Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong.
Kasey and the gang were held together by a set of rules, their Zombie Plan. It kept them alive through the beginning of the End. But when the chaos faded, they became careless, and Murphy’s Law decided to pay a long-overdue visit.
“We had all made it through those first days of the zombie uprising, fought and bled over hundreds of miles to find each other…scratching and clawing just to keep our heads above water when our Z-Plan went to hell.”
Now the group is broken and scattered with no refuge in sight. Those remaining must make their way across West Virginia in search of those who were stolen from them, fighting not only merciless terrain, but hordes of newly-thawed and ravenous deadheads as well.
A new home is found. New alliances are formed. Then an alarming development presents itself in severe and bloodthirsty fashion. A situation Kasey and the gang never planned for. When the stakes are raised even higher, when many more lives are at risk, can the group re-evaluate everything they thought they knew and survive the unknown?
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Praise for...
"The second installment of C. Dulaney's Roads Less Traveled series continues to kick ass! Kasey and her band of survivors struggle through an undead world, fighting to keep their humanity in the face of zombies, convicts, and their own inner struggles of morality. If you want finely crafted zombie fiction that feels like it's going to jump out of your hands and bite you ─ this is it!"
- Clyde Wolfe, Author of Down Darkened Paths, The Siege of Antrell, and Guardians: Desolate Souls
"Murphy's Law is everything a middle book should be, and C. Dulaney knows what buttons to push. The danger is deeper, the crazy gets crazier, and the zombies get...interesting."
- Thom Brannan, Author of Lords of Night, Sad Wings of Destiny, co-author of Survivors and Pavlov's Dogs
"If I was going to pick someone to make it through the end of the world with, it'd be Kassidy "Kasey" Stratford. If I was going to pick someone to write about the end of the world, it'd be C. Dulaney."
- Peter Clines, Author of Ex-Heroes, Ex-Patriots, Ex-Communication, Ex-Purgatory, and 14.
“Murphy's Law is a fierce and unforgiving sequel that is equally as chilling as it is tangible.”
- Michael Gardner, Author of Downfall
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Excerpts:
After what I considered to be an appropriate length of silence, I slowly inched up the wall until I was standing. The others were only waiting for someone to make the first move, so once I was up, they were springing to their feet and asking a thousand questions, none of which Michael could answer. I felt sorry for the guy; just because he was military didn’t mean he was in on The Secret. The Reason. The Mission. He didn’t have a clue, and it was obvious by the look on his face.
The kids had come screaming out of the house, three of the youngest had cushions strapped to their asses, and were running in circles next to the porch.
Chaos had erupted, and over what?
-----------------------------------------------------------------
“Are you kiddin’ me? A hammer?”
Yes, I’d read The Zombie Survival Guide as many times as the next guy, but my whole Z-Plan revolved around not getting close enough to the deadheads in order to fight them in hand-to-hand combat. Eww, no thanks. Just stay the hell away and put one between their eyes from a safe distance. A hammer, or a nice hatchet, would have been really handy back at the grocery store. I sure wasn’t going to admit that.
---------------------------------------------------------------
“Man, that’s gotta be the world’s all time worst wedgie,” Abby said to John, who had indeed swung his legs off the roof, planted his feet inside the loft window, and was frantically trying to unfasten his now very stretched underwear from the gutter with one hand while holding onto the roof with the other. He was hung up, in other words. The only thing standing between him and the safety of a solid wooden floor was a very tough band of elastic.
“Stop laughing and cut me loose, goddamnit!” John squealed.
---------------------------------------------------------------
Mostly we spent the winter trying to put the past behind us. To let go of our old lives, and all the people we had loved and cared for, so we could move on and survive any way we could. We had all made it through those first days of the zombie uprising, fought and bled over hundreds of miles to find each other, then we kept on fighting, scratching and clawing just to keep our heads above water when our Z-Plan went to hell.
As if that hadn’t been bad enough, a new enemy made itself known by killing one of us and kidnapping two others.
It isn’t until you’re forced into a tragic and life-threatening event that you finally understand what makes most people shut down and quit. Quit fighting, stop living. I had come to realize over the winter that it’s an inherent trait among human beings, this inability to let go of the past. Even to the point of going insane, curling up into a ball, and simply waiting for death to come. If it hadn’t been for Jake’s tendency to turn everything into one gigantic joke, I don’t think any of us would have made it off that mountain.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reviews:
Ursula K. Raphael "AstraDaemon of The Zombiephiles"
"Murphy's Law (Roads Less Traveled Book 2) by C. Dulaney was a great follow-up to Roads Less Traveled: The Plan. Just as the first book was divided into parts, so was the sequel. The best part is that the author included far more zombie action, including a brutal carnage scene that had me wondering if there would be any characters left to write a third book in this series.
