An excellent collection with not a single miss in it. Keene deftly handles a variety of characters, living and otherwise, throughout the time of the Rising.

Keene recommends reading the Rising and City of the Dead for background, but I don't think that's necessary; you'll understand that Keene's zombies are intelligent and can handle cars, guns, and large-scale strategic attacks soon enough. I'd be more worried about spoilers, but I haven't read the novels recently enough to say that anything is definitely ruined by the stories, although Keene's endnotes do contain a major spoiler for the end of City of the Dead.

Keene handles the short short form well. Most of the anthology's stories clock in at under a half-dozen pages, but Keene ably establishes his characters, gets the plot moving, and - well, it is the end of the world.

Keene also gets some humor in, mostly at the Sissquism's expense, and has some touching family moments throughout the book. A visceral tale of vengeance fits in neatly among the horror, and we get to see round three of the Earth's destruction for the first time.

Overall, highly recommended for all horror fans, with the caveat that you really should read The Rising and City of the Dead first. Short horror diehards can dive right in though; Keene will have you up to pace on his take on zombies by the third story. ( )