White Horse
A Novel
When I wake the world is gone. Only fragments remain. And then I remember...
Then:
Her life may have taken a couple of wrong turns but thirty-year-old Zoe is trying to make the best of what she has. A part time cleaning job to pay for college, a weekly appointment with her therapist to straighten out the problems in her life. The same problems that any thirty-year-old girl would have. Nothing major. Nothing too life threatening. A few bad dreams. It's all going to be fine.
Now:
There is no other thought but survival. And so begins a treacherous post-apocalyptic trek across a desolate world in search of a life for her unborn baby.Through the remains of what was once civilisation, Zoe crosses continents strewn with fellow survivors, knowing the only thing that can keep her sane is normal human decency. But acts of kindness are few and far between in a world where untold horrors exist around every corner, where food and water is in desperately short supply, and the only chance of happiness is half a world away.
Then:
Her life may have taken a couple of wrong turns but thirty-year-old Zoe is trying to make the best of what she has. A part time cleaning job to pay for college, a weekly appointment with her therapist to straighten out the problems in her life. The same problems that any thirty-year-old girl would have. Nothing major. Nothing too life threatening. A few bad dreams. It's all going to be fine.
Now:
There is no other thought but survival. And so begins a treacherous post-apocalyptic trek across a desolate world in search of a life for her unborn baby.Through the remains of what was once civilisation, Zoe crosses continents strewn with fellow survivors, knowing the only thing that can keep her sane is normal human decency. But acts of kindness are few and far between in a world where untold horrors exist around every corner, where food and water is in desperately short supply, and the only chance of happiness is half a world away.
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Book details:
- Simon & Schuster UK |
- 384 pages |
- ISBN 9780857209962 |
- April 2012
£12.99 List Price
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Praise
“Adams’ fantasy is brilliant! It’s McCarthy’s The Road on hope steroids. Adams’ narrative is the prose of the world’s destruction, beautiful yet horrible. Her amazing characters are full of both hope and hopelessness in the face of death--and worse. This is what apocalyptic fiction will aspire to be from now on.”
– RT Book Reviews
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“Adams’ fantasy is brilliant! It’s McCarthy’s The Road on hope steroids. Adams’ narrative is the prose of the world’s destruction, beautiful yet horrible. Her amazing characters are full of both hope and hopelessness in the face of death--and worse. This is what apocalyptic fiction will aspire to be from now on.”– RT Book Reviews
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“Adams has an excellent sense of timing, delivering gasp-inducing moments that punctuate her nightmare with verve. But it’s Zoe’s clear-eyed sense of self-preservation that will keep readers waiting for Adams’ follow-up.”– Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
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“Written with such skill and confidence that it sits easily in the pantheon of post-apocalyptic thrillers alongside the likes of Justin Cronin and Stephen King. . .The first installment in a bold new trilogy, White Horse is the perfect start to a series that promises to both terrify and thrill.”– Bookpage
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“Kept me up way too late at night, avidly racing to the thrilling end.”– Kaye George, Suspense Magazine
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“Alex Adams' debut, White Horse, is the first in a brilliant trilogy which will no doubt be ranked among the great fantasy novels.”– The Huffington Post Blog
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“It draws to a compelling pause, with a pair of revelations in the final pages that should spur readers to a sequel. Adams has fashioned a macabre landscape in which she explores fundamental questions about what it means to be human, with a compelling protagonist and narrator as our guide.”– The Oregonian
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“A cat-and-mouse tale of murder and pursuit . . . Adams' debut novel adds another dimension to dystopian fiction.”– Library Journal
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“Suspenseful, fast-paced, and boasting solid character development, this is a much better than average post-apocalyptic novel.”– Booklist
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“Alex Adams delivers a beautifully written page-turner that brings new life to post-apocalyptic fiction and the hero’s journey. I couldn’t stop reading, and couldn’t stop wondering what I would do in the world of White Horse. Gorgeously, unrelentingly, dark and gripping.”– Eleanor Brown, New York Times bestselling author of The Weird Sisters
