Zombies on the Block

Zombies On The Block #1

by Mike Evans, Tristan Morris (Narrator)

When the flu season struck America it impaired the population crippling what the collected power of the people were capable of doing to fight the outbreak. Unfortunately, it was not the same for everyone. There were three types of people. The first had no diseases, the second had the flu, and the third were busy fostering a zombie virus that was going to bring the nation to its knees.

This story isn't about heroes, there are no guarantees. This is a story about Mike and his family, and what they have to endure to survive. If they want to see another day they are going to need the help of their neighbors and friends.

The situations leaving the main characters in the depths of hell are only outweighed by the comical situations that they get put in. There's no telling what or who is going to survive. Those that survive must fight or flight and in some cases do both. Civilization will be something new when dawn's light falls on the Earth for the second day of the apocalypse.




RUNNING TIME ⇒ 4hrs. and 36mins.

©2019 Mike Evans (P)2020 Tantor

Genres: Zombies, Horror

Audible Audio

First published November 3, 2019

About the author

Mike Evans lives in Iowa with his wife, children, and two adopted dogs Rusty and Harley Quinn. He writes with a passion to bring his characters to life, to make you fall in love with them, and then make you flip pages to find out if they’ll survive or perish. He keeps his characters realistic, there are no superheroes. There are no perfect characters in his books, everyone has their flaws much like that of life. Mike loves to write in different genres and is unafraid to try something new.

Reviews

[Claude's Bookzone · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 Stars

CW: Extreme gore

Book 5 in my Zombie-a-thon!

Well this book has me worried that New Zealand may possibly be wiped out in the unlikely event of a Zombie apocalypse!

Our border controls have been reasonably tight during COVID but the odd breach here or there in a zombie infection situation would spell disaster for Kiwis. The reason I am concerned is that there is a strong connection to having guns and surviving in the 'typical' non-thinking zombie action books. I have never even held a real gun!!!! Heck, I haven't even seen one up close that isn't in a museum. I have played paintball twice, and laser strike a few times, and I have a vague recollection of holding an air rifle when I was 11 and on an activities camp. I think I only know one person who goes duck hunting and therefore I assume they have a gun. Basically, if the zombies come, the majority of NZers I know are going to be gunless zombie fodder and the future walking dead. Don't get me wrong, I am extremely proud of our countries policies on gun ownership and have no desire to own one myself.

Actually, us Kiwis are pretty ingenious with our 'number 8 wire' thinking, our 'she'll be right mate' attitude, and our community minded spirit, so I have just decided we may very well come out on top in a Zombie apocalypse!

I should probably talk about this book. It was a surprisingly entertaining zombie story with lots of bloody entrails being ripped out and eaten, and even some good old fashioned brain consumption. There are heaps of gun-toting people with a fierce determination to survive and protect their loved ones, and some humour included to break up the blood bath. I wouldn't call this a YA book in terms of it's content, but it is a really quick and easy read. Not sure who it's target audience is to be honest. If I wasn't on a Zombie-a-thon I wouldn't continue with this series, but because I am I have started with book 2.

Yay Zomvember! I really want this to be a thing so feel free to join me!

[Tracy P. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent First book in a new Zombie series. Zombies on the Block is full of stellar zombie action and does not disappoint. Onward to book two.

[Tracey · Rating 1 out of 5]

I wanted to like it...

I really wanted to like this book because I see such potential with the story line and characters but I am just unable to get through the confusing jumble of sentences. I understand the author trying to draw us in with thrilling, drawn out suspense. However, there are so many unnecessarily long sentences. Too many were crammed together with commas when just chopping them into smaller ones would have been just as good. I like to visualization what the writer is seeing but I had to reread sentences several times because I would be left so confused and just couldn't see what was being described. I also feel all the characters need to be fleshed out a little more. It reads like someone telling me about a town full of people I've never met before but the teller acts as those I know them all personally. I see more books in the series so perhaps it gets better. I'm just not willing to pay to see.

[Mark · Rating 2 out of 5]

There is a hint of a plot here, but it is buried under unrealistic dialogue, endless paragraphs, and difficult to follow action scenes. I kept hoping it would get better, but the poor writing just made me want to get it over with.

A few tips: Have someone proofread before you publish. No more than one point of view per paragraph. No more than one subject per paragraph. Break up your paragraphs, especially during action scenes. Research the difference between Second Person POV, Third Person Limited POV, and Third Person Omniscient POV. Edit and eliminate all superfluous information from the story. Develop relatable characters and build a connection with the reader before switching to another scene.

If some of that were done I may read the next book in the series. As it is, I'm just glad this one is over.

[Dario Pacheco · Rating 5 out of 5]

a absolute blast

This book, was for sure one that I wasn’t too sure how it was going to turn out. But this book had me hooked from the very first page. Onto the next one.

