The story is set in my home town of Butler, Pennsylvania. Classically, the region is the heart of zombie lore. I grew up watching zombie movies that were filmed just down the road. It certainly can impact a young mind.
The novel starts out on what should be an average day. A demented prisoner in the drunk-tank, who happens to be subject zero, is brought before a judge to have his case reviewed. He breaks away, and violence soon spills outside of the courtroom.
White Ash on Bone follows groups of citizens who band together for survival as society breaks apart around them. This is not a story about living in a post-apocalyptic world that is already overrun by the undead. This is a story about trying to survive in the first days of the collapse.
I really tried to capture both small and large scale events in the novel. For example, one group of survivors might be trying to hide out in a garage while another group is watching the military try and maintain a collapsing stronghold in Pittsburgh.
I did not feel the need to make my zombies extra-ordinary. They move, some a little faster than others, but you won’t see them climbing up walls. What you get in the story is an ever growing horde beating in your front door.
This is the first book of the series.