TITLE: WHAT BLOOMS IN BARREN LANDS
GENRE: POST APOCALYPTIC | ZOMBIES
AUTHOR: MARGO SMYTHE
PUBLICATION: OCTOBER 21ST, 2025
·:*¨༺ ♱✮♱ ༻¨*:·
Synopsis
When hope is in ruins and the future burns, a dark freedom rises from the ashes.
When her dreams of having a family are shattered, Renata’s life unravels completely. But so do the lives of everyone else, as a mind-altering disease ravages the global population. Almost overnight, the world is plunged into chaos, and within weeks, the human race is driven to the precipice of extinction by the bloodthirsty infected and their uncompromising attack, feed, multiply.
Seeking refuge in a survivors’ settlement on the Mediterranean island of Corsica, Renata meets Einar, a dangerous man who reawakens her appetite for life, along with many of her long-buried desires. What starts as a strategic arrangement soon becomes an obsession more lethal than the outbreak itself.
Combining his tactical mind with her archery skills, they embark on a journey not only to eradicate the menace lurking in their new home but also to reinvent their lives after the unthinkable has happened.
But in humanity’s darkest hour, every great victory comes at a crushing cost. Should the ransom they are willing to pay for survival be condemned by the very posterity whose existence they help ensure? And what matters more, being the heroes in each other’s story, or the villains in everyone else’s?
Contains mature content, trigger themes, and a bittersweet ending. Reader discretion advised.
When her dreams of having a family are shattered, Renata’s life unravels completely. But so do the lives of everyone else, as a mind-altering disease ravages the global population. Almost overnight, the world is plunged into chaos, and within weeks, the human race is driven to the precipice of extinction by the bloodthirsty infected and their uncompromising attack, feed, multiply.
Seeking refuge in a survivors’ settlement on the Mediterranean island of Corsica, Renata meets Einar, a dangerous man who reawakens her appetite for life, along with many of her long-buried desires. What starts as a strategic arrangement soon becomes an obsession more lethal than the outbreak itself.
Combining his tactical mind with her archery skills, they embark on a journey not only to eradicate the menace lurking in their new home but also to reinvent their lives after the unthinkable has happened.
But in humanity’s darkest hour, every great victory comes at a crushing cost. Should the ransom they are willing to pay for survival be condemned by the very posterity whose existence they help ensure? And what matters more, being the heroes in each other’s story, or the villains in everyone else’s?
Contains mature content, trigger themes, and a bittersweet ending. Reader discretion advised.
:*¨༺ ♱✮♱ ༻¨*:·
My Review
★ ARC REVIEW ★
๐ WHAT BLOOMS IN BARREN LANDS ๐ Is a full length post apocalypse romance debut novel by Margo Smythe. In this you'll meet Einar & Renata.
I saw this pop up numerous times on my IG feed, and of course I had to sign up, because zombies are my kryptonite!!
First off I can not believe that this book is this author’s debut book, because she comes across like a very seasoned author, it's that polished, and her writing skills blew me away.
I did find it a wee bit long winded, (this took me 2 days to read) but then closing out of that last page, I got to thinking, what would I remove? And my answer was, nothing at all..It all needed to be said..
Renata and her boyfriend Petr are on holiday when a deadly virus strikes down the country leaving them in lockdown within their hotel accommodation where they are accompanied by other tourists. Military promised food and other essential items would be delivered on a daily basis to stranded occupants. But when their food and supplies start dwindling and no military men in sight for weeks things started to get dire. They had to come up with a plan, to evacuate and that was to head towards Corsica. Renata was an exceptional archer and knew she could keep them safe from the fury's as they had come to calling the infected. She had won every competition she'd ever participated in. So first things first she knew they needed weapons, gear and food supplies they could scavenge along the way. With a treacherous journey ahead of them and scoping out other like minded survivors camping out they finally came across Einar and his motley group. Convincing him to let them stay with them took some cunning as she killed near on forty fury's using her archery skills.
Things between Einar and Renata heated up from their first meeting, he awoke something left dormant within her, releasing a deeply rooted obsession which slowly turned into a profound love for each other, their journey was fire and I honestly couldn't get enough of them.
This genre is definitely my favourite, I inhale zombie books like there's no tomorrow, and have read many, it’s one of my top genres. I always ask myself, why do characters not have sexual endeavours in this genre? I can count on one hand the amount of books that do..So imagine my surprise when these two go at it like rabbits..And go at it they do..They can't keep their hands off each other.
I also enjoyed how the zombies were sort of secondary characters, they weren’t the whole focus, the focus was these two, an unconventional meeting, but all said and done, they were perfect for each other.
