Bryon Morrigan’s Acheron is a pulse pounding, edge of your seat horror drama that will leave you wanting more.
Some of us will remember Acheron as the planet name in the 1986 James Cameron ‘Aliens’ starring Sigourney Weaver, Lance Henrikson and Michael Biehn. That planet was referred to as Acheron yet the Corporation named it LV426.
Morrigan’s Acheron is not a science fiction cinematic venture. But it should be. Starting with the opening chapter and moving through the storyline, Morrigan paints a well developed plot with believable characters that experience what can only be called hell on earth.
His reference to Acheron is the Greek reference to the river of pain or the river that flows through Hades. Set amid in the Middle East, the storyline unfolds when a Captain Nathan Leathers is caught in an IED explosion and captured by what he thinks to be insurgents. While in captivity, events transpire that lead to the opening of the fabled River of Death, unleashing the denizens of hell.
Escaping from his cell, Leathers is now faced with locating where he is, getting geared up and getting out Dodge. Similar in some ways to Stephen King’s The Mist, the plot develops a slight twist when Leathers is forced to trust a local and work with him. They end up saving each other’s lives several times from the creatures that lurk in the green mist.
Finally seeking safe shelter in a fortified police station, they encounter more survivors and a small group of Private Military Contractors. The PMC’s have reverted to believing that the mist and the creatures it contains is some kind of signal that the End of Days is upon them. Led by a charismatic and tyrannical leader, Leathers soon finds himself in more trouble from the forces inside then the creatures outside.
Acheron leans more towards a horror/apocalyptic genre than a zombie/horror/apocalyptic novel. The zombies, while active and plentiful, take a second billing to the other demonic entities residing inside the mist.
Morrigan has created a tension filled, action novel within the genre that puts the readers into the scene and lets them ride along with Captain Leathers. It’s a wild ride that takes him through the living dead, fighting off harpies and into the very depths of Hell to seal what was inadvertently opened. The subtle sub-plots are masterfully interwoven amongst the overall theme.
Bryon Morrigan’s Acheron is a definite keeper and one hell of an adrenaline rush for anyone that enjoys a little undead with their action.
Available at Amazon
