Mountain Man by Keith C. Blackmore.
(Mountain Man, Book 1.
Narrated by R.C. Bray.
Boomstick. Samurai bat. Motorcycle leather. And the will to live among the unliving. Augustus Berry lives a day-to-day existence comprised of waking up, getting drunk, and preparing for the inevitable day when "they" will come up the side of his mountain and penetrate his fortress. Living on the outskirts of a city and scavenging for whatever supplies remain after civilization died two years ago, Gus knows that every time he goes down into undead suburbia could be his last. Not only does he face a corpse-infested urban hell, human scavengers, and unending loneliness, but now a new mystery has risen.... The undead are disappearing from the streets. A force is gathering, beyond the mountain man's wildest nightmares, even more relentless and terrifying than the roaming tides of dead flesh. And it's preparing to hunt. Mountain Man has been optioned for film. Contains graphic language and scenes of violence.
Really enjoyed listening to this audio book. 4*.

This wasn't my favorite. It honestly wasn't a terrible book but I just couldn't get into the narration. So I tried reading it and found I still wasn't drawn in. It was very typical of the genre and should have been right up my alley but I just could nit get invested in the characters and plot. It's somewhat predictable. It's not badly written and if you like zo.bie story-lines you will probably like this book. It certainly has potential just needs a bit deeper dive into plot and character development to make it stand out a bit more in a somewhat saturated genre.

Overall it was worth the read and isn't a bad book.

This wasn't a bad book. It was predictable and followed the zombie genre like I expected, but there was something about it that felt like it was trying WAY TOO HARD.

Sure, your average apocalyptic scenario is going to be gritty and attempt to be realistic, but do we need a mention of defecating multiple times in every single chapter? We deal with bodily functions every day in our current world -- it's a part of life -- but they don't dominate every conversation. Even the Pandemic Toilet Paper Scare of 2020 didn't have us all talking about shitting (the author's words, not mine) every time we spoke with a friend.

Also, are men really so desperate for sex that they'll fall in love with anyone who shows them attention? All I have to do is wear a tight sweatshirt, arch my back to make my "points" clear, and *BAM*, apocalypse guys will be literally dying to give me their fortress and all their hard hunted possessions? Gritty Gus was so easily manipulated by literally anyone with a vagina, it was pathetic.

Also, the narrator of the Audible version did a commendable job of reading all that (literal) shit talk with a straight face, but for all that is holy, will someone please teach Mr. Bray how Canadians pronounce "toque"? Oddly enough, it rhymes with "poop", the major theme of the book. You'd think it would be a gimme.

I own the next two books in the series already, so I'll get around to them to find out what happens with Gus, Scott and the gangs of stragglers trying to survive in Canada during the zombie apocalypse. But am I excited about them? Time will tell.

I want to apologize, I requested this book with the full intention of listening to it and reviewing it, but I just couldn't make it more than a chapter or two into the audiobook. I'm sure its absolutely fantastic but for whatever reason I just couldn't get into it.

I don't feel comfortable reviewing a book I couldn't finish because it most likely wouldn't get a fair review and I don't want do that to a book that is probably good.

That being said, I will happily review the book anyway if the publisher requests that I do so!

I started watching The Walking Dead when it first aired, way back in 2010. I watched diligently until around the third season when the plot grew repetitive and more and more unbelievable, until I eventually switched off. I began to understand that in a post-apocalyptic world overrun with zombies there's a finite amount of stories that can be told before things start to feel stale.

I picked up my audiobook copy of Mountain Man feeling dubious. Would it rehash one of the many plots from other zombie media that have been done to death, or would it completely reinvent the genre? I was hoping for something fresh and I'm happy to report, I got exactly what I wanted.

I will preface this review by saying Mountain Man is not a stand out piece of literary excellence. There was enough clunky phrasing and unecessary detail for me to feel frustrated more than once, however it didn't take away too much from my overall enjoyment.

The book follows Gus, a hard-drinking survivor living out his days in a self-sufficient bunker away from the hordes. In between watching old movies and reading he makes increasingly desperate scavenging trips until he comes across something he hasn't seen for a very long time - other people.

I enjoyed the mixture of rollicking action, guns and zombie gore interspersed with heavy character development. The characters felt well rounded and by the end I found that I was emotionally invested in all of them. The plot was not only unique, it actually kept me guessing and I loved how the ending opened it up to the next book in the series.

