Coldbrook (Hammer)

It's been difficult to find something new to do with zombies after they've dominated the horror genre for so long, and Lebbon doesn't wrap himself up in knots trying. The zombies are as you'd hope for, brainless and hungry, and their spread across first America and then the world is fast and furious. The author paints the zombification of the Earth with graphic effectiveness, but doesn't stop there. This time the zombies are both brought on mankind through his own folly (scientists meddling with forces beyond their ken, naturally), and inflicted by an outside force. There are other Earths out there which have already been annihilated by the undead, and a powerful force behind them which might have an ulterior motive that can be unravelled and challenged... Lebbon mixes alternate Earths with the zombie holocaust I signed on for to increase the scale of the horror exponentially. A world destroyed by the undead is bad enough, but countless? There are proper frights to be had in Coldbrook, particularly as one survivor of the outbreak is stalked through silent corridors by something impossible and horrific, and wonders too.

I like it, it's a really good start to a series that doesn't exist! Enjoyed the characters and situations just left with the feeling that there should have been more to come. I got that from the other Tim Lebbon book I read, The Silence, also great, so maybe that's his style. I'm not someone that needs all stringss tied up but I felt like it could have gone on just a bit longer and I've have given five stars. Enjoy it whilst you're in the world.

There really should be a law against toying with the fabric of spacetime and jeopardising the very nature of reality. When the scientists at a Top Secret underground facility in the Appalachian mountains do just that, you know beyond a shadow of doubt that it will all end in tears... well, in a zombie apocalypse, to be more accurate.The market seems to be awash with zombie fiction at the moment. The reading public's taste for vampires and werewolves appears to be waning somewhat (thank goodness), but you can't swing a chainsaw in your local bookshop without hitting a new zombapoc offering. I can't claim to be any sort of expert in the genre but, like all literary phenomena, there are good and bad entrants to the competition.Coldbrook ranks among the good, I am pleased to report. There may be better out there (I have a few more of the type on my Kindle awaiting my attention, so I shall report back eventually) but there are definitely many worse. Faint praise? Not really. It ain't literature, but Lebbon writes a tidy, strong and technically accomplished story and populates it with a cast of diverse, believable and sympathetic characters. There's nothing particularly original to the story itself and many or all of the plot elements will be familiar to readers of sci-fi, horror, fantasy and of course zombiefic. However, Lebbon makes effective use of his well-stocked sci-fi toolbox to construct an interesting narrative. There is a slight disconnect as Lebbon, a Brit, puts a Welshman as one of the main protagonists into an American setting. It's not a big killer, but Brits should very careful when writing novels about America and Americans, just as Yank novellists should be careful when writing about Brits and Britain.Good fun, well written and easy to read. Recommended.

First of all despite the number of pages this is a very quick book to read, it has a large font and I ploughed through it in a few days. Tm Lebbon is a clear writer he is very easy to read and the book moves at a swift pace.Moving on to the story, it isn't a bad mix of a classic zombie apocalypse with a multi-universe sci-fi plot. It is nothing particularly unique and is best described as a B-Movie made into a novel and that is not a bad thing.It is not particularly taxing, and the multi-verse story line could have got particularly convoluted but Lebbon has avoided this maybe giving scope to explore further in a sequel.If you enjoyed the first 200 pages of The Passage for example and thought the rest was rubbish, or enjoyed The Stand or Swan Song then this book is for you. If you have never heard of those novels then go and read them first (apart from the The Passage as it is rubbish)...!

Coldbrook is a seamless blend of science fiction and horror that for the most part works brilliantly (I had a couple of niggles, but nothing that detracted too much from the story). A group of scientists lift the lid on a Pandora's box when they open a gateway to a parallel universe, but what comes through is not what they are expecting.The characters in the novel are brought to life on the page, and they become people you root for and care about as they try to cope with the end of the world as we know it. They seem like very real people trying to manage with a very unreal situation. This is an inventive and thrilling addition to the shambling zombie genre, and it goes to show that there are still some authors out there who can push the boundaries and take it to the next level.

Not a patch on the brilliant, The Silence.As another reviewer points out, it starts well, then just gets a bit "meh". I lost interest about halfway through and I'm afraid never saw it through to the end.Perhaps I might give it another chance one day, however, not for awhile. I WILL try another of Tim Lebbon's books though. I can't recommend The Silence highly enough.

Excellent book, though the end was a little abrupt.Jonah Jones helps create the first breach across parallel worlds, but human error allows a disease through. Que the zombies.This is engrossing and well-paced. However, it left me wanting at the end.

I enjoyed Coldbrook, the story was fast paced, original in a way, characters good and well written. Can't help but feel a little disappointed by the end. I think there was a lot more story still to go.

El producto llego bien y los materiales se ven de buena calidad. Satisfecho con mi compra

An amazing book. Exceeded my reading expectations.Very entertaining

I read this book in less than 24 hours. Didn't want to stop. Reckon this will be a new favorite author?

If you think that Coldbrook as simply a zombie apocalypse novel then you’re in for a very nice surprise. I purchased Lebbon’s novel only because it was featured on Facebook in a “Zombie Novels that Should be Made into Television Series” featurette; many of the books shown were ones I’d already read and appreciated, but Coldbrook was (for me) an unknown, so after a quick search on Amazon I found and read the synopsis…needless to say that my interest was piqued and a purchase made.Now, the reason I say that Coldbrook isn’t simply a zombie apocalypse novel is because the whole of the story relies upon science fiction. See, Coldbrook is the name of a facility located in the Appalachian Mountains where a group of scientist have been tasked with punching a hole into a parallel Earth…and what wanders through that doorway signals the extinction of man.At every turn I expected this novel to lose some of its momentum while eventually grounding down into the familiar pacing of your average undead tale; zombies attack, chaos ensues and those who have managed to survive degenerate into savages (or battle savages) in a tired bid to secure what resources are available…well, that’s not Coldbrook!No, instead we see all the ingredients being laid out for the reader to assemble and just when you think “I’ve been down this road before” the story takes an amazing leap into uncharted territory with one of the leads escaping death by finding refuge in that alternate Earth. I did not see that coming and the payoff is what makes Coldbrook work! By introducing the reader to characters from a parallel Earth (one which suffered its own zombie epidemic 40 years prior) the author is able to introduce an even grander concept that gives origin to the plague with a sinister plot that unfolds beautifully. Honestly, with everything that transpires throughout the novel I truly thought that there was no way Lebbon could bring about a conclusion without the story being continued in a sequel, but he manages to pull it off while at the same time satisfying the reader with all loose threads neatly tied up.I highly recommend for any zombie aficionado!

Different worlds? Different Earth? Is it feasible? A group of scientists have broken through the veil and breached another world. In their facility underneath a mountain, they are amazed with the picture of a place different from our own. With containment, they are not yet eager to explore and they certainly don't want anything to come thru. But it does. Something that they have never seen before spreading a killer virus which takes hold immediately.Worried for his family, one scientist makes his way to the outside. Unfortunately, so does the virus. Killing then reanimated, zombies. And it moves fast.I enjoyed this book immensely. The characters were well defined, the storyline is great. Lots of action scenes, weird illusionist, and thousands of zombies. Plus new faces from the world they do not know.It's hard to adequately review this book. There are subplots that are as interesting as the main storyline. Totally enjoyable...😉,