Engaging, heartbreaking, and thrilling, with an expert pace that never touches the brakes.

“Welcome to Deadland takes a fresh bite out of the zombie genre. Inventive, heartbreaking, compelling and highly recommended!”

With Welcome to Deadland, Zachary Tyler Linville firmly establishes himself as a powerful new voice in the horror genre. Part zombie survivalist procedural and part study of the psychological impact of supernatural trauma, Welcome to Deadland opens doors that most of us would prefer to quietly tiptoe past. And you will be very glad that it does. Fans of Max Brooks, Joe McKinney, and Jonathan Maberry will all find something to love in the harrowing, bracing, and, ultimately, deeply affecting world of Mr. Linville. 

You may not know that in addition to being an online destination for genre and pop culture content, Nerdist also recently held a publishing contest; and the winning novel, Welcome to Deadland, is heading our way later this summer. If you’re looking for a zombie tale that falls outside the box, this one’s for you!

Definitely a great start to what I'm sure is a great story! In just a short prologue we get a glimpse of things to come through bits of foreshadowing and hints of a larger mystery. I was drawn to this story based on the premise alone and will definitely be eagerly awaiting  all of the updates along the way. Follow the book for Chapter 1, you won't be disappointed. You will meet some of the main characters and get all of the action that the premise promises. You really get to see how much the world has changed since the prologue and wonder even more about how and why they got there. Excellent job and I'm keeping an eye out for Chapter 2!

From the start, you know things are about to take a very wrong turn, especially with the closing paragraph of the prologue. Linville excels in pacing, being able to set an emotionally charged scene without the story getting bogged down with superfluous prose. That's not say the text is devoid of description, because it's not. The author probes the reader's imagination and encourages your mind's eyes to fill in the blanks. There's plenty of cringeworthy moments as well as those softer moments that cause one to reflect on times when they may have felt something akin to what the characters are going though. Deadland is full of vigor, despite it being a story about the undead.

I've never seen Lost or The Walking Dead but in only a few chapters this book has made me want to curl up and binge watch them both at the same time. The Prologue was immediately intriguing; with its ability to make me feel the scene develop around me, I did not want it to end so soon! Not to mention the foreshadowing to bigger and better plots (seriously, I NEED to know what's going on with this guy and his glove). Chapters 1 and 4 give us a little insight into Asher's and Rico's and the rest of the world's lives post-zombification. It doesn't take long to realize that this is a total survival situation at this point, which begs the questions of how they got there and why. Then add another layer of disconnect between the fun that is a theme park and the horror that is an apocalypse and this is sure to be a thriller. I am going to be on the edge of my seat until I can have this book in my hands and stay up all night reading it (yes, in one sitting).

Check out the video for Ophelia, Doll and see if this book is right for you! I appreciate the support of readers and hope you'll enjoy the available preview chapters enough to consider pre-ordering! Thank you!

Linville's narrative opens with an innocent scene, yet one which promises from the book's title and description to soon become one of horror. I quite enjoy how he spends time getting us acquainted with the characters and their relationships before launching us into the action. This book packs an equal mixture of fear and intrigue.