by Shane Carrow

Oh the feels! I'm not a big fan of zombie stories in general but this is one of the better written ones I've seen.

The story is set in Australia, beginning in Perth. Aaron is writing in his journal about applications to colleges, parties at the end of school where his twin brother Matt is very popular but he is not, and about a meteorite that falls near a small town on the other side of the country.

Soon reports start coming in from that town about a strange virus, first thought to be rabies, then something else... see where this is going?

All too soon Aaron and Matt discover they're on their own in a world where all services have stopped and the undead are out to attack anything that moves. Their phones are running out of charge so they can't even communicate with their father, who got stuck in another small town where he was looking after their grandmother before the road blocks went up.

I could really feel the tension as Aaron and Matt try to make decisions in an adult world where they were only just starting to take their first steps towards self-responsibility. Now they have to survive and there's no rule book, no authority to consult.

Despite a couple of predictable elements necessary for this genre, the plot progressed with a lot of unpredictable elements and what especially struck me was the realism of how people might react, both good and bad, in a survival situation. Since the journal is written by Aaron, it's a first person narrative and we see his own emotional responses to the need to adapt in a far too rapidly disintegrating civilisation.

Both Matt and Aaron develop in various ways as the struggle to survive takes them into situations they had never thought of and they have no choice but to think on their feet and react accordingly.

By the time we get to the last entry I was completely wrapped up in the boys' struggle and although I could see a couple of things coming as events led up to the action packed conclusion, it didn't detract from my full experience of everything that happened. This one is an easy 5 stars, just for bloody effective writing.

DNF @10%

Book source ~ Review copy. My review is voluntary and honest.

Vaihan Louchian is a zombie and a special advisor to the President. Leera Waltz is a pawn. Rowley is some wing-nut who is anti-zombie. And there’s some guy (I can’t even be bothered to remember his name) who I have no idea whose side he’s on.

I usually try to give books more than 10% to see if it gets better, but when I stopped at 10% I just couldn’t gather a single drop of enthusiasm to come back to it. Vaihan is described as Ancient. Um, he’s 100 yrs old. I’m 51, nearly 52. What the fuck does that make me? Semi-Ancient? Wtf. Leera is sexually assaulted by this guy who is playing all sides. At least, I think he is? Anyway, she’s a wimp. And I have no idea what is going on. The writing is convoluted and boring. I think this is trying to be a military/political thriller with a paranormal twist and failing spectacularly. Maybe someone else will like this better.

Libby decided to turn into a vampire to be able to be there for her son as her grows up. She had cancer and it wasn't responding to treatment. This had the typical MH humor/snark that her books have. However, it was a bit more serious with a young child and a custody battle in the mix.
I enjoyed Jane and Dick's involvement and their role as representatives of the council. Nola and Jed made a brief appearance (hint it has to do with a birthday party Sasquatch hunt). I did like Wade and his son. I enjoyed the interplay between the characters.
There is a love triangle (which I generally don't like), but I felt it get resolved pretty easily. Libby's relationship with a certain someone named Max got glossed over and I felt it either needed more attention or should have just not been in the story.

Halloween Bingo: vampires