Kasey, the young woman with the "Z-plan," has grown up quite a bit since the first story. She faced tremendous losses, mainly due to the problems caused by Kyra, another survivor whom I am sure was hated by many readers...and Kasey has finally exceeded her crap tolerance level.
The POV is mainly Kasey's, with brief perspectives from members of Kasey's group, as well as Kyra - now a prisoner of some escaped convicts. The group decided to pursue the convicts, although the survivors have different reasons for hunting the cons down. While en route, Kasey and her friends make some startling discoveries about the undead, which had me screaming, "Game over, man!"
A few more characters were introduced into the series (from a third group), but it wasn't difficult keeping track of who was who, and a few well-placed flashbacks helped me remember what exactly had happened in The Plan. Even though Dulaney continues to place emphasis on the relationships of the survivors (which nearly tore my heart out), there is no lack of gore in this sequel.
Thankfully, there is no cliff-hanger, but the ending definitely hints at what is sure to be a thrilling third installment."
Justin G. (Amazon review)
Murphy's Law is the second book in author C. Dulaney's Roads Less Traveled series. In the first book in the series (Roads Less Traveled: The Plan), we meet Kasey and her friends, a group of young adults who actually had a plan in place in the case of a zombie uprising, and got a chance to put that plan in action when the unthinkable happened. This time around, the group is on the road, pursuing a gang of escaped cons that have kidnapped two of their friends. They find much more than they expected on their journey, and the course of the series is changed pretty significantly.
Zombie 411 - The zombies in the first Roads Less Traveled book followed the basic Romero mold, but in Murphy's Law "sprinters" are brought in. They're fast-moving and capable of climbing and using weapons to some degree, which wreaks serious havoc on the main characters' lives.
The first book in this series was a solid, though conventional, zombie tale, and that's probably the case with Murphy's Law. There's a lot of blood, a lot of casualties, and a typical (though totally enjoyable) "fight or flight" storyline going on. The writing overall has improved though, and the characters are given a chance to develop a bit more, which helps. Dulaney abandons the book's initial premise fairly quickly, which proves to be a smart move. Hooking Kasey's team up with a prison full of survivors made the story much more interesting, as did the development at the end, which served to whet the appetite for book 3 (unlike The Plan's somewhat unsatisfying cliffhanger).
With Murphy's Law, Dulaney successfully moves the Roads Less Traveled series forward, and makes the journey even more entertaining this time around. If you enjoyed book one, this follow-up will not disappoint.
Disclosure - I received an electronic copy of this book from the publisher for reviewing purposes.
Kasey and the gang were held together by a set of rules, their Zombie Plan. It kept them alive through the beginning of the End. But when the chaos faded, they became careless, and Murphy’s Law decided to pay a long-overdue visit.
“We had all made it through those first days of the zombie uprising, fought and bled over hundreds of miles to find each other…scratching and clawing just to keep our heads above water when our Z-Plan went to hell.”
Now the group is broken and scattered with no refuge in sight. Those remaining must make their way across West Virginia in search of those who were stolen from them, fighting not only merciless terrain, but hordes of newly-thawed and ravenous deadheads as well.
A new home is found. New alliances are formed. Then an alarming development presents itself in severe and bloodthirsty fashion. A situation Kasey and the gang never planned for. When the stakes are raised even higher, when many more lives are at risk, can the group re-evaluate everything they thought they knew and survive the unknown?
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Praise for...
"The second installment of C. Dulaney's Roads Less Traveled series continues to kick ass! Kasey and her band of survivors struggle through an undead world, fighting to keep their humanity in the face of zombies, convicts, and their own inner struggles of morality. If you want finely crafted zombie fiction that feels like it's going to jump out of your hands and bite you ─ this is it!"
- Clyde Wolfe, Author of Down Darkened Paths, The Siege of Antrell, and Guardians: Desolate Souls
"Murphy's Law is everything a middle book should be, and C. Dulaney knows what buttons to push. The danger is deeper, the crazy gets crazier, and the zombies get...interesting."
- Thom Brannan, Author of Lords of Night, Sad Wings of Destiny, co-author of Survivors and Pavlov's Dogs
"If I was going to pick someone to make it through the end of the world with, it'd be Kassidy "Kasey" Stratford. If I was going to pick someone to write about the end of the world, it'd be C. Dulaney."
- Peter Clines, Author of Ex-Heroes, Ex-Patriots, Ex-Communication, Ex-Purgatory, and 14.
“Murphy's Law is a fierce and unforgiving sequel that is equally as chilling as it is tangible.”
- Michael Gardner, Author of Downfall
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Excerpts:
After what I considered to be an appropriate length of silence, I slowly inched up the wall until I was standing. The others were only waiting for someone to make the first move, so once I was up, they were springing to their feet and asking a thousand questions, none of which Michael could answer. I felt sorry for the guy; just because he was military didn’t mean he was in on The Secret. The Reason. The Mission. He didn’t have a clue, and it was obvious by the look on his face.
The kids had come screaming out of the house, three of the youngest had cushions strapped to their asses, and were running in circles next to the porch.
Chaos had erupted, and over what?
-----------------------------------------------------------------
“Are you kiddin’ me? A hammer?”
Yes, I’d read The Zombie Survival Guide as many times as the next guy, but my whole Z-Plan revolved around not getting close enough to the deadheads in order to fight them in hand-to-hand combat. Eww, no thanks. Just stay the hell away and put one between their eyes from a safe distance. A hammer, or a nice hatchet, would have been really handy back at the grocery store. I sure wasn’t going to admit that.
---------------------------------------------------------------
“Man, that’s gotta be the world’s all time worst wedgie,” Abby said to John, who had indeed swung his legs off the roof, planted his feet inside the loft window, and was frantically trying to unfasten his now very stretched underwear from the gutter with one hand while holding onto the roof with the other. He was hung up, in other words. The only thing standing between him and the safety of a solid wooden floor was a very tough band of elastic.
“Stop laughing and cut me loose, goddamnit!” John squealed.
---------------------------------------------------------------
Mostly we spent the winter trying to put the past behind us. To let go of our old lives, and all the people we had loved and cared for, so we could move on and survive any way we could. We had all made it through those first days of the zombie uprising, fought and bled over hundreds of miles to find each other, then we kept on fighting, scratching and clawing just to keep our heads above water when our Z-Plan went to hell.
As if that hadn’t been bad enough, a new enemy made itself known by killing one of us and kidnapping two others.
It isn’t until you’re forced into a tragic and life-threatening event that you finally understand what makes most people shut down and quit. Quit fighting, stop living. I had come to realize over the winter that it’s an inherent trait among human beings, this inability to let go of the past. Even to the point of going insane, curling up into a ball, and simply waiting for death to come. If it hadn’t been for Jake’s tendency to turn everything into one gigantic joke, I don’t think any of us would have made it off that mountain.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reviews:
Ursula K. Raphael "AstraDaemon of The Zombiephiles"
"Murphy's Law (Roads Less Traveled Book 2) by C. Dulaney was a great follow-up to Roads Less Traveled: The Plan. Just as the first book was divided into parts, so was the sequel. The best part is that the author included far more zombie action, including a brutal carnage scene that had me wondering if there would be any characters left to write a third book in this series.
Kasey, the young woman with the "Z-plan," has grown up quite a bit since the first story. She faced tremendous losses, mainly due to the problems caused by Kyra, another survivor whom I am sure was hated by many readers...and Kasey has finally exceeded her crap tolerance level.
The POV is mainly Kasey's, with brief perspectives from members of Kasey's group, as well as Kyra - now a prisoner of some escaped convicts. The group decided to pursue the convicts, although the survivors have different reasons for hunting the cons down. While en route, Kasey and her friends make some startling discoveries about the undead, which had me screaming, "Game over, man!"
A few more characters were introduced into the series (from a third group), but it wasn't difficult keeping track of who was who, and a few well-placed flashbacks helped me remember what exactly had happened in The Plan. Even though Dulaney continues to place emphasis on the relationships of the survivors (which nearly tore my heart out), there is no lack of gore in this sequel.
Thankfully, there is no cliff-hanger, but the ending definitely hints at what is sure to be a thrilling third installment."
Justin G. (Amazon review)
Murphy's Law is the second book in author C. Dulaney's Roads Less Traveled series. In the first book in the series (Roads Less Traveled: The Plan), we meet Kasey and her friends, a group of young adults who actually had a plan in place in the case of a zombie uprising, and got a chance to put that plan in action when the unthinkable happened. This time around, the group is on the road, pursuing a gang of escaped cons that have kidnapped two of their friends. They find much more than they expected on their journey, and the course of the series is changed pretty significantly.
Zombie 411 - The zombies in the first Roads Less Traveled book followed the basic Romero mold, but in Murphy's Law "sprinters" are brought in. They're fast-moving and capable of climbing and using weapons to some degree, which wreaks serious havoc on the main characters' lives.
The first book in this series was a solid, though conventional, zombie tale, and that's probably the case with Murphy's Law. There's a lot of blood, a lot of casualties, and a typical (though totally enjoyable) "fight or flight" storyline going on. The writing overall has improved though, and the characters are given a chance to develop a bit more, which helps. Dulaney abandons the book's initial premise fairly quickly, which proves to be a smart move. Hooking Kasey's team up with a prison full of survivors made the story much more interesting, as did the development at the end, which served to whet the appetite for book 3 (unlike The Plan's somewhat unsatisfying cliffhanger).
With Murphy's Law, Dulaney successfully moves the Roads Less Traveled series forward, and makes the journey even more entertaining this time around. If you enjoyed book one, this follow-up will not disappoint.
Disclosure - I received an electronic copy of this book from the publisher for reviewing purposes.
