rated it 3 of 5 stars

I read this one quickly, because it was engrossing and I had to keep reading. It reminded me of The Road ( a book I loved long before Oprah did) except that White Horse seemed much more void of hope and gave us a clear idea of what happened to bring the world to its knees. The book goes back and forth between "then" ( before the world goes to hell) and "now" ( after the collapse, as Zoe is trying to survive). I really did like being able to see the collapse of the world, and how she ended up in...more

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Oct 17, 2012 Jill rated it 3 of 5 stars

This is Book One of a post-apocalyptic trilogy for adults. It’s quite dark, and yet echoes of humanity shed occasional light on an otherwise bleak landscape. The story is told in alternating sections of “then” (before the apocalyptic events) and “now” – both in Zoe Marshall’s voice.

In “now,” ninety percent of the world’s population is dead, killed in part by a virus, the source for which we don’t learn until close to the end of the book. (The virus is called “White Horse” by a televangelist to l...more This is Book One of a post-apocalyptic trilogy for adults. It’s quite dark, and yet echoes of humanity shed occasional light on an otherwise bleak landscape. The story is told in alternating sections of “then” (before the apocalyptic events) and “now” – both in Zoe Marshall’s voice.

In “now,” ninety percent of the world’s population is dead, killed in part by a virus, the source for which we don’t learn until close to the end of the book. (The virus is called “White Horse” by a televangelist to label it as one of the four horses of the Apocalypse.)

"Then" begins with Zoe, one month away from age 31, underemployed as a janitor for Pope Pharmaceuticals while she re-evaluates what she wants out of her life. Her husband, Sam, died in a car crash five years earlier, and ever since then, she has been saving to go to college. But one day, she comes home to find that someone has put a heavy jar into her apartment, and the mystery of it terrifies her. She starts seeing a therapist, Nick Rose, at first telling him she has “dreamed” of this jar because she doesn’t want to sound crazy. Zoe and Nick both feel an attraction to one another, but the relationship possibilities are overshadowed by cataclysmic events in the outside world: a lethal virus is spreading; experimentation with the weather has gotten out of control and has led to war; and among the ten percent left alive, not all of them have survived in a human form.

In "Now" Zoe is on a journey across the world, trying to find someone, somewhere, with whom she has a connection, and struggling to maintain her hold on sanity and humanity in a world inhabited by dangerous and desperate deviations from normality.

Evaluation: This book alternates between lyrical and scary; horror and hope; exhilaration and despair. Zoe is brave, but not infallible, and her constant fear and inner struggles with morality versus the will to survive are all too understandable, even as they weaken her. The juxtaposition of the "then" and "now" sections is done in a quite clever manner, with striking parallels between the action in each part. It’s a bit like The Stand, a bit like The Passage, and a bit like The Road. But although there is brutality and tragedy, the memory of friendship and the possibility of love drive Zoe to keep going. And just when you think it will end in too facile a manner, the author throws you a great big curve. Can’t wait to read the next installments!

Rating: 3.5/5
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Oct 10, 2012 Jan rated it 5 of 5 stars

I would have given the book four and a half stars, but half stares are not an option, the the cover alone earned the half star coming to a total of five stars.
Zoe is a thirty something woman who sweeps floors and cleans cages at Pope Pharmeceuticals. One day she comes home to find a large jar in her living room. She talks to her therapist, Nick about the jar and should she open it. Everything changes when the President of the United States makes an annoucement that humans are no longer a viable...more

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Sep 27, 2012 Kayt rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: dystopian-apocalyptic

...I kinda hate it when summaries misrepresent their book. Scratch that, I totally hate it. That might not reflect on the book's story or quality, but somewhere in he publishing process, someone made a decision to lie to potential readers. And then someone probably approved it.

So no, the book is not, as it would seem, about "everything is normal until BOOM the president announces we're all gonna die and now everyone is disappearing and we have to run or we'll never survive!"

The president doesn't...more

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Sep 09, 2012 Sommer rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: fiction

The world is in ruins after a disease has killed most of the planet and a young woman is in search to find her love while everyone around her is dying of a mystery virus...yada yada yada. It's your basic post-apocalyptic, everyone-is-dead-or-dying story. Love the premise. The darker the better. And this one is dark...lots of people die...it's great. It cleverly goes back and forth between the "Then", when everything started going to hell, and the "Now", where our heroine travels halfway across t...more

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Aug 29, 2012 Larissa rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: own

The jar was the beginning; it appeared out of nowhere, delivered by no one to be found sitting in her living room. No one can say how it arrived, this ancient jar, or where it came from. But all that was secondary, the only thing to matter now was what the jars sudden presence in her home and in her life meant. The jar was a mystery, and the only thing she knew for curtain was that this mysterious jar frightened her.

It started with the weather, then it was the war. But it wasn't just one country...more

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Aug 19, 2012 Kristina Rose rated it 1 of 5 stars

While the premise is relevant for the era we live in (if not played out at this point), the utter and complete fakeness and ridiculousness of the actual (mediocre) writing ruined the entire effect.

