Into the Storm

by Shane Kroetsch

Home is meant to be a place of sanctuary. For Jason, it means being forced to live life as a shadow, in constant fear of being noticed. In an attempt to escape his abusive father, the young boy sets out on his own. What he doesn’t know is that blood connects them, and blood will link them to a storm that will shatter an already broken family.

Into the Storm is the first dramatic instalment in a trilogy that confronts the darkness that lies deep within humanity. The Storm series brings to life personal stories of coping with a world living under the threat of destruction and delves into the consequences of surviving.

86 pages, Paperback

Published March 27, 2020

About the author

Oh hi. My name is Shane, and I write dark and speculative fiction that is rooted in questions that don’t have easy answers. My work searches the edges and dark corners of the human experience, while giving shape to the uncertainty of what comes next. Don’t worry, there are usually monsters as well.

Over the past seven years I have released a collection of short fiction, a pathogen zombie series, and been featured in a growing number of anthologies.

I live, work, and create in Alberta, Canada on the traditional and unceded lands of the Blackfoot Confederacy (Siksika, Kainai, Piikani), the Tsuut’ina, and Stoney Nakoda (Bearspaw, Chiniki, Goodstoney) First Nations, currently labelled as Treaty 7 Territory and Métis Nation of Alberta Region 4.

Reviews

[Stitching Ghost · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book so much that immediately upon finishing it I went and bought the sequels. I didn't expect to love it so much because most of it is from the perspective of a child, a neglected and abused child , and I hate children POVs in horror 95% of the time, but here I thought it was very well done. The children's affects aren't over dramatized and they behave like actual children and it's heartbreaking in all the "right" places.

It's not super heavy on the zombie action but what's there is fantastic and the prose in descriptions was most excellent.

[talesofgeorgina · Rating 4 out of 5]

great read! i was drawn to the characters immediately, and the story developed in such an interesting way. it was really well written from the perspectives of the children, a difficult one to get right but very successfully done here

[Kelly Malacko · Rating 4 out of 5]

This novella had me on the edge of my seat and made my skin crawl. Descriptive and dark, I can’t wait to get the next installment.

[Joy Norstrom · Rating 4 out of 5]

Okay, this is one creepy novella! The story begins with a family in crisis then, before you know it, the reader discovers something even more sinister going on throughout the community.

Looks like I’ll have to pick up the second book in the series to satisfy my curiousity. Into the Storm is a page turner and perfect for fans of Walking Dead and Craig DiLouie’s Suffer the Children.

[Alix Kampen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Zombies have never really been my cryptid choice, but something about Shane's Storm Seires struck me as interested the second I heard about them when we met online and I started offering his books in my Club Thrillrror boxes. I am so glad I took the chance on Into the Storm as it was a quick read, which I enjoyed. Typically, I have dislikes of open-ended books that lack closure, especially when it comes to the plot of the story... but my curiosity remained piqued throughout the 70 pages. I am very much looking forward to reading the second book of the trilogy to gain the answers!!

[Ian Rhapsodos · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book just grabs you by the shoulders and shakes you. It's so hard to write original content in the whole post-apocalyptic genre. But this just has a smoothness to it, enough twists without being ridiculous, and relatable (both in good ways and bad ways) characters. After about the third chapter, I couldn't put it down. Now I've read it four times. Can't wait to see where the series goes from here!

[Allison Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a ride!
The way it starts feels like it going to go one way and then the snow starts and the story takes a hard left
I will say this is addictive to read. When I started it I wasn't reading fast and all of a sudden I was going.
I definitely think this is the type of story that I just keep thinking about

[Bee Gorman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Abuse doesn't stop even for the apocalypse.

It's such a fresh take on a old story of zombies and from a child's p.o.v.
I loved this book.

[Shayla Sherwood · Rating 5 out of 5]

easily the best zombie story I've read in years. Shane has beautiful writing and he kept me completely entranced for the entire ride. can't wait to get my claws into the rest of the series

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic, short and sweet horror. well short at least...not sweet. I love how Kroetsch describes the sibling relationship here. so much to unpack, I can't wait to begin number 2!!

[Julie Hiner · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this book! Once I read the opening scene, I couldn't put it down.

I'm dying to read the next one.

Sure, this is a zombie story, but it's also much more than that. The reader gets to see into the minds of a young girl, her brother, and her mother, all stuck in a tattered little house with their abusive father. As things rage out of control inside the house, the world is raging out of control outside. When the two worlds collide, the reader is both shocked and pleased at the same time.

The writing is smooth and tight. Kroetsch provides amazingly detailed descriptions in few words. The settings and the weather come alive as their own characters in the story, setting the mood and elevating the vivid images materializing in the mind of the reader.

It's impossible for the reader to not fall in love with each and every one of the characters. Even the father. Because his role in the story is critical to the journey of the others.

Kroetsch even takes the reader into the view of the human turning zombie. It's a brilliant, entertaining, and fresh take on the beloved concept of a zombie.

I can't wait to read the next one!

If you love zombies and emotionally raw horror, this is for you.