Helpful Score: 5
What a fun book from beginning to end! Not sure if it is just because I am a gal but this seems like a "guy's book". Simple read but the action is riveting. I loved the tech and science tidbits in it. If terrorists went zombie for their weapon of choice, I'm fairly certain I'd be one of the unlikely many who "bite" it. I could only pray that a kick-ass martial arts guy like Joe Ledger were around to save my ass. I will certainly get the next book if there is one!
Helpful Score: 3
My exposure to Jonathan Maberry was reading his wonderful Pine Deep trilogy. So I was looking forward to what I thought was a zombie book and the start of a new series with the novel Patient Zero. The zombie craze has hit full force in the world of horror since the early 2000's (thank you Brian Keen for getting that jump started with The Rising) and I am becoming a big fan. For me, I'm loving the direction that it is going in with The Walking Dead, 28 Days Later, Land of the Dead, etc. There's some really good stuff out there compared to how the vampire genre has turned from something I used to love to where I can barely stomach it anymore. But, I'll save why I think vampires shouldn't sparkle for another rant. Back to Patient Zero.
Once I started reading Patient Zero, I begin to like the introduction of the main character, Joe Ledger, immediately. Joe, a former military man, is now a detective with the Baltimore PD. The man has skills. He can kick some ass with his martial arts or with a vast array of weapons. He's quick on his feet, a leader that doesn't hesitate in the face of danger. Because of this, a newly formed secret agency under Homeland Secuity called the DMS recruits him to lead their newest anti-terrorist group. The head of the DMS is a steely, unflappable man with ice in his veins named Mr. Church. Mr. Church reminds me of Tommy Lee Jones character in Men In Black (without the silliness, of course). The guy has connections all the way to the White House. Whatever he wants - the latest gadgets, unlimited resources, skipping through the red tape to get things done immediately, he gets.
The plot centers around a Muslim extremist group that partners up with a pharmaceutical baron, named Sebastian Gault, to create a biological weapon that causes people to "die" and then "come back to life" as zombie-like creatures to infect others with their bites with no known cure. I won't give too much away. But, the bad guys have lots of tricks up their sleeves and the back and forth between the Ledger led group fighting the terrorists is one enjoyable ride. Maberry does a fantastic job in creating characters that stand up through the whole book, great dialogue, and such a vivid picture of post 9/11 terrorism without being old James Bond cheesy. I originally thought that this was going to be a zombie book. As you've probably read from other reviews, the zombies are simply the biological weapon in a terrorist thriller story. While this is different than what I thought it was going to be about, it's still a great story. Think of Joe Ledger as a cross between Mel Gibson in Lethal Weapon and Arnold Schwartzenegger in Predator. If I had anything negative to say about the story, I would say that it had a little too much talk about psychiatry and how their various encounters affected the characters psyche. It really is a minor complaint. I still recommend it to anyone who likes action with side order of zombies.
Once I started reading Patient Zero, I begin to like the introduction of the main character, Joe Ledger, immediately. Joe, a former military man, is now a detective with the Baltimore PD. The man has skills. He can kick some ass with his martial arts or with a vast array of weapons. He's quick on his feet, a leader that doesn't hesitate in the face of danger. Because of this, a newly formed secret agency under Homeland Secuity called the DMS recruits him to lead their newest anti-terrorist group. The head of the DMS is a steely, unflappable man with ice in his veins named Mr. Church. Mr. Church reminds me of Tommy Lee Jones character in Men In Black (without the silliness, of course). The guy has connections all the way to the White House. Whatever he wants - the latest gadgets, unlimited resources, skipping through the red tape to get things done immediately, he gets.