First, some sort of man made end of the world has finally come (about time!) and people are dropping dead everywhere, yet no one seems to feel the need to gather supplies or investigate what is going on. With people in this much denial, I would have been happy to let Darwin take over. People in general...more

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Aug 15, 2012 Cooper rated it 4 of 5 stars

I've been hearing nothing but raves about this novel so I finally had to take a day and read it.

It's the end of the world -- a deadly virus has been let loose on the world with 90% of the population died and the other 10% a mixture between remaining human or becoming a strange mutant. Zoe, our heroine, tells the story of her regular life and the life she now leads. We go back and forth between Now and Then to tell us of how the virus started and how it ends.

I admit I stayed up until 2am to finis...more

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Jul 25, 2012 Gina rated it 4 of 5 stars

I discovered Alex Adams through her interview on Terribleminds, and I immediately knew that I had to read White Horse. A superior spiritual cousin to Blackbirds by Chuck Wendig? Don't mind if I do. The book in a tweet from Alex Adams: White Horse: It’s like The Road, but with breasts, hope, and punctuation. For the record, this book is infinitely more depressing than The Road. Find Alex on Twitter and her blog, and there's a cool book page from SS Aussie.

First of all, don't let the charming cove...more

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Jul 11, 2012 Chris Bauer rated it 5 of 5 stars

"White Horse" by Alex Adams is one of the best books I've read this year. I have to give the book 4.5 stars for a couple of minor points at the end of this post.

The overall writing style is absolutely top notch with gobs of original and evocative prose. The story is a familiar one among contemporary writers; post-collapse survival, hazardous journeys and perils at every turn. But there are several key elements in this work which make it stand out, head and shoulders above the rest. Think of Corm...more "White Horse" by Alex Adams is one of the best books I've read this year. I have to give the book 4.5 stars for a couple of minor points at the end of this post.

The overall writing style is absolutely top notch with gobs of original and evocative prose. The story is a familiar one among contemporary writers; post-collapse survival, hazardous journeys and perils at every turn. But there are several key elements in this work which make it stand out, head and shoulders above the rest. Think of Cormac McCarthy's "The Road" but with a less fatalistic tone, better prose, and stronger characters.

The characters in the book are positively VIVID and real. The primary protagonist, Zoe, is as authentic a character as any I've ever read. Strong yet compassionate, a pragmatic realist who never loses her humanity in a world of post humanism, the reader cannot help but be moved along with the plot.

The narrative plot twists and turns like a serpent from start to finish and is engrossing along the way. Adams takes the old adage of "make bad things happen to good characters...and then make it even worse" to heart in almost every chapter. I cannot rave enough about the pure mechanics and construction process of the plot. Really top shelf stuff.

Finally the author has a talent for mind-blowing prose. Word choice, syntactical symmetry and other points which far too few authors pay attention to are given (what I suspect is) great attention. Descriptions of burnt out cities, choked highways and the infrequent encampments of humanity are utterly chilling.

I had only two minor gripes / observations which prevented me from giving it a full 5 stars. I'm sort of a stickler when it comes to 5 star reviews.

1. Too many flashbacks, done too frequently: While the construction of the chapters led to a very satisfying closed loop wherein the past events meet and "catch up" with current narrative, I found the bursts of flashback content to be distracting at times. I think I understand why Adams chose to layout the chronology in that specific order so the narrative would work, but it was just a TAD too jumpy from time to time.

2. There were one or two coincidences in the last several chapters which strained credibility. Not to the breaking point, but brushing up against the ceiling of suspension of disbelief. What could've been a "holy crap WTF!" moment turned into "Awww. Come on." instead. No spoilers here. You have to read it to see what I mean.

One more thing. The final paragraph of the book sent shivers up and down my spine. That hasn't happened in a very long time...(less)

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Jul 02, 2012 Barbara rated it 1 of 5 stars

“White Horse”
Alex Adams

“White Horse” is the story of thirty-eight year old Zoe, a janitor at Pope Pharmaceuticals, who leads an ordinary life until the President of the United States announces that humans are no longer a viable species and the end of the world is at hand. Zoe sees everyone she loves disappear in the disease, war and completely crazy weather destroys the world and the people in it. Zoe starts running and ends up in a farmhouse in what uses to be a farm in what used to be Italy....more

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Jul 02, 2012 Fence rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: sff

It is the end of the world as Zoe knows it. A mysterious plague came along, killed almost everyone. A small few survived, but were changed, mutated. Others were immune. But civilisation is gone. It is man eat man out there now as the survivors try to stay alive. Zoe isn’t just crossing the world in some random hope of trying to survive. She is pregnant, and the child’s father is in Greece. Or so she hopes, wishes and believes. She must reach him for any chance of a life.

