Book picks similar to
The Fierce and Unforgiving Muse by Gregory L. Norris


horror
post-apocalyptic
apes-gorillas
short-story-novella-anthology

Happy Doomsday


David Sosnowski - 2018
    One minute, people are going about their lives, and the next—not. In the wake of the inexplicable purge, only a handful of young misfits remains.When it all went down, “Wizard of Odd” Dev Brinkman was seeking shelter from the taunts of his classmates. Goth girl Lucy Abernathy had lost her best friend and had no clue where to turn. And Twinkie-loving quarterback “Marcus” Haddad was learning why you never discuss politics and religion in polite company—or online.As if life when you’re sixteen isn’t confusing enough, throw in the challenges of postapocalyptic subsistence, a case of survivor’s guilt turned up to seven billion, and the small task of rebuilding humankind…No one said doomsday would be a breeze. But for Dev, Lucy, and Marcus, the greatest hope—and greatest threat—will come when they find each other.

Infected


Scott Sigler - 2008
    Working under the government’s shroud of secrecy, CIA operative Dew Phillips crisscrosses the country trying in vain to capture a live victim. With only decomposing corpses for clues, CDC epidemiologist Margaret Montoya races to analyze the science behind this deadly contagion. She discovers that these killers all have one thing in common – they’ve been contaminated by a bioengineered parasite, shaped by a complexity far beyond the limits of known science.Meanwhile Perry Dawsey – a hulking former football star now resigned to life as a cubicle-bound desk jockey – awakens one morning to find several mysterious welts growing on his body. Soon Perry finds himself acting and thinking strangely, hearing voices . . . he is infected. The fate of the human race may well depend on the bloody war Perry must wage with his own body, because the parasites want something from him, something that goes beyond mere murder.

The Passage


Justin Cronin - 2010
    government facility unleashes the monstrous product of a chilling military experiment. Then, the unspeakable: a night of chaos and carnage gives way to sunrise on a nation, and ultimately a world, forever altered. All that remains for the stunned survivors is the long fight ahead and a future ruled by fear—of darkness, of death, of a fate far worse.As civilization swiftly crumbles into a primal landscape of predators and prey, two people flee in search of sanctuary. FBI agent Brad Wolgast is a good man haunted by what he's done in the line of duty. Six-year-old orphan Amy Harper Bellafonte is a refugee from the doomed scientific project that has triggered apocalypse. Wolgast is determined to protect her from the horror set loose by her captors, but for Amy, escaping the bloody fallout is only the beginning of a much longer odyssey—spanning miles and decades—toward the time an place where she must finish what should never have begun.With The Passage, award-winning author Justin Cronin has written both a relentlessly suspenseful adventure and an epic chronicle of human endurance in the face of unprecedented catastrophe and unimaginable danger. Its inventive storytelling, masterly prose, and depth of human insight mark it as a crucial and transcendent work of modern fiction.

The Damnation Game


Clive Barker - 1985
    There are games so seductively evil, so wondrously vile, no gambler can resist. Amid the shadow-scarred rubble of World War II, Joseph Whitehead dared to challenge the dark champion of life’s ultimate game. Now a millionaire, locked in a terror-shrouded fortress of his own design, Joseph Whitehead has hell to pay. And no soul is safe from this ravaging fear, the resurrected fury, the unspeakable desire of The Damnation Game.

The Zombie Survival Guide: Complete Protection from the Living Dead


Max Brooks - 2003
    Fully illustrated and exhaustively comprehensive, this book covers everything you need to know, including how to understand zombie physiology and behavior, the most effective defense tactics and weaponry, ways to outfit your home for a long siege, and how to survive and adapt in any territory or terrain.Top 10 Lessons for Surviving a Zombie Attack 1. Organize before they rise! 2. They feel no fear, why should you?3. Use your head: cut off theirs.4. Blades don’t need reloading.5. Ideal protection = tight clothes, short hair.6. Get up the staircase, then destroy it. 7. Get out of the car, get onto the bike.8. Keep moving, keep low, keep quiet, keep alert!9. No place is safe, only safer. 10. The zombie may be gone, but the threat lives on. Don’t be carefree and foolish with your most precious asset—life. This book is your key to survival against the hordes of undead who may be stalking you right now without your even knowing it. The Zombie Survival Guide offers complete protection through trusted, proven tips for safeguarding yourself and your loved ones against the living dead. It is a book that can save your life.

