Zombies! discussion

Greetings to all that voted for Desolation (Mark Campbell) for this month's group read.

We don't currently have a moderator, if you are interested, let me know. Otherwise, if someone who has a copy of the book can assist me, we'll break it into three parts.

The reading schedule will be
Part 1: Dec 5-Dec 10
Part 2: Dec 11- Dec 15
Part 3: Dec 16-Dec 20

If someone can let me know good chapter or page breaking points, I can update what the parts correspond to.

In the absence of a moderator, you are welcome to post your own questions/comments as they correspond to the sections being read during that time.

Hello, I appreciate the interest in my book. If anybody has any questions just let me know.

If you'd like a copy of the book for this discussion just shoot me an e-mail and I'll lend you a kindle copy.

It hasn't been on the market very long so I welcome any feedback or questions that you may have. I love hearing from fellow readers!

I completed a read for review on this book last month. I enjoyed it a lot, but offer fair warning that there are some disturbing scenes in it.
I am not offering to moderate this BOTM because I have read it and I tend to leak spoilers when I am talking about a book that I have read.
I feel that this book doesn’t break into 3 parts very easily, simply because there is a major action scene (which begins on page 82 and runs solid until page 134) that you would be breaking up if you tried that.
The book is 313 pages long, some of them are propaganda photos/maps.
However if you were to break it into 3 parts, I would suggest that you cutoff the first reading assignment either just before or immediately after that section.
Then, depending on where you have cut off the first reading, I would suggest the pages 203 or page 229 are good places to end the second part of the read.

So here are my thoughts read on a three part break up:

Pages 1-82 part one, 82 pages
Pages 83-203 part two, 121 pages
Pages 204-313 part three, 109 pages

Or

Pages 1-134 part one, 134 pages
Pages 135-229 part two, 94 pages
Pages 229-313 part three, 84 pages

I think that those are the best suggestions that I can make regarding how to break the reading into three parts, without interrupting a major movement of the story.

I started reading this book last night and had to stop myself so I wouldn't get past the first part of the reading discussion. The author has a very smooth writing style that sucked me right in to the story. Lots of nitty, gritty details of daily life in the FEMA camp in the Arizona desert one year after the outbreak.

I'm really digging the visuals in this book - the map of the survivor camps and the posters. Those colored FEMA posters really reminded me of the video game Bioshock.

The survivor camp seems to have strong parallels to a prison camp - the security guards who are there to protect the citizens becoming prison guards on a power-trip. How much of the author's experience in the criminal justice system do you see in the book so far?

Jim - question: is there a way to get this discussion topic linked to the book's GR page?

I am not sure if I'll answer Jason questions because I don't want to spoil anything for you or anyone else who might be reading.
However if the questions are generalized and not "what do you think will happen next?" Than I might jump in.
As for the photos, I felt they added to the storyline and gave an uniqueness to the book.
Each one explained a little bit more about the "back story".

Netanella wrote: "Jim - question: is there a way to get this discussion topic linked to the book's GR page?"

Yes :)

Jason,
While I agree that this book is able to be read as a stand alone, I feel that having the first books explanation of the first days of the Zombies apocalypse helped me to adapt to the way this book opens inside the FEMA camps one year later.
I am curious about how those who haven't read book one feel about the opening scenes. How long does it take for them to 'find the groove' of this book?
I recall that the author addresses the virus outbreak aspect in this story as it processes. But I can't recall how much of what I knew already from the first vs what is developed in this book. Either way this series does a great job with showing the "how" of the virus outbreak.
Speaking generally and as vague as I can here, I feel that the government/ social structures in both of these stories is well developed. So much so in this second book that I consider this a dystopian story as well.

I haven't read the first book, Degeneration, yet, but I didn't have any problems finding my groove for this second book (and I don't know Stella). As far as I can tell from the blurbs and from what Jason has said, the story is set in the same world, but the characters are entirely different. That makes a world of difference. As well, there's no "info dump" at the beginning, which some authors feel compelled to use in order to get us poor readers as quickly caught up as possible. Instead, with a fairly brief explanation of the zombie origin, the author allows the story to progress naturally through the eyes of the narrator. That, I can respect.

