JUNE 2022 - AudioFile
Robert Petkoff narrates this fast-paced, plausible sci-fi thriller set in a near future in which overprescribed antibiotics no longer work. Long extinguished diseases have returned with a vengeance, and the slightest ailment or minor injury can prove fatal. Humanity lives in a state of fear, suspicion, and governmental surveillance. When bioterrorists launch an attack, NYPD Detective Jake Gibson and his partner, Amira Hassan, become embroiled in a high-stakes mystery involving an immigrant boy who is on the run from powerful people. Petkoff’s performance is well paced as he portrays the fear of the story’s diverse characters, who are easily identifiable and believable. M.M.W. © AudioFile 2022, Portland, Maine
Publishers Weekly
★ 03/28/2022
Could a future pandemic be exponentially worse that Covid-19? Holm (Red Right Hand) answers yes in this alarmingly plausible thriller. Public health officials dismiss a dramatic global increase in bacterial infections resistant to antibiotics, initially unaware the phenomenon results from the release of an ancient virus from the permafrost due to global warming. The virus infects bacteria across the globe in weeks and leaves medicine helpless as the new combinations render antibiotics not only obsolete but dangerous because continued use of them risks creating an even deadlier viral variant. The collapse of the “antibiotic era” means the resurgence of dormant diseases, as well as the end of surgical implants and organ transplants, since the risk of postoperative infections is too great. The crisis leads to the creation of an ultra-powerful American agency, the Department of Biological Security, which mandates citizens to report anyone suspected of having a high fever. Against this Orwellian background, NYPD Det. Jacob Gibson, a widower, must both care for his ill daughter and probe a massacre in Central Park that may have implications for the global health crisis. Holm perfectly balances plot, characterizations, and science. Fans of Lawrence Wright’s The End of October won’t want to miss this one. Agent: David Gernert, Gernert Co. (May)
From the Publisher
"If you like thrillers that really thrill, and with a bit of a Michael Crichton vibe, you're going to enjoy this to the max. In the last 70 pages the twists go off like a string of firecrackers."—Stephen King
"Intense, propulsive, provocative - and shot through with the kind of been-there, done-that authenticity and expertise that makes it really scary.... Highly recommended." —Lee Child, #1 New York Times bestselling author of BETTER OFF DEAD
"CHILD ZERO is a tour de force, beautifully written and hauntingly relevant. Chris Holm has given us a powerful and chilling near-future thriller with a breakneck pace in the best tradition of Michael Crichton's novels and Max Brooks' WORLD WAR Z." —Matthew Quirk, New York Times-bestselling author of THE 500 and THE NIGHT AGENT
"Terrific... a terrifying, all-too-plausible thriller in the Michael Crichton tradition... a white-knuckle tear through the streets of a New York laid waste by pandemics of the future. I lost a lot of sleep over this book, even after I finished reading it."—Joseph Finder, New York Times bestselling author of JUDGMENT
“CHILD ZERO is a thriller that truly thrills! With warp-speed pacing and frightening medical details, it offers a terrifying look at a world gone mad and the possible plagues to come.”—Tess Gerritsen, New York Times-bestselling author of LISTEN TO ME
"A chilling vision of the future that would make Michael Crichton proud. Like the best speculative fiction, Holm doesn’t offer an easy out. An airtight, propulsive thriller, CHILD ZERO just keeps turning the screws past the breaking point. Exactly my kind of book!"—Matthew FitzSimmons, bestselling author of CONSTANCE and the Gibson Vaughn books
“CHILD ZERO gave me nightmares – in the best possible way. Chris Holm offers a terrifying and convincing glimpse into the future that may well await us, while at the same time telling a deeply compelling story full of heart and, despite all the odds, hope. I couldn’t put this one down.”—Lou Berney, New York Times-bestselling author of NOVEMBER ROAD
“CHILD ZERO moves like no other novel I’ve read lately, with Chris Holm’s gripping writing delivering a story whose thrills come as much from its plausibility as from its twists and surprises. A deeply moral cautionary tale, set in a credible future we should be afraid to let happen.”—Matt Bell, author of APPLESEED
"Holm perfectly balances plot, characterizations, and science. Fans of Lawrence Wright’s The End of October won’t want to miss this one."—Publishers Weekly, Starred Review
"Read this thriller because it’s brilliant. Read this thriller because it will open a door in your mind that has been closed off due to the trauma of the last few years, but desperately needs to get that jolt and reawaken. If anything, we should know by now we can’t hide from what terrifies us; we must meet it with full force. It doesn’t have to be a plague, or an attack, but anything that threatens our safety and security. It’s time to get our boots on the ground and fight. Highly, highly recommended"—Jenn's Bookshelves
"Holm’s book is remarkable in the way it details what could happen and methodically explores what could happen after that; the fear and paranoia is never unearned. This is a truly scary psychological thriller."—Lisa Levy, Crimereads
"Child Zero is one of the most horrifying books you’re likely to encounter in the age of COVID-19 (or perhaps ever, really)—not simply because its premise exists within the realm of possibility but, arguably, probability. It will keep you up at night (and it should), first turning the pages with rapt fervor and then (re)considering those pages with careful attention. Such contemplation may very well be our best defense against the things that threaten us, both real and imagined. Feel free to remind yourself: This is a work of fiction—at least for now." —John Valeri, Criminal Element
"Taut and timely, CHILD ZERO is a thriller with heat and heart."—Michael Berry, Portland Press Herald
Library Journal - Audio
09/01/2022
Global warming causes Siberian permafrost to melt, releasing previously unknown diseases that are immune to antibiotics and causing worldwide outbreaks. Then a member of the radical group Soldiers of Gaia commits what comes to be known as the 8/17 Attack when a highly infectious, deadly contagion is released in Manhattan, causing the death of millions. After this setup, listeners expecting a Robin Cook-style medical thriller will be surprised to find they are then treated to a somewhat generic cop drama involving a detective named Jake who becomes aware of a boy named Mat who has an ability to heal people just by being around them. Everyone wants Mat, including the corrupt government and the Soldiers of Gaia. Jake and his friends must protect and hide the boy from those who wish to use him as a pawn. Robert Petkoff narrates at a brisk, urgent pace and is equally good at portraying male and female characters of all ages. Chapters are short and Petkoff keeps things moving. VERDICT Despite the slight letdown of the exciting beginning evolving into a procedural style story, the latest from Holm (Red Right Hand) will be popular with fans of the Bourne adventures.—B. Allison Gray
JUNE 2022 - AudioFile
Robert Petkoff narrates this fast-paced, plausible sci-fi thriller set in a near future in which overprescribed antibiotics no longer work. Long extinguished diseases have returned with a vengeance, and the slightest ailment or minor injury can prove fatal. Humanity lives in a state of fear, suspicion, and governmental surveillance. When bioterrorists launch an attack, NYPD Detective Jake Gibson and his partner, Amira Hassan, become embroiled in a high-stakes mystery involving an immigrant boy who is on the run from powerful people. Petkoff’s performance is well paced as he portrays the fear of the story’s diverse characters, who are easily identifiable and believable. M.M.W. © AudioFile 2022, Portland, Maine
