What would happen if the world came under attack....sudden, unexpected and fierce attack. A large percentage of the world's population is dead. Others missing. And still others are unwitting carriers of death. And, the worst part.....there is no way to contain the attack. What would happen?

Ezekiel Boone's The Hatching trilogy plays out this scenario in a particularly creepy crawly way. Spiders. Flesh-eating spiders. The arachnids have lain dormant for thousands of years, just waiting underground for the right time to hatch. Book One, The Hatching, details the gruesome first few weeks after the spiders hatch. The spiders decimate whole cities before dying off, leaving egg sacks in any hidden space. In the middle book, Skitter, the second wave of spiders comes.....new spiders with bright red stripes on their backs. And larger egg sacks -- the size of a truck -- appear around the world. These spiders are different.....they act different, seem to have a different purpose. Something is coming.....something horrible.....but what is it? Can scientists and the military find a way to save what remains of human civilization? Or will the situation fall into mass chaos, violence and....the end?

Zero Day is the final book in this chilling series. I waited months for this book! I'm extremely afraid of spiders after a bad experience with a spider bite as a child. I don't even like lint balls that vaguely resemble spiders...let alone the real thing. For me to love a book series that is all about spiders hatching and destroying the world.....and for me to be incredibly impatient waiting for the ending of the story....well, it has to be well-written and incredible. The Hatching trilogy fits that description. The tale is well-written, suspenseful and truly scary! I really enjoyed this entire series!

Zero Day starts right where Skitter left off.....the world is waiting for what is going to come next. And different factions with disparate ideas on how to stop the spiders are vying for control. Whatever horrors lurk in the large egg sacks are awaking....and they are hungry. In the United States, the military is at odds with the President over what action should be taken to save at least a small part of the country, adding to the danger. Can what is left of the human race survive what's coming?

Great ending to the series! Lots of action, and some surprising twists. Once I started reading, I couldn't stop. Total binge read! I still hate spiders....but I thoroughly enjoyed this book series.

Ezekiel Boone has a new book, The Mansion, coming out in December 2018. This time it's not spiders but a super computer that poses the problem. I'm definitely going to read it!

**I voluntarily read a review copy of this book from Atria via NetGalley. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**

A perfect end to a fantastic post-apocalyptic trilogy. Zero Day wraps up one of the creepiest set of books I've read yet. After an ancient species of spiders has been uncovered in Peru, the world is basically falling apart. China decided to unleash nuclear weapons to get rid of them but no one is sure if it actually worked. Now President Pilgrim must decide if she should follow in China's footsteps in order to save the American people or attempt to corral the military which is rapidly falling apart to try another drastic option that may save them all.

I saw some other reviews saying that they felt book 3 was slightly disappointing because it didn't have as much spider action as the previous two books and while I can definitely see that, I still loved it. I think my biggest complaint with this one is that the history of the spiders wasn't fully fleshed out. There was some brief mention of what may have caused the spiders to be buried in the first place, but beyond that we are never given any further details. A history of the possible religious implications of the spiders would have been greatly appreciated.

Overall though this trilogy was fantastic. I definitely recommend it to horror and sci-fi fans.

Zero Day closes out Ezekiel Boone’s The Hatching trilogy, bringing an end to the spider apocalypse—though it’s anyone’s guess which side will prevail. Since emerging from an ancient egg sac unearthed beneath Peru’s Nazca Lines, these eight-legged menaces have multiplied into the millions, swarming the globe and paralyzing all aspects of life. In the United States, President Stephanie Pilgrim has carried out the unthinkable, targeting dozens of American cities with tactical nukes, but still the threat remains. All it would take is one single spider to get past their guard, and thousands more people would die.

The time has come for a more permanent solution, and humanity’s last chance lies in a theory postulated by Dr. Melanie Guyer who believes all the spiders in the world are linked through their queens. Her hypothesis is simple: kill the queens, and without their leadership, the rest of the swarm should lose their ability to coordinate their movements and die.

However, not everyone close to the President agrees with this plan, claiming that it is too risky. More drastic measures are proposed to destroy all the spiders and not just the queens, creating a rift within the U.S. government. Meanwhile, those around the world who have managed to survive the initial waves of death are continuing to hunker down or fight, doing what they can to prevent the further spread of what has been dubbed the “Hell Spiders”.

I had a fun time with this novel, but I’m also not going to lie; I expected more from a finale. Like the two previous volumes, this final installment is told through a number of different perspectives, showing us how the spider apocalypse is unfolding around the world. That said, most of the main storyline is centered on the American East Coast, where President Pilgrim and her allies face opposition and eventual revolt from dissenters within her own cabinet. As a result, many of the other POVs are greatly diminished, leaving some of the characters with no role in the conflict resolution whatsoever.

