After seeing the cheesy cover and the title, I was prepared for disappointment. Maybe that's why I was so pleasantly surprised when it turned out not to be a hastily banged-out take off on the Living Dead movies. It IS a Living Dead type story, but the writing is so precise and the story so well-crafted and perfectly paced, that it almost defies the genre with its non-cheesiness.
From the first few pages I was impressed by the sophisticated prose style and evocative descriptions, things I didn't think to find in a zombie horror novel. Even better is the way each chapter is an edge-of-your-seat type of experience, so that you just can't put the book down. I even had to restrain myself from sneaking peeks ahead to see what was going to happen.
The plot starts out simple enough - infectious homicidal corpses run rampant and survivors search for safety. You follow one survivor through her ordeal, as she witnesses horrible things involving maniacal dead people and gets involved with other survivors. The book takes a twist on the zombie genre here, and gets even better as it looks as what happens when the world order crumbles. Zombies are just one of many obstacles that Lulu, the heroine, faces as she tries to find a place in a terribly transformed world. The author's unique vision of this post-apocalyptic world offers a combination of zombie horror, military conspiracy, and futuristic consumerism of the Snow Crash variety. It's impossible to say more without giving away any of the many surprises of this very suspenseful book.
One of the most enjoyable features of the book is the heroine, who defies all stereotypes and never appears weak or "girly." This was refreshing.
Overall, this is a unique book, not just for fans of zombie flicks or horror novels. The writing is a notch above the average thriller and the apocalyptic vision is original. It's like Dawn of the Dead meets Apocalypse Now, and you get the best (or perhaps worst) of both worlds.
