trike's review
4.0
The second-best zombie book I've read, after World War Z. Brutal, jam-packed with action and more threats to the survivors than just zombies.
klieber's review
2.0
The book was OK. Barely. It exists in the same world as the first one, but none of the characters are carried over -- it's a whole new cast. That's nice in that it gives you a fresh take on the world apocalypse, but it also is a bit of a downer since it requires you to re-familiarize yourself with a whole slew of new characters.
And there are a LOT of new characters. Many more than in the first book. This makes it more difficult to keep track of all the different sub-plots and I found the overall experience distracting. In my opinion, he could have easily cut out one of the sub-plots and made the book better overall. As it stands, everything feels cramped and rushed. I felt he wasn't able to fully develop any of the plots or characters because he had too much different threads he had to muscle along and tie up before the end of the book.
My other complaint is that nearly every character is very archetypical, which makes the book feel very formulaic overall.
It wasn't a bad book. But it also wasn't a good book. I'm stopping here and not continuing on with the series.
And there are a LOT of new characters. Many more than in the first book. This makes it more difficult to keep track of