Day by Day Armageddon

Nov 07, 2011 Buggy rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: end-of-days, men-in-uniform-af-spc-op, shelf-10, war, horrors, top, walkers

Opening Line: "January 1st 0358 hrs. Happy New Year to me"

Wow, this was a surprise! Before I begin I should tell you that I’ve never read a Zombie book in my life and I’m not a fan of the genre (although I did think Shawn Of The Dead was hilarious.) I generally read romance novels with the occasional biography thrown in. So you can imagine my surprise when I became absolutely engrossed in a book about surviving a plague of walking dead.

Day By Day Armageddon was unputdownable and had me alternat...more Opening Line: "January 1st 0358 hrs. Happy New Year to me"

Wow, this was a surprise! Before I begin I should tell you that I’ve never read a Zombie book in my life and I’m not a fan of the genre (although I did think Shawn Of The Dead was hilarious.) I generally read romance novels with the occasional biography thrown in. So you can imagine my surprise when I became absolutely engrossed in a book about surviving a plague of walking dead.

Day By Day Armageddon was unputdownable and had me alternating between being really freaked out,(checking doors and windows) despairing for the future of mankind (also afraid of the dark) and getting my personal survival kit (weapons, food, Band-Aids, Gin) ready for “that day” -Could I really kill my undead friends and neighbours?

Simply put this is more then just a zombie novel and this romance reader loved every minute of it.

DBDA has been written from the first person and in the form of a journal which for me increased the suspense factor. Because our unnamed hero sometimes starts out an entry with things like “0430 hrs- I’m still weak from blood loss” before going back and explaining. As the reader you’re like, holy shit what happened last night?

The narrator is a US Navel officer who begins his journal as a New Years resolution. It all starts out rather mundanely with day to day life stuff and a few ominous mentions like this one "It seems that something is going on in China; the local news reported some type of influenza virus sweeping them over there.”

The flu is of course the Zombie virus and it spreads to apocalyptic proportions within months. I found these parts really interesting; how the author saw the realistic(?) breakdown of society, media blackouts and the extents the US government ultimately took to eradicate the disease. In the early entries our hero spends a great deal of time describing (in a very calm manner) how he safe guards his home; locating and stockpiling weapons and ammunition, collecting food and water and having an alternate power/communication plan in action. He’s a super smart guy and although the military jargon and descriptions of guns got to be a bit much I’d definitely want him on my side.

With swarms of undead now parading through the streets our barricaded hero eventually teams up with his neighbour John and with no options left the pair flees the city, picking up other survivors along the way and dealing with a multitude of post apocalyptic problems. The futility of it all really got to me here as they struggle to stay alive under ridiculous odds. I had a hard time seeing a point to it all. (Good bet I wouldn’t survive)

This book is full of action and also a ton of well written suspense although it wasn’t as gory as I was I expecting. Don’t get me wrong though, it has its moments but its not gore for gores sake, all the kills are warranted. (Can’t believe I just said that) As silly as this sounds this book really made me think; what would I do? How could I prepare myself? Could I survive? I should also warn you that this is addictive reading and that the ending is well… more than a cliff-hanger. Just make sure you have book 2 Beyond Exile: Day by Day Armageddon on hand because the war on Zombies isn’t over yet.

Highly Recommended for lovers of apocalyptic fiction, Zombie fiction, horror, adventure, disaster stories, military buffs, survivalist fiction and the occasional romance reader. Cheers! (less)

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Oct 05, 2010 Stephen rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: audiobook, ebooks, dead-heads

3.5 stars. While not up to the quality or enjoyment of World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War which is on my list of "All Time Favorite" novels, this book can hold its decaying head up high and proudly moan that it is the SECOND BEST ZOMBIE BOOK I HAVE EVER READ.

Written in "authentic" journal style (complete with misspelled words), this book has a gritty, realistic feel to it and a tight plot that keeps the tension up at a good clip. Short, fast and enjoyable.

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Jul 01, 2012 Becky rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2012, abandoned, apocalyptic-types, disappointing, fantasy, dystopias, horror, made-my-eyes-bleed, political, reviewed, science-fiction, zombies, challenge-1010

If I could give this book negative stars, I would.

It's been a long time since a book has made me as angry as this one did. I don't think I'm the overly critical sort. I have expectations, and I want them to be met, but I think that I'm willing to compromise. If a book isn't the best written but has a good story, or if the writing is gorgeous, but the story is kinda "meh", I can appreciate the book for what it is and move on. But this was just painfully, ridiculously bad.

