PLANET OF THE DEAD

From the author of FEAST and Reinheit comes a new chapter in horror…

News reports speak of mass panic and violence spreading across the globe. Negligent leaders hide behind misinformation. But in an age of paranoia and suspicion, who can say what is true anymore? Struggling to survive against a sweeping epidemic that has engulfed the planet, survivors will have to make hard choices in a world that no longer makes sense.

Live. Die. Or become one of the undead.

“This is an ABC13 Eyewitness News Breaking Report, coming to you from Houston, Texas, I’m Melanie Lawson—”
“—and I’m Kevin Quinn filling in for Tracy Clemons.”
Camera pans back to Melanie in her usual navy-blue blazer and pearl white blouse. Her hair is normally kept in a curled bob, but in this early afternoon hour, she looks as if she hadn’t any time to comb her hair or even apply makeup.
“We’re coming to you with a Breaking News report. According to Jeff Slovak reporting on scene, Methodist Medical Center in downtown Houston is on the verge of shutting down. Martial Law was announced earlier this morning from Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner, and National Guardsmen have been put in place to keep the hospital open and secure.”
Panning to Kevin, his twelve o’clock shadow is looking even more gritty. If asked, he’d have a hard time remembering the last time he shaved or even brushed his teeth. His brown suit looked obviously ruffled as if whatever sleep he’d had was in that suit.
“Reporting live at Houston’s Methodist Medical Center, Jeff Slovak, can you tell us exactly what the situation is at the medical center?”
Live feed coming from downtown Houston, seasoned journalist Jeff Slovak stares unblinking into the camera. Behind him, uniformed officers and National Guardsmen struggle to keep a surge mob from pouring into the hospital. Random people, some crying, others shouting, run by in a blur. The noise is borderline chaotic with sirens blaring and someone yelling into a bullhorn.
Microphone in hand and white knuckled, “Kevin, the situation here at Methodist looks very dire. We’re being told that officials for the City of Houston are diverting patients to CDC and Houston Health Department inoculation stations…”
Camera cut out, instantly filling TV screens across Houston with a Google Earth image of the city and the surrounding areas. Red triangles marked in various spot across the map.
Jeff continued, “As you can see, there are dozens of locations people can take those who are sick or injured to receive treatment.”
Shifting to the right, the map of Houston splits the screen with glimpses of Jeff Slovak still squeezing his mic with people rushing behind him and with the newscasters sitting behind their wide podium. Melanie frowned, giving the camera and her audience her best serious pose. “The red triangles on the map, you said officials are saying those are inoculation stations? Have they said what exactly the inoculation is for? What’s causing this epidemic?”
Short pause.
“No comment has been made as to what the inoculation is actually for. The CDC left the hospital just a short while ago and refused to give a statement. Authorities with the Houston Health Department mentioned something about a kind of Super Flu strain, but—”
Gun fire rang from somewhere in the mob of people rushing the barricades. Jeff flinched and ducked, as did the cameraman, giving the people watching and those at ABC13 Eyewitness News a jittery image.
“Jeff? Jeff, are those gunshots?” Kevin broke in.
Stuttering, “Yes…yes…someone in the crowd is—”
More gun reports, like a volley popping off in sporadic unison.
“—no…it’s not the crowd, it’s the soldiers…the National Guardsmen are opening fire into the crowd!”

“No two ways about it: love this novella! If you’re a zombie lover, you can’t help but revel-the author loves this subgenre, and his devotion shines in every sentence. If you’re convinced you don’t love zombies, or you think zombies are long since overdone, or you believe all that could be said about them has been written: think again, seriously. Just give PLANET OF THE DEAD a try. Read the first page; when you surface for air, you’ll realize you read the whole story.”

Thomas is a fan of Romero and zombies. You need read no more than a few chapters of this to figure that out. This story is quick and brutal. And I love the structure of it, with the narrative jumping around between central and less consequential characters.”

“A great read with many multiple stories set within the main book. Although there are main characters featuring throughout the story, you get an excellent glimpse from a number of locations, with there own viewpoints and story-lines. I really liked how no-body was running around shouting Zombie… the story showed the genuine concern people had for their loved ones, and a much more realistic inundated medical system, with people taking their loved ones to be “cured/treated” rather than abandoning them to a Zombie fate.”

“The characters were flawed and believable, the story was tight and well written. Tension is so thick you can cut it with a knife. You won’t be able to put the book down. Highly recommended!”

“a very enjoyable read for anyone who craves the zombie genre in all its grotesquely, violent, bloodshed horror… Fans of Joe McKinney novels or Robert Kirkman’s The Walking Dead franchise will definitely want to read this story. Major props also go out to the author for diving into the subject of our soldiers and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. The questions raised are worth pondering over. Thank you, good sir. George R. Romero would have been proud.”

Now that is some high praise! Get your copy today at:

Amazon     Goodreads

The horror doesn’t stop there! Check out another awesome title from Thomas S. Flowers

What would you do for family?

Between the rural Texas towns of Bass and Sat is one of the most popular barbecue restaurants in America. Big Butts Bar-B-Que has been the seat of power for the Fleming family since the Great Depression, but when tragedy and scandal beset Titus and his surviving transgender son Lavinia, deals are made to keep control of the restaurant. An arrangement that will put a father at odds with his legacy. As the table is set, is it just the keys to the barbecue kingdom some are after, or something else entirely?

An extreme horror story inspired by Shakespeare’s play Titus Andronicus.

“Gruesome, bloody, and sadistic, and written like something Herschel Gordon Lewis would release at the drive-in, this is a colorful, entertaining, and fun read. I loved it!”

“Feast, by Thomas S. Flowers falls firmly into the camp of brilliantly conceived and executed stories with content that will challenge you and pack some serious firepower.”

“I expect I will have nightmares for quite some time. What a story!”

Get this gruesome story today at:

Amazon     Goodreads

About author Thomas S. Flowers

Who doesn’t love a good story? From great works such as, All Quiet on the Western Front and Salem’s Lot, Thomas S. Flowers aspires to create his own fantastic worlds with memorable characters and haunted places. His stories range from Shakespearean gore, feuding families, classic monsters, historic paranormal thrillers, and haunted soldiers. Residing in the swamps of Houston, Texas, with his wife and daughter, Thomas’s debut novel, Reinheit, was eventually published with Shadow Work Publishing, along with The Incredible Zilch Von Whitstein, Lanmò, The Hobbsburg Horror, and FEAST. His veteran focused paranormal thriller series, The Subdue Series, filled with werewolves, Frankenstein-inspired monsters, cults, alter-dimensional insects, witches, and the undead are published with Limitless Publishing.

In 2008, Thomas was honorably discharged from the U.S. Army where he served three tours in Operation Iraqi Freedom. In 2014, Thomas graduated from University of Houston-Clear Lake with a Bachelors in History. He blogs at machinemean.org where he reviews horror and sci fi movies and books and hosts a gambit of guest contributors who obsess over a wide range of strange yet oddly related topics.

Visit https://thomassflowers.com to…

-Find all of his books

-Read his blog

-Join his newsletter

And don’t forget to follow him on Twitter, and “Like” his Facebook page!

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