Needless to say, I found this disappointing, especially since a few of the characters I’ve come to love were only briefly mentioned or were given perfunctory page time just to remind us that they were still around. In addition, many of the POV transitions felt awkward and ill-timed, almost like the author was struggling to find a balance, and not entirely succeeding. Instead of flowing smoothly, the narrative kept being disrupted or derailed by these frequent POV switches, some of which didn’t even feel all that necessary.

Still, these issues paled beside the one flaw I could not overlook: there simply weren’t enough spiders! This distinct lack of arachnid-fueled action, especially in the first half, was probably my biggest complaint, and unfortunately, not even the ending which saw the spiders return in full force could really make up for it. Recall in my review of Skitter, where I had praised Boone for upping the ante by making things bigger, better, and bloodier. Compared to its predecessor, however, this book felt like a giant step back. Too much of the story was focused on the human vs. human drama, when the attention should have been given to the spiders (which, in my opinion, are the real stars of the show).

For these reasons, I felt Zero Day really missed its mark in terms of offering a satisfying conclusion. Not only did it skimp on the spiders, the plot also failed to bring anything new to the table, falling back on time-worn clichés like the Hive Queen trope and the good old military coup. And yet, for all its faults, the book was a quick read and provided solid entertainment, which is what saved it from a lower rating. All things considered, it’s probably worth finishing the trilogy if you’ve already come this far, because you’ll want to find out how things end. But while I’m not sorry I read Zero Day, it’s just a shame that the series didn’t end as strongly as it started, and I personally felt it was the weakest of the three books.

This is such a great book and great series. I am sad to see it end but I know this series will be one I will most likely read again in the future.

If you are looking for a book and book series that will give you the creeps I highly recommend this

If someone had told me I would read a trilogy about killer spiders taking over the world and would be raving about it, I would've told that person they were insane. I hate bugs. All kinds... and especially spiders. They're fascinating creatures, but I like to live as apart from them as I can.

One of the things I love about Boone's writing is how he can bring SO many characters to the table and yet it never gets confusing. I found myself invested in every single one of them. Quite frankly, I hope if anything like this ever WERE to happen, I would hope we had a Shotgun out there to help fight the good fight!

The spiders have come in two waves now and we are the finale. We get taken along through various POVs in all kinds of situations.... the government, a religious fanatic(ish), everyday people, scientists, the military, so on and so forth. What I wanted a little bit more of? THE SPIDERS! We got a lot more from them in books one and two and while I don't relish feeling like things are crawling over me as I'm reading... well, I actually did want MORE of that from this book too! There were definitely a few parts that had me questioning every little thing that moved in my peripheral, but for the most part, the spiders seemed to take a back seat and in a finale, that was a tiny bit disappointing.

And I'll admit the ending did seem a bit anti-climatic after everything from books one and two. HOWEVER, I'm still rating this highly because I was glued to the pages. I needed to know what was going to happen to each and every one of these people. I'm also extremely grateful to those who dedicate their lives to learning about our co-inhabitants on this planet.

In a nutshell, I had an absolute blast with this entire trilogy. Truly, Boone is a fantastic storyteller and I look forward to whatever he has coming our way in the future. And people, even if you're terrified of spiders, take a chance and read this trilogy anyways. Just do it!

The below 4.5-star (blog)/4-star (Amazon/Goodreads) review was posted to Every Day Should Be Tuesday, Amazon, and Goodreads on February 27, 2018:

Now complete with book 3, Zero Day, holy s__ Ezekiel Boone’s The Hatching series is good. Boone absolutely fulfills the promise from the first book in the trilogy, The Hatching. The Spiderpocalypse reaches its endgame and the fate of humanity hangs in the balance.

Boone pulls a lot of the plot threads together for his finale. The administration is on the run (again). Shotgun’s weapon doesn’t work. Or maybe it works much better than it was supposed to. And the spiders aren’t done introducing tricks of their own. The original ravenous hordes of coin-sized spiders and the softball-sized red stripes whose bite leaves people able to feel pain but unable to move aren’t the end of it.

Zero Day is an effective finale, but some plot threads don’t really lead anywhere. The slice of life stuff was also starting to wear out its welcome. I still maintain the Hatching series would have been better as a single, thick, standalone book rather than a trilogy of three short-ish volumes.