This book's gimmick is...more

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Oct 15, 2008 Brett Botbyl rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Ok. Zombie come and zombies go. But as raw as it is...I LOVED this book! It's a diary format tale of a military guy stuck in the burbs of the living dead. What a guilty pleasure. Or maybe it's the voyeuristic me dancing behind the overturned car with a high-powered rifle and only enough SPAM to last me another two days!

DIE ZOMBIE BASTARDS!

;-)

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May 13, 2010 John rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 3rd-term

This is a novel by J.L Bourne, an aspiring fiction author. The title, DAY BY DAY ARMAGEDDON suggests that this is a book about either an apocalypse or, an infestation of the undead which is what the cover suggests. It is a 200 page long zombie fiction, and a well written book. It is written in the form of a journal and in the view of the main character.
Though the author never mentions the main characters name, he tells us a lot about him. Such as, he an unmarried air force pilot who lives in a s...more This is a novel by J.L Bourne, an aspiring fiction author. The title, DAY BY DAY ARMAGEDDON suggests that this is a book about either an apocalypse or, an infestation of the undead which is what the cover suggests. It is a 200 page long zombie fiction, and a well written book. It is written in the form of a journal and in the view of the main character.
Though the author never mentions the main characters name, he tells us a lot about him. Such as, he an unmarried air force pilot who lives in a semi-small house about 18 miles away from San Antonio. He is a modest man who doesn’t have very many close friends before most of the world’s population is turned into flesh eating undead. Other survivors see him as a good honest man who, several times goes out of his way and risk’s his own life to save other survivors. They also respect him and view him as an authoritative figure. The most important secondary character is John. He is with the main character for almost the entire duration of his fight for survival and is always helpful to other characters. Though he is troubled by the death of his wife and son, and the caring of his dog Annabelle, he still manages to do his best to keep other peoples spirits up. The other four characters, who are later recued by this rag tag duo, are (in order of their appearance) William, who is a chemist and the husband of Jan (short for Janet) who was a nurse before the outbreak. Their daughter, Laura who we are not told much about, only that she is under ten years old. And finally Tara, a 20 year old woman that they find trapped in a car in the parking lot of an old shopping mall. For quite some time after her rescue she is unable to speak or eat.
The main plot goes like this; Reports of strange attacks halfway around the globe, all American troops pulling out of other countries, foreign duty assignments cancelled without reason. Total outbreak. The disease hits home soil and the proverbial shit hits the fan. After it is announced that the president has died, the newly appointed president authorizes the use of tactical nukes on all major cities in the U.S. When they get this warning the main character say’s “Then the anchorwoman spilt the proverbial beans”. They decide they need to bug out, so they find an aircraft and fly aimlessly until they come upon an old beach resort.
Here they find an old ham radio. Soon after establishing a base they receive desperate cries for help. It is at this point they find William and his family. Upon returning to their little slice of heaven/hell they discover Tara locked in a car surrounded by the undead. A short while later they have her on a boat and they decide to head further up the coast until they run out of fuel. When they reach land they start heading inland. After several days of travel they stumble upon one of the 8 original minutemen launch and storage sites named, hotel 23.
I don’t believe that the author wrote this book with any particular message. With all things considering (Like, that this book started on a forum for small time zombie fiction authors) this is an extremely well written and interesting novel.
(less)

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Oct 27, 2010 Amanda rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Almost as good as World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War. Has an authentic soldierly feel to it- you can tell the author was/is (not sure which) a soldier. I felt like the last half, especially towards the end, got somewhat weak plotwise.

There is a second book published that continues the story. Might pick it up in the future, but not anytime soon.

*Note- Saw someone mention there were quite a few typos- wanted to clarify that those are intentional typos. It is set up to be supposedly wr...more

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Dec 19, 2008 T.j. rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Ok to start off this book is freaking amazing. I have my reasons why i think this book is amazing. (1.) It has zombies, how is that not cool?(unless you don't like zombie) (2.) It is done in a diary format, in military time, in first person perspective. (3.) and finally this book is probably the most intense and scary book I have read for a long time, but don't take my word for it here is an example from “Day by Day Armageddon”

“I shut the door again. My instincts told me, @* the plane cover;...more Ok to start off this book is freaking amazing. I have my reasons why i think this book is amazing. (1.) It has zombies, how is that not cool?(unless you don't like zombie) (2.) It is done in a diary format, in military time, in first person perspective. (3.) and finally this book is probably the most intense and scary book I have read for a long time, but don't take my word for it here is an example from “Day by Day Armageddon”