Elizabeth wrote: "Netanella wrote: "Jim - question: is there a way to get this discussion topic linked to the book's GR page?"

Yes :)"

Thank yee kindly.

Thanks for your kind comments. Yes Jason, I'll participate in the Q&A if you have questions for me. I'm not going to participate in the section questions because that would be a little tacky don't you agree?

I almost didn't include the pictures but my beta reader, Tammy K, convinced me to keep them. She's been extremely helpful and for that I thank her!

The pictures mess with the Kindle format and ruin some indentations. Kindle apparently hates pictures. That's why I was worried about keeping them.

Thank you for reading though. I hope you enjoy the book!

Patience, Tara, the zombies are just over the walls, literally! I find the run-down FEMA camps fascinating, especially in the light of recent disasters like Hurricane Katrina and all the camps that went up. Plus, there are lots of crack-pot theorists out there who believe that FEMA camps are really concentration camps for the homeless. And in a way, Campbell has made that theory a reality with pork back on the menu.

If it turns into a love story, Jerri will have to die! ;)

1) What is your general feeling about the FEMA camp Jerri is living in? What do you think contributed to the current conditions inside the camp?
I thought the living conditions were horrible, but to be expected one year after the total collapse of the government.
While temporary help from government agencies such as FEMA maybe available for some situations, history has shown that the longer the help is needed and the greater the amount of help is needed, the more likely it is that the current agencies will falter in their efforts.
In short, the way the camps are portrayed is how I would imagine them working if such a dire need as this book places on them exists.
At best they are bandaid like fixes, not intended or useful for anything else.

Question two I won't answer so as to avoid spoilers.

3) If you had a choice, would you (work) for the FEMA police or just be one of the civilians?
Neither option is particularly desirable. I tend to rebel against authority so I'd probably be a citizen over a FEMA policeman.

4) If you were a survivor, would you live in the camp or try to tough out there in the “real world”?
I have no plans on trying to survive a zombies apocalypse. Mentality I think I'd crack up long before these characters did.
But if I had to choose, I'd rather be in the real world than locked up unable to contribute to my fate.

Question five I will skip as well.

6) Jerri is a very strong character but what do you think motivates her to go through day-to-day life? Why do you think she keeps to herself for the most part?

Those are great questions but I have no answers for them at this time. It isn't until part three that I recall identifying with her motivations.

7) What are your thoughts about Krystal and her mental break? Does her baby have any hope of survival?

I'll answer the first part of that question only.
Krystal's break from reality is probably closer to a real life experience than most would like to contemplate.

8) What are your thoughts about Andrew so far in the book? How do you feel about the interactions between him and Jerri?
I'm only going to part way answer this one too.
I recall at this point in the story sitting on the fence regarding Andrew.

Question 9 I'll skip as well.

10) Do you think that the doctor/nurse’s crime was really that bad or did Jerri just overreact?
Yes. As I recalled that section, the patients were in pain. The medication which was for everyone in the camp who might be in pain was being used by the doctor/nurse to get high.

I have to ask… would you eat the pork?
No.
I'm not trying to disturb anyone's sensibly here, but the smell of human flesh burning does not smell like pork cooking. Its a horribly sweet (like sugar not sweet like good) copper stench that once you've smelt your not likely to forget.
I know this because I've treated burn patients in the ER during my training as a nurse many years ago.
Those eating the "pork", smelling it cook would have noticed the odd aroma.
But that question reminds me of the Donner Party of 1846.
What would you do to survive?

I'm going to skip question twelve


13) What would you say the general theme or feeling for this first section is?

Bleak, desperation. What is worse than a zombie apocalypse? The surviving humans?

14) What is this section’s biggest strength and its biggest weakness?
I think that the baby being born was the only "hope" in this section.
I felt the way the camps were describe was accurate but at the same time brutal.
While I felt the characters were appropriate for the environment, I certainly didn't "like" most of them.

1) Of all of the government agencies, why FEMA? Why not the army?

FEMA would be the actual agency tasked with the job. The FEMA camps already exist and are intended to be used as temporary housing during an emergency. If the entire government collapsed, FEMA and the Department of Homeland Security would be the ones running the show - not the military.