[☆Joycedale☆ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid 3.5 stars. Not the best written story and at times the switching pov's are confusing but a good story. Some parts that actually had me laughing out loud.

[Tracey Mccall · Rating 5 out of 5]

So good

This was another excellent book by Mike Evans! Once I started reading I couldn't put it down. Fast paced action with characters sounding and acting just like I believe I would if a zombie apocalypse happened. Looking forward to more

[Zoey · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s good.

Sometimes the banter gets annoying and a few other things bugged me but it was basically good. I get the banter being for comic relief but I’m some of the situations the bantering was absurd. And all of them do it. They all snip and btch at each other, arguing over dumb crap while a zombie is two feet away. I found myself skipping a lot. I rate zombie books on a curve bc besides world war z most don’t leave much of an impression. They’re decent but not great. So I rate on a curve. I will say if their had been about a 1/4 of the bantering I would have appreciated it more. Also I had a couple of moments of saying “ok, boomer” in my head bc of the stereotyping of college kids. There isn’t any militant lesbian claiming sexual harassment bc a dude said high. Take this from the kid of a radical lesbian, feminist, mom. I also have a gen z niece whose lesbian as well as multiple LGBTQ+ friends and fam. The most radical feminist lesbian I know isn’t anything like they’re portrayed in this book. Here’s the thing, are their a handful of obnoxious college kids? Sure but they don’t define the group. I try not to define any group by the most obnoxious member, and ppl who do just look like a$$ holes. I don’t think all boomers are out of touch, get off my lawn, you kids don’t know what hardship is, blowhards, and not all young ppl want safe spaces from differing opinions. The idea of “safe spaces” was to have an actual safe space for say victims of rape to talk about their experiences without having ppl be insensitive when they’re most vulnerable. It’s supposed be a way for ppl to feel safe talking about stuff that’s scary for them to talk about. Or stuff they feel nervous about sharing. Anyways fortunately these stupid caricatures aren’t so prevalent I got to irritated to finish reading. Although I swear the stupid and petty btching (the banter) almost made me quit reading. But I managed to get through and and found the book decent. But bc I rate zombie books on a curve I upgraded to good.

[Patricia · Rating 4 out of 5]

When the flu strikes America , crippling most of the population . There were three types of people , ones that didn't get sick , those that just had the flu and then there were those that well lets just say turned into zombies . There aren't winners or losers in outbreak everyone is a potential zombie . This is a story of a neighbourhood that are going to fight with everything they have . There is no way to know if they are going to survive till next week or even survive the next 24 hours . They may be in the middle of hell on earth but sometimes there is nothing to do but laugh . Will the family survive and find their way around the apocalypse .
The characters in this story are hilariously written . The author has used members of his own family as characters . They are well written and fun to read. Each neighbour in the neighbour hood has quirks and foibles that will have you laughing all the way through the apocalypse . I will have to say my favourite characters and the grandparents . They are funny and they also kick some butt to get to their kids and grand kids . Also another real great character is Holly , Tony's girlfriend , I honestly hope she kicks butt for a long time .
This book is a fun filled zombie book . The author writes zombies with such a flair and in this book he has added more tongue in cheek sassiness. The story is well written and the characters are well written and hilarious . I like how the author takes us on a ride from the very first chapter . You honestly feel like you are there fighting right along side of them and you really want them to survive . There are moments that will have you laughing out loud and moments where you will be oh oh run fast . There is one thing I wish the story was just a little bit longer and the characters were just a little bit more flushed out . Over all I really enjoyed this book and can't wait for next book in the series . Check out for your black Friday reading .

[TP · Rating 2 out of 5]

I liked the idea of a comedic approach in this genre. The banter and comedic scenes were at times entertaining. But only at times.
My problem was that literally every single character did it. It was not a special character trait or a spontaneous situational comedic scene, it was every single interaction between each other. And that ruined it.
If a few characters would have remained serious, this series would have been really good.

The inner monologues during action scenes were simply too long. First, it is not believable to think so much during actually 5 seconds of real time action, the zombies don’t wait around till you finish your thought process and second it makes the character look like an idiot endangering themselves and their loved ones, how long it takes them to react.
It is just not appealing to read after a while.
The dogs and all their barking and the TV on normal volume. Their reactions are human but one would love to watch a development and not them all stumble around only surviving out of pure luck.

I sadly but I inevitable got used to the fact that almost every new book on kindle unlimited has a few grammar and vocabulary mistakes.
Which is an indicator that the book has not seen an editor or was proof-read for me.
I don’t mind it that much anymore, my mind has adjusted to automatically correct the sentences.
But in this book it is a bit overboard and I find that sloppy to be published like that.