“I shut the door again. My instincts told me, @* the plane cover; it's not that important. For some reason, I ignored that. I took out my LED light and tightened it on the light mount of my rifle, I switched the light on and opened the door again. Put the muzzle of my weapon in so that I could light up the dark garage. The smell was almost unbearable.
The source of the noise became immediately apparent. A dead mechanic, crushed by a hydraulic lift was lying there on his back, re-animated, and banging a torque wrench on the ground. A low grunt came from his badly mutilated body as he tried to look up at me. He was reaching for me. It was then, in the span of a second, that the following happened:
I saw the bite marks of the flesh that had been torn away from his face and neck. I knew that he didn't do it himself, and deduced that there was another dead @* in the room. Last, but not least, the door flew open and I was tackled by one of them (Best guess, the same one that had the mechanic for lunch).
The only thing that was keeping this stick ridden $#!& ball from biting my nose off was the fact that I had my weapon wedged between us. I pushed it off, and it (couldn't tell male of female) grabbed my wrist. I gave it a nice rifle but to the head and it fell back. I immediately got to my feet and popped a round in it's head. I wanted to @#^&ing mow it in half, but the reasonable half of me said, don't waste ammunition.
The door to the garage was shut, it and was going to %&*#ing stay that way. I could hear the sound of fists on the door, and I knew that there were more inside. I went back on the side of the garage where I saw some oil drums and rolled one of them back around to the front, to put it in the doorway and prevent whatever was behind that door from opening it and ruining my day.”

So intense huh? Now there are a few reasons that I decided to read this book. One it has fecking zombies, how are zombies not cool, especially when there are lots of them. Two it involves the military. Third and finally it is done in a diary format, books like that only heighten the mood. If I could recommend this to anyone, it would probably be people who are into fantasy and/or horror. This was not a difficult book to read, the large print helped. I would love to read more books in the series, hopefully he will right more.(less)

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Nov 21, 2008 Michael rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Zombie Lovers

Shelves: zombie-stuff, 2008

Day by Day Armageddon is a zombie survival story written from the point of view of one character, through the writing in his journal. Each section is dated just like a diary would be and then a description of the days events. Through his journal the story of the world coming to an end is related while the writer tries to survive.

The format is a nice change of pace in a subgenre that is so loaded with similar stories in similar formats that after reading one book you may have just read them all....more Day by Day Armageddon is a zombie survival story written from the point of view of one character, through the writing in his journal. Each section is dated just like a diary would be and then a description of the days events. Through his journal the story of the world coming to an end is related while the writer tries to survive.

The format is a nice change of pace in a subgenre that is so loaded with similar stories in similar formats that after reading one book you may have just read them all. The diary style of DBDA is both an asset and a hindrance. The style is refreshing because it gives you a look at survival horror from a different angle and it also allows you to feel more connected to the main character because you are reading his direct thoughts as he wrote them. I think that the style also lends to more creepy and suspenseful feeling in that each new section brings all new possibilities due to the fact that you are not sure how far in the future the next entry may be.

The style has its merits but it has its warts as well. First it seemed that the author had issues keeping to the style, in places it seemed like it was someone writing a journal and in other parts it looked like the prose was like writing a novel. If the book was supposed to written in journal form from someone we assume is not a writer, the prose should reflect that and be consistent throughout. Another problem, not so much the style or authors fault, is that people seem to have trouble grasping the concept of the style. Reading other reviews and talking people has revealed to me that some people believe that the book is poorly written do to week writing and spelling/grammar errors. It is often forgotten that his book is written from an everyday Joe point of view, someone who may not have the best spelling or grammar and is often journaling in haste. This makes it terribly hard to tell whether the errors and sub par writing, in spots, are the characters or the authors and many people seem to have issues determining which it is. I'm inclined to think that the errors for the most part are that of the character, not the author and were left in to help validate the journal like style the author used.

The main character seems to be a real tough guy and was pretty well ready and geared up for a zombie invasion. He's ex-military and would probably qualify as the most resourceful person in any of the books readers have ever heard of. I'm not one to point at a zombie novel and complain about realism but James Bond would be envious of his resourcefulness. However, I would not have it any other way: after all butt-kicking heroes make for much more interesting stories.

J.L. Bourne did a great job with pacing and DBDA should keep reader interested and engaged. You have mad scrambles, shootouts, planes, boats, exploration, and seemingly hair brained ideas all within the pages of this book. When the last page left me hanging I definitely wanted to read more.

