The North by Sean Cummings - Not Your Mother’s YA Zombie Novel +giveaway

Not Your Mother’s YA Zombie Novel

Post-apocalyptic fiction is nothing new; it’s been around for decades.

Back in the day when I had hair and Iron Maiden was my musical everything, Stephen King's THE STAND scared the hell out of me – it still does. It is and will always remain the GOLD standard when it comes to post apocalyptic fiction as far as I’m concerned. I've read it numerous times since 1982 and it's the one book more than any other that inspired me to write THE NORTH.

Don’t get me wrong, I’ve read a ton of other post-apocalypse books. Titles like WAR DAY by Whitley Streiber and James Kunetka (which I'm sure is the template for Max Brooks' brilliant World War Z though I can't prove it) Nature's End by the aforementioned pair of authors and finally Swan Song by Robert R, McCammon were fantastic, amazing reads.

And of course I love zombies. Like, a lot.

In THE NORTH, I wanted to see what would happen if it was just teenagers alone against the world. Of note is the fact that in my book, it’s six months after the end of the world and the reasons for the zombie outbreak are moot. Survival is the rule of the day and hand-to-hand combat has become the new normal.

So what sets THE NORTH apart is there really aren’t any adults at all – until much later in the book. It’s also a very military book – my characters are all in the army reserves, what we call the “militia” here in Canada. It’s a simple premise – break out of the city, fight to stay alive and recognize that your average run of the mill walking cadaver isn’t the only enemy. Most of the book takes place inside the bellies of Arks One and Two – a pair of infantry fighting vehicles.

This is a dark book. It goes to some very difficult places because the old world is dead and the new one is a far more dangerous place than anyone could have possibly imagined. The central figure is David Simmons – he has skin in the game in that he is motivated to protect his eight-year-old kid sister, Jo. He has sworn to himself that he will save her life and keep her innocence intact – whatever the cost. As the story progresses, Jo becomes transformed despite all of David’s best efforts and the cost comes in the way of choices that David makes – all of which are stark, brutal and often arbitrary.

I’d like to think this book contrasts a lot of other YA zombie books that are on the shelves because of the military nature and the fact that my protagonist David must keep the team together and fighting all the while keeping himself from falling apart.

There are strong secondary characters. There is internal conflict. There are tactical blunders that cost people’s lives and a shock ending that you simply won’t see coming.

Oh ... and it's in Canada. Because as nice as Canada is, we aren't immune to the zombie apocalypse! ;)

I hope you enjoy the book. It’s the first in a planned trilogy. Expect book two – INSURGENCY next fall.

The North

by Sean Cummings 

Kindle Edition, 320 pages
September 29, 2014

 by Bloor Street Books

Breakout from the armoury. Escape the city. Live. 

Sixteen-year-old David Simmons is on a mission to save his eight-year-old sister. In a smoldering world infested with walking cadavers, the survivors of Simmons infantry reserve unit are going hatches down in a pair of armoured personnel carriers and everyone knows that it’s only a matter of time until their fuel runs dry.

There’s a weak short wave radio signal from a place called Sanctuary Base and it’s supposed to be zombie-free. But there’s more than a thousand miles to cover, a biting, unforgiving cold, armed survivalists, legions of the living dead and someone called SUNRAY.

They’re outgunned, outnumbered and out of time.

This tense thriller for teens offers a terrifying and brutal vision of survival in a post-apocalyptic world where the bonds of friendship and family are the only things left that are worth fighting for.

About the Author:
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Sean Cummings is a fantasy author with a penchant for writing quirky, humorous and dark novels featuring characters that are larger than life. His debut was the gritty urban fantasy SHADE FRIGHT published in 2010. He followed up later in the year with the sequel FUNERAL PALLOR. His urban fantasy/superhero thriller UNSEEN WORLD was published in 2011.

2012 saw the publication of Sean’s first urban fantasy for young adults. POLTERGEEKS is a rollicking story about teen witch Julie Richards, her dorky boyfriend and race against time to save her mother’s life. The first sequel, STUDENT BODIES hit bookstores in September 2013.

Sean's newest book is THE NORTH. A post-apocalyptic zombie thriller for teens.

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