The plot centers around a Muslim extremist group that partners up with a pharmaceutical baron, named Sebastian Gault, to create a biological weapon that causes people to "die" and then "come back to life" as zombie-like creatures to infect others with their bites with no known cure. I won't give too much away. But, the bad guys have lots of tricks up their sleeves and the back and forth between the Ledger led group fighting the terrorists is one enjoyable ride. Maberry does a fantastic job in creating characters that stand up through the whole book, great dialogue, and such a vivid picture of post 9/11 terrorism without being old James Bond cheesy. I originally thought that this was going to be a zombie book. As you've probably read from other reviews, the zombies are simply the biological weapon in a terrorist thriller story. While this is different than what I thought it was going to be about, it's still a great story. Think of Joe Ledger as a cross between Mel Gibson in Lethal Weapon and Arnold Schwartzenegger in Predator. If I had anything negative to say about the story, I would say that it had a little too much talk about psychiatry and how their various encounters affected the characters psyche. It really is a minor complaint. I still recommend it to anyone who likes action with side order of zombies.
Helpful Score: 1
I had never read anything by Jonathan Maberry, but since I like the zombie genre, this book caught my eye. I like reading the "special ops" type books, and this book definitely falls into that group. It took me a while to really get into the book - I felt like the first few chapters were more of "setting it up" but then it took off quickly and I was hooked.
Joe Ledger is an ex-cop who has been recruited by a secret group in the government that is battling terrorists that have developed a virus that turns people into zombies. The interaction between Ledger and the group that was picked for his team, as well as the rest of the secret group he works with was great, and even with the violence and fighting, I often found myself laughing.
Jonathan Maberry has been added to my list of authors that I want to read more by and I will be looking for others in the Joe Ledger series.
Joe Ledger is an ex-cop who has been recruited by a secret group in the government that is battling terrorists that have developed a virus that turns people into zombies. The interaction between Ledger and the group that was picked for his team, as well as the rest of the secret group he works with was great, and even with the violence and fighting, I often found myself laughing.
Jonathan Maberry has been added to my list of authors that I want to read more by and I will be looking for others in the Joe Ledger series.
Loved this book. Fast moving, the characters are very distinct, Maberry did a good job of making their personalities believable. As with most of the zombie genre the gore can be a little overboard, at times I would cheat and skip over some of it, but then I would have to go back and read it because I missed some essential dialog. Love the writers descriptive short style. Was able to visualize the settings, without the boring over describing every minute detail.
5 star book.
5 star book.
What's really interesting about my experience liking this book is that I only really thought it was interesting at first because of the creepy cover. However when i say down to read the book I found an author who for me combines vince flynns counterterrorism theme with the horror genre. I would definitely recommend this book!
Wow! This was very different from the Pine Deep Trilogy (_Ghost Road Blues_, etc.), but very good in its own way. Definitely an action-packed book, in places this reminded me of a more serious version of _Get Smart_ (though the DMS seems to be a lot more effective than Control), mainly because of the role of the mysterious but still paternal Chief (in this case he is called Chuch). I don't usually enjoy political, techno-thrillers, but I certainly like this book. I am excited that this is the start of a whole new series to follow, and I especially relieved to have the sequel already.
Maberry is a talented storyteller, with a knack for both characters and pacing. While the plot's turns were largely predictable, it was so filled with excitement, that it hardly mattered that you were waiting for the main characters to catch up to your knowledge. All in all, this was a riveting read!
Maberry is a talented storyteller, with a knack for both characters and pacing. While the plot's turns were largely predictable, it was so filled with excitement, that it hardly mattered that you were waiting for the main characters to catch up to your knowledge. All in all, this was a riveting read!
I enjoyed this book. A little over the top with all the battles but the storyline was very intriguing. Loved the characters and all the twists and turns it took. I would recommend this to anyone in to horror!
I thought that once again Jonathan Maberry shines as another fabulous author that hasn't gotten near enough recognition for his skills! He is a young Stephen King with a decidedly different take on everything! This was a page turner, fast paced and of the 'I couldn't put it down!' variety!! I think the writing is smart, but not condescending. I highly recommend!!! I will have to buy books 2 & 3 in this series...I can't wait!!
Patient Zero
I picked this book up based on the back jacket When you have to kill the same terrorist twice in one week there's either something wrong with your world or something wrong with your skills... and there's nothing wrong with Joe Ledger's skills.
