Bryon Morrigan’s Acheron, published by zombie specialist Permuted Press, benefits from an unusual milieu — it’s set in Iraq and literally starts with a bang when Captain Nathan Leathers’ small convoy is hit by an IED that leaves several members of the convoy dead and Leathers captured by apparent insurgents. When a series of earth-shaking tremors and explosions, punctuated by some strange, unidentifiable noises, serve to open an escape route for Leathers, he emerges from his subterranean cell to find a city enshrouded in green mist… and when he explores the mist, he finds it hides not only the walking dead but an assortment of other strange creatures as well.
A chance meeting with an Iraqui who Leathers nicknames Muhammad ends up saving the Captain’s life and leading to his meeting several other survivors, both Iraqui and American, holed up in the new Iraqui Police headquarters. Included among those survivors are some archeologists, who describe what they believe to be the source of the supernatural events, and a small group of American private security/mercanaries, who provide the man vs. man tension and subplot, similar to the encounters seen in Cole’s novel.
Acheron is related via eighty-six short, punchy chapters, a staccato style that matches well with the action-driven plot. This novel is loosely connected to Morrigan’s earlier book The Desert, and it’s apparent that the author has improved his craft fairly considerably since the first book. The occasional awkward passages and stilted dialog that detracted from The Desert are almost non-existent here, and character development is noticably stronger. Morrigan’s style is fairly vanilla, so it’s plotting, and pacing that have to carry the day and fortunately they manage to do just that. The tale closes with an indication that a true sequel will follow, a development that I look forward to, given Morrigan’s ability to combine war and horror into an action-packed thriller.
- CROGIAN - August 17, 2013
- Dark Dreams, Pale Horses - November 25, 2012
- Black Horse and Other Strange Stories - August 13, 2012
- Sudden Death Overtime - August 13, 2012
- Pray to Stay Dead - August 13, 2012
- Acheron - August 13, 2012
- The Female of the Species - August 13, 2012
- Deadfall Hotel - April 17, 2012
- Terra Damnata - April 17, 2012
- Lest You Should Suffer Nightmares: A Biography of Herbert van Thal - November 9, 2011