2) The book comes off as cynical with their response. What makes you feel that way? Do you not have faith that the government could work something out? How has your federal work influenced your opinions?

The government has contingency plans for everything. The problem with all of them is every problem is viewed as having an end. The government can offer temporary solutions but when something long term is needed the public is out of luck. FEMA in the story is a temporary solution that is being forced to act as a long-term solution. They're trying to adapt but, as evident in Camp 6, they are having a hard time. I didn't mean to be so pessimistic about FEMAs response but just look at history (Katrina comes to mind).

1) What is your general feeling about the FEMA camp Jerri is living in? What do you think contributed to the current conditions inside the camp?

The general feeling is desperation and a tension. Things are at a tipping point, as it were. I think the overcrowding caused the conditions and the apathy of the cops.

2) What else do you think is out there in terms of government?

I think Camp 6 has been cut off. I'm not sure if the other camps are doing any better.

3) If you had a choice, would you work for the FEMA police or just be one of the civilians?

fema

4) If you were a survivor, would you live in the camp or try to tough out there in the “real world”?

I'm a prepper so I'd be ready.

5) Outside of the brief raid scene, we don’t see any zombies yet. Do you think the world outside is festering or do you think it is fear mongering by the government and paranoia by the people?

I think that the people are far more terrifying than the zombies.

6) Jerri is a very strong character but what do you think motivates her to go through day-to-day life? Why do you think she keeps to herself for the most part?

I think she's weak. I don't like her. I think the camp broke her mentially and now she won't venture to go see the rest of the world.

7) What are your thoughts about Krystal and her mental break? Does her baby have any hope of survival?

She's zombie chow. That baby represents hope and in the world the author made I don't think there is none. The baby will die or get ate.

8) What are your thoughts about Andrew so far in the book? How do you feel about the interactions between him and Jerri?

I like him. I think he wants something from Jerri but I'm not sure what outside of the physicaly obvious.

9) Do you think a love story is the works as one poster on here feared?

I wouldn't call it love but I think he is lusting after her.

10) Do you think that the doctor/nurse’s crime was really that bad or did Jerri just overreact?

She should've killed him instead of run off.

11) I have to ask… would you eat the pork?

I wouldn't be living there so no.

12) The section ended on the raid scene which reminded me a lot of a castle siege. What do you think the marauder’s intentions are and do you think FEMA will be able to hold their own?

fema is screwed. The raiders probably think there is food inside. By infecting the camp with those arrows they're letting the camp rip itself apart from the inside out before making their move. I love it.

13) What would you say the general theme or feeling for this first section is?

Depression, no hope, the government is not trustworthy.

14) What is this section’s biggest strength and its biggest weakness?

Andrew is the biggest strength. He's very complex. The biggest weakness is staying inside that stupid camp.

Tara wrote: "Netanella wrote: "Patience, Tara, the zombies are just over the walls, literally!


and now in the walls!!! Weeeeeeee!!! :D i'm going to be up for a while now, lol. the action scenes. . . just wow."

If you just want nonstop action then I'd move on to something a little more mindless.

Jason wrote: "... Can't a girl find some love in the ZA? Some girls find the stench of rotting flesh and the confines of prison camps very romantic. ..."

Well not exactly my thoughts but some of the words that you used were in my thoughts.
Romantic relationship in the middle of a zombie apocalypse (especially with the subgenres stereotypical hero 'a washed up, ex military, late 40's -50's man with a twenty something year old beauty queen) is a major pet peeve of mine. It's so common in the Zombies apocalypse story line that I feel that authors who use it should be fined for lack of originality (Note I will dock one full star in books that use that or other over exhausted tropes. See this link for more character stereotyping to avoid http://examples.yourdictionary.com/st... )

Jason wrote: "Great feedback guys. I didn't want to step up to the plate on this book because I was afraid people would do what they always do and skip the questions or not participate at all. :-/

..."

Questions? What questions? ;_) Glad you stepped up and we have a moderator, Jason.

Jason wrote: Can't a girl find some love in the ZA? Some girls find the stench of rotting flesh and the confines of prison camps very romantic...."

