I’m an avid reader and one of my favorite hobbies is reading zombie novels. I’ve made a habit of sharing with you, every year, the best new zombie books released in the first few months of the year, so you’ll have plenty of fantastic zombie literature to read.
The truth is that zombie novels have a pretty big fan base and a ton of zombie apocalypse books are released every month, so finding great quality books can be a little harder than you think. one might imagine at first. but since I read and research a lot about these books, I can share with you the best new zombie books to read in 2017, listed in no particular order below.
You are reading: Best zombie books 2017
Please note that I am only listing zombie books released in 2017 that are not yet part of a series. So even though Mark Tufo (for example) has already released some great zombie books this year, you won’t find his work on the list, nor the work of other well-known authors if the published books are part of a series released earlier. 2017. I think this gives you even more opportunities to find great new zombie novels and series to read and great new authors to discover.
Update: The list of the best new zombie books of 2018 has been released, be sure to check it out too if you want even more zombie greatness!
That said, here are the 10 best zombie books to read in 2017:
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island q – russell james
An ancient virus has appeared on Long Island, New York, turning its victims into black-veined, infectious, psychopathic killers. Chaos and madness reign.
Desperate, the military quarantines the island, trapping Melanie Bailey and her autistic son Aiden. somehow aiden survives the infection. he could be the key to a cure… if melanie can get him to the mainland. fast-paced action in a world full of undead.
click here to start reading this book now.
the extinction cycle – nicholas sansbury smith
this is actually a series of six amazing books in the extiction cycle series, a series of zombie novels that has received thousands of amazing reviews since its release. It has everything you could want from zombie literature, it’s well written and I’m sure all zombie fans will love it. this is a bit of what happens in book 1:
Sergeant Major Reed Beckham has led his Delta Force team, codenamed Ghost, through every kind of hell imaginable and has never lost a man. When a top-secret medical corps research facility goes dark, Team Ghost is called in to face their deadliest enemy yet: a strain of Ebola that turns men into monsters. After barely escaping with his life, Beckham returns to Fort Bragg in the midst of a new kind of warfare. As cities fall, the Ghost Team is ordered to hold virologist Dr. kate lovato live long enough to find a cure. what he discovers will change everything.
Watch the entire series here.
confessions of the first zombie killer (that I know of) – f.j.r. titchenell
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The world is Cassie Fremont’s playground. her face is on the front page of all the newspapers. she has no homework, no curfew or credit limit, and she spends her days traveling the country with her friends, including a boy who would do the chicken dance to her death to make her smile. life is pretty much perfect, except the newspaper headlines tell of her beating her crush to death with a paintball gun, she has to fight ravenous walking corpses every time she goes out, and one of her friends is still missing. , stuck somewhere in the distant and virtually impassable remnants of manhattan.
I’m not a big fan of young adult fiction, especially when it comes to zombies, but this is a good one and those who already enjoy reading this type of novel will surely enjoy it even more.
click here to check it out today.
jack zombie series – flint maxwell
A few months before Jack and Darlene’s arrival, a mysterious flu-like virus swept through town, infecting nearly every citizen. now, like time bombs about to explode, everyone drops dead. but they don’t stay dead. No. they return as carnivorous zombies. Jack Jupiter will not only have to bury his mother, take on high school bullies and save Darlene, but he will have to fight the dead to stay alive. and these are not like the zombies from the books about him.
a really good new series for zombie fans. It has a bit of the walking dead, a bit of George to Rosemary… and a lot of zombies. a real page turner!
click here to check it out now.
dead city – sean platt & johnny b. absent
ian keys rocket career took him to the top of the pharmaceutical giant hemisphere: creator of ghoul, the drug that stopped the outbreak and allowed the infected to live among us normally. Ian’s new position gives him access to secrets. to information that the company does not want others to know. and now, an anonymous informant has started giving him ominous clues. Ian can’t tell exactly what’s wrong with the hemisphere, just that something is wrong. and that the “cure” the company gave the world might not have been a cure at all.