I love series.
But this first book was not a self-sustaining first book of a series, with its own little plot in the greater scheme of the whole series.
They didn’t even achieve anything, where was the plot?

Sigh, I tried.

[Zombie Reader · Rating 2 out of 5]

ZOTB #1 is the first of a zombie series by indy author Mike Evans. The story begins as the zombie outbreak occurs from the perspective of several residents of a suburban neighborhood. There are some creative scenes of strife and struggle as the 'average people' type characters fend off the undead and survive the first few hours of the zompoc. Notably a bus load of kids on their way to school have to escape their zombified bus driver. The Zs in this universe are fast changing, fast moving, ravenous and purple.

Altogether, it follows the typical formula of a zompoc and doesn't offer much in the way of uniqueness to the genre. In itself this isn't bad but Evans' writing is so clunky and amateurish it makes it hard to maintain SODB. Characters have long, and totally irrelevant, conversations in the middle of activities that should be life or death situations. After being attacked by a zombie, a father calls his son at college (maybe to warn him) but they get into an argument about the kind of car the boy drives(?). The boy's girlfriend finally looks out the window and instantly knows its a zombie apocalypse.

Evans has written an entire series of these so I hope his craft improves over the course of those later books. I'm a fan of indy horror so may read the next one just to see if the writing gets better.

[Victoria · Rating 2 out of 5]

Frustrating

A very creative and distinctive idea in the zombie trope. It was however, not executed very well. It's riddled with punctuation and grammar errors. Normally I would not DNF a book, or knock the rating down for either reasons, however I couldn't continue to read because it quickly became confusing. In action sequences, I couldn't figure out who was doing what. The problem was multiplied as the author added more people. In one instance, a window was cracking (I'm pretty sure that's what was meant) but the author said it shattered about 3 or 4 times. In my experience, a window can only shatter once. Author also jumps from one subject to another and then back, within the same paragraph or even sentence. Run on sentences abound as well, thus leading to my confusion about what exactly is going on.
It's a shame, because reading the synopsis, it really seemed like a great idea.

[Lesley Henry · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome zompoc book

I absolutely love Mike Evans writing style as his stories are always well written with well developed characters. I'd read all of his previous zombie series from The Orpans(never before has any series made me ride a rollercoaster of emotions like that series) to Zombies & Chainsaws, and given I am no longer active on Facebook, I'd no idea he'd written another zombie series. I was surprised when I stumbled across this at 1 a.m. this morning when I couldn't sleep. I'd figured I'd just read a few chapters until I was drowsy enough to go back to sleep, but I fell into this world where the flu virus mutated 3 ways & for those unlucky enough to get one strain, they turn into zombies. I think Mike is an extremely creative author and I highly recommend any of his books. Now I have to go download the next book in this series.

[Jeanette · Rating 5 out of 5]

Zombies....

I like a good zombie book & this one has started out nicely. Lots of action, tons of gore & yucky parts and people not realizing until too late what is actually happening.
The characters are great. They are each written with just enough info to get a snapshot of who they are.
Mike & Emily...Mike at home, deathly ill trying to save their two children plus a school bus full of kids whose driver has decided to take a bite out of them. Emily, on her way to work, seeing up close & personal what a zombie really is.Their son Michael, in college stuck in a dorm full of undesirable roommates.
There is also Mike's parents, next door neighbors, all trying to save each other.
Seems like a good series...need to find the next book..😀

[Gilbert Stack · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a quick read from the author of Zombies and Chainsaws. I liked that book a lot. This one isn’t as strong. There is an awful lot of bickering as the zombies munch on people or try to get in to munch on people. That may be realistic, but it got annoying. The cast is pretty large as well which I presume allows for lots of people to get killed as the series progresses.

Essentially, this is about a dad who stayed home sick with the flu and is watching his kids when the zombie apocalypse strikes. Most of the book is exactly what you would expect—fighting zombies while having some difficulty believing this is going on. Many of the characters are trying to get home to the “block” of the title.

It’s fun and required very little brain power on my part.

[Kim Carroll · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have to rate this 3 ⭐️s. It could have been a great book. The zombie action was great, and the writer can tell a good story, but I hated how all the characters were such smart asses (and not in a playful fun way). It’s one thing to joke around a bit, but EVERY conversation was filled with smart ass remarks. While watching people get killed right in front of your eyes I’d like to think you’d be a little more serious. The scene with Mike calling his son, was just painful to read, they were such assholes. It made me stop caring what happens to the MCs. I’ll give book 2 a try, because this ends abruptly without an ending, but whether I’ll go to book 3 is yet to be seen.

