Zombie Queen of Newbury High [Paperback]

Amanda Ashby (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 5, 2009

Quiet, unpopular, non-cheerleading Mia is blissfully happy. She is dating super hot football god Rob, and he actually likes her and asked her to prom! Enter Samantha?cheerleading goddess and miss popularity? who starts making a move for Rob. With prom in a few days, Mia needs to act fast. So she turns to her best friend, Candice, and decides to do a love spell on Rob. Unfortunately, she ends up inflicting a zombie virus onto her whole class, making herself their leader! At first she is flattered that everyone is treating her like a queen. But then zombie hunter hottie Chase explains they are actually fattening her up, because in a few days, Mia will be the first course in their new diet. She?s sure she and Chase can figure something out, but she suggests that no one wear white to prom, because things could get very messy.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

In a welcome break from the current trend in vampire romances, Ashby here offers a lighthearted skewering of the genre. High-school senior Mia inadvertently casts a spell that turns her entire senior class into flesh-eating zombies who believe that she is their especially tasty queen. Fortunately, the new kid at school, Chase, is actually an agent from the Department of Paranormal Containment, and it’s his job to make sure such things never come to pass. It takes four days for the spell to fully evolve, so Mia; her best friend, Candice; and Chase spend that time romping through truly funny predicaments while desperately seeking to reverse the spell. Ashby’s clever dialogue and familiarity with all things Joss Whedon (creator of Buffy the Vampire Slayer) combine to create a light and addictive tongue-in-cheek homage to both standard romance novels and all things Goth. Characterization is minimal, but that’s not what will keep readers turning pages; Ashby’s deft, light tone and appreciation for the confining rigidity of high-school class structure drive this predictable yet highly entertaining tale. Grades 8-12. --Debbie Carton

Review

In a welcome break from the current trend in vampire romances, Ashby here offers a lighthearted skewering of the genre. High-school senior Mia inadvertently casts a spell that turns her entire senior class into flesh-eating zombies who believe that she is their especially tasty queen. Fortunately, the new kid at school, Chase, is actually an agent from the Department of Paranormal Containment, and it's his job to make sure such things never come to pass. It takes four days for the spell to fully evolve, so Mia; her best friend, Candice; and Chase spend that time romping through truly funny predicaments while desperately seeking to reverse the spell. Ashby's clever dialogue and familiarity with all things Joss Whedon (creator of Buffy the Vampire Slayer) combine to create a light and addictive tongue-in-cheek homage to both standard romance novels and all things Goth. Characterization is minimal, but that's not what will keep readers turning pages; Ashby's deft, light tone and appreciation for the confining rigidity of high-school class structure drive this predictable yet highly entertaining tale. Grades 8-12. --Debbie Carton --Booklist

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 12 and up
  
• Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: Speak (March 5, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0142412562
• ISBN-13: 978-0142412565
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #864,645 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I was born in Australia but have spent the last ten years dividing my time between England and New Zealand. When I'm not moving, I like to write books (okay, I also like to watch television, eat chocolate, and sit around doing not much, but let's just keep that between ourselves, shall we?). I have a degree in English and journalism from the University of Queensland and am married with two young children. My debut book, You Had Me At Halo was nominated for a Romantic Times Reviewers' Choice Award and I now write young adult and mid grade books for Puffin.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars For fans of Buffy and Supernatural!, April 2, 2009

By 

Jenny, Wondrous Reads (UK) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Zombie Queen of Newbury High (Paperback)

This book was fast-paced and fun. I'm a vampire girl myself, and have never read any zombie books before, so this was a good place to start.

I have to say, I love all these authors that mention Buffy and Angel. The references in Zombie Queen left me with a huge grin on my face, and I think even Joss Whedon himself would be proud.

I particularly liked the characters of hypochondriac best friend Candice, and tall, dark and loveable Chase. Both were intergral to Mia saving the senior class, and both came through like an honorary member of the scooby gang. I also loved the humour throughout the book, which included witty one-liners that made me think I was watching an episode of Buffy. The dialogue was quick and quippy, which made the story flow at an easy and enjoyable pace.

