A sinister darkness has finally cast its long shadow across the world, and Adrian Ring now suspects he's at the center of the maelstrom. And he's not alone. Even overseas, his friend Kevin is somehow standing at his side. At Auburn Lake, Adrian and his adopted family finally understand that the dreams they have suffered since the end of the world are far more than restless imaginings. When a thousand mindless dead arrive holding books, can it be anything but a message from beyond the grave? Soon they will learn that what the dead say can be far worse than what the dead have done. In The Failed Coward, the fourth installment in the epic Adrian's Undead Diary series, Adrian realizes the scope of humanity's struggle, and just what's at stake. Despite all the dangers posed by the world around him, Adrian pushes out more aggressively, reclaiming more and more territory from the clutches of the treasonous survivors and the walking dead. Adrian’s world is also expanded with more short stories. New questions are raised, and new characters introduced. And they will need all the help they can get to stay alive. In the end, everyone may need Adrian's help.