I give DBDA for being what it is: an experimental novel written in a sub-genre that has little room for anything new. I believe the author's intent was to take a zombie survival story and give it a different spin via its style. In that Bourne succeeded while delivering an enjoyable, well paced story. (less)

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Apr 18, 2013 Francis Gahren rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy

START INTERCEPT
SPORADIC NEW REPORTS INDICATE CHAOS AND VIOLENCE SPREADING THROUGH U.S. CITIES. AN UNKNOWN EVIL IS SWEEPING THE PLANET. THE DEAD ARE RISING TO CLAIM THE EARTH AS THE NEW DOMINANT SPECIES IN THE FOOD CHAIN.
INTERCEPT COMPLETE

SURVIVOR

In your hands is the handwritten journal depicting one man's struggle for survival. Trapped in the midst of global disaster, he must make decisions; choices that ultimately mean life, or the eternal curse to walk as one of them.

ENTER IF YOU WILL INTO...more

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Mar 21, 2013 Dawn Peers rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: amazon-reviewed, zombies

I am a huge fan of post-apocalyptic fiction, especially zombie novels.

I came to JL Bourne's books only a few months ago, but within a few pages of this his writing style had me hooked.

The story initially comes from the perspective of one military man immediately before, during, and after the viral outbreak that brings around the inevitable zombie apocalypse. The pragmatism of the main character brings to mind the way Max Brook's characters operated in World War Z, but he is realistic, fallible,...more

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Mar 19, 2013 Amaranth rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

2 stelline e mezzo

Da http://labellaeilcavaliere.blogspot.i...

Dopo Gli zombi non piangono e Warm Bodies, avevo il desiderio di leggere una storia con zombie in versione classica: putrescenti cadaveri ambulanti, perennemente affamati di cervelli e carne umana. Era quello che mi aspettavo da Diario di un sopravvissuto agli zombie che, in effetti, rispetta decisamente la tradizione.
Avrete già dedotto, tuttavia, che ne sono rimasta delusa. Mi sono trascinata, pagina dopo pagina, nella speranza che s...more

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Feb 08, 2013 John rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

A rapid and engaging read. The book is simply the journal of an ordinary fellow (who happens to be a military officer) who decides to keep a diary, starting on the 1st of the year. As time rolls on, his ordinary every day life erodes as the zombie epidemic explodes, eventually consuming his normal life, civilization, and the pages of his journal. The humble diary becomes the documentary evidence of one man's struggle to survive the horror.

Being a journal, the story is written in a 1st person nar...more

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Feb 03, 2013 Haralambi Markov rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: horror-dark

What you can expect: As the title and the cover have hinted “Day by Day Armageddon” is a post apocalyptic survival horror with zombies, where the events are relayed on a day by day basis in the form of a journal.

Strengths: It has zombies. Suspense and intensity are top notch. The protagonist is a sort of MacGyver, which is always fun to read.

Weaknesses: The journal is filled with typos. Since it is a plot driven novel, the characters do not have the time to grow.

Summary: “Day by Day Armageddon”...more What you can expect: As the title and the cover have hinted “Day by Day Armageddon” is a post apocalyptic survival horror with zombies, where the events are relayed on a day by day basis in the form of a journal.

Strengths: It has zombies. Suspense and intensity are top notch. The protagonist is a sort of MacGyver, which is always fun to read.

Weaknesses: The journal is filled with typos. Since it is a plot driven novel, the characters do not have the time to grow.

Summary: “Day by Day Armageddon” follows a nameless protagonist, part of the US military as he and his neighbor John flee San Antonio, now overrun by zombies, searching for shelter from the undead menace. Their daily to-do list includes scavenging for provisions, looting for fire arms and ammo, scouting for safety and naturally shooting the undead. Along the way they travel by air and water. As the story progresses the number of survivors increases as the protagonist rescues a family trapped in their house and a young woman.

Characters: As I have stated above “Day by Day Armageddon” is more plot driven than it is character driven. The author takes the reader on a race with time, where it’s important to be constantly on the move or risk being eaten. When the human mind’s sole emphasis falls on one word: survival, it’s more likely that any person won’t be left with the time to react to the sudden changes in his/hers life, but just learn the skills required to be fit in the environment.

Emotional growth here is not so much the accent. Instead J.L. Bourne shows the growth in applicable skills as in learning to shoot and deliver headshots, be alert, move around with as much stealth as possible and strategically plan ahead of time. In these regards it’s great the main protagonist has the military training in his background to provide the believability of the events portrayed in the novel. Although he is a US pilot, he is a likeable guy and reads as a statistically average male. Coupled with the close first person narrative in the journal and the fact he has no name it becomes easy to experience the action first hand as the protagonist, if the reader has enough imagination.

