Fountain of the Dead by Scott T. Goudsward

Fountain of the Dead Reviews

• 
  Char

  3.5 stars
  
  Zombies! And not just human ones either! Very cool!
  
  Fountain of the Dead starts out in the suburbs of what's left of Boston about 10 years after Storm Night. That was the night a pretty meteor shower turned into meteors actually hitting the earth and somehow raising the dead. Our plucky group of survivors has come together and started to make a community, sometimes trading with their evil neighbors who control Boston itself. One night a stranger comes to the gates ranting about finding a cure and, of course, they let him in. So begins their journey towards the truth.
  
  I'll have to leave the plot off there, other than to say there were a few turns that did surprise me. I think it's pretty hard to do that, especially being as big a fan of The Walking Dead as I am. The premise of finding a cure is an intriguing one, as most other zombie novels are wholly immersed in just surviving. These characters were well developed, but I would have liked to have seen a bit more of the bad guys. I also liked the imagination and creativity on hand for the very last portion of this novel. Bravo to what happened outside that shed!
  
  I did have some issues with the editing. There were more typos than I would have liked, as well as missing or incorrectly spelled words, which took me out of the story here and there. Luckily, the pacing was good and I was able to hop back into the action without too much trouble.
  
  Fountain of the Dead shows off some incredible imagination, especially towards the end, and for this reason I feel comfortable recommending it to fans of horror, but especially to fans of zombie stories and/or The Walking Dead.
  
  *Horror After Dark received a free e-copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This is it*
• 
  Frank Errington

  Review copy
  
  Now that The Walking Dead has finished its sixth season, what's a zombie fan to do? Writer Scott T. Goudsward has the answer with a new novel.
  
  It all begins with a young family strolling through Boston Common following a night out at a Wiggles concert when a meteor shower goes from being beautiful to deadly. Years later the dead walk and pockets of survivors try to make the best of this new world.
  
  Micah, the young boy from the opening sequence is older now, with a new mom, and he hasn't spoken since that fateful day nearly a decade ago. He communicates using a portable whiteboard and markers. He is also his community's unofficial historian, keeping journals of the events in their village.
  
  A new arrival claims to know of a cure for anyone bitten and in danger of turning. He, himself, exhibits bite marks and seems fine. A trip to Florida to find the source of the cure is a dangerous undertaking.
  
  Fountain of the Dead does have something many stories in this sub-genre lack, a cause and a possible cure. Much the same way The Walking Dead has evolved to seeing threats from other survivors be as much of a problem as the zombies, our group has to deal with a number of dangers from outside their little community. Don't get too attached to any one character, it seems as if they are all expendable, something I really like in a novel of this type.
  
  Look for a genuine 'Oh, wow" moment at about the halfway point. When our travelers get to Georgia some one comments "We're just stopping to refuel right? I've hear bad things about Georgia. Supposed to be one giant walking graveyard." Wait, was that sly reference to The Walking Dead where the show is actually filmed?
  
  Another thing I liked about this tale as that all of the trials and tribulations seemed utterly real and not too contrived.
  
  Fountain of the Dead is published by Post Mortem Press and is available in paperback and e-book formats.
  
  Recommended.
  
  Scott T. Goudsward is the author of numerous short stories, screen plays and novels. He has had an avid interest in the horror genre since seeing the horror classic, Friday the 13th, when he was only 13. By total accident he hails from the same odd New England town--Haverhill, MA--that produced Puritan axe murderess, Hannah Dustin, beloved Abolitionist poet, John Greenleaf Whitter, and TV host, Tom Bergeron, and heavy metal rocker/movie director, Rob Zombie.
• 
  Cassandra

  I had a lot of fun reading this book. I can also say I lost a lot of sleep when I would stay up reading instead of sleeping.
  Also a quick read if anyone is looking for a relatively quick read for a weekend or a trip