But all in all, I love this series. It’s delightfully scary. I complain half-heartedly now, but the slice of life stuff gets you invested in the characters as a reader—at least for the characters key to the plot. The third book really ratchets up the tension with a political situation that gets as hairy as the spiders. Most impressively, Zero Day sticks the landing. Boone brings the Spiderpocalypse to a close in a way that is satisfying on all counts. But maybe what I like best about the series it that it isn’t as nihilistic as so much apocalyptic fiction, including the show on in front of me as I write this review (The Walking Dead). Zero Day is replete with acts of heroism and kindness.

By the way, this is the first volume to really suggest that the Spiderpocalypse isn’t taking place in what is effectively the present day. Zero Day opens with the return of the first manned mission to Mars and later indicates that there were two presidents between Obama and Stephanie Pilgrim.

Disclosure: I received a review copy of Zero Day from the publisher.

Zero Day is the third and final book in The Hatching trilogy and here we finally get to know if mankind will survive the spider invasion or of the word is doomed. This book is less gory than the previous two (yeah that disappointed me since I love being creeped out), but it's one heck of an ending. Fair warning, you really need to read the previous two books before reading this one. In many ways it's just one story split into three books.

As a big horror fan do I love threat against mankind books and spiders are creepy, let's face it. Escpailly ancient spiders that are taking over the world. Here, in the last book must President Stephanie Pilgrim decide what to do next. She has already nuked part of the US, but there are those around her that think that she waited too long and should have used more nuke. And, time is running out, the spiders are soon ready for the next phase of the attack. Could it be that if you kill the queens will the rest of the spiders also perish? Should Pilgrim trust the scientist or the military?

Zero Day is an action-filled book where our heroes face threat not only from the spiders, but from people that are set against them. It's an engrossing and satisfying book with a great ending. I have enjoyed reading this trilogy and I can't wait to see what Ezekiel Boone will write next!

Nutshell: The final book of Boone’s spider-pocalypse is a whole lot of creepy fun. Strap in y’all, it’s gonna get spidertastic.

Story: As what’s left of the United States tries to figure out a way to defeat the spider threat, a small group of scientist and tech experts try to deal not only with spiders, but the crumbling structure of order. Meanwhile, large queen spiders are waiting to emerge…

“…of course it made sense that the airport was dark. There was nobody left to turn on the lights.”

Thoughts: This whole trilogy was a lot of fun to read. If you’re an apocalypse junkie like I am, you’ll want to get your hands on this book. No; you’ll want to get your hands on this series.

I get the same sort of wide-eyed enjoyment here that I did with Michael Crichton. Well, add in some creeped-out glee. But Boone does a similar bio-technical exposition that gives me the happy. He also does a fantastic job with what could happen when powerful government types disagree on things. Especially when those things deal with saving the world. There’s a lovely sense of claustrophobic paranoia in many scenes here, which helps heighten the already amped-up dread. Okay, for me it was a combination of dread an anticipation; what would these queen spiders do? What would happen once they emerged? All in good time, my little pretty. All in good time.

As with the first two books of the series, Boone has POV chapters from many different characters. Some make it. Some don’t. And that will they/won’t they got my spidey sense tingling in the very best way. Oh man. If you ever wondered what it’d be like to come down to earth during an apocalypse? Here you go. And what if you and your random hookup both survived an apocalyptic onslaught? It’d probably go a little something like this. These “boots on the ground” viewpoints don’t take away from the main characters and their story, but add to it, giving readers a wider view of what’s going on.

Unlike Skitter, readers who start with this book will be floundering for a bit. It even took me a while to get my bearings as to characters and where we’d left them. But a quarter of the way through I was back on track. I blame myself for not digging back into the first two, because there’s so much going on in these books that you really need to be up on things. I really needed to be up on things. So if you’re like me and tend to blow through books like it’s your job (ahem)? Definitely re-read the first two before jumping in here. Don’t worry, as each book is a page-turner, you’ll be done in no time flat. And enjoy. Maybe don’t read this one outside. Because heaven help your neighbors if a spider decides to amble over your foot during your read. They’ll think you’ve lost your mind.

Read or Reshelve: Definitely give it a read. But pick up The Hatching and Skitter first. You’ll want to get the full experience.

Publication 411: Atria Books, February 27, 2018

[NOTE: I received a free Kindle advance reader’s copy in exchange for an honest review. I received nothing else, not even a blowtorch. But after reading this trilogy, I kinda really want one. Y’know, just in case.]
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Zero Day by Ezekiel Boone

Zero Day is the final part of Ezekiel Boone’s skin-crawlingly brilliant Hatching trilogy, which means that if you haven’t already read The Hatching and Skitter then you must tread no further, certainly not without looking where you’re walking because this is the Spiderpocalypse! This review assumes that you know what’s happened before, although I’ll do my best to give nothing away about any of the people (otherwise known as spider food) within.