From the supporting characters John has longest page time. As an engineer his knowledge and experience come in handy several times and proves to be a valuable asset to the survivors. He is the protagonist’s right hand and also shows the initial psychological devastation that would come with a zombie apocalypse. The rescued family, William, Jan and little Laura, are rushed into the story at a later stage and didn’t resonate much. Last and most recent is Tara, who in the sequel might be the hero’s love interest.

The Story: I am bound by the reader’s etiquette to not spoil any pleasure for a potential reader and especially a genre fan, so I will be brief here. J.L. Bourne has put a lot of effort into this novel, which has apparently evolved from an online serialized novel. You can tell this by the wild ride his characters take, which leads them through different terrains such as land, water and even air. The attention to detail in connection to the various technological aspects, such as creating alarm devices out of spare parts, detailed accounts of how to fly plains and jump start cars as well as being consistent with the threat that is the zombies, certainly creates a solid alternative world.

Furthermore, “Day by Day Armageddon” is fashioned as a journal with hand written date and time, underlined passages, scribbles, smudges, added notes and letters and even pictures. Here come the typos. I guess that in the effort to be as realistic as possible I explain the existence of the easy to spot typos. After all, who has time to spell properly, when zombies are out there and time is of the essence. Nevertheless the typos were the proverbial stone in my shoe.

Thankfully it was a minor, personal issue, which the world building managed to overshadow. I enjoyed the inclusion of both slow and fast paced undead, which is explained quite neatly in the story and adds a while new dimension to the threat and the chances for survival. I am not as sure as to whether the survival routes the characters engineered were farfetched, but I guess that there is no end to human ingenuity.

The Verdict: Based on all the points raised here and my unconditional love towards zombies I declare this book as a definite WIN for zombie and horror fans in general. There were bits and pieces that rang a bit convenient to really happen, but on the other hand lucky brakes are to be expected every once in awhile. My suggestion would be to read this on Halloween. (less)

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Dec 11, 2012 Joe rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

"J.L. Bourne is on active duty as a commissioned U.S. naval officer." Thank you for your service. No thanks for the novel.

I bought the book (which include this novel and its sequel) from a library holiday book sale for three dollars, and I wasn't expecting much. Written by a naval aviator (update: according to his Twitter, he's a shooter, or catapult officer on a carrier) from the viewpoint of a journaler who is also a naval aviator, I'm not sure if the author is a bad writer, or is writing from...more

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Dec 10, 2012 Ben rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Not many

Finished this.

Why was it written?

[NOTE - I listened to this from Audible. My comments are about the writing, not the narrator. He did great with less than great material.]

It's quite literally a (nearly) day-by-day account of a pandemic that turns everyone into undead zombies who ravage the planet, told from the perspective of a fairly bland lead character, an American soldier/deserter originally from who gives a shit now holed up in who cares Texas.

The timeline is January through April, and we g...more

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Sep 07, 2012 Bryce rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

If you're into the technical, procedural elements of surviving a zombie attack, but you thought that The Zombie Survival Guide: Recorded Attack; Downtown LA had too much of a sense of humor.... than this book is for you.

Who knew that a zombie apocalypse could be so dad-blasted boring?

Guns, ammunition, planes, nuclear fallout ranges, computer programs, boat engines; all of them described in great detail, with a lot of numbers and acronyms and absolutely no heart or soul. While I'm sure Bourne us...more

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Aug 22, 2012 Richard rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Rating: 3* of five

The Book Report: The book description says:
An ongoing journal depicting one man's personal struggle for survival, dealing with the trials of an undead world unfolding around him. An unknown plague sweeps the planet. The dead rise to claim the Earth as the new dominant species. Trapped in the midst of a global tragedy, he must make decisions...choices that that ultimately mean life, or the eternal curse to walk as one of them.

My Review: I really, really wish the narrative fra...more Rating: 3* of five

The Book Report: The book description says:
An ongoing journal depicting one man's personal struggle for survival, dealing with the trials of an undead world unfolding around him. An unknown plague sweeps the planet. The dead rise to claim the Earth as the new dominant species. Trapped in the midst of a global tragedy, he must make decisions...choices that that ultimately mean life, or the eternal curse to walk as one of them.

My Review: I really, really wish the narrative frame of “journal” was gone. This novel is just fine without that explanation, in fact a good deal better without it, because no one on the surface of the earth describes their little sister as their little sister in a journal. (Among other details that don't fit in the journal frame.)

A book to be enjoyed without one's awf'ly awwwgust self-imposed “this is not good enough because it is not good enough” filters on; note to snobbish readers: Yes, I rated it higher than Gone Girl and all works of, oh say Dickens, because reading it was a great deal more pleasant than reading those books.