It seems that there are more books in the series but not reading them did not effect the story line. It was a good take on zombie story. From the perspective of the front line fighter, for the government, that is actually trying to do something about the problem before it gets out of hand.
Joe Ledger is recruited by the DMS (Department of Military Sciences) to help stop terrorists that have bio weapon that creates man-made zombies. These zombies have a few different levels, some are traditional reanimated dead others are stronger, faster, and harder to kill.
I picked this book up based on the back jacket When you have to kill the same terrorist twice in one week there's either something wrong with your world or something wrong with your skills... and there's nothing wrong with Joe Ledger's skills.
It seems that there are more books in the series but not reading them did not effect the story line. It was a good take on zombie story. From the perspective of the front line fighter, for the government, that is actually trying to do something about the problem before it gets out of hand.
Joe Ledger is recruited by the DMS (Department of Military Sciences) to help stop terrorists that have bio weapon that creates man-made zombies. These zombies have a few different levels, some are traditional reanimated dead others are stronger, faster, and harder to kill.
For me this book started out a little slow and a little on the masculine side. There was a lot of talk about weaponry and there were many uses of acronyms I have never heard. This is definitely a guys' zombie novel.
Having said that, the storyline picked up quickly and really drew me in. There was a lot of excitement, intrigue and zombie gore. If you are a fan of the zombie genre or even if you like a good 'awesome smart ass cop warrior' (Joe Ledger) kind of book you will enjoy this.
This novel put a little different spin on the usual zombie tale. This time there is a chance to stop the zombie apocalypse from happening.
Having said that, the storyline picked up quickly and really drew me in. There was a lot of excitement, intrigue and zombie gore. If you are a fan of the zombie genre or even if you like a good 'awesome smart ass cop warrior' (Joe Ledger) kind of book you will enjoy this.
This novel put a little different spin on the usual zombie tale. This time there is a chance to stop the zombie apocalypse from happening.
Not bad, not great. The story is pretty good if you like the zombie genre, although this has more of a military angle. The writing detracts from the story some for me, as there were a lot of cliches and unrealistic dialogue. That said, I liked it and will continue with the series.
I am a zombie loving freak and read and watch everything zombie.This book is more like an reading and action movie. Very military and Rambo macho man stuff. Love the writing and love reading something different but not my favorite zombie tale of all time.I think it is a well written great book and my rating just reflects more my personal tastes in reading. If you love action movies and military readign you'll love this.
Never before have I enjoyed a "man's man" book quite as much as I did this one. If you are looking for some zombie action with a spicy office romance thrown in....well keep perusing the bookshelf because this is not that book. Probably 300 pages out of the 421 were devoted to battle scenes with graphic detail. And it was always fantastically riveting! This is a typical zombie book in that the zombie are hosts of a virus that lusts for living flesh to infect by tearing the victim apart. Where it differs is that the zombies are part of a plan, a plan to cripple the United States.
Cop Joe Ledger is pulled into this when his task force stumbles upon the first host of this virus, Patient zero. He is recruited to be part of a team that is trying to stop this force before it is unleashed on the public, after which it would be unstoppable.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book, so much in fact that I went out to the store to buy another book by this author.
*Note: All reviews are cross posted to my profile on Goodreads.
Cop Joe Ledger is pulled into this when his task force stumbles upon the first host of this virus, Patient zero. He is recruited to be part of a team that is trying to stop this force before it is unleashed on the public, after which it would be unstoppable.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book, so much in fact that I went out to the store to buy another book by this author.
*Note: All reviews are cross posted to my profile on Goodreads.
I started reading Jonathon Maberry when my middle school son read Rot and Ruin for school. I polished off that series pretty quickly, then discovered that the author had the adult geared series out there that goes along with the storyline from the teen books. I really can't get enough. When I need a break from every day real problems, it's really nice to hide out on the porch with a Jonathon Maberry novel and a cup of tea. I'd say zombie novel, but well I will leave it to you to discover why it isn't, not exactly.
SUSAN S. (susieqmillsacoustics) -
Fantastic read all the way through! I love the characters. Joe Ledger is such a fun hero! As usual, Maberry hits a home run!
