A Place Outside the Wild

Humphreys’s debut and series launch is a competent addition to the zombie apocalypse genre. It’s 2026, eight years after Z-day, when hordes of zombies arose after a flu-like pandemic. Computer geek Miles Matthews lives, along with his family, in a protected enclave with other survivors. As the zombie population gradually deteriorates due to natural decomposition, a murder in the enclave reveals that humanity itself is still a potential threat to survival. Before Miles can investigate, a military convoy arrives, surprising the survivors, who haven’t seen other people in years. As it turns out, the military is searching for Miles, who has access to a biotech facility from his job before Z-day, and materials at the facility might be able to help find a cure. While Miles leaves to help the military, the rest of the enclave searches for the murderer in their midst. Humphreys has a morbid wit, but the work stays inside typical zombie story standards: the undead are ravenous and determined, the killings are bloody (although not gratuitously so), and the battles are glorious. Those who enjoy zombie stories will want to give Humphreys’s offering a look. (BookLife)

This review has been updated to correct a production error.