Horror is in vogue now more than ever, so it’s no surprised that Universal Studios is pulling out all the stops for this year’s Halloween Horror Nights.

We’ve got a ton of news coming out of the original horror studio, so stay tuned. We’re kicking it all off with the best of the best!

ORLANDO, Fla., UNIVERSAL CITY, Ca. — Caught in the middle of a high-intensity struggle for survival, you fight off hordes of flesh-hungry, growling “walkers,” or zombies. No place is safe as you make your way through a post-apocalyptic wasteland with horror at every turn. Will you survive?

This fall, Universal Orlando Resort and Universal Studios Hollywood are joining forces with AMC’s “The Walking Dead” for their Halloween Horror Nights events. Visitors to both theme parks will be able to experience the horror of AMC’s blockbuster original series, “The Walking Dead,” in elaborately themed, haunted mazes. It marks the first-time Universal Studios has featured a television series at Halloween Horror Nights on both coasts.

The Golden Globe-nominated, Emmy Award-winning, series “The Walking Dead” is based on the comic book written by Robert Kirkman and published by Image Comics. The series tells the story of the months and years that follow after a zombie apocalypse. It follows a group of survivors, led by police officer Rick Grimes, who travel in search of a safe and secure home. “The Walking Dead” is the number-one drama series in basic cable history for adults 18-49 and adults 25-54.

Universal Studios’ Halloween creative teams are working with AMC and “The Walking Dead,” to create an authentic experience that is true to the Emmy Award-winning hit series. The haunted mazes on both coasts feature eerily authentic, elaborately designed, movie-quality sets that include some of the most iconic locations and scenes from the show. Mobs of undead walkers bring to “life” the vicious, hungry, zombies from the show.

“We want people to experience the same terror of the walker-filled reality our characters faced in seasons one and two – and will continue to face in our third season,” said Greg Nicotero, Co-Executive Producer and Special Effects Make-up Artist for the series. “Our collaboration with Universal Studios’ creative teams is exciting as we work to truly capture the essence of the show.”

“The collaboration with Universal Studios’ creative teams is a fantastic cross-promotional opportunity and a great way to capture the spirit of the series, which makes its season three debut on AMC this October,” said Linda Schupack, AMC’s Executive Vice President of Marketing.

“‘The Walking Dead’ puts real people in incredibly horrific situations where they experience true, raw fear, and guests at Halloween Horror Nights experience the same thing,” said Jim Timon, Senior Vice President of Entertainment at Universal Orlando Resort. “We can’t wait to merge the two powerful concepts together.”

“With ‘The Walking Dead,’ we want to make fans of the series feel like they are literally walking in the footsteps of the show’s characters, experiencing all of the horrific events from the series just as they experienced them,” said John Murdy, Creative Director at Universal Studios Hollywood. “The goal is to make guests of Halloween Horror Nights feel like they are trapped in the world of ‘The Walking Dead,’ using all of the attention to detail and movie-quality production values that Halloween Horror Nights has become famous for. You’re no longer sitting on a couch, watching a show…you’re living it!”

Have you ever been to Universal Studios Halloween Horror Nights?

As an adult, reading is something that I never really got into. My wife says I lack imagination, because I could never understand how she could read the same books over and over — or how she could laugh or cry over words written on a page. But I actually read a lot as a child. I started reading early and found a place in the advanced reading groups at school. I remember loving Dr. Seuss’ Green Eggs & Ham. But once I got into middle school and high school, I always failed book reports and reading tests because I absolutely refused to read — although that might have had to do with being told what to read rather than an actual aversion to the activity (which is a statement on our ridiculous educational system in America, but that’s another argument for another time and another place). If I was able to, I always picked a book with big words and short chapters or something that was a movie novelization. (I once did a book report on Rocky.) The one time I was enthusiastic about a reading assignment was in 11th grade, when we could choose to read The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury. When I passed the test with flying colors, the teacher was convinced I had cheated and actually quizzed me orally in front of the entire class. I still passed.

Now I can say that I’ve read close to 100 books in the last year, and that can be contributed to two things: 1. The Walking Dead. Now, you may say, “That doesn’t count — it’s a comic.” Fair enough. But to me, that was about as close to reading as I got. I borrowed the first hardcover from James, and I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough. I was enthralled, and I thought I’d give further reading a try. 2. The Kindle. I requested a Kindle Fire for Christmas last year mainly because it was a cheap tablet, but once I realized the availability of eBooks and the ease of which you could access them, I became one reading son of a bitch. It was so easy to download a book. With an Amazon Prime account, I could pick from a selection of books to “borrow” for free, and there’s actually a collection of pretty decent books on the cheap.

So with all that being said, I wanted to go over some of the books that I’ve read that I HIGHLY recommend… if you’re into that whole “reading” thing. We’ll post one every few days.

Buy The Rising from Amazon!

1. The Rising  by Brian Keene:

Brian Keene is an author James and I have talked about frequently on the podcast, and he has quickly become my favorite author. The Rising is a bit of a different take on the zombie genre. They are intelligent and able to strategize, which any zombie fan knows is bad news. Not only does the plague infect humans, it also affects animals and birds, which is just horrifying in itself. I really enjoyed the way Keene developed the characters. Right off the bat, you feel for them, which is what makes you invest yourself in a story regardless of the medium — books, movies, TV, etc. The Rising leaves you with a fantastic cliffhanger that made me angry that I had to stop there and hunt down the second book, City of the Dead. Both books are excellent.