[Angel Severn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Chaotic

That is the most defining word I could think about. The story seems chaotic as if not sure where the author is heading in what direction. I did have to reread a few sentences or paragraphs to understand who was saying what and whom belongs to whom. Two Michaels in the story becomes even more confusing as to which Mike belongs to whom. It could be funny if it wasnt for the situation of purple fast moving zombies thrown into the mix. But so far the book even though short without enough explanation has me hooked on the main characters. Some of which I can associate and bond with their personalities. I have enjoyed it and looking forward to the next book.

[Saskia · Rating 3 out of 5]

I can't figure it if this was funny or not. Mostly it felt like it was written 20 years ago (pub. date 2020) before we twigged to writing characters who weren't walking stereotypes. LIBERAL swearing and very odd placement of metaphors for stuff that involved private body parts. Having said that, it was my first zombie book and I survived (and enjoyed) entrails being slurped up with alarming regularity. Solid 3 stars but would recommend for senior students (adult protagonist) who are just getting back into reading.

[Mike Lewis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Entertaining action packed zombie apocalypse

Entertaining and action packed romp through a zombie apocalypse. A flu epidemic has spread across the country. There seems to be a few different variations. Mike has the stomach flu and he’s home sick and have to get his two young children off to school. Then the zombie apocalypse hits. Find out what happens it’s worth the read. Check it out

[Nora · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pretty Cool

I do have to say this is the funniest apocalypse book I have ever read. I must have laughed pretty much through this whole story. I am so disappointed in the way it ended though. I wanted more and apparently I have to read book 2 to get more hopefully it will be offered on my free book list so I can keep reading about this nonsensical story and what happens to all the characters.

[Michael Keller · Rating 5 out of 5]

Purple zombies munching on Iowa natives

Sounds like the beginning of a hilarious new zombie series. The beginning of a zombie apocalypse and all I can think of is an old song about one-eyed, one-horned, flying purple people-eater! Seriously, the subtle humor and red-neck behaviour has the bed shaking and the wife opening one eye and giving me that look. Great characters and the aforementioned humor make this a great read!

[Ford Miller · Rating 3 out of 5]

Strange, rough unorganized beginning to series.

This book is trying too hard to get all the characters introduced in book one. The problem is the dialogue was horrible and none of the actions were really believable as people started dying around the main characters. Hopefully the other books get better however this one came off like a good attempt from a high schooler. I may move on to book two but it would be hard to recommend it based on this book.

[Kimberly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good story, but poor copy editing job.

The story was good. Some fun characters. The run-on sentences, poor punctuation, and grammatical mistakes made it difficult to settle into a comfortable reading rhythm and pace. Some of the more intense action scenes were not written in a way that maintained spatial orientation. Good action writing creates a clear mental picture for the reader. This book was lacking that quality. Enjoyable enough to give the next in the series a go.

[Kelly Cross · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good solid read

Good book, good story line, a lot of action. There is a lot of funny dialogue in this book, it is hilarious. This is the first time I have read a book with this much dialogue, it is really funny but takes some getting used to it. But I gave it 5 stars because I laughed a lot.

[PHYL · Rating 5 out of 5]

Horror & Gore. A refreshing take on a zombie apocalypse. Fast paced, nail biting and gross. The characters are well developed and as usual, this author makes you care about them. Mike Evans is one of my favorite authors. One of the few authors who’s books I have in two formats : Kindle and Dead Tree. I am continuing on to the second book in the series.

[XR · Rating 2 out of 5]

There are a lot of points of views in this book, but it's necessary 'cause there's so much going on.

Oh, one thing I thought was ridiculous about this book was the lesbian stereotype. It was so blatantly ignorant I could only roll my eyes. Hetero's... do you actually try to learn about life beyond your own comfort zone?

[Louise Feagans · Rating 5 out of 5]

Zombies

I have found this book to be very fascinating about Mike Evans and his family. It is scary, humorous, and very family oriented. I love being able to picture his wife and children as I read....except for Tony, I am just picturing an older Jake. And can't forget the puppies. Lol on to the second book

[Robin Perryman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good Story

This story was interesting and funny. I like how the people in a neighborhood tried to look out for each other during the apocolypse. Not too many stupid characters here. They all pretty much know what's happening without watching the news. I'm looking forward to part 2 to see who makes it and who meets up with their family.

[Lucille Bransfield · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am finally getting caught up on this series. I have loved many books by Mike Evans and this was not any different from those, in the sense that it was great! I love that it is actually his family that you are reading about. I am friends on Facebook and it’s pretty cool hearing about his family. Here’s hoping to long lives. We shall see...

[Lauren Choate · Rating 3 out of 5]

Why have 2 main characters with the same name....

I read a lot of zombie books. This was just okay. The sarcasm of the character came off more like he was just an asshole. And WHY would you have 2 characters named Michael and mike??? There are millions of names to choose from and it just irritated me to no end