About two-and-a-half years ago, my buddy Duane and I were driving back to Chicago from a little cabin on Mantrap Lake in Minnesota where he and I meet up with a few of our old college frat brothers every year for a long weekend of drinking, playing nerdy games and being away from technology. On the way back, we were talking about how weird it was to be cut off from civilization for even a few days. If something crazy would have happened in the world while we were away, we wouldn’t have the slightest clue.
That concept got us thinking: What kind of crazy things could happen? A meteor hitting someplace in the world? A war starting up somewhere. A politician inadvertently telling the truth?
Being guys who were nearing 30 years old, we agreed that the coolest thing would be the beginning of the zombie apocalypse. That week I sat down and threw down the first chapter of a story that I called “Mantrap.”
What it’s about
Here’s what the back of the book says:
Mantrap is the story of six friends who escape the modern world and their day-to-day responsibilities as husbands, fathers and boyfriends, for a two-week bender in a rustic cabin on Mantrap Lake in the middle of nowhere Minnesota. Devoid of any contact with civilization, they are blissfully unaware that the zombie apocalypse has begun while they’ve been gone, and now half of North America is filled with the walking dead.
Now they must survive the onslaught of undead creatures, mutated wildlife, and each other to find a way to reach their loved ones, whom may or may not still be alive.
It’s a pretty good description of the story, but it doesn’t mention that it’s actually a dark comedy that borders on horror. There’s a bit of gore in it – so much so that my editor in Chicago actually didn’t make it through the book the first time I presented it to her to read. But it’s gore that you get used to. After one zombie has been shot in the face, it all just melds together in my mind.
It’s also true-to-life of what guys do when they’re away from their loved ones. We drink, we smoke, we call each other names, and we’re even more profane than normal – which is pretty profane.
That having been said, it’s definitely a book that would be rated R if it were a movie (fingers crossed).
Who would like it
- Any zombie fanatic
- Fans of buddy/group comedies
- Horror fans who like dark humor
- People who want a mindless fun read
Where you can find it
Mantrap is currently available in paperback and on Kindle from Amazon.
If you like the book, please drop me a note or, better yet, leave a review on Amazon!
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