South

There are echoes of Cormac McCarthy's

The Road and Stephen King's

The Stand, plus graphic violence and heart-stopping action set pieces, but what lifts

South above many recent examples of the subgenre is Owen's pared-down prose, slick narrative and the sensitive depiction of Dyce and Vida's relationship. –

Guardian South takes place in a USA ravaged by Civil War. It's been thirty years since the first wind-borne viruses ended the war between North and South – and still they keep coming. Every wind brings a new and terrifying way to die. The few survivors live in constant fear, hiding from the wind – and from each other. In this harsh Southern expanse, brothers Garrett and Dyce Jackson are on the run from brutal law-enforcers. They meet Vida, a lone traveller on a secret quest. Together, they will journey into the dark heart of a country riven by warfare and disease. This is the story of Dyce and Vida. This is the story of end-time. This is the story of The Cure and how it came too late. This is the story of South.