I love it when the author writes these short back stories. You get to see behind the scenes and find out about secondary characters that stuck with you.
In my case I am meeting these characters for the first time. I began reading the As The World Dies Series after I read these.
I have to hand it to Rhiannon Frater. She got me addicted to her world and I didn’t just want to read more, I had to! These stories are like Lays potato chips. You can’t read just one.
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THE FIRST DAYS: AS THE WORLD DIES introduced Jenni and Katie and their harrowing journey to the makeshift fort in the Texas Hill Country. But theirs is not the only tale to be told. In the first volume of the AS THE WORLD DIES UNTOLD TALES experience three terrifying tales of those who are forced to face the unrelenting and hungry walking dead.
Deep in the Texas Hill Country, a man and his little dog takes refuge in a bed and breakfast located in the hills above a doomed town where an infested rescue center might unleash the hungry undead…
On a deserted highway slicing through the desolation of West Texas, a woman struggles to survive as she faces the horrifying aftermath of the rise of the zombies…
And finally, discover what happens on the first day to Katie’s beloved wife, Lydia, as the world dies…
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My Review
For those of you who haven’t read the As The World Dies Trilogy or even volume one, The First Days, never fear. These three tales only tell us a small part of what is occurring in The First Days and mainly focuses on a few characters, spotlighting them and giving them their due.
The Broken Heart (Lydia’s Story)
Lydia, Katie’s wife, is already dead in the beginning of the series, but even in death she steals the hearts of fans. This is her story.
It’s a perfect dawn and Lydia is enjoying her morning tea, letting Katie sleep in. Screams from across the lake interrupt the quiet, giving her the willies. But as they don’t continue she puts it from her mind. She doesn’t know it yet, but this will be the last normal morning they share.
This is in the beginning, before the world dies and zombies are everywhere.
The companionship and closeness of these two really made me smile. I knew the outcome wasn’t going to be rosy, but I enjoyed getting to know Katie and Lydia and was so wrapped up in their story I forgot for a while that this was going to end badly. Such is the excellent writing of Rhiannon Frater. My first taste of it and craving more.
Dangerous Highways (Monica’s Story)
This short story takes place between The First Days and Fighting To Survive.
Monica is alone now. She manages to escape El Paso thanks to her dead boyfriends pistol and trusty monster truck. She keeps an eye on the undead kids in the station wagon as she siphons gas to put in her tank.
She’s leaving the memory of his death behind her, like a dust plume behind the truck. Heading to her home town of Ashley Oaks, Texas and her cousin Juan.
She doesn’t know if the town is overrun or even still standing but that’s her plan. She knows how to kill the zombies thanks to all of the movies she’s watched. But that doesn’t make it any easier. It’s a whole other ball game when you come face to face with the unbelievable in real life.
And zombies aren’t the only thing she has to fear. As a woman traveling alone, Monica knows full well the dangers of encountering strangers.
I really like Monica. She’s rough and tough, takes care of business, and makes hard decisions with no hesitation. I could only hope to be half as tough as her.
The Vacation of the Undead (Eric’s Story)
This a quite a bit longer than the first two tales.
Eric is staying at a bed and breakfast with his supermodel girlfriend, Brandy, and his best friend, Pepe, a Jack Russell Terrier.
Eric is wondering if he’s really in love with Brandy, or in love with the idea of her. She’s excellent eye candy on his arm, but she’s not really a nice person. Her true colors come out when the apocalypse begins.
Eric may come across as a bit of a nerd, but he’s smart and has a big heart. He’s also a dog lover and Pepe will steal your heart. Whenever a pet is introduced into a story, it becomes more real to me. It’s strange that we become so upset if harm comes to an animal, and take it in stride sometimes when it’s a human. I guess it’s their innocence and trust that does it.
I would like stories with animals in them to start with a disclaimer: No animals were harmed in the writing of this story. I’m not spoiling it when I say Pepe’s tail is still wagging, as he appears in The First Days and Fighting To Survive.
Rhiannon’s characters are brought to life and fleshed out in these three untold tales and reading these in no way spoiled it for me as I haven’t read the series YET.
I got to know them, like or dislike them, fear for them and cheer for them. Now that I’ve experienced the author’s writing, been sucked into her world, I have to know more. Have to know everything.