You know, extreme conditions make most humans feel extreme emotions...elevated hormones, that kind of thing. Besides, one person's rotting flesh stench is the lovely scent of barbequed pork to another. Yummy!

Netanella wrote: "... Besides, one person's rotting flesh stench is the lovely scent of barbequed pork to another. Yummy!..."

LOL
Gross, but if you're starving to death.... Who knows what the mind will "smell" in order to save itself. Eh?

Yo, Jason, stop making 20 questions per section or ppl won't do the little quizzs. I feel like I'm taking a SAT for a zombie book. Takes away from the fun of it, bro. Just saying.

If the questions are a bit too much for you, feel free to pick and chose from them which (if any) you will answer.

--------

Personally I felt that Jason's questions were good ones.
The only reason I didn't answer them all was because I knew the answers from reading this book already.
It's not easy to lead a book discussion.
Kudos to Jason and all who have lead book group reads.

*hangs head in shame* you know, teach, I was walking home minding my business when this zombie appeared out of nowhere and ate my homework...

Tara wrote: ".... I finished part 2 already. did you? It's hard to stop yourself when things flow so smoothly. now I have to wait again. -___- "

Sorry about the cliffhanger breaks.
When I was trying to figure out how to break this read into three 'somewhat' equal parts without stopping in a high activity moment these were the best spots that I could come up with.
There was so much that happened in that second reading selection!
There is a lot of action in the last section as well.
Poor Jason is going to have his fingers tied in knots trying to cover them.
I hope that you're all enjoying the read.
Man oh man does it have some creepy tidbits of gore.

I actually stopped reading for the last few days to let the calendar catch up to this BOTM. I wanted to stay on pace with the reading schedule. So, if we're officially into Part Two of the schedule now that it's Dec. 12, I'll read the next section tonight and tomorrow.

Tara wrote: ".... I finished part 2 already. did you? It's hard to stop yourself when things flow so smoothly. now I have to wait again. -___- "


easy girl. slow down and drink it like a fine wine and all that jazz.

Okay, I overshot the mark. My fine wine went down like a cold beer. Can't stop reading...

Le'sigh. This is why we can't have nice things.

Shiny objects tend to break. ;)

Doesn't mean we can't still discuss. The pages in my book don't match up to the schedule posted, so I don't quite now where Part 3 begins.

I will, however, say, that I am so glad I figured out that Andrew was a tool early on when he used all four of his bullets to shoot out a skylight. His "Eye" status was more like "Eyeball", imho. I'm not sure how he morphed into Chuck Norris in the next scene, either, with all that hand-to-hand combat with the zombies outside of the dorm.

lmao.

I knew he was a 'bad person' (edited) from the get-go. I just didn't know he was such a creeper having already picked her out and spying on her. he reminded me a lot of one of those losers who can't get right in life then gets power and abuses it.

didn't you just love the way he used the baby to try to mold her into his twisted future family? creeper.


I have some questions about project lazarus (as in wtf is it supposed to do? why are they still playing with viruses when that is what caused the outbreak in the first place) but I'm assuming (hoping) that it will get explained later in the book.

Yea, the baby thing was kinda creepy all around. Andrew reminded a little of the Governor in that aspect.

I'm not sure I liked Jerri as a "heroine" at all - her personality seemed to swing too much from one extreme to another. In the beginning of the book she's able to fight and survive on her own. In Part 2 she's being lead around like a someone's farm animal. I didn't really see her as a survivor. Maybe some of the other readers on this BOTM have a different opinion.

So, about that baby...I kept waiting for Jerri to have to change Jacob's diapers or something. Babies mainly do three things: eat, poop, and sleep. Jacob sure did take some long naps....

The problem with Jerri is that I think she needed that camp. once the camp fell and her friend died Jerri took a trip on the crazy train and Andrew happily drove it. you can't use logic (like changing diapers) on her actions with jacob because she was batshit insane.

I'm at the part where they're at Camp 7 and she's just now starting to find her own again.

i wish that she held her own and didn't break after the camp because it would've made her chara more captivating. instead you watch this shell of a human walking around with this andrew.

what did you think of Witt? He was crazy but I actually liked him. i'm glad a-hole andrew didn't kill him.

