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Nano Z #1

Nano Z

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Fired from his job of twenty-two years, Mack is contemplating his bleak prospects when things take a turn from bad to worse.

While desperately trying to survive, he unwittingly helps Amber, a fourteen year old girl with a dark, troubled past.

Brought together by overwhelming circumstances, Mack tries his best to protect her as they travel through lawless lands with roaming undead. But what they are forced to endure may be more than either of them can handle.

A deadly nano-virus spreads out of control, turning living creatures into flesh devouring monsters. A fast paced, full length zombie novel.

240 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 24, 2014

33 people are currently reading
622 people want to read

About the author

Brad Knight

6 books9 followers
Brad writes post-apocalyptic fiction.

He enjoys watching The Walking Dead, and his favorite video game is The Last of Us.

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5 stars
50 (28%)
4 stars
51 (28%)
3 stars
50 (28%)
2 stars
16 (9%)
1 star
9 (5%)
Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews
Profile Image for Netanella.
4,759 reviews43 followers
June 14, 2019
You’ve got to be kidding me. My life goes to shit and now the world follows?

Mack is having a bad day. The day he gets fired from his job of 20-some years, an outbreak of the undead seemingly comes out of nowhere. Mack quickly rescues a teenaged Amber, and they begin an action-packed adventure that leads them from Texas to Las Vegas as they dodge hostile hill billies, undead humans, dogs, bear and moose, and of course, a sociopathic military scientist intent on taking over the world. Awesome, right? I enjoyed the characters, the plot, the swift pacing.

There were a few things that annoyed me, however, which kept this from being a much better read. Our hostiles were called meat puppets, even before Mack and Amber discovered they had metallic skeletons and other animals were similarly impacted. So meat puppet this, meat puppet that became very tiresome. Overall, the writing itself was rather clunky and lacked a fluidity in style. Don't ask me what that means, just that the writing sometimes seemed to trip over itself.

In short, however, the story more than made up for annoying elements of style (or lack thereof), and I found myself reading quickly to find out if Mack and Amber can emerge unscathed. So far, at least they're still standing. Somewhat....
Profile Image for Victoria Zigler.
Author 62 books235 followers
September 14, 2019
My actual rating is 3.5 stars, but I rounded up. Honestly, if it wasn't for two issues I have, this book would have stood a chance of being a five star read. So, why wasn't it? Well, firstly, the "zombies" were being called "meat puppets" even before the main characters new of the cause of them being the way they were, and it got irritating quickly. Secondly, the writing felt a bit clunky, and there was too much telling, and not enough showing. Other than those things, this was a fantastic action-packed read, with great characters.
Profile Image for Jarrett L. Rineer.
51 reviews2 followers
January 10, 2016
Convenient

Spoiler Alert - This was a terrible survival story.

The way that the story worked out, the fact that the main characters suddenly found exactly what they needed the very moment they needed it seems way to convenient to me.

This was a decent draft, but should not be sold as a final draft. There were grammatical errors, problems with sentence structure, and spelling errors throughout this novel.

One thing that really bothered me, and I can't figure out how this makes any sense: How did the arena get so full of people? Where did they all come from? And why would the people in the black SUV kill some people but save only the main characters? These chapters made absolutely no sense!
21 reviews
February 14, 2015
Very poorly edited

Extremely poorly edited to the point that it was unreadable. Pages repeated, sentences were incomplete. Even a one star rating is too much.
Profile Image for Jaime Andrews.
Author 2 books14 followers
September 27, 2019
Very interesting, though lacking a bit of familiarity with characters. Hard to develop a relationship with anyone and the language is a bit simple. Interesting take on the zombie outbreak theme. Warning, possible trigger of violence against a young girl. Doesn't describe anything but it's still there.
130 reviews2 followers
April 20, 2021
It was good. I quite liked the MC at times. And i do particularly like the 'now the protag has a leg-up in some way' trope.

