The story focuses on the man that would later become the Governor; in the early days of the Zombie Apocalypse, Philip Blake, his brother Brian and daughter Penny struggle to survive not only the undead but their fellow man.
The novel contains examples of the following tropes:
- Big Bad Wannabe: 'Major' Gavin thinks he's all hot shit because him and his goons can intimidate a bunch of normal townsfolk. Then Brian riddles him with bullets during his villainous ranting, leads the Woodbury citizens in subduing Gavin's men, and takes charge as... The Governor.
- April goes through this too.
- It's implied Brian was going through this even before the zombies showed up.
- Cold-Blooded Torture: Philip repeatedly tortures, degrades (and in the case of the woman, rapes) the group responsible for his daughter's death.
- Cozy Catastrophe: The book opens with the group securing a nice luxury house to take shelter in that is well stocked with supplies. This being The Walking Dead their good fortune only lasts a couple chapters before they are forced to move on to avoid being overrun by the zombies.
- Dead Person Impersonation: Brian becomes Philip at the end of the novel.
- Decoy Backstory: The book purports to be the origin story/Start of Darkness of The Governor, the major villain of the series, who is a cruel, depraved Knight Templar. It tells of two brothers, Philip and Brian Blake, who are trying to survive the Zombie Apocalypse and their fellow man, and Philip increasingly becomes He Who Fights Monsters and the meek, ineffectual Brian is the Only Sane Man. While it seems obvious that Philip will become the Governor, he gets killed off, and it turns out that this is actually Brian's Start of Darkness, as he takes on his brother's identity and becomes The Governor.
- Decoy Protagonist: By the end of the novel, it's clear that Philip was a Red Herring and that this was Brian's story.
- Doomed by Canon: We know at the very least from the comics that Penny is set to become a zombie.
- Downer Ending: Everyone in the main group except Brian dies, Brian completely snaps, believing himself to be his brother Philip, and becomes The Governor, liberating Woodbury from a tyrant only to himself become much worse.
- Driven to Villainy: The Governor. Subverted when you find out Brian Blake, rather than Philip, is the Governor. An identity he adopts purely because he hates his own.
- Face–Heel Turn: Brian goes from being the voice of reason to...well, you know. Philip undergoes one of these as we all know he would given he's Penny's father. He's not the Governor, though.
- Foreshadowing: The Governor killing Gavin by emptying his revolver into the general direction of the guy's face after Gavin goes on a murderous power trip foreshadows how the Governor himself will later meet his end at the hands of one of his own people under similar circumstances.
- Jumping Off the Slippery Slope: Philip struggles with this throughout the novel. Simply put, the pressures of being The Ace just drive him to it.
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Limited Special Collector's Ultimate Edition: A deluxe leatherbound edition with illustrations by series artist Charlie Adlard was also released. - Mercy Kill: Nick puts "Sonny and Cher", two members of the gang that killed Penny, out of their misery after Philip tortures them repeatedly over an extended period of time.
- Molotov Cocktail: Brain has the idea to whip some of these up to help the group get past a swarm of zombies in the street.
- Morality Chain: Penny is the one thing that keeps Philip from snapping.
- Mythology Gag: After leaving a zombie-infested community, Brian leaves a sign outside warning newcomers not to enter. In the comics, Rick and his crew come upon the same exact place, but don't notice the warning until it's too late.
- My God, What Have I Done?: Philip after he rapes April.
- Obliviously Evil: For that matter, at the time, Phillip doesn't even seem to realize he's raping April and seems to only think that it's just Glad-to-Be-Alive Sex.
- Replacement Goldfish: Brian at the end replaces his dead brother with... himself.
- Took a Level in Badass: Brian, at the end. Too bad it only happens after he's completely lost it.
- Twist Ending: Think that Philip is destined to be the Governor? Nope, it's his meek, ineffectual brother who takes on Philip's name and legacy.
- We Hardly Knew Ye: Bobby is killed fairly early
- What Happened to Mommy?: After Penny is killed and subsequently turned into a zombie, Philip refuses to have her put down. After Philip dies, Brian continues to take care of her. The comics show that he regularly feeds her body parts.
- What Happened to the Mouse?: We never see Tara and April again after the former kicks the group out of their apartment.