Some of the action and at least one of the steamier scenes felt cheesy and it reminded me that I'm probably not the author's intended audience, but overall this was a great example of a zombie book done right. I think I'll pick up the others in the series just to see how things end up in Gus' world.

Keith C. Blackmore, takes readers to a small Canadian town where one man is trying to survive just by his whits:

Gus has all the things he needs in order to survive; Boomstick, Samurai Bat, Motorcycle leathers and a will to live. He has been living on his own for quite sometime now, looting what he can from long abandoned stores and homes (especially the liquor store). Gus has learned to live day to day as he never knows when his time will come. he may die while drunk or out on a run for supplies but one thing he does know is that he does not want to become a zombie. Really Gus only has his will to live that keeps him going until meeting another survivor changes everything.

I feel you can tell that this book was written in 2011. It has a dated feel to it and just the basic ideas of what you need to have in a zombie book. I just feel like it needs an update and some new ideas in order to make it feel more modern. Zombies are not really the creature that people are going to strive to read about right now, so you need something that makes it different and great from all the other Zombie stories that have already come.

I get that the main character, Gus, is a pretty crude guy that doesn’t have a care in the world and really just say fuck it to everything but I don’t need to read about him scratching his balls every few pages, once was enough thanks. Also all the metaphors for his penis, balls, overall manliness it just got exhausting and annoying.....like we get it already. I was really happy that Blackmore added Scott's POV. If it would have been Gus' POV throughout the whole book, I would have stopped the book before halfway, as I just could not deal with how he thought and spoke. Scott is more of a guy that you would cheer for in this book, he is not obsessed with getting drunk, sex and such that it was easier to read his POV.

Balckmore did a good job in describing the fight and fleeing scenes with the zombies and these occurrences within the book were entertaining. I think one of the areas that Blackmore needed to tone down was the description of bodily functions. I did not need to know about every trip to the bathroom and how it went.

I think the idea of Tenner is where Blackmore would have been really successful in having something a little different within this book. Wish there was more from Tennar's POV as he is basically like a kid in the Candy store with being a serial killer and all. I wish why he did what he did and was he the reason all the zombie bodies seemed to be disappearing, this would have really added more of a twist to the book other than about two POV from him. Tenner was a tertiary character that had so much potential that was not used.

I'm not sure where Blackmore will take this series, it does end on a bit of a cliffhanger but I am not sure I want to read the next one in the series yet, it will be a wait and see thing.

Cheers!!!!

Warning: here be zombies!

I LOVE a good survival story set in a cold climate: you can expect some grueling tests of courage and perhaps some gruesome language as well. The male in this post-apocalyptic zombie thriller definitely has half of that covered. He is preoccupied with scratching his balls, drinking hard liquor, peeing, vomiting, shitting, and shooting snot rockets. Oops. Did i spoil the plot?

The cover is beautiful but misleading as it is completely lacking zombies and a couch potato with hygiene problems. I should have paid more attention to the word ZOMBIE in the description, which to me is code for “stupid people doing stupid things in a very gross and often campy way.”

I did finish the whole thing, so I can attest that the stupid behavior that appears on page one continues until the conclusion, which ends with lots of action and no farting around.

The narrator, R C Bray, whom I typically love, did an excellent job expressing the tone of this book, down to the smallest detail such as his mispronouncing “wolf” as “woof.” In other words, his growly bass really sold the character of the stinky balls-scratching miscreant protagonist. Sorry Dude.

This book is for zombie and booger enthusiasts (not me). Two stars for the story that gives what it promises, plus one more for the voice actor.

Thank you NetGalley for this freebie in exchange for my review. Please note that there is an ISBN mismatch between NetGalley and Goodreads.

I did not finish this book and I struggled to get through the first half. Huge points to the narrator, because he kept me listening, even when I was over it. The plotline itself was good and I understand the thrill of it, but I was not a fan of the main character, the profanity and the constant chatter about his body parts. Definitely an adult listen/read. It was kind of like listening to a drunk man's story during a zombie apocalypse, which may work for some but was just too much for me.

I enjoyed this story which surprised me because I love apocalyptic novels but I'm not a fan of the zombie genre but this wasn't too bad. Keen to continue with the series

I tried this audiobook however I strongly disliked the main character, which is going to stop me from enjoying this zombie story. Rather than pushing through this book to simply get it a negative review, I am instead allowing myself to DNF It.