Yammy wrote: "The problem with Jerri is that I think she needed that camp. once the camp fell and her friend died Jerri took a trip on the crazy train and Andrew happily drove it. ..."

On point. Jerri thought her friend died of smoke inhalation instead of burning up like a Roman candle, and Andrew went along with it.

...you can't use logic (like changing diapers)...

Actually, I was waiting for the baby poop to start flying with the same typical frequency that we saw blood, spit, snot, and any variety of other bodily fluids. Not that I think Jerri would have even considered it, though. She was most definitely on the crazy train.

i see you gave it 3 stars and all I'm saying is that if we read DAY by DAY this month then you could've given 5 stars out and be proud of it. just saying.

DAY by DAY Armageddon that is.

Yammy wrote: "what did you think of Witt? He was crazy but I actually liked him. i'm glad a-hole andrew didn't kill him....

Witt, I could take him or leave him. Not quite sure of his motivation, as he already had company in the back bedroom. He sure did conveniently appear to save their butts, however.

I enjoyed the part with the downed airplane, and Andrew scavenging through the suitcases. I'm thinking, "man, this is awesome, everything in nice, FAA-approved travel-size kits," and then the zombies pop out of the sands like a scene from "The Mummy." Cruel, cruel fate...

I'm all about Day By Day Armageddon. Looks like a great series. But I thought the book nominated was part 3 in the series , and I haven't read the first two yet.



There's always buddy reads on any of these. I'm game.

Thanks for reading, Netanella, and thank you for rating! I'm curious what you thought about the ending and if you have any sage advice for a new author like myself.

Yammy, sorry to hear that you're dissatisfied but thanks for reading. Hopefully Day by Day Armageddon gets picked up soon because it is a great book.

- Mark

It looks like you two have jumped into the final discussion and moved on to discussing other books :)

Natenella "I'm not sure I liked Jerri as a "heroine" at all - her personality seemed to swing too much from one extreme to another. In the beginning of the book she's able to fight and survive on her own. In Part 2 she's being lead around like a someone's farm animal. I didn't really see her as a survivor"

Since you have have completed the read (per your rating of the book) It means that you already know that the character of Jerri does a complete turn around personality wise in part three.
So she started off strong in part one, went weak in part two, then came back kick ass strong, fighting for her life and making her stand for her own future in part 3.

Mark wrote: "Thanks for reading, Netanella, and thank you for rating! I'm curious what you thought about the ending and if you have any sage advice for a new author like myself.

Yammy, sorry to hear that you'..."


wtf, bro. I didn't say I didn't like it. I'm digging it so far now that andrew's ass is dead.

Mark wrote: "Thanks for reading, Netanella, and thank you for rating! I'm curious what you thought about the ending and if you have any sage advice for a new author like myself..."

I haven't posted a review yet....and don't want to reveal my thoughts on the ending, yet, as I don't want to get 'chomped on' for revealing any spoilers.

I enjoyed the book a lot, and I have the first book, Degeneration queued up for my next-up zombie book after the current one I'm reading, Valley Of Death, Zombie Trailer Park.

I don't know how 'sage' my advice is...I'm just a reader and a fan of horror stories. To paraphrase Popeye, "I like what I like." And I did like the book - the FEMA camps, the cannibalism and the graphic scenes in the meat hook room in Camp 6, the poster images throughout the book in particular. I did drop the rating down a point because of editorial issues ("seemed vs. "seamed", that sort of thing).

Hey Tammy! Yea, I didn't want to start discussing Jerri's metamorphosis back into action heroine again in Part 3 until we officially got there. It's why I'm conflicted about her as a lead character.

Yammy wrote: "I'm digging it so far now that andrew's ass is dead. ..."

And talk about kismet. Andrew not only took the bit the big one, but the cause of his demise...such a tiny little thing...was so fitting!

Ah, thanks, Netanella. Fair warning though... the editing issues are very present in the first book if you downloaded it prior to just a few months ago. Glad you liked it though.

Sorry, Yammy. Misread your post - multitasking.

-Mark

Netanella wrote: "Hey Tammy! Yea, I didn't want to start discussing Jerri's metamorphosis back into action heroine again in Part 3 until we officially got there. It's why I'm conflicted about her as a lead character."