IN. MY. OPINION.

Now. Perfect it isn't, and as annoying as the self-published novel with all the usual faults (wrong words used, punctuation eccentricities) can be, this one's got something going for it: Energy. This story's getting told by someone who really really likes the storytelling. I found that infectious (pardon pun) because, AGAIN IN MY OPINION (and how tired I am of having to defend my utterances by stating something that the absurdly over-sensitive or over-critical need to get a damn grip and assume is the case in a review), it takes this zombie novel out of the cash-in herd where Colson Whitehead et alii live. Bourne loves this story and can't not tell it, and that came through to me loud and clear.

Would I recommend it? No, not really, because zombie novels aren't in need of recommendations to the fan base, and the non-fans don't need to bother themselves with the genre. In my ongoing quest not to turn back into a dismissive, annoying book-snob, I read this because Stephen-from-Ohio (a zombie-book aficionado) gave it a good review. It's not a genre I'm going to adopt as regular diet, but there are some good stories being told in it. This being my fourth zombie novel, though, I don't want to go any deeper into the swamp. Go out on the highest note yet, I say, scraping zombie off my shoe.(less)

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Aug 11, 2012 Esme rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: dystopia-apocalypse

Was zuerst scheint wie ein mutiertes Grippevirus, breitet sich rasend schnell von China über die ganze Welt aus und nichts ist mehr wie es einmal war. Die Toten erwachen und werden von einem Heißhunger nach Menschenfleisch angetrieben. Jeder, der von ihnen gebissen wird, reiht sich in die Horden der Untoten ein. Letzter Ausweg, den Zombieherden Herr zu werden, sind Atombomben, die über den größten amerikanischen Städten abgeworfen werden. Klappt nicht so ganz.

Day by Day Armageddon von J.L. Bourn...more

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May 21, 2012 Emily rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

***1/2
Great plot! I enjoyed the survivalist side of the story. The solutions were fun to read. There is a certain satisfaction in seeing the poor saps around him being overrun and the main character knowing exactly what to do.

However, most of the characters have unusual special skills. In fact, between the main character and his friends, I sometimes felt like I was watching Charlie's Angels. All such good, clean American's lacking faults. Given how much interest the main character has in his l...more

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Feb 13, 2012 Jo Anne B rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I appreciated the different perspective in this story about fighting zombies. It was told by a soldier as he wrote of the events in his journal. However, because of this it felt like a news report. It was also hard to bond with the characters because there was no dialogue and you never heard their voice. It was a superbly detailed account of the events the soldier endured trying to survive in the world of zombies. I found myself thinking what I would have done in his situation. But even then, th...more

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Feb 09, 2012 EdsEds rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I am a great fan of zombie fiction and post-apocalyptic fiction in general. I absolutely loved Max Brook's World War Z so I was really excited to pick up this book. The journalistic style intrigued me and I had hoped to get a realistic, first person view of a survivor in a world ruled by the undead.

How easy would it be to survive in a world full of flesh eating zombies? Really easy - especially considering that the protagonist is apparently McGyver! Our hero can fly a plane, hotwire a car, is a...more
I am a great fan of zombie fiction and post-apocalyptic fiction in general. I absolutely loved Max Brook's World War Z so I was really excited to pick up this book. The journalistic style intrigued me and I had hoped to get a realistic, first person view of a survivor in a world ruled by the undead.

How easy would it be to survive in a world full of flesh eating zombies? Really easy - especially considering that the protagonist is apparently McGyver! Our hero can fly a plane, hotwire a car, is a dead shot and can fashion a weapon out of anything. And he is extremely, ridiculously well-prepared. He already has solar panels installed from a long time ago and has rechargable submarine batteries lying around his house for some reason. A wardrobe full of (fireproof and maybe biteproof?) full body nomex flight suits is also a nice touch, among other things. Even before there were hints of the undead epidemic, he goes to great lengths to fortify his house because he is worried about potential looters. Yes, looters.

Finding weapons and food in this post-apocalyptic world also seems to be almost effortless - when the protagonist and his companions travel around zombie-infested Texas, they frequently stumble onto things like guns and ammo and night vision goggles. It puts me to mind of a first person shooter video game where these things are just lying around waiting to be taken.

There is no real sense of danger at all - not from zombies and other human survivors. The main character escapes scrapes all too easily and seems to be equipped with all the skills and tools necessary to survive in a world filled with the living dead - in short, he is just too perfect. Even the people he meets along the way have conveniently useful skills. The people he ends up rescuing are not web designers or middle managers - oh no - he meets a mechanical engineer, a chemist and a nurse. There is one woman with no obvious 'useful' skills but the hero does mention that she is very attractive OK, the attractive one - check. And lets not forget the cute dog that alerts them to the presence of the undead. And the icing on the cake - they are all good-natured, well-adjusted and helpful people. Not a nutter or even slightly obnoxious one among them.