Zoe tells her story in al...more

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Jun 21, 2012 Suspense Magazine rated it 4 of 5 stars

The horror in the pages of this apocalypse book creeps up on you gradually. The action alternates between ‘then and now.’ ‘Then’ is before the disaster and ‘now’ is after, a world where taxes are no longer certain, only death.
Zoe is a cleaning person at Pope Pharmaceuticals, but she’s highly educated. When her love was killed, she sort of gave up on life and is working at a job that gives her time to think and piece herself back together. Until the day a jar appears in her highly secure apartmen...more

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May 21, 2012 The Joy of Booking rated it 4 of 5 stars

One thing that the flap copy does not tell you about this book: it’s SCARY. I started reading it shortly before bed one night, and read 78 pages before I felt like I hit a passage where I could stop without having nightmares. And truthfully, I might have gotten more rest if I just stayed up all night to finish it! The psychological stress of Zoe’s world put me in mind of the traveling sections of The Passage – that sense of knowing the evil behind you, not knowing the evil in front of you, and p...more

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May 19, 2012 Rachel Lewis rated it 2 of 5 stars

This book is incredibly dreary--it's the story of a plague and somehow related war that kills off pretty much everyone everywhere. In the "now" sections, there were absolutely no likeable characters. On top of that, there's a major character, "the Swiss", who keeps spewing some fairly nasty misogyny, not to mention killing pretty much everyone else the heroine meets. Misogyny out of the mouth of a villain doesn't mean anything about the author's attitudes, of course, but that doesn't make it any...more

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May 04, 2012 Gayle rated it 4 of 5 stars

I love apocalyptic or dystopia novels. All I've read previously tend to be for younger readers. At last here is one for adults. The first in what will be a trilogy, and with movie rights already in the works, WHITE HORSE is a winner.

The language seems almost poetic and I would have kept reading for that reason alone. But, along with the excellent writing comes a terrific story about Zoe,a thirty-year-old woman who cleans cages in a medical laboratory where strange things begin to happen. Someth...more

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Apr 16, 2012 Luanne Ollivier rated it 4 of 5 stars

My secret passion is dystopian fiction. I usually indulge myself with young adult offerings, but the opening lines of Alex Adams' adult debut novel White Horse drew in and had me settled into my favourite reading nook (for a very long time)

"When I wake, the world is still gone. Only fragments remain. Pieces of places and people who were once whole."

I am always intrigued by what authors imagine our future might be.

Our protagonist is Zoe - a young widow who works as a cleaner at Pope Pharmaceutica...more My secret passion is dystopian fiction. I usually indulge myself with young adult offerings, but the opening lines of Alex Adams' adult debut novel White Horse drew in and had me settled into my favourite reading nook (for a very long time)

"When I wake, the world is still gone. Only fragments remain. Pieces of places and people who were once whole."

I am always intrigued by what authors imagine our future might be.

Our protagonist is Zoe - a young widow who works as a cleaner at Pope Pharmaceuticals. Zoe's story is literally told in a Then and Now fashion. (which really worked for me) We start at the beginning with a mysterious jar appearing in her apartment, then cut to Zoe already on the move, trying to get to what she believes will be a safe place. The narrative cuts back and forth, from people getting sick, sicker and the world we know slowly disintegrating to almost two years in the future as Zoe makes her way across a world hardly recognizable. Ninety percent of the population is wiped out, five percent are mutating in horrific ways and the remaining five percent seem to be immune. Zoe has no idea why she hasn't succumbed to the plague, named White Horse - a reference to one of the four horsemen of the Apocalypse.

White Horse was a very different read. I was horrified, yet mesmerized, repelled, yet drawn in by Adams' tale. She paints a brutal, raw picture with her prose. But those prose completely capture a world turned upside down. Fair warning to gentle readers - there are scenes and descriptions that may offend some.

I'm still not quite sure how I feel about Zoe. She comes across as a very strong character, both physically and mentally and we know that she will survive. I applaud her efforts to try and hang on to her humanity and ideals in this new world. While I find her a strong lead character, I never felt fully engaged with her, despite cheering for her to beat the odds. I'll have a chance to bond with her in future books - this is the first in a planned trilogy. I want to see where Adams takes Zoe next - the last line in White Horse is a gotcha.

White Horse is a strong debut from a new author and was definitely an addicting read for me.(less)

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DG Reads- Sailing...: White Horse discussion	7	106	Mar 01, 2013 09:01pm
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About Alex Adams

Alex Adams was born in New Zealand, raised in Greece and Australia, and currently lives in Oregon--which is a whole lot like New Zealand, minus those freaky-looking wetas. Her debut novel, White Horse (Emily Bestler Books/Atria) hits shelves April 17, 2012. Her fingers are crossed that the world won't end before then.

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Quotes from White Horse

“How do you file a restraining order against sadness?” — 11 people liked it

“Please don't' ask me how I feel about it. If I had to pick a word, I'd say homicidal.” — 5 people liked it

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White Horse (White Horse #1)

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