The world has endured the first and second waves of spiders but the world is not as it was before. Nucleur missiles have wiped out many of Earth’s biggest cities, in China, the United States and elsewhere. Much of America is now a no go zone, with some politicians advising that everywhere west of New York City should be abandoned to its fate. The scientists know that there is one more wave of spiders to come and this one could mark the end of humanity. But how far should mankind go to fight the spiders? What if man’s extinction comes not from the spiders but from the very actions taken to defend the human race? These are the questions troubling the highest levels of government but meanwhile men, women and children across the globe are trying to survive from one day to the next. Sometimes surrounded by moats of fire or lakes of water – anything to keep the spiders at bay.

This has been a fantastic series from the start and I’m delighted, but not surprised, to say that Zero Day concludes events in fine style. I’m not going to mention any of the people. Not everyone will have made it this far but there are some that have and we are desperate for them to live. We meet survivors across the planet but most of our attention is on the US where politicians, soldiers, scientists and normal families are battling for existence. As we move back and forth between them we are desperate to know how all of this is going to turn out.

While I would have preferred more spiders – and fewer gungho nuclear-missile-waving politicians – in the first half, the second half more than makes up for this and it is thoroughly exciting, spectacularly explosive and deliciously creepy – these spiders are awful! I don’t mind spiders myself but the ones within these pages are enough to fill a lifetime of nightmares.

One of the things that I really love about these books is their humanity. With a very few notable exceptions, most of the people we meet care for each other as much as for themselves, if not more so. Time after time we see people put their own lives in danger to help strangers or those who have become close to them in this time of crisis. There are survivalists who go against all the stereotypes, helping others, risking everything. We have straight and gay relationships, there is a harmony and equality at work here. Society isn’t perfect but I like the world as we see it here. This is good against evil on an almighty scale, with the enemy being not just the spiders but also a few male powerful politicians who belong to an old world that deserves to be eaten by eight-legged monsters.

I read Zero Day in one glorious sitting. I love how frightening and thrilling it is. I knew when I read The Hatching that I was in for a treat with this trilogy and I was so right! And it’s so good to say that the ending is every bit as fabulous as the beginning. I’ll miss these characters but I’m looking forward very much to seeing where Ezekiel Boone takes us next.

Other reviews
The Hatching
Skitter

Great conclusion to the story. Very believable. Great character development. I especially like Fred and Amy.

I had high hopes for the end of the trilogy, but the number of characters was overwhelming. I wish there had been more of a focus on the core characters from the first two books. Parts of the book seemed to be rushed, namely those dealing with the eventual resolution. Having said that, the ending was hopeful without being overly optimistic.

Welcome to the spiderpocalypse. Boone wraps up his creepy, crawly trilogy with engaging characters, great humor, and an ending that is deeply satisfying. My thanks go to Net Galley and Atria books for the DRC, which I received free of charge in exchange for this honest review. The book will be available to the public tomorrow, February 20, 2018.

The narrative begins with a recap of our characters and what has gone before. Whereas I don’t recommend skipping the first and second books, it’s great that Boone brings us up to speed; with such a complex story, the refresher is useful for both new readers and old ones. And holy Moses, as we join President Stephanie Pilgrim, she is faced with an attempted coup. The military divides into camps, and quick thinking is called for. After all, Pilgrim knows there’s only a matter of time before everything goes “kaploowee.”

Boone has several side characters and plot threads that heighten suspense. We revisit the Nazca line where the first terrible eggs were uncovered; we check in on civilian survivors in places across the US; and in my favorite thread, we join the Prophet Bobby Higgs and his followers. It’s so droll and darkly funny that if you can read it without laughing out loud, you are advised to take your pulse to be sure you are still alive.

Ultimately, of course, what we have are spiders, and here Boone saves the best for last. New to the series is the “Hell Spider”, and the descriptions are his most deliciously satisfying yet:

“Realistically, to the Hell Spiders, a human being is just like a burrito, a soft wrapper with a tasty filling.”

Boone’s progressive bent makes good fiction even better. I particularly appreciate his deep and abiding respect for women, which makes him one of the finest male authors of feminist fiction I’ve read. I also wonder whether this might be the first series carried by a major publisher that features a gay married couple whose status is incidental to the story rather than a crisis moment in the plot. Within the genre, I’d bet on it.

Boone keeps his prose accessible, yet it’s not dumbed down. There is no explicit sex here, and I can see this as a title that teens will also enjoy. If I still had a classroom, this series would grace my shelves.