The biggest problem in this book are the 2-dimensional characters. You would think that the first person style viewpoint would flesh out the main character better, but no, he is so bland and colourless, so much that when he drops the occasional F-bomb, it is very jarring - almost like the author is trying to artificially inject some 'character' into him. Our hero would occasionally bring up the fact that he is scared and fearful - but somehow this doesn't ring true at all. As they say - show, don't tell.

At the end of the day, I felt more sympathy for the zombies.

It's not completely without its merits which is why I gave it 2 starts instead of 1- I found it entertaining enough to pass a rainy afternoon. For me at least, zombies are like pizza - there is no such thing as bad pizza!(less)

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Nov 11, 2011 Lafcadio rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: poco, released, zack

This was, in general, a fairly good zombie tale, with plenty of suspense.

One thing I found distracting was the editing. In particular, the error that kept popping up was this:

Zombies should be wandering around. In this book, the zombies wondered around. It's a spelling error that changes the meaning of the word. Every time the author meant to use the word wander, he used wonder instead. This is not the fault of J.L. Bourne. I do not expect authors to be good spellers. The responsibility of the a...more

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Oct 16, 2011 Megan rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: zombies, apocalyptic

(Re-posted from http://theturnedbrain.blogspot.com)

Does exactly what it says on the box. A never named navy officer decides to keep a diary literally days before a zombie flavoured kind of hell breaks loose, and the book is a day by day chronicle of his efforts to survive.

There are a lot of things to like about this book. If we start at a purely aesthetic viewpoint, this is a book that makes me glad to have resisted the ebook wave. I don’t mean the cover (which isn’t terrible but I wouldn’t say...more

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Oct 01, 2011 Luis Elorreaga rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The 3 star raring might imply I didn't enjoy this short and sweet zombie read. It shouldn't. It was lots of fun but just lacked depth. I wanted to get to know all the other characters but they were mostly there to give the protagonist a sense of purpose and duty and were not characters in their own right. Things I really appreciated included the consequence of using live gunfire in a zombie ridden world. It wasn't a get out of jail free card and often resulted with more of the undead on their do...more

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Sep 19, 2011 Blood Rose Books rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

J.L Bourne's first book in a series that follows the journal entries of a combat pilot for the U.S.A as the life as we know it comes to an end.
Sporadic News reports. A strange virus is sweeping the Earth. Violence and chaos spread throughout the world, it is unknown if there is a place untouched by this virus. The dead are rising, seeking the living to feed on. The dead are rising in thousands, and as the living struggle to survive, one realizes that the dead are the new dominant race of the wor...more J.L Bourne's first book in a series that follows the journal entries of a combat pilot for the U.S.A as the life as we know it comes to an end.
Sporadic News reports. A strange virus is sweeping the Earth. Violence and chaos spread throughout the world, it is unknown if there is a place untouched by this virus. The dead are rising, seeking the living to feed on. The dead are rising in thousands, and as the living struggle to survive, one realizes that the dead are the new dominant race of the world. This is the hand written journal depicting one man's struggle to survive in a new world of global disaster, where the dead keep on living. This journal depicts the decisions he is forced to make which ultimately decides whether one lives or becomes part of the cursed walking the Earth as the dead.

I really enjoyed this book, it was non-stop action, lots of suspense and a great, well written story, that kept me coming back for more (if I wasn't required to join in for Christmas festivities, I probably wouldn't have put this book down).

This book is told in the first person diary format, so if you are not a fan of these types of books then you will probably not enjoy this book. I personally liked the format as it was more realistic than strictly being told in the first person. The journal entries are how he sees the world and the events that are happening to and around him. I believe in this way the reader really gets to know the main character within the book, and what his thought process is and the struggles he is forced to go through. This book really draws the reader in, and i never knew that the books could be so suspenseful told in a journal format. I really enjoyed the overall realness and believability of the book, even though it would be put in the horror/paranormal/fantasy genre.

My only criticism of this book is that it ended when it did. It felt like the story was not finished, which is true as there is a second. I wish the two books were put together because they are both on the slightly shorter side than most books. Nevertheless, I don't think that you cannot Not read the second book, I know that I need to know what happens next which is what you want in any novel, something that keeps you coming back for more.

