How Does 'Small Game' Compare To Other Survival-Themed Novels?

An apocalypse driven by natural disasters. Survival of the fittest. Typhoons, floods, deadly cold, scorching heat, earthquakes, tsunamis, insect plagues, acid rain… After struggling through three years of the apocalypse, Nicole Floyd met a brutal death. Miraculously, she woke up and found herself three days before it all began. Nicole seized the advantage to reclaim her storage space, flipping the switch on full-on stockpiling mode. She shopped until she ran out of money, and her storage was packed tight. She also looked for the dog that had saved her life once before. She sharpened her knives, stacked her supplies, and took care of unfinished business. She paid back every debt, whether owed in blood or in kindness. And then, disaster struck. Her right hand gripping a knife and her left stroking the dog, Nicole pressed on through the ruins of a world without order or morals.

"Althea." I still. I shiver. He says my name like it's sacred, like it's an oath he's swearing. He tilts his head to the side, eyes roaming over my face. "Tell me," he murmurs, "what do you want me to call you?" My eyes slowly meet his, confused by his question. "What do you want to call me?" "I want to call you mine.” *** Althea Gray is a bullied omega who has fought for survival at every turn of her entire life. When she discovers her boyfriend of three years has been cheating on her, heartbreak is the least of her problems. She's been chosen for the deadly Mate Games, a brutal competition where females from all parts of the kingdom, fight for the chance to win the favor and heart of the ruthless Alpha prince. Prince Asher Valebrook is as cold as his ice-blue stare, and he has no interest in love. Althea knows better than to want him, but a reckless one-night stand might seal her fate. Though she and Asher claim to hate each other, the line between love and hate is dangerously thin. With betrayals lurking in every shadow and survival far from guaranteed, Althea must play the game wisely. But in a palace built on blood and lies, winning Asher's heart might be the deadliest challenge of all.

After I was caught in a dockside explosion, I was bound to a Survival Program. It gave me twenty-five years and four designated targets. If even one target’s Love Score or bond score reached 100%, I could wake up in my real world. But I failed all four. Because every target I tried to reach eventually turned toward Sophia Lane, the heroine of this world. They called my pain a performance. They called my tears manipulation. They said I was only pretending to break down so they would choose me over Sophia. But if they never loved me, why did they lose control when my mission failed and I chose to leave this world for good?

Willa Roane dies the same night she catches her boyfriend in bed with her sister. Instead of waking in peace, she’s dragged onto a ghostly bus and informed—by a mocking intercom—that she’s entered the Survival Game: a twisted show where the dead are thrown into lethal, terrifying worlds for the cruel amusement of an unseen audience. The rule is simple: survive each round… or your soul is erased forever. Her only ally is Corvin Thorne, the devastatingly beautiful stranger who yanked her off the road and onto the bus. A hybrid vampire–werewolf with a past soaked in blood, Corvin is bound by a wicked secret contract to keep Willa alive… or forfeit his own soul to the game. As they descend deeper into the nightmare realms—from a monster-ruled Dracula Castle to ruined neon cities—Willa realizes she is the key. The deadly worlds are twisting around her darkest fears and fantasies, turning her own horror stories into elaborate traps. She isn’t just a player; she’s the author of the chaos. And the man sworn to protect her may be the only thing she can’t control. Now Willa must rely on the dangerous man she’s falling for, a man who swore he would never love again. The heat between them is undeniable, but as their bond deepens, it’s impossible to tell which is more dangerous: the monsters hunting them… or the love that could destroy them both. Love might be beautiful—but in this game, it’s never sweet. It’s a weapon, a weakness, and the one thing that might rewrite the rules of Hell itself: desire. ---

Heartbreak is supposed to kill a wolf’s spirit, but Aria Vale refuses to die quietly. Humiliated before her entire pack when her fated mate publicly rejects her, Aria returns home, shattered and furious, only to find a black envelope waiting on her bed. Inside lies an invitation to a deadly challenge known only as The Game: “Survive, and win what your heart desires most.” With nothing left to lose, Aria enters a realm beyond her world, an ancient castle suspended between life and death, where each dawn brings a new trial of survival. Competitors vanish one by one, hunted by the magic that governs the Game. But not everyone is what they seem. One contestant, a charming, infuriatingly optimistic wolf named Kael, seems more interested in keeping her alive than winning himself. His warmth disarms her, his smiles irritate her, and his secrets could destroy them both. Now Aria must survive the trials, outsmart the goddess who created them, and decide what freedom truly means: breaking her bond to the mate who betrayed her, or risking everything for the wolf who was never supposed to love her.

In October 2025, an explosion occurs at a remote lab. An unidentified substance is leaked, and the virus makes people go insane. Anyone who is bitten by these rabid creatures becomes one of them. It's like the zombies people see in movies and video games. On the first day of the explosion, my five-year-old, Joyce Fairfield, is still at kindergarten. I risk my life to hurry there, but I can't even find her corpse when I arrive. I can only look at the surveillance footage to see her face, which is ashen with fear. I also see her mouth, "Mommy!" 15 days after the explosion, I finally traverse the city and get to my mother's home. However, all that welcomes me is a destroyed apartment and blood everywhere. 20 days after the explosion, my husband, Emmett Fairfield, calls me one last time from his office, which zombies have surrounded. He tells me not to leave the house. Less than a month after the apocalypse arrives, I lose all my family. I'm alone as I struggle to survive in this dead world. The spread of the virus triggers chaos in mankind. I exchange all my supplies to save a neighboring couple from bandits, leading them to safety in a secure zone where they can live stable lives. However, my kindness is not repaid. Three years after the explosion, the secure zone is under siege by a wave of zombies. As we retreat, my neighbors shove me underneath a car so I'll distract the zombies. Then, they make a run for it and get away. Trusted neighbors betray me. As the zombies eat away at me, I can feel death looming. All I want is to see my family again. Now, I've been reborn. I have six hours before the zombie apocalypse breaks out.