Recommended to all that enjoy a good horror series.

3.5/5*

ZERO DAY was a fun wrap up to the trilogy that started with THE HATCHING.

The narrative is still following all the same people, people who are now facing the fallout from a few nuclear strikes across the U.S., and the previous ones which occurred in various places around the world. The spiders are still continuing to mutate and evolve with the most dangerous of them all appearing in this book.

I enjoyed following the characters around on each of their missions and adventures. What I did not like was the following, (do not click if you don't want to know): (view spoiler)

Additionally, I wanted more spider action. In the previous two books, there was lots of it. They were your usual quick chapter Creature Features with lots of spiders overcoming people, animals, etc... In this book there is little of that, other than during the denouement, which was disappointing.

As a whole, this series was a ton of fun! Even though I found this entry to be slightly wanting, the trilogy itself was a blast, with a couple of real twists that I enjoyed. And, I have to admit that at times, reading it made me itchy!

If Creature Features are your thing, then I highly recommend you check out this trilogy! I just recommend you have lots of lights on, so you can immediately spot any insects heading your way.

*Thanks to Atria and to NetGalley for the e-ARC of this book in exchange for my honest feedback. This is it.*

Perfect ending to the series! The we yet again meet the characters that we've grown to love and unfortunately, the spiders that have ravaged the world. This series if fun, well-written without any extremes, which makes it a good recommendation for anyone interested in a unique creature-feature novel with a lot of heart.

This book is the bomb and it ends like it starts with one! Is this a word; arachnapocalypse? If it is not it is a place that you will find in this book! Enjoy

First thing I’m going to say, is thank God this book was longer than the first two! The first two books were sooooo good but so frustratingly short, I wanted to throw my Kobo! “Zero Day” thankfully, is a full-length novel (322 pgs).

But as long as this one was, it lacked then same creep factor of the other books and that was disappointing. Don’t get me wrong, it is still very good, it just didn’t hook me like the others. Especially the first one because for me, the fun is in the chaos. This book was more about the aftermath and I wanted more carnage!

What IS really cool about this book is how thorough it is. You will not be left with any loose ends or questions regarding either the story or any of the main characters. The storyline, origin and character arcs are fully fleshed out which is very important for a reader like me. I’m not crazy about cliff-hangers.

Honestly, “Zero Day” is a very strong conclusion to the series and while it may not have them same scare factor as the first two books, it is still very entertaining. Personally, I think I would have enjoyed this series as one large novel instead of a trilogy but that’s just me.

Friendly tip, it could be really fun to read them all together once “Zero Day” is released.

Rating… B+


*Thank you to Netgalley for providing this ARC in exchange for my honest review

I definitely need to read the rest of the series! But this was a solid installment.
I give this one 4/5 stars for the entertainment! Full review to follow closer to publication

The Hatching series has been like an utterly terrifying, utterly fascinating horror show that plays out in a deliciously slow, deliciously tantalizing pace that will leave you jumping at shadows and turning the lights on before entering a room. Not looking for the usual two legged monsters but instead, the kind of the eight leg variety. The kind that bite and borrow and hide in dark places, ready to pounce and fall on you in a moments notice. The kind of nightmares.

The creepy crawlies that leave almost anyone screaming, with their heart trying to frantically gallop right out of their chest. This is a series that is worth every single moment of breathlessness it will leave you not to mention the sleepless nights with the light burning bright on and the covers pulled clear up to your chin.

It has been a terrifying roller coaster of a ride from the very first page of the very first book and didn't let up until the very satisfying end.

Truly a masterpiece of suspense, horror, and terrifying what ifs. This is a series you don't want to miss out on. I've loved every deliciously dark and agonizing page. One that will truly not be forgotten.

This is the least "spidery" of the trilogy but you really need to have read the first two to appreciate what's going on. The best part is that you find out what happens to everyone (well, almost everyone.). The use of nukes to destroy the spiders etc. has led to the sort of scenario that we can all dread. The President and Guyer are on one side and Broussard and the military are on another about the solution. How do you think that's going to turn out? I was actually surprised by some of this. It's well written and fast paced. Some might argue this would be a good movie but you know what- that would ruin it because the scariest elements are how we think about what's been written. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

This book is the third book in the trilogogy about rampaging spiders. As we join the various protagonists, spread out in various parts of the country, we find that the spiders appear to be unstoppable. The protagonists race to find a way to stop the spiders. Think of your worst scenario when dealing with spiders. This book pulls you into the battle, has you looking behind you, above you at every little sound you hear. You expect to see something skittering to be there. It is a spellbinding read to the very end. Read this trilogy.