half a million dead cannibalsRating: 4.75 stars
Buy Links: 
 Amazon | All Romance
Length: Novella


It is three months after the zombie apocalypse and Riley and Graham have so far managed to stay relatively safe, hunkered down in a basement storage unit hoping to avoid detection.  Hordes of zombies walk the city streets and the smallest scratch or contamination with just a drop of blood is enough to spread the infection.  Not to mention the other survivors who would kill them for their supplies without a second thought.  The two men found one another while fleeing the initial outbreak and have formed a close bond.  Riley is attracted to the straight Graham, and would love something to happen between them, but for now Graham’s companionship amidst all the horror is enough.

Though the men have managed to stay safe for three months, they know the time has come to leave the city.  Bands of survivors are getting more organized and searching the nearby buildings for supplies. It is only a matter of time before Riley and Graham are found and likely killed.  So with a snowstorm in the forecast to cause a distraction, the men decide it is time to take the risk and flee the city for the mountains where it is much safer.

The blinding snowstorm turns out to be a blessing and a curse. The cold slows the zombies and makes Riley and Graham harder to detect by both the zombies and survivors.  But it also slows the men themselves down, practically freezing them to death and keeping their visibility next to nothing.  They must navigate through deadly streets and the even deadlier park to make it out of the city and have any hope of safety.  Along the way, Graham finally opens up that he shares Riley’s romantic feelings.  But with the guys facing death at every turn, they must fight for their lives if they have any hope of a future together.

Oh, I really liked this one you guys!  Fast-paced and thrilling, it kept me eagerly turning pages the whole time.  Gregg does a wonderful job with the world-building and the suspense here.  She portrays so clearly the horrors of Riley and Graham’s situation, the city destroyed, the zombies and survivors hunting.  When the men are making their way through the storm and fighting for their lives, I felt like I was right there with them.  I could really picture the frozen snow smeared with the decay of the passing zombie horde, the horror of a sudden deadly hand clutching at your coat, and the frozen fingers and toes after a day of trudging through the storm.  Gregg manages to create a perfect picture of the world these guys face and I felt like I was living it along with them.

This is especially impressive as the story is told from Riley’s POV, and due to the storm and the need for quiet to avoid detection, a lot of the story takes place within his head, rather than through conversation.  This could have felt stifling, or like we are getting a running monologue. But Gregg handles this deftly and I really felt like I got a good sense of both Riley and Graham, their relationship, and what was going on around them even with minimal dialogue through parts of the story.

If I had to give a little niggle it would be that I’d like a little more balance between the suspense and the relationship.  The romance is definitely there, but the story does lean more toward the adventure end. That being said, the scene where Riley and Graham stop for the night in an abandoned construction site?  Oh my word, hot as can be!  And though I may have wanted more, I still felt like I could understand their attraction, and believe in the connection between them and their chances for a successful future.

So I really loved this one. Suspenseful, exciting, thrilling, romantic, and sexy.  Definitely highly recommended.

jaysig