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5 STARS
In the second volume of the AS THE WORLD DIES UNTOLD TALES experience three terrifying tales of those who are forced to face the unrelenting and hungry walking dead.
In a nearby town Ken and Lenore have started their regular routine at Ken’s Beauty Salon. A terrible accident brings the undead plague to their front door and soon the best friends are scrambling to escape their overrun town…
Katarina is just finishing her shift at a roadside café when a badly injured man stumbles through the front door. She quickly realizes that to survive she must learn to kill…
And finally, a trapped family must face the fearsome truth that sometimes zombies are not the worst monster they have to fear as the world dies…
Returning to Texas after celebrating his divorce in Vegas, Rune, a biker cursed with the ability to see ghosts, discovers that the world is being taken over by the hungry undead. Soon he realizes he will have to depend on all his abilities to survive not only the ravenous zombies, but the dangerous men lurking on the back roads of Texas.
Senator Paige Brightman abandoned the Madison Mall and its inhabitants to the hungry hordes, but her journey did not end there. Her attempt to reach the president’s safe haven called Central has far reaching ramifications for her and the people she abandoned.
The final in the three stories reveals the aftermath of the great battle in SIEGE as one woman faces the ultimate decision whether to live or die in a world of the undead.
You can find her online at:
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Two giveaways!
International Giveaway
I have the complete Untold Tales Series, #1 thru 3 (ebooks) to give away.
To enter, please leave your email address and answer this question:
“What’s your preferred weapon of choice for killing zombies?”
And
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Thanks so much for visiting fuonlyknew and Good Luck!
For all of my giveaways, click on the mean greenie below.
Careful though. He’s been known to bite!
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I’d use a gun to kill zombies. That way, I can shoot at and kill them from a distance, but I’ve never even fired one yet so more realistically, I’d use any blunt objects lying around. 🙂
anne.j2 [at] gmail.com
A gun would be great for long distance but you will eventually run out of bullets! Any blunt object would work. I think I’d like a baseball bat and a machete.
So happy you loved them the series is amazing you should really read it! I would have recommended you read the series first because of a few – albeit major – spoilers but I doubt it would make the series less awesome either way! 🙂
I’ve now read the first book and moved on to the second. I feel these awesome shorts just got me more into the series. Didn’t spoil anything for me and it’s fun to run into characters I’ve read in these and know their back story. I connect more fully and care more about what happens. Thanks for this amazing tour!
These books are on my list! Covers are epic.
Aren’t they?! They remind me of the Amish Bloodsuckers Trilogy by Barbara Ellen Brink. Just as good too! Can’t wait to read the rest of the As The World Dies Trilogy. Still need to get the third one but book budget is telling me not today!
First of all, I love the ‘old school’ vibe of the covers. Second, as for the best weapon to kill a zombie–I would say some sort of fire-shooting gun. Does that exist? I figure if zombies exist, then so can a weapon that shoots flame!
I can’t resist covers like these. And you know me and zombies and such. I just gotta love em!
Sherry says she’d use a flame thrower. Will that work?
Oh I love Rhiannon and her books. I have not read these novellas or the novels yet. There were supposed to be on my blog this summer for Apocalypse and Rhiannon couldn’t make it. They will be rescheduled for sure. I can’t wait to check out these novellas. I love the illustrations! Glad to hear you loved them too!
Iloved every single story and plan on finishing the complete novels ASAP! I’m addicted to Rhiannon’s writing now.
I haven’t read any of her books yet, so thanks for sharing. They all look great as do the covers. I want a flame thrower!!!!!
Thatt’s what Taylor wants too. A flame throwing gun she calls it! I think mini grenades would work nicely. LOL
Excellent choice. LOL
This series sounds so incredible! Added to my Must-Read list! My weapon of choice for killing zombies would be a shotgun! Thanks for the chance to win, seriously hoping I’m picked for this one!!
ChaoticKarma23 at gmail dot com
These stories were incredible. That’s why in my review I say I wish I could have given the set 15 stars! LOL
A shotgun works good. How about some grenades and a sword to go with it!
OMG I read all of these, there was one book I had issues with because it got to preachy but MAN it was awesome!!!
I can’t wait to finish the novels! I’m so addicted to these!