Islands of Rage and Hope by John Ringo

BOOK 3 IN THE BLACK TIDE RISING SERIES FROM THE NEW YORK TIMES BEST-SELLING AUTHOR. Sequel to To Sail a Darkling Sea and Under a Graveyard Sky. A hardened group of survivors fights back against a zombie plague that has brought down civilization.

With the world consumed by a devastating plague that drives humans violently insane, what was once a band of desperate survivors bobbing on a dark Atlantic ocean has now become Wolf Squadron, the only hope for the salvation of the human race. Banding together with what remains of the U.S. Navy, Wolf Squadron, and its leader Steve Smith, not only plans to survive—he plans to retake the mainland from the infected, starting with North America. 

The next step: produce a vaccine. But for do that, Wolf Squadron forces led by Smith’s terrifyingly precocious daughters Sophia and Faith must venture into a sea of the infected to obtain and secure the needed materials. And if some of the rescued survivors turn out to be more than they seem, Smith just might be able to pull off his plan. 

Once more, exhausted and redlining Wolf Squadron forces must throw themselves into battle, scouring the islands of the Atlantic for civilization's last hope.


Review:

XO again, and let me just say, Zombies, Zombies, Zombies.  Book three in the Black Tide Rising series does not disappoint.  The zombies still run amok on 99% of the land on planet Earth.  Wolf Squadron has cleared countless ships, and the former USMC base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.  After all that, a few jerk reality show types should be easy, right?  Well, unfortunately for the Smith family, even a zombiepocalypse seems to break through the stupids.  Steve, Faith, and Sophia, and the rest of Wolf Squadron are still at it, finally setting their sights on land.  While the islands they clear might be small, the meaning is huge.  Mankind is taking back its planet, one sandy beach at a time.  Ringo’s world continues to spin on, and a few thousand survivors of the Zombiepocalypse are doing everything they can to return things to normal.  Well, as normal as it can be with a 13 year old Marine lieutenant, a 15 year old Navy ensign and their dad, former SAS paratrooper, now leading the US Navy Wolf Squadron, in charge of the return.  

The squadron needs access to medical supplies, and fast.  It’s been 9 months since the outbreak, and people trapped in cargo holds, cruise ship rooms, and other trapped, enclosed spaces will do almost anything *ahem, wink wink, nudge nudge* to pass the time.  There are also a few hundred US Navy submariners trapped in their subs, in deep (pun, yes) need of the vaccine.  Both of these things mean that Wolf Squadron needs medical supplies, and the re-taking of Gitmo was not the treasure trove they were hoping for.  Just for fun, the remaining US Government has a fun little surprise for Wolf Squadron.  The British government might just have survived.  Time to plan a rescue mission.

Ringo’s characters are likable, and he has a habit of even making you respect, if not like, the ones that you’d hate anywhere else.  And to keep in interesting, he’s adding new characters with each new group that are rescued.  The series appears to have no end in sight, and I look forward to bringing you the next, and the next, and the next.  

XO out...

Under a Graveyard Sky by John Ringo

A family of survivors who fight back against a zombie plague that has brought down civilization.Zombies are real. And we made them. Are youprepared for the zombie apocalypse? The Smith family is, with the help of a few marines.

When an airborne “zombie” plague is released, bringing civilization to a grinding halt, the Smith family, Steven, Stacey, Sophia and Faith, take to the Atlantic to avoid the chaos. The plan is to find a safe haven from the anarchy of infected humanity. What they discover, instead, is a sea composed of the tears of survivors and a passion for bringing hope.

For it is up to the Smiths and a small band of Marines to somehow create the refuge that survivors seek in a world of darkness and terror. Now with every continent a holocaust and every ship an abattoir, life is lived beneath a graveyard sky.





Review:

As the XO, I am second in command of this ship Nat and I call our lives.  You’d think that this would mean that once, JUST ONE DAMN TIME, I could get the better half to watch a Zombie movie.  Or show.  Or commercial.  Of even a thinly veiled joke or witty anecdote.  But if it has Zombies, it’s a no go.  So, I have to take matters into my own hands.  No, not that way you perverts. 

To satisfy my urges (ZOMBIE urges, really people.  Really), I tend to devour (giggle) every Zombie movie I can get my hands on. Even the bad ones.  Even the TERRIBLY bad ones.  Oh my.  Here’s where I should provide a little back story.  I love Zombie stories.  I REALLY love Zombie stories.  From sitting on my dad’s couch in the mid 80’s, staying up too late to watch HBO, where I caught my first glimpse of Zombies.  (Should I keep capitalizing Zombies?  Yes, yes I should).  Return of the Living Dead was my first, and similar to my first kiss, it gave me nightmares for months.  However that did not stop me from watching it again, and again, and again, then adding more.  Zombie Master George Romero’s hits, the modern remakes, then my television got involved with The Walking Dead.  Through all of this, can I get someone in the chair next to me?  Under this lovely blanket made for two?  No, just a lonely XO, in the dark, watching his zombie movies. 

Then the birthday fairies got involved, or a family member, giving me a gift card, I don’t remember, really, and I suddenly had $50 to spend on books.  I log into the Interwebs, hole in my pocket and all, and I see a new series from one of my favorite authors, John Ringo.  Already a little giddy from the cover with the obligatory explosions and girls with assault rifles, I click on the link to read more.  “A family of survivors who fight back against a zombie plague that has brought down civilization.”

WHAT?!?!?! OH.MY.YES.PLEASE.

The action is fast, with the Smith family, semi-serious doomsday preppers with brains and guts as opposed to crackpot theories and tinfoil hats, setting their bug-out plan into motion within the first few pages of the book.  Ending up semi-stranded, in the middle of the ocean, not knowing if the boat they’re floating up to will have friendlies, zombies, or just bodies, is not a good way to raise a family.  Unless of course you’re Steve Smith.  And just wait until you meet his kids.  The characters are not warm and fuzzy.  They are no-nonsense, kick some zombie ass, do NOT mess with my family, heavily armed, sort of people, and right now, they are the only shining light on the planet Earth. First order of business is finding survivors, and to do that, they have to board ships, sometime as large as cruise liners, and do a door to door search.  And many of the original folks on that ship are no longer of the ‘non-zombie’ variety.  And there are 4 members of the Smith clan.  And the kids are 13 year old Faith, and 15 year old Sophia.  As they build their flotilla of salvaged ships and ragged survivors, they formulate a plan.  Today, survive and salvage, tomorrow, find people, next week, take back the planet.


XO out...