This is kinda the section that I think its good to discuss Jerri's transformation because she has already wigged out from our first impressions of her.
I have to say that when I got to this part of the book, I was asking myself 'what happened to her'.
But then I thought about the fact that she (and likely most everyone this far into a post apocalypse setting) would be struggling from the ALL of the stuff that they have seen ALL year long.
One thing that is often missing in the Zombie apocalypse books which I read, is that when a main character does have PTSD, it is usually something they had before the z-poc and it is usually a man (ex military)
But let's face it PTSD and mental breaks happen in both genders. There are times when things get so fracking bad that the human mind trips out.
When I consider the ending effects of Jerri's mental meltdown, than her melt down adds to her character because she is that much stronger for it.
It might seem that I have gotten a bit ahead by stating that she comes out of it, but this section (which you and Yammy have already alluded too) is where the character of Jerri reaches her 'low-point' or moment of maximum crisis.

1) What do you think of the zombies in this world and are you upset that there weren’t any fast zombies or runners?
I was fine with the types of zombies in this book. I don't know if I will make sense to others when I say this but 'The types of zombies "needed" in a book, is based on the action/combat scenes in each story'.
Like if there are a lot of zombies and a lot of fighting scenes then it helps to vary out the types of zombies to add variety to the scenes, so we are not reading the same battle scene all the time.
In this story (series) world there are currently two kinds of zombies (I do not know if Mark will write more titles in this world.)
The first type explains the zombies and their actions in the initial outbreak (first book) and the second type explains the longevity/intellect/behavior of the 'current' zombies.
So all that rambling just to say that for me the types of zombies in this book work.

2) Project Lazarus is introduced. What do you think the aims of the project are?
I can't recall what I thought about the project at the time I read this book, but I was outraged at the experiments that they did at the camp.

3) Andrew really shows off his true colors. What did you think of his transformation from affable guy to manipulative sociopath? Do you think that was his nature all along or do you think it became a part of him after the outbreak?

Manipulative sociopath, great description!

At this point in the story I was disgusted with Andrew, but at the same time Jerri really needed him to save her bacon.
I think he represented those who would/do use bad situations (other peoples pains/weak moments) to get what they want.
People who gain power often abuse that power. That can be seen "everywhere" in life.
So was he a bad guy before he became a guard?
Probably to some degree or another, but his "power" over the people in the camp (both survivors and other government employees a like) gave him a chance to rise to the status of "sociopath".
Message to all, watch out who you put in charge!
Once a single person, or a small handful of people, make all the decisions for the group of survivors, things usually fall part rather quickly. An Open Democracy is needed in most all things!

Another thing about Andrew that stuck in my head was when he said that he (and some of the others) had seen the food supplies ending so he had stock piled his own supply of food. (Looking out for number one!)

Early on in the book when it stated that the survivors were locked inside the camps, it made my heart skip a beat and sent up red flags.
They were keeping the survivors like cattle.
And as we could see in the end of the first section, at some point they had plan on and did eat them.

Also around this point, I started to wonder about the motivation of the marauder’s intentions during this section of the reading.
Did they know that the smell of the pork wasn't pork. Where they attacking the survivors for the "food" or because they knew what was going on in the camp at that point.

We’re left with a broken Jerri. Why do you think she suffered such a fate and why do you think she clings to a dead baby for crying out loud?