The Silence In Heaven


Peter Lord-Wolff - 2000
    Tashum lands in the sea, separated from Paladin. When Tashum saves a man and woman from a doomed ship, they tell him they were saved once before by a celestial being. Recognizing Paladin in the couple's tale, Tashum sets off to find his brother.

Breakdown


Katherine Amt Hanna - 2011
    But unresolved grief over his dead wife and baby and the horrors he witnessed as he traveled through a changed world have damaged him. He struggles to let go of his past, accept the healing kindness of those around him, and let love back into his life.Approximately 103,000 words, or 425 printed pages.

Envy of Angels


Matt Wallace - 2015
    It's like I dropped a heroic dose of acid and turned on the Food Network for eight hours. It's funny and demented and sticks in you like a pinbone. Matt Wallace writes like someone just jammed a needle full of adrenaline in his heart - and then, in yours. From this point forward, I'll read anything this guy writes."-Chuck Wendig, author of BLACKBIRDS and ZER0ES"No one makes me think, 'Dammit, I should have thought of that!' like Matt Wallace. The Sin du Jour series is something I read with equal amounts of envy and delight." - Mur Lafferty, Campbell Award winning author of THE SHAMBLING GUIDE TO NEW YORK CITY

The Lady on the Road: An Urban Legend Short Story


Nick Herntier - 2019
    After leaving her friend's house, she decides she's going to prove to her brother that "The Lady on the Road " urban legend is just that...

The Return of Count Electric & Other Stories


William Browning Spencer - 1993
    Collection of short fiction by the author of Résumé with Monsters• The Wedding Photographer in Crisis• Haunted by the Horror King• The Entomologists at Obala• The Return of Count Electric• Graven Images• Pep Talk• Looking Out for Eleanor• Snow• A Child's Christmas in Florida• Best Man• Daughter Doom

The New York Magician


Jacob Zimmerman - 2013
    He knows about the magic that crackles above the rooftops and beneath the streets. He knows about the creatures and beings - considered mythical to most and gods to some - playing their long and complicated game across the city. Until recently, he's kept to the sidelines - watching their moves, keeping their secrets, trading an occasional favor. But now things have shifted and it's not clear whether he's player or pawn. If he wants to survive, he'll need to decide which is his true role.

The Gemini Effect


Chuck Grossart - 2012
    By dawn, only a dead city remains, eerily quiet and still, except for mutant beasts that hide from the light, multiply, and await the shadows of night to continue their relentless advance.Ordered to investigate the unfolding crisis, biowarfare specialist Carolyn Ridenour barely escapes the creatures’ nocturnal onslaught, saved in the nick of time by Colonel Garrett Hoffman, who lost hundreds of his troops to a swarm that neither bombs nor bullets can stop.As Carolyn and Garrett race to stop the plague, a battered and broken government prepares to release the fury of America’s nuclear arsenal on its own soil and its own citizens. The Gemini Effect was originally published as The Mengele Effect. This edition has been completely edited and revised, including significant plot changes.

The Vampire Handbook


P.J. Jones - 2011
     Congratulations! But before beginning that dark and shadowed journey into a life of eternal damnation, every vampire is required to read THE VAMPIRE HANDBOOK, a short step-by-step guide to becoming a vampire and then adjusting to the bloodsucking lifestyle. Some of the helpful tips in this handbook include: Rules for Living an Environmentally Friendly and Urbane, Undead Lifestyle, Dietary Restrictions for Vampires, Engaging in Battles with Other Immortals, Rules for Fitting into Society and not Scaring off Potential Meals and much more... In addition to THE VAMPIRE HANDBOOK, you will also get THE WERE/SHAPE-SHIFTER HANDBOOK and THE ZOMBIE HANDBOOK as well as a few sample chapters from PJ Jones's sparkly vampire parody, ROMANCE NOVEL.

Daphne Byrne #1


Laura Marks - 2020
    The sudden death of her father has left her alone with her irresponsible, grief-stricken mother-who becomes easy prey for a group of occultists promising to contact her dead husband. While fighting to disentangle her mother from these charlatans, Daphne begins to sense a strange, insidious presence in her own body...an entity with unspeakable appetites. What does “Brother” want? And could she even stop him if she tried?