Mountain Man by Keith C. Blackmore is a story about the few remaining survivors fight against a zombie pandemic. It follows the main character, Gus who found himself a secluded dwelling away from the city full of zombies and spends the entire book being drunk and driving around the main city.

I found this book to be mediocre at best, boring at worst. It didn’t have much substance in terms of a plot other than the main character driving and shooting zombies. I definitely get that this was meant to be gritty and realistic but by the end of the book I was just tired and slightly grossed out by the descriptions of stuff I personally don’t care to read in any book, even gritty post apocalyptic zombie novels. There is only so many times a main character can scratch his balls or defecate in a weird place before it becomes tedious to read. At times the writing felt more like the author was trying to engage me as the reader simply by using shock value rather than developing an interesting plot line. Unfortunately I don’t think this book had any redeeming qualities for me but it seems like other have enjoyed it which is great!

I gave this book 1 out of 5 stars as I didn’t enjoy it but I didn’t hate it so much that I refused to finish. Thank you to Netgalley and the author for giving me the opportunity to read and review this novel.

Finally a great book about the zombie apocalypse. I really enjoyed this book and also the characters. Gus and Scott were funny couple. Although I liked Roxanne with her "direct" speech.

This was like my favorite Walking dead in the written version. Scavenging the city for supplies and trying to survive and not being "eaten" by a zombie. Super realxing novel, always something happening, without boring passages. Perfect!

We listened to “The Hospital” prequel and went right to the first book in the “Mountain Man” series. Gus has been surviving alone for the first two years after the zombie apocalypse, but comes across two others in his scavenging adventures. The world-building was good, with the right amount of past backstory and present day survival and zombie killing adventures.
My rating was improved because of RC Bray’s narration. He was the star of this show.

Review Posted: January 28, 2021
*Thanks to Podium Publishing & NetGalley for the audiobook.

I dig R.C. Bray, but he wasn't right for this book. Ray Porter would have been better.

The story is incredibly repetitive, and only got interesting once Tanner came into it. But then he also grew repetitive. There is little to know character development which made the dramatic sequences (save for one shortly after Gus met Scott) fall flat. The drinking, considering their environment, was unrealistic even for a zombie book. The humor wasn't great. This should have been a short story, instead it's the first in a series of I believe four books.

Not for me, even with R.C. Bray trying his absolute best. Made it roughly 70% in before upping the narration speed to get through the story faster. I decided that if I had to do that to finish it wasn't worth bothering with.

Also I don't understand how the title correlates to the story at all. Bit of a mystery.

Pretty much, what you would expect when you think of surviving a zombie apocalypse.
Although it was filled with all the gore and grime that you want from a novel like this, it was just… childish. This felt like a pubescent teen’s wet dream. Way too many ball jokes, way too many shit jokes, and way too many, slightly demining, sex jokes. Like I said, immature. It pretty much played out like this: drink, scavenge, zombies, repeat.

I could see why people like it, it was filled with some colorful zombie smashing fun, but there was no substance to it. This one was on my to read list for a long time and was honestly looking forward to it. I love zombie stuff, almost to the point of obsession, but this was a huge let down.

As for the audiobook, R.C. Bray does an excellent job as always! However for me, the content wasn’t there.

This is not a new book and to be honest I am not sure how far along the series is now but it was a thrilling read/listen, RC Bray is outstanding and he lifts the story and makes the listener feel they are taking part, I looked forward to the rest of the series

Probably the best of all the zombie apocalypse reads.
It was absolutely gripping; I couldn't stop listening and it was perfectly narrated.

Time now to read the prequels, then dive in to the rest of this exciting and interesting series - seems to me that this is the most probable outcome of a zombie apocalypse...'cos it could happen, yeah?!!

Thanks so much to Podium Audio, via Netgalley, for gifting me an audiobook copy - can't wait for more!

Zombies!! Gus has a normal life. He scavenges for supplies, fights zombies, drinks heavily, and occasionally saves somebodies life. One person he saves is Scott, who he takes back to his compound and then the fun really begins.
Read this book before the movie comes out. It is fun, yet has all the gore and fear that a good zombie book should have.
Thank you to NetGalley and Podium Audio for a copy of the audiobook in exchange for an honest review.