I've already voiced my thoughts on this one ;-)
I think that the death of the baby was simply too much for her.
If you recall she was commenting (to herself) that Jacob was sleeping a lot, when they got to the downed airplane.
I think that she "knew" that the baby was dead on some level in her mind. I think that she couldn't deal with that information, so her mind blocked it out for her. (Disassociation)
Now for another one of Tammy's personal life experience comments...
A long, long time ago, when I was still working in the field of nursing. I had a young patient who was still in high school. She skipped class with one of her friends to drive to nearby town.
It was the middle of winter and they hit a patch of black ice. The car wreck was very bad. Neither girl had on their seat-belts. The driver was decapitated.
The young girl, who was my patient, was also seriously injured. She was found unconscious by the driver's body (her friend) holding her.
I was her assigned nurse for 10 days.
Occasionally, she would ask about her friend. We had been told not to disclose what had happened, so I said that I did not know where her friend was and that she wasn't in our hospital. (Which was the hospitals protocol for this situation)
Once she was stabilized, the girl was released to receive further care at a hospital in her hometown.
I do not know if she ever regained her knowledge of the accident or of what happened to her friend.
As of that last day that I cared for her, she had not.
The young girl was for the most part a very easy patient to care for. She rarely spoke, rarely asked for pain medications, and she was 'seriously' injured.
Due to the injuries on her body, we were unable to bathe her for a week, other than to use washcloths and spot clean. She sat for one week with dried blood in her long, tangled, auburn hair.
Never once did she verbally acknowledge the state of her hair or her thoughts about her body's injuries to me, but she had to have smelt it and felt it.
As I said, it is called dissociation.
I will add this note: This is one of my former clients/cases that still haunts my memories and one of the reasons that I stepped away from hospital nursing.

We get to see life outside the camps in the ruined cities. What do you think of the society that has taken place in Tucson?
Predictable and, in my view, better than the camps ended up.

6) Camp 7 – pipedream or hope? No comment
7) Canada – pipedream or hope? No comment

8) What is this section’s [the part right up to where Jerri gets closer towards Camp 7] biggest strength? Weakness?

Biggest strength: the solid pace and exploration of the "other" options for those who ended up as camp survivors.
I really liked that the story just kept going into new areas.
I really like books that explore a variety of settings or options for the survivors.
It showed that not everyone who lived where military, or "Preppers". Some who survived were no more special than your average Joe citizen who made the best out of what they had dealt to them. No white knight in shining armor (government or ex-military characters) needed. :-D

Weakness: Well as it has already been pointed out by myself and everyone else, Jerri's breakdown and the death of the baby were uncomfortable to get through.
I really wanted to stop reading when I got to the point where it was finally announced in the story that the baby was dead. And then it just got grosser. (is that a word?)
The descriptions of the decaying baby had me cringing! Just plain freaky and creepy and ... uck!

But then as we seen in the last reading section ... Nah I won't say anything at this point but you know I am gonna when we get done with it.

I am looking at the typos in my comment above. Sorry guys and gals but it is late and I simply do not have enough energy at this hour to go back and correct them.
This is when I love to be "just a reader" rather than am author!
Typo's are my trademark!

1) Was it your intention to paint such a bleak world or did it ‘just happen’?

Thus the title. I wanted to create a world without hope, without joy. Since she was still stuck in her old way of thinking, I wanted Jerri to redefine what hope meant to her in her journey but I didn't want it to come easily for her. She had to suffer before she was reborn.

2) Did you have plans for Andrew all along? What about Jerri?

Yes. Andrew was the very embodiment of everything I feel is wrong with government today. His fate was inevitable. Jerri represented the people; both where I feel we're at now and where we will be someday. She was broken and blindly followed him along to a point. She had to break away from his grasp before she discovered true redemption. Those two were fated to take separate paths from the very beginning.

3) What was the point of having the baby in the story only to kill it off?

The death of the child was the illusion of a loss of hope. Sadly, the baby had to die.

Thats what i love about this place. Where else can I read the baby had to die and consider it normal? I can see i'm going to be pretty active here if you keep choosing good books.

mark, bro, look. maybe zombies aren't where you need to focus, feel me? you need to write some psychological(spelling) horror novels or something. You come up with some pretty twisted stuff.

Jason wrote: "SAT questions"

bro, we got this so just chill. I'll answer a few of those though because you put work into it, teach.

1 - the zombies.

I wish this book had fast zombies so i'm disappointed in that aspect.

2 - Andrew.

I didn't view it all politically like the author. I just viewed andrew as a jerk (keeping it pg-13 here). I was happy to see him die. As soon as he tried to show off his power by belittling that cook in front of Jerri I knew what kinda person he was, for real.

3 - Jerri.

crazy train. Her mental stuff made sense but I have a hard time picturing her making it on her own without the help of someone. She's untrained and wouldn't know the basics of survival.

4 - Canada.

for Jerri's sake I hope it still exists. I read into part three a little so I know about camp 7 so wont go into all that.