Zompoc Survivor: Odyssey

Zompoc Survivor #3

by Ben Reeder, Linda Tooch (Editor)

Dave Stewart has survived the inferno of Kansas City and come out the other side. Everything ended up going according to plan, except for one Amy is still with him, instead of on her way to safety. To the rest of the world his fate is uncertain, and by now even Agent Keyes knows better than to assume he’s dead. As Keyes and his rogue DHS agents continue their search for him, Dave knows that Plan A, as usual, won’t work. His only chance is to keep moving until he can find a safe way to make contact with Nate Reid and figure out his next move. As Dave’s odyssey across a zombie infested America continues, he encounters the best and the worst in his fellow survivors. He will find new allies, learn more about the true nature of the Asura virus, and his role in even bigger designs than he ever imagined. But, in a land filled with enemies both living and dead, is all the skill, wit and courage in the world enough to help him survive? Or will this be Dave Stewart’s last journey?

Genres: Zombies

189 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 24, 2015

Reviews

[chucklesthescot · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dave and Amy have made it over the river and their friends are heading for safer grounds on the train. He is annoyed than Amy isn't safe with them and that she is still with him, afraid that his enemies will get to her instead. Getting away from Kansas City means clear distance from the Alpha zombie who wants him dead but knowing that Agent Keyes is prepared to work with Daniel to go after him has him aware that the road ahead is still dangerous. A couple of run ins with cannibals and raiders add to his worry for Amy and what they find at a farm en route disturbs Dave even more.

This third book goes back into zombie road trip territory. Dave and Amy are away from two of their enemies when they leave the city but are concerned that Keyes might discover that they are not dead after all. It is vital for them to move fast and get to Nate. They navigate a route that will allow them to move fast but look for a few vital supplies on the way. Finding the signs of a firefight on the road but no bodies alerts them that desperate people may be turning cannibal to survive and they move on before they attract attention. They are instantly tracked by raiders on motorbikes and quick thinking ensures that they, not Dave and Amy, may become someone's next meal.

Stopping at the farm is a risk but seeing a sign asking for help just before the property attracts Dave's attention and they decide to stop. Both of them have a bad feeling that something at the farm isn't right and the answer comes with an everyday object that puts Dave on alert. Dealing with that problem is not something that Dave expected and he doesn't like the decision he has to make about dealing with it. It is a decision he is going to have plenty time to think about through the rest of the story. The next stop is at a town called Hastings where Dave needs to get something and doing a good deed for a soldier puts them all into danger at the hands of a brutal teenage gang who are running the town.

You have to wonder where Dave gets the energy to keep dealing with each crisis as it comes. If you want to be picky his one man army deal is better than anything Schwarzenegger can dish out which can feel a bit unrealistic at times. Amy is only 14 yet she is more kick ass than most trained women in an apocalypse could totally be. In Kansas City she was being reminded to call out when she was reloading and hadn't been with Dave that long without her parents being around, but in a very short period of time she is brilliant on every weapon, navigating flawlessly, and backing him up on raids. She is more like a hardened special forces woman than a teenage girl. I found that change in her quite unrealistic. However, I don't really mind that as long as the book entertains and it certainly does! I was disappointed again that we didn't get more than the odd page about what was happening to Maya's group and pretty much nothing about the people on the train. It would just have added something extra to the book.

There is a pile of action to be enjoyed on the trip as our heroes find plenty of trouble on the road. From when they arrive in Hastings until the end of the book, it is pretty much non stop, which I very much enjoy. I liked the Hastings excitement and the visit to Mount Rushmore and then the mad road trip to try and reach Wyoming. From the way the book finishes I would assume that we are going to hear more about the survivors in the future, which is fine by me.

