Resident Evil: Zero Hour is a novelization of the video game Resident Evil 0 published in 2004 by Stephani Danelle Perry. It is the seventh Resident Evil novel written by Perry, but precedes the others in chronological order. It was to re-released in January 2013.
Story
The story opens with an Umbrella employee, Bill Nyberg, sitting and reading through his legal documents. He thinks to himself about a recent case where a little girl was treated by a new Umbrella medicine, Valifin which was still in trial phases, and had suffered from renal failure as an unexpected side effect. But even as he ruffles through his files he is unaware of the dangers that lurk in Raccoon Forest. All of a sudden the Ecliptic Express is attacked by hordes of leeches. Within moments, all of the trains occupants, including Nyberg, are dead.
Hours later Raccoon City S.T.A.R.S Bravo team begin their search for those responsible for the murders which have been plaguing the city. For the past few weeks, Raccoon City has been in a state of fear due to cannibalistic homicide. S.T.A.R.S Bravo team was the first team to be sent in to investigate.
The opening chapter follows Rebecca Chambers, who is the new recruit. She is rather anxious about the mission...
Their helicopter is forced to make a forced landing (for unknown reasons) and Bravo team becomes stranded in the Arklay Mountains. The Bravos begin to spread out and search the immediate area. While investigating their surroundings, they come across a wrecked armored transport. Among the carnage, they find records of an escaped prisoner by the name of Billy Coen.
Characters
- Rebecca Chambers
- Billy Coen
- Edward Dewey
- James Marcus
- Richard Aiken
- Enrico Marini
- Ken Sullivan
- Bill Nyberg
- Teresa Hardy
- Albert Wesker
- William Birkin
- Dickson
- Elder
Differences
Due to Zero Hour's release being considerably after the other six novels in the series, the story of Resident Evil has changed since the first novel. Strong inconsistencies arise when reading Zero Hour, and its (chronological) follow up, The Umbrella Conspiracy, as the author took several creative liberties when penning that novel, almost all of which were ret-conned in Zero Hour. The author makes a brief note, apologizing for the inconsistency at the beginning.
Further notes
- The novel erroneously (but consistently) refers to the Hunting Gun as a rifle. In fact, it is an over/under shotgun.
- Likewise, the pump action shotgun is occasionally referred to as being double barreled. No such weapon exists.
Sources
| Preceded By | Position | Succeeded By |
| none | S.D. Perry novel | The Umbrella Conspiracy |
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