It didn't compel me onwards, tho--i didn't feel the need to buy the next book in the series. A pity. I love zompoc, but it's hard to find one that's not The Walking Dead all over again. This wasn't, quite, but it didn't feel hopeful, either, exactly.
1 review
July 1, 2025
Almost put the book down when he had amber assaulted in the first few chapters. The author is sick for that.
Profile Image for Kevin Lintner.
Author 51 books45 followers
January 29, 2015
"Nano Z" opens with the story's protagonist, Mack, mulling over losing his job and what he will do for work. His thoughts are interrupted by a young Rastafarian who wants him to view a video he shot on his smartphone of something "weird" happening in another part of the town. From there the story takes off like a freight train with no brakes and all you can do as a reader is hold on for what is one fantastic ride. There are a lot of Zombie thrillers out there, and what sets aside Knight's novel from the rest of the field is his refusal to play by the rules. After the zombies return, they are controlled by nanotechnology and are slowly transformed from the inside out into indestructible merchants of death. Animals are affected as well as humans and this leads to a terrifying rodeo scene where human survivors are pitted against affected animals with blood soaked results. Knight's characters are well thought out, described with meticulous detail, and are as tragic as they are perseverant. If you are looking for a fresh look into the zombie genre, there is no better place to start than with "Nano Z."
Profile Image for Caroline.
40 reviews
January 12, 2015
I highly enjoyed this fast pace depiction of a post-apocalyptic world where meat puppets have taken over America due to biotechnology. This novel acts as the catalyst among its genre by placing two main characters atypical to stereotype personas that tend to play these roles giving this read a unique twist.
I was drawn to Amber’s & Mack’s strong characters with Amber’s heartwrenching past and Mack’s honorable role to protect her certainly may reading this epic chronicle of human endurance unforgettable.

The idea of meat puppets is inventive and the scenes within were horrific yet I devoured each page in the hope for survivors and answers as to how & why the nano-virus occurred. Having read a number of books in this genre, I was highly impressed and fond of the unpredictability of events that occurred as Amber and Mack raced across zombie-infested areas towards the West.
Profile Image for John.
219 reviews
February 4, 2015
Whoa! Poor Mack and Amber (especially Mack). Their journey thru hell and back was crazy but a good story that I did not ever want to end. I wish the story went on and on so I knew how things continued. Zombies that evolve and the virus can infect animals and birds was crazy! This was such a good/fun book, I am lucky to have picked it to read.

If you like zombie stories than this one is for you.
Profile Image for Mary.
272 reviews15 followers
April 21, 2015
Good read

The characters, story and action was all well thought out. There was enough back story to tell the before story with out giving to much away. Hopefully if the author does a second book he'll go into more of the lead up. There is ton more story helpfully the author is hard at work on the next book.
119 reviews4 followers
January 29, 2015
It was good.

This book was not only good but it was a bit different than usual zombie books witch was great. I love a good zombie book but it can get a bit repetitive because most seem to be based on the same kind of story. I can't wait till the second book in the series.
Profile Image for Ruby .
115 reviews2 followers
October 21, 2015
Weird

At first I was disappointed with the fact that they were called 'meat puppet s'. And had metal bones. But towards the end I found out the reason for both. Then I started to love the storyline.
Profile Image for Kathy.
221 reviews26 followers
November 3, 2015
I love zombie books and even tho this one started out a little rough for me, I liked it. I almost quit reading it because the start of it didn't grab me right away. Once I kept reading I found it hard to put down. Worth reading.
Profile Image for Sonia Rogers.
Author 18 books4 followers
May 18, 2016
Interesting take on the zombie apocalypse

The plot was interesting and well thought out. I enjoyed reading it. More details on their survival on the road would have made it even better.
158 reviews6 followers
July 19, 2016
Good read

A unique spin on a zombie apocalypse. Characters display the best and the worst of humanity. A very good read and very well written. Looking forward to reading the next book.
Profile Image for Pauline.
61 reviews
November 29, 2016
This was certainly a different take on the normal zombie stories, one that certainly captures the imagination with the nano tech.
Characters of Mack and Amber were well matched and developed together well in the storyline.
94 reviews1 follower
January 17, 2015
Nana Z

Wow what a book. I hope there a book two, What happens to the hero was scary but different, I just hope it doesn't happen today
Profile Image for Jaime.
87 reviews2 followers
June 16, 2015
A new take on a apocalyptic "zombie" tale. Written well & a fast paced read.
12 reviews
April 15, 2015
Great fast moving story

Story moves fast,has a good story line, nice interraction between leading man and lady, true friendship between. A teen and her protector.
Profile Image for Dave.
169 reviews3 followers
September 8, 2015
I enjoyed this book. Action from beginning to end.
Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews

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