Mutation Z Series, Books #1-6: The Ebola Zombies, Closing the Borders, Protecting Our Own, Drones Overhead, Dragon in the Bunker, Desperate Measures


Marilyn Peake - 2016
    Some mutations are worse than others.Ebola, one of the most feared of the hemorrhagic diseases, begins spreading across the borders of countries in West Africa. Soon after, the disease mutates into the “Z” or Zombie Virus. Journalist Hunter Morgan uncovers a disturbing connection between Chen-Zamora Pharmaceuticals and this mutation. Further investigation reveals a web of sinister intrigue connecting the pharmaceutical company to a treatment and research camp in West Africa, U.S. government officials, the CDC and the World Health Organization. Racing against time to find a cure, Hunter and several scientists go underground in order to hide from powerful forces trying to silence them forever.Boxed Set of NOVELETTES and NOVELLAS. GENRES: Apocalyptic Science Fiction, Zombie Fiction, Conspiracy Fiction, Horror. REVIEWS: Book #1, Mutation Z: The Ebola Zombies:“The plot sucked me in, as it was well done and believable. This take on the pandemic angle was well done, and an interesting to see a zombie outbreak from start. I have to say this kept me on the edge of my seat, and made me want to wash my hands repeatedly.” – Shandy Jo, Mama Knows Books“I am VERY excited to hear that this novelette will be growing into a series! Especially because of the ending that leaves you with buggy eyes and an impressive jaw gape.” – Rebecca Engelmann, Sister Sinister Speaks blogBook #2, Mutation Z: Closing the Borders:“Ms Peake delivered an enthralling read...Ms Peake pulls you into the story and keeps you reading with lots of action and twists to keep you on your toes.” – Shandy Jo at Mama Knows Books“This second book is as intense as the first one. And the addition of new characters and the spread of the disease build the suspense to a fever pitch.” – Laura, FUONLYKNEW BlogBook #3, Mutation Z: Protecting Our Own:“Electrifying: Science Gone Amuck” – Mallory Heart Reviews“Holy crap! / Just when you think things can’t get any crazier, they do. This is one intense series. I loved the first two books and this one is just as good, if not better.” – Laura, FUONLYKNEW Blog“The Mutation Z series is a must read for horror and dystopian lovers everywhere. The story grows better and better with each novella.” – Sherry Fundin, Blogger and ReviewerBook #4, Mutation Z: Drones Overhead:“Well, the author did it again. Kept me tearing through this episode, cringing, cheering, and hoping. Mutation Z is like zombie M&Ms. You can’t read just one and keep reaching for more.” – Laura, FUONLYKNEW Blog“Mutation Z: Drones Overhead by Marilyn Peake is the fourth novella in this zombie series that had me feeling like upchucking one minute and kicking ass the next.” – Sherry Fundin, Blogger and ReviewerBook #5, Mutation Z: Dragon in the Bunker:“Zombie horror, big government, a little bit of science fiction, and some modern cyber twists. Too good to pass up.” – Laura, FUONLYKNEW Blog“Journalist Hunter Morgan is a seriously messed up guy who has lost so much because of the Z virus, but he never gives up and I love that, because in this apocalyptic horror novella, all my conspiracy theories developed into full blown betrayal and treason showcasing an evil so potent that it makes me so angry I want to jump into my Kindle and beat the hell out of someone…or so much worse and with writing like that I say, ‘Well done, Marilyn,’ as we move on to a new beginning in Hunter’s life.” – Sherry Fundin, Blogger and ReviewerBook #6, Mutation Z: Desperate Measures:“I almost didn’t want to start this one as it’s the final book and I didn’t want it to end. / I wondered who would survive, if they’d find a cure, whether the world could be saved. I didn’t have a clue how all of my questions would be answered. / The author did a bang up job of doing just that.” – Laura, FUONLYKNEW Blog“Marilyn Peake wraps up this novella series, exposing all the conspiracies and corruption, the perverted reasons for setting the zombies loose, and my juices were flowing as they pissed me off and sickened me beyond words, but left me with the faith that a…few good men/women can make all the difference in the world.” – Sherry Fundin, Blogger and Reviewer