I'm not usually one to read or be interested in zombies, but this book was wonderful! To me, I don't care for disgusting, rotting, undead humans who want to eat brain matter. Sure, this book has that, but it has so much more depth with great characters and a unique look into human beings and true monsters.

This book certainly kept me turning the pages, but it definitely doesn't have that ol' Crichton feelin'. The "science" in this science fiction was weak and unbelieveable. Richard Preston was able to keep the basic formula of "bad company lures team of innocents into dangerous new world; bad company is brought down by own technology", but the story was about as shallow as that formula. It's a great, quick read and it will gross you out with lovely details of nature's harshness, but Crichton fans will long for the days of Lost World.

Let me just tell you, fungus scares me. I do not want it on my pizza. It grows in dark, moist corners and feeds off compost. Yuck! Let's just say fungus plays a big role in this book and each page will keep you in suspense as well as go "yuck". I loved it, really. It reminded me of the first Dean Koontz book I read that got me hooked: "The Taking". Same kind of post-apocalyptic feel with just as much of a human-less, fungus-filled environment. Enjoy! And stay away from the mushrooms!

Alright! Finally some answers as to why these storms created those crazy large creatures! I haven't been reading the Valdemar books in chronological order, but it really helps to read about the Mage Storms if you're getting confused at times about the crazy big animals and dangerous forests!

I decided to stray away from the usual Companion books and read this trilogy featuring more about the Hawkbrothers, their bondbirds, and my favorite of birds: owls! And then there's Darian. Hm, what to say about Darian. I suppose I like his character well enough. His whiny mood shapes up at the price of his entire village being raided and then a group of Hawkbrothers taking him in. He proves himself even more by showing the courage to help free his fellow villagers. Yet his reasoning didn't have much depth. Ah well, it was a fun read and I will definitely read the other two books. First, I decided to take a break and read the Mage Storms trilogy to try and figure out why the heck the forest is so strange, the animals so huge, and the why the Hawkbrothers do what they do. Some back story reading is needed for this book if you want the full experience!

Oh thank goodness! I thought Dean Koontz had lost me with his terrible books of late. Thankfully, someone at work (thanks Kathy!) recommended this one to me saying it was good and pretty scary. I like a good haunting, and demonic possession always gives me the chills, and this book was well saturated in both subjects! Also, the characters were great and the suspense as good as some of his earlier books. Yup, good job Mr. Koontz, I was loosing faith in your writing, but this book proved you still had a few good books left in you!

Ellen has such a harmless and happy sense of humor that reading her books (or watching her show) never fails to make me smile, laugh, and feel good about life!

Is it possible to give this book more than 5 stars? Perhaps 7 or 8 or 1 million? This book is the most fun I have had in a long time. It's exactly what makes me love books! Great, wonderful characters you care about (all of them!), a villainous company with a leader you hate, a story and an adventure that keeps your interest from the first paragraph, and a sense of humor and tragedy that's not tacky. Added with a good dose of 80s pop culture and gamer references, and a not-too-distant future that is eerily plausible, this book has it all. In fact, I am going to chuck it at all my friends right now!

So this book was such a great story that I could not put it down! At first I was like: "Is this really a fantasy?" and then I was like: "Whoa! Cool!" and then I was like: "Creepy, I can't wait to see what happens!" and then I finished it and I was like "Whut? I gotta wait for another book?" So those were my reactions and what really blows me away was that the photographs used for this book are actual photos that the author borrowed from various collectors! Not only am I amazed by the bizarre-ness of the photos, he does a GREAT job working them into the story.