a different take on the zombie genre and a twist that I absolutely enjoyed. I’m sure you’ll love this novel too!
click here to start reading today.
outbreak: a cerebral novel – stuart keane
Unfortunately, not many people have read Stuart Keane’s books, even though he has some of them self-published. I really like him as an author (I recommend the whisper series, for example, even though it’s not zombie literature) and I’m happy to see him test the waters with a zombie novel that turns into a really promising new series.
barrington is a quiet town; friendly, quaint and welcoming. but like any other city, it has its fair share of secrets, none more so than dr. Nichols, a gifted scientist whose mysterious existence is clouded by malicious gossip, urban legends, and wild speculation. residing in the picturesque mansion on the hill, people see the man as a demon, an outcast who experiments on innocent people. however, despite his willingness to participate in the rumours, no one has confirmed these malicious rumors…but the outbreak is about to start.
Try it here, you’ll love it!
lockdown: a dystopian anthology
This is a collection of 10 zombie stories by great authors that you may or may not have heard of. it’s a great way to discover new authors and read some amazing stories, all with different takes on the same event: the zombie apocalypse begins, and we’re following what people are doing in a 10-story building (and each author handles a level of the building. .. a really nice approach!)
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From truly scary to just plain hilarious, you get all of these 10 short stories in a book you won’t stop reading until you finish reading it!
click here to check it.
dead hearts series – susanne l. lamb
another series that I come to recommend from an author that I recently discovered. really nice writing style, some fresh ideas, and overall a great series to follow. what’s the best of it? it’s complete, so you don’t have to worry about new books coming in the series (although you can never be sure of that anymore nowadays). this is a bit of what you should expect from the first novel:
Eleven months have passed since a deadly virus wiped out billions. For the few that remain, life as they knew it is over. nations fell, governments became obsolete, and resources became scarce. the human race had to start over, facing even greater odds… zombies! Now the main character, a 17-year-old girl named Cadence, leads security patrols and supply missions for a camp of survivors on Pike’s Peak. When a routine mission goes awry, Cadence gets more than she bargained for. She must lead a ragtag group of teenagers against an onslaught of scavengers, zombies, power-hungry military leaders…and a mutating virus.
Click here to start reading this great series today.
the reaper: merciless – sean liebling
If you like zombie books where the main character is the alpha male of alpha males, zombies abound, and the dark side of humanity emerges after the apocalypse, you’ll enjoy reading this one too. is a new series based on the author’s original “blood, brains, and bullets” novel that is free to download (always a bonus!). here is a bit of the description:
captain jason scott had retired from the united states marine corps as a force reconnaissance sniper with the 1st marine division. now a hard-working family man, his life revolved around his wife, his children and his grandchildren. coming home from working the third shift the day the walking dead rose, he found his entire family massacred. Crazed with rage, he killed every zombie in sight using any means at hand. they actually died under his wrath, and he survived. It was then that he realized that the lord had a new mission for him. And you’ll love every part!
Click here to learn more and start reading as soon as possible.
bonus: haunted house: a coloring book for adults – jade summer
This year I decided to do something special and share a coloring book with you. Before you start laughing, let me tell you that this is an adult coloring book (and we’ve already listed some of the best ones in a previous article). Although it is not completely zombie themed, it has all kinds of monsters and horror scenes that you will love. Of course I did!
It comes with colored pencils, pens and fine tip markers in case you don’t have some high quality ones laying around and they can help you relieve stress and truly enjoy your work. It’s a perfect break between the pages of zombie novels, so if you haven’t tried an adult coloring book, start with this one. if you did, you already know what it is about and you will love this horror theme.
Click here to learn more and get yours today. (Also check out the comments for more photos of the art you’ll draw.)
If you enjoyed my list, you might want to check out the recommended books from previous years: The Best New Zombies Books of 2015 & best new zombie books of 2016.
As always, if you come across an awesome zombie novel that you think everyone should read (and it was published in 2017), feel free to share it with us in the comments section below. Until then, be sure to enjoy our recommendations above!
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