This book is for people who are looking for a nonstop action fast paced book, whether you read horror or zombie books at all. This book is about survival and what would one do in order to survive. Would you try to survive on your own, or would you seek the help of others? How would you handle knowing you are one of the only humans left alive on Earth? And really when push came to shove and your survival is on the line, what would you do to survive? Time to get your survival kit ready, as Day by Day Armageddon feels like a realistic ride, that the this virus might just be around the corner. As I said I really enjoyed this book and I am going to pick up the second one and delve into reading it as soon as I can. I need to know what happens next.

Enjoy!!!(less)

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Sep 13, 2011 06BraedonR rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Sci-fi and World War Z Fans

Recommended to 06BraedonR by: Internet

Shelves: zombies

Day by Day Armageddon is a journal-format book about a USAF FLight Crew who has heard of a illness in China that is killing off thousands of people. He goes and gets the neccesary supplies and starts to forify his house from "looters". As he Watches the news and looks at podcasts of the carnage he is watching he is seeing that they brutally attack people. Later in the story he befriends his neigbor named John. They go out to get supplies and are attacked by the "ghouls". They deside to leave Atl...more

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Jun 29, 2011 William M. rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: horror

I've heard of this book for years. It seems to be one of the more popular zombie novels, so I decided to give it a try. The author is J.L. Bourne, and not surprisingly, is a member of the military. His voice lends an authenticity to many elements dealing with survival, which is one of the book's strong points. The technical details on guns, aviation, and situational strategy made everything fell more believable.

As a reader, I found that the journal-style storytelling hurt the emotional investme...more I've heard of this book for years. It seems to be one of the more popular zombie novels, so I decided to give it a try. The author is J.L. Bourne, and not surprisingly, is a member of the military. His voice lends an authenticity to many elements dealing with survival, which is one of the book's strong points. The technical details on guns, aviation, and situational strategy made everything fell more believable.

As a reader, I found that the journal-style storytelling hurt the emotional investment of the characters, since you only really get to know one character throughout the book. Everyone else is mentioned only briefly and glossed over. This style also covers up all the dialogue, distancing you further from the characters. Journal-style entries can be effective if done right. This one was just okay. It seemed difficult for the author to keep up the suspense with the character already alive and writing about it. Richard Laymon's "Island" is a great example of a journal-style story that racks up the suspense and makes you feel the author is in constant danger.

There were a few really cool concepts that Bourne came up with that I have not seen mentioned before in zombie novels. One great idea was that the government, in a desperate attempt to exterminate as many zombies as possible, decided to use nuclear weapons on strategic cities across America, where the heaviest population of the undead was gathered. However, this backfired horribly because the radiation destroyed the bacteria on the zombies, keeping them from rotting, which made them stronger. Very cool. But unique things like that were few and far between.

Bourne moves the action, locations, and characters at a nice pace, and although I think the overall book was just average, I would be interested in reading the sequel to see how he expands the story. The many typos were frustrating to read, as well as the misspelling of character names. I'll take a chance and read the second book in the series, but I really hope the author turns it up a notch. For a more profound and fully formed story, I would recommend Kim Paffenroth's "Dying To Live" series or Jonathan Maberry's "Rot & Ruin" books.
(less)

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Feb 24, 2011 Tim Ward rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

J.L. Bourne writes my kind of zombie book, not too heavy on gore, language or nudity, and focuses on the survival aspect in a post apocalyptic world. He has an interesting 1st person point of view in journal format, which makes for a quick read and insight into the main character that makes him likable. The only drawback to this style is knowing that he survived the scene he is documenting. Despite this he manages to build great suspense and I often was so caught up in the action that I forgot i...more

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Jan 10, 2011 Meg Day rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is a scary and almost realistic feeling type of book. It definitely go me thinking: what if there was a disease that turned humans into undead with a bite...ugghhh scary...currently i am making my own evac plan..just in case. But anyway the book is written like a journal which is nice because you get to hear j/l Bourne's personal thoughts and plans as he goes through the motions of trying to survive in a zombie apocalypse. NOW that me clarify normal this is not a book i would read i like gi...more

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Nov 16, 2010 Zach rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I enjoyed Day by Day Armageddon, it was my first time reading a zombie apocalypse book and I wasn’t sure if I was going to really enjoy the subject matter but this book turned out to be a page turner, I finished the entire book in one sitting. I found the book poking around amazon.com and purchased it after reading some positive reviews. The book is formatted as if it is the diary of an Air Force officer and tracks his experiences in diary entries starting shortly before the outbreak begins. As...more

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Afterwords Books: Day by Day Armageddon	8	10	May 16, 2013 06:31am
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