I'd recommend this if you're a fan of Buffy and Supernatural, or if you just want to read a quick, entertaining book.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Zombies ARE IN!, March 13, 2009

By 

Holly (Georgia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Zombie Queen of Newbury High (Paperback)

Prom is a big deal, especially if you're asked by the football god himself. So, when Mia is asked by Rob to prom, she is ecstatic. That is until the super evil cheerleader, Samantha has a problem with her date and decides to swoop in on Rob. Mia feels that she needs to get Rob's attention back, but she just doesn't know what will do it. But, Mia's best friend, Candice has an idea. You see, Candice is a hypochondriac and she has to get all kinds of special vitamins and more to make sure that she stays healthy. Candice suggests that Mia goes with her and see if there's a love spell that the store can provide her with. When they get to the store, a weird witch looking lady waits on them. That should have been Mia's first clue to run out of there, but she doesn't.

After the spell is done, things start to look up for Mia. Well, except people start to act a little funny around her, especially the new guy, Chase. He seems to think that her little love spell has turned the senior class into zombies. Mia is a huge Buffy fan, but isn't zombies a little far fetched? Well, apparently not. That means in about four days they will all be zombies and eat Mia, that is unless Mia and Chase can save the day. Now, let's see if Mia can fix what she did in time to save the senior prom and her skin.

Zombies are in. Seriously. I'm loving that vampires are moving over for the new paranormal books! Zombie Queen is a great new and original story. I love Mia and her crazy friend Candice. They are very easy to relate to and you can't help but to feel for poor Mia, when Samantha steps in. Ashby keeps the story more on the realistic side of paranormal, so it's not as far fetched as you might imagine. Ashby keeps the story rolling with a lot of action in it and keeps you anticipating about the prom and how everything will turn out. A very fun and light read!

re posted at http://writersblockreviews.blogspot.com

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good, but it's no Buffy, September 18, 2010

By 

small review - See all my reviews

This review is from: Zombie Queen of Newbury High (Paperback)

What do you do when the most popular boy in school who, for some unexplained reason, acted like he wanted to be your boyfriend only to suddenly start snubbing you for the soon-to-be prom queen? Well, you buy a love spell from a batty old lady in a hole in the wall magic shop, of course! In Mia's case, however, she just might have accidentally, inadvertently, totally didn't mean to turn popular guy, prom queen, her best friend, and the rest of the student body into flesh-eating zombies out to devour her (their queen) as the first course in a creepy zombie flesh-fest. Oops. Luckily, Chase, the strange know-it-all in science class, does double duty as a paranormal containment secret agent and is prepared to help Mia reverse the spell...or slaughter the soon to be zombie-turned student body before they turn into full-fledged zombies and start eating the living. You know, whichever.

Billed as an homage to Buffy the Vampire Slayer and a light-hearted satirical take on the paranormal romance genre, Zombie Queen makes a good effort but ultimately falls short of the mark. Though there were a few laugh out loud scenes, the book lacked the snappy dialogue and witty one-liners of Buffy. The constant Buffy mentions, meant to elevate the book, served more to remind the reader of the far superior show and how much this book lacked in contrast. Though the show was mentioned often, there weren't really any inside references or jokes that fans of Buffy would appreciate and enjoy identifying.

Forgetting Buffy, however, Zombie Queen does a good job of poking fun at the paranormal romance genre. The ribbing was cute and upbeat without being cruel or derisive. Mia and Chase don't make the best romantic leads (there wasn't much chemistry and their personalities weren't really developed much), but they're more than adequate in providing humor. The funniest character by far was Mia's hypochondriac best friend who convinced Mia to buy the spell and finds herself turning into a zombie.

This is a light, quick, and fun read that I do recommend. Just don't expect Buffy.