[Khadijah · Rating 2 out of 5]

Although, since the beginning, I've had a problem with the fact that when Dave gets down with his Deuce, he cleaves into the skull - wasting tons of energy, requiring so much more strength and effort - rather than simply decapitating the undead, I was totally into Survivor and Inferno; couldn't put em down. I was really digging Odyssey, too,until the last fourth, or so. I could barely finish it, I was so frustrated and disappointed. With the introduction of the alpha zombie, Sarah Bach, at the bunker in Mount Rushmore, the authors start to take the easy way out. There are several plot points that the authors gloss over in order to forward the plot and keep the story going. To start with, Bach starts talking to Dave Stewart about the Asura virus, and speaks of his meddling with the other alphas. Dave is too sharp a guy to miss a point like this. He would've put two and two together - the way I did instantly - and seen that that meant the alphas could communicate with one another. This is a device so that they can then pick it up in the final fight scene when, as Dave looks Bach in the eyes while she/it's choking him, he can see all the other alphas looking back at him through her/its eyes, and finally bring the point home. Lame. Further, she says that her proximity to him makes her stronger, and they don't take heed - which defeats the cliché of "the villain explaining the nefarious plan" thing, because they then just tote her hacked up torso along with them when they abandon the base. Hello! Dave's been through this twice. Where the alpha goes, other zombies follow! He NEVER would've been OK with that. And THEN they don't put THAT fact together when a fellow survivor warns them of a "wall of zombies" heading south - ehem, the direction they're headed in...duh. Not to mention that this is bringing the zombie hordes right to Nate's doorstep. And, knowing that the zombies are heading toward them, they still take a break at the rest stop - huh? And only a few miles from the safe heaven. Then, Landry alone turns... What? Why him, and only him? And at a certain point why don't they just cut the alphas head off? Cut it off, and cut it UP! Alpha zombies can't be destroyed - pffft! Chop those fuckers up and burn the pieces. So, not taking this obvious tack (just like he so frustratingly didn't with the other alpha zombie, Deacon) Dave straps her/it to his back and takes off. And like he didn't see the Necromancer mend itself by sucking the..."juice" out of other zombies, he overlooks this in that final fight scene. Bach breaks out of the glass case and he just looks back and sees this. Come on, Dave would've realized that she was going to get some "bodywork" done by sucking up a few of her/it's zombie horde to repair her/itself. Then there's the big reveal that the Asura is in the food. Not only does Dave not warn the others before he goes off to die, but when he miraculously turns out to be zombie proof, where does this fact go?? So Dave's not dead - hurray (for real, though. I thought the series was ending). How come everyone else hasn't turned by now, the way Landry did? How does the remainder of humanity now survive the apocalypse when they don't even need to be bitten? I guess that's what the next sequel is for... but I'll think twice before buying it.

[Jenn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great zombie series! I teared up a bit at the end.

[Amanda Felix · Rating 5 out of 5]

5.0 out of 5 starsGreat Read!!
By Amanda Felix on September 21, 2015
Format: Kindle Edition Verified Purchase
Wow, I thought the first two installments were filled with surprises and action, this latest does not disappoint. Amy is still with Dave and he soon learns that it is probably safer to have her at his side than anywhere else until he can keep his promise to her mother Maya and get her to safety. Along the way, he meets other survivors some genuine and others whose facade will crumble in the most horrible of ways. Dave learns that not all his enemies are the Z's or even the Alphas(spoilers) who already know of him. Dave is a Nephilim, and anyone who knows their bible will know that Nephilims are the children of Angels and mortal women. Not quite divine but more than human. And Amy appears to also possess the ability to sense the Alpha's so Dave makes sure she too is capable of defending herself. And Dave learns more about himself, the Alpha's, Asura Virus and what it means to be a SURVIVOR

[John Robinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Zompoc survivor3

I read the first book and enjoyed it .read the second book and enjoyed it alot but it ended had no choice had to get the third one... it's fair to say I am hooked can't wait for the fourth installment good action witty and sarcastic dialog.... some truly humorous nerdgasms well worth buying reading reviewing and telling your friends about

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book 3

When is the next one coming out? Incredible writer! I would recommend this series to anyone that enjoys exciting multi dimensional characters, fast paced excitement and has someone to keep everything in your house running cuz you won't be able to put these books down until you finish them.

[DONNA j hALL · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read

This Lompoc survivor series Will keep you wanting more Dave Amy get in to all kind of trouble but seems to get out of it has so much action packed pages you hate to see it end

[Michele Herrera · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great finish to the series (maybe he'll keep going??)