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“The new Hunger Games.”– Grazia (UK)
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“Compulsive.”– Sunday Telegraph (UK)
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“A wonderful debut . . . A strong outing for the first book of a trilogy. I am anxiously awaiting the next two.”– Bookaholique
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“Alex Adams’ writing brought this post-apocalyptic tale vividly to life. ”– Popcornreads.com
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“This book does not disappoint. It was absolutely incredible.”– Marked by Books
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“Alex Adams’ debut novel, White Horse, is a riveting look at future where the world has ended, and what humans become afterwards. ”– Examiner.com
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“A hugely horrifying and emotional apocalyptic novel. White Horse is massively gripping . . .The narrative is perfectly paced: ‘then’ chapters drip-feed enough information to keep us reading without revealing the disease’s origin, and the ‘now’ telling a tense tale of survival. Pregnant Zoe is a fantastic lead.”– SciFiNow
on White Horse -
“Dark, gritty, and eerily real. [Adams] immediately captured my attention with her riveting world-building and her raw, fleshed out characters.”– Caffeinatedbookreviewer.com
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“By far the most accomplished book I’ve encountered this year . . . White Horse will haunt you long after you close the back cover.”– Portland Book Review
Read an Excerpt
ONE
DATE: NOW
When I wake, the world is still gone. Only fragments remain. Pieces of places and people who were once whole. On the other side of the window, the landscape is a violent green, the kind you used to see on a flat-screen television in a watering hole disguised as a restaurant. Too green. Dense gray clouds banished the sun weeks ago, forcing her to watch us die through a warped, wet lens.
There are stories told among pockets of survivors that rains have come to the Sahara, that green now sprinkles the endless brown, that the British Isles are drowning. Nature is rebuilding with her own... see more
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Book Reviews
Reading Group Guide
The discussion questions that follow are designed to enhance your group’s discussion of White Horse, a post-apocalyptic thriller chronicling one woman’s quest to nurture those she holds dear against the backdrop of a shocking, new world.
Topics & Questions for Discussion
1. Did you like White Horse?
2. Discuss the importance of Greek Mythology in White Horse.
3. Why do post-apocalyptic themes in stories like this seem to resonate with the American reader?
4. Why was Zoe afraid to open the jar? Why was it put in Zoe’s apartment? How are the jar and its contents similar to Pandora’s Box? What would you say is the real Pandora’s Box in this story?
5. How would you characterize Zoe’s relationship with Nick Rose both before and after he goes to war? What are some of the complications between them? What motivates Zoe’s resistance to his overtures? What causes her to change her mind? Why does she lie to him about the jar?
6. Why is Zoe willing to trek across the globe to pursue Nick, and yet she is unable to read the letter he left her, despite that being the practical thing to do? Can you empathize with or justify her potentially lethal decision?
7. Why was Zoe afraid to read Nick’s letter?
8. Why does the Swiss refer to Zoe’s unborn child as a monster, and yet obsess over claiming it as his own? What is the signif see more
Topics & Questions for Discussion
1. Did you like White Horse?
2. Discuss the importance of Greek Mythology in White Horse.
3. Why do post-apocalyptic themes in stories like this seem to resonate with the American reader?
4. Why was Zoe afraid to open the jar? Why was it put in Zoe’s apartment? How are the jar and its contents similar to Pandora’s Box? What would you say is the real Pandora’s Box in this story?
5. How would you characterize Zoe’s relationship with Nick Rose both before and after he goes to war? What are some of the complications between them? What motivates Zoe’s resistance to his overtures? What causes her to change her mind? Why does she lie to him about the jar?
6. Why is Zoe willing to trek across the globe to pursue Nick, and yet she is unable to read the letter he left her, despite that being the practical thing to do? Can you empathize with or justify her potentially lethal decision?
7. Why was Zoe afraid to read Nick’s letter?
8. Why does the Swiss refer to Zoe’s unborn child as a monster, and yet obsess over claiming it as his own? What is the signif see more
