The Ten Thousand Things (written by Tim Marquitz, J. M. Martin and Kenny Soward) was published by Ragnarok Publications in March 2014.
Information about the authors:
Raised on a diet of Heavy Metal and bad intentions, Tim Marquitz writes a mix of the dark perverse, the horrific, and the tragic, tinged with sarcasm and biting humor. A former grave digger, bouncer, and dedicated metalhead, he is a huge fan of Mixed Martial Arts, and fighting in general. His urban fantasy series called Demon Squad is a fan favorite and he is also the Editor-In-Chief of Ragnarok Publications. He lives in El Paso, Texas, with his beautiful wife and daughter. His website is www.tmarquitz.com.
J.M. Martin has been a teacher, an occupational therapist, a managing editor, and a graphic designer. He has written comic books and role-playing games, as well as several short stories for Fantasist Enterprises, Rogue Blades Entertainment, Pill Hill Press, and Angelic Knight Press. He recently co-founded Ragnarok Publications with Tim Marquitz and is the company's Creative Director. J.M. (Joe) lives in Crestview Hills, Kentucky, with his kick-ass, red-headed, black belt wife and three spirited wee folk he swears are pixies. You can visit www.nineworldsmedia.com to find out more.
Kenny Soward grew up in Crescent Park, Kentucky, a small suburb just south of Cincinnati, Ohio, listening to AC/DC, Quiet Riot, and Iron Maiden. In those quiet 1970's streets, he jumped bikes, played Nerf football, and acquired many a childhood scar. At the age of sixteen, he learned to play drums and bashed skins for many groups over the next twenty years. By day, Kenny works as a Unix professional, and at night he writes and sips bourbon. His fantasy series GnomeSaga is published by Ragnarok Publications. He lives in Independence, Kentucky, with two cats and a gal who thinks she's a cat. Visit him online at www.kennysoward.com.
Information about The Ten Thousand Things:
THE WALKING DEAD AND HELL ON WHEELS COLLIDE!
Stalked across the Great Basin by an evil they hardly understand, Nina Weaver and her hard-bitten bunch o’ ragtag death-dealers have learned one crucial lesson: the only sure thing in life - and death - is a loaded gun.
‘Deaduns’ and other horrors have come a’callin’, and Nina struggles to uphold unlikely alliances as the stale waft of rot threatens to overrun the West.
Can Nina and company stand against... THE TEN THOUSAND THINGS?
From the deranged minds of Tim Marquitz, J.M. Martin, and Kenny Soward, THE TEN THOUSAND THINGS is the second volume in the all-new Old Western Action-Horror series, "Dead West."
A REVIEW OF THE TEN THOUSAND THINGS (WRITTEN BY TIM MARQUITZ, J. M. MARTIN AND KENNY SOWARD)
The Ten Thousand Things is the second part of the Dead West series. It's an excellent and entertaining sequel to Those Poor, Poor Bastards.
I have to admit that I'm difficult to please when it comes to western novels, but weird western novels are my kind of novels. In my opinion The Ten Thousand Things is - just like Those Poor, Poor Bastards - an excellent example of a good and entertaining weird western novel, because the authors know how to entertain their readers. To be honest, I was impressed by this novel, because it turned out to be an even better novel than its predecessor.
Before I begin to analyze the contents of this novel, it's good to mention that it's recommendable to read Those Poor, Poor Bastards before reading this novel. In my opinion knowledge of the previous happenings is essential in order to fully understand what happens in this novel.
Here's a bit of information about the story:
In The Ten Thousand Things Nina Weaver and the people with her are riding the rails and fight against Liao Xu's zombies. Liao Xu is responsible for unleashing the horde of the deaduns and other creatures against them. He relentlessly pursues them, because he wants something from them...
The Ten Thousand Things differs a bit from the first novel, because it brings more depth to the story. The first novel introduced the characters to the readers and now the authors begin to add depth and more details to the story and to the characters. For example, the authors reveal a few interesting things about Liao Xu and his past, and Nina begins to accept her abilities and experiences sexual awakening. The authors also tell what happened to James' family.
Nina is a fascinating heroine, because she's almost like a female version of the male western heroes and rogues played by Clint Eastwood, Lee Van Cleef and other famous actors. Although she's a fighter and survivor, she's much more than that, because she has strange abilities that separate her from others. She has a spiritual connection to the People and the Land. She has slowly begun to change inside, because she hears the sounds of the People, their drums and flutes, and their whispers. The realization of this change rattles her, because she has to accept the changes.
There are several excellent and thrilling scenes in this novel. For example, the attack of the birds is an impressive scene. Reading about Liao Xu's demon train is also memorable, because it adds a wonderfully otherwordly atmosphere and a malicious supernatural threat to the storyline.
The prose in The Ten Thousand Things is surprisingly good (in the first novel the prose was good, but now it's even better). The authors have found the right kind of rhythm and that they use to move the happenings forward. The pacing is also much better in this novel, because the story feels more balanced than before.
One of the best things about this novel (and its predecessor) is that it's genuinely interesting to read about how Nina and the other survivors get along with each other. The authors have managed to write about this aspect of their survival in a surprisingly realistic way.
The authors write boldly about sex and things related to sex. I won't reveal what happens in the story, but there's an explicit and passionate sex scene in the middle of the novel that has been written well.
It's nice that there's also a bit of humour in the story. For example, the scene in which one of the characters has to drop his pants is a funny scene. I think it'll amuse several readers.
Because I'm a Finn, I have to mention that it was interesting that the authors used one Finnish word and a few Swedish words in the story. These words surprised me, because I didn't expect to find Finnish and Swedish words in a weird western novel.
It's possible that there are readers out there who think that this series is only about a fight against zombies. I can say to these readers that they're wrong, because the authors have created a story that tells of an epic and desperate fight between good and evil. There are - of course - plenty of zombies in this series, but there's much more to the story than them, because the fight between good and evil is the core of the story.
Tim Marquitz, J. M. Martin and Kenny Soward have written an exciting and gory tale that will please fans of zombie stories and weird western novels. I'm sure that the viewers of The Walking and Hell on Wheels will also love The Ten Thousand Things, because this novel is almost like a combination of The Walking Dead and Hell on Wheels.
If you're interested in zombie stories and weird western novels, The Ten Thousand Things is the novel to read, because the authors deliver a fantastically gory and entertaining story that's full of action. If you like zombie stories, please take a look at this novel, because it's an enjoyable novel.
My final words are: This novel is good and exciting entertainment!