Origin to Exile

Two years ago I reviewed Day By Day Armageddon and commented on how it is one of my favorites in the whole genre of zombie literature. Here I present the sequel, Origin to Exile (or Beyond Exile) and would like to simply add on why I believe this novel is an amazing sequel to an already powerful first installment.

In the first novel we established that the dead now walk the land. Anyone who dies, for any reason, reanimates as a corpse hungry for the flesh of the living. Following a failed government campaign to eliminate the bulk of the walking dead, we now have to contend with radioactive zombies who not only spread deadly contagion wherever they walk, but also are more intelligent, agile, and deadly than their regular brethren. 

Now we put on our boots, load our guns, and follow our protagonist as he works his way across the horrific wasteland that is the former United States where the casualty rate is 99%. The dead surely outnumber the living, and we see a road to exile.

Spoilers for Origin to Exile follow.

In this installment we find that the protagonist has settled down quite well in their new home. Having taken refuge in a nuclear missile silo, Kil, his friends and the marines he comes to bind to his cause, establish a thriving community of survivors in the land of the dead. They are even in contact with something of a regular command structure from the US government and through them the United States Navy.

This, alongside his new lady friend Tara, gives Kil something to live for. He has civilians to protect, friends to care for, and finally, some hope that the United States as he knew it may live on.

With the resources he now has at his command he is sucked into plans by the US government to explore more of the wasteland that is the United States and try to study the undead opponents which control 98% of the lower 48 states. In doing so, he sets off on a scouting mission which strands him deep in hostile (read undead) territory.

The meat of this book is Kil's trek back to 'civilization' and home after his crash landing. It is a journey fraught with danger, terror, and some immensely unsettling scenes. From being hunted by clever zombies, seeing an undead chain-gang, and a brief siege by the undead as he recuperates from wounds in a highschool football stadium, it is a long series of terrifying moments across a wasteland which gives you more unanswered questions with horrifying implications.

From there he finds a new ally in Saien and potentially a new ally in the group Remote Six. But who can Kil trust in a land overrun by the undead?

Quite honestly, this is a book near and dear to my heart. It has many aspects of the things I love the most about zombie stories, and it tells an engaging tale of survival, trust, and horror in a world where the undead rule the land. It's almost a better version of the Walking Dead television series. With very practical aspects of prepping thrown in.

I was lucky enough to pick this up as a duology with the original Day By Day Armageddon, and so could read both stories together. This makes for a beautifully uninterrupted flow, which I do think is a powerful story told together. However, each novel stands on its own, and is a testament to the power which the fear of the undead can evoke in our psyche even now. Truly a triumph of terror in the zombie genre. Check this one out!