Book Chick City: GUEST REVIEW: 'Cold Warriors' by Rebecca Levene

GUEST REVIEW: 'Cold Warriors' by Rebecca Levene

Thursday, June 16, 2011 | Posted by Book Chick City |

Title: Cold Warriors (Infernal Game #1)
Author: Rebecca Levene
Publisher: Abaddon Books
Publication Date: May 2010
Paperback: 295 pages
Genre: Horror
Source: Review Copy

Guest Review by Andrea

@viralpunk

RATING: 7/10

SUMMARY

"You died 20 years ago - WELCOME BACK" At the start of the Cold War, the British secret services formed the Hermetic Division, an agency charged with using supernatural means to defend the nation. It has only one mission: to find the mysterious Ragnarok artefacts, said to have the power to end the world. Now, two of the divisions most senior agents are sent on the trail of a corrupt Russian oligarch. The journey will take them across Europe and into the darkest reaches of the occult. (Goodreads)

REVIEW

“Cold Warriors” is essentially a zombie novel, but not one like I’ve ever read before. This is no cheap thrills, blood and gore novel, but a well thought out story in which it’s easy to see Levene has done her research, not only in the occult and supernatural, but in history and religion, too.

It blends mythology, religion and the supernatural seamlessly, making it all the more real and disturbing because it’s set around real life events. This adds credibility and believability. Plus there’s something so intriguing about the ‘what if…’ when it comes to history. What if zombies are real and there were artefacts that could end the world during the Cold War? The possibilities are endless, yet I can’t imagine this story told any better.

“Cold Warriors” is the ultimate page turner. It is jam packed full of action, intrigue, deceit and deception.

There are quite a few characters to keep track of, but the two main people are Tomas and Morgan, both partnered up to find the Ragnarok artifacts. Tomas was around for the Cold War, and now he’s back twenty years later. Seemingly unchanged, but completely different inside. He is the only one who will be safe to partner Morgan, who has a nasty habit of accidentally killing those around him.

Each of them have their secrets from each other, and information is shared on a need to know basis only, which leads them all into many a dark alley or freezing bodies of water. Add agents from the CIA, and it’s a race to find the artefacts first, with both sides sure they’re in the right, and people switching sides enough to make your head spin.

I had so much fun trying to guess what was happening, who the bad guys were , who the good guys were, and even up until the last page I wasn’t sure. There’s nothing better than a book where you’re unable to guess the ending.

I guessed Morgan’s heritage pretty early on, and I was proud of myself until about half way through where I decided that Levene had made it easy to guess on purpose so events and relationships afterwards would be even more shocking, and to get the reader really sucked into the story and invested in Morgan’s wellbeing.

I want to say so much about this novel, and also say nothing at all, because I don’t want to give away the plot when the novel is so cleverly written that I doubt anyone will guess what’s happening until it starts to happen. Knowing the details before hand will really take the initial excitement and fun out of it, so if this review seems a little vague, it’s done with the best possible intentions!

This really takes the zombie novel to a whole new level. Not all zombies have to be decaying, mindless bodies who hunger for living flesh, and “Cold Warriors” gives a more thoughtful take on the zombie, but merged with other supernatural elements to give a real richness to it.

This book could be enjoyed by so many people, those who like thrillers, spy novels, fans of the occult and supernatural, zombie fans, those who like stories based on religious mythology. It’s less a horror novel, and more of a thriller that happens to contain zombies and the supernatural.

The only negatives I can think of is there were a few too many secondary characters set against such a fast paced plot that it felt a little hard to connect to them on an emotional level. I really liked Tomas and Morgan, but the plot interested me more, and I feel like the characters could have been switched with others and the plot would have been just as good.

VERDICT

This is not my usual kind of book. I tend to read books more character based than plot based, and this was definitely the other way around, but brilliantly so. It was a quick, fun read that kept me guessing with each page, and each character was so ambiguous it’s hard to know which one to root for. It’s an original story with a great plotline and a solid foundation in the supernatural.

You can find out more about the author here:

Goodreads | Abaddon Books

Labels: 7/10 Rating, Abaddon, Authors I-L, Book Reviews, Guest Review, Horror, Zombies

5 comments:

Book Chick City said...: It's always nice to get a refreshing take on such a saturated genre. I also prefer character driven stories, but this definitely sounds interesting, especially as it's zombies! ;); 16 June 2011 06:13
Tasha said...: I haven't heard of this one before but it sounds really good. Another one to add to my wishlist. THanks for sharing your thoughts.
Tasha @ A Trillian Books xoxo; 16 June 2011 09:02
HollyG said...: oh I like the look of this, sounds like 24 with smart zombies! Great review!; 20 June 2011 08:06
Kris said...: I enjoy spy thrillers as well as all matters related to the occult and I especially love books that do a total genre mash like this book does. This is something I need to check out.

The premise reminds me of another series that took place during the Cold War back when the Cold War actually took place titled Necroscope by Brian Lumley. It has vicious vampires, secret, psychic agents, and a figure known as a Necroscope that talks to the dead for clues, knowledge and can even ask them to rise from the dead when the need arises.

So overall, Cold Warriors might be up my alley!; 25 June 2011 22:10
Kris said...: This reminds me of a series called Necroscope by Brian Lumley, which features vampires, the occult, and secret agencies pitted against each other with dark forces watching. I know I will like this book because I always like to have different genres combined and tell stories in new ways we have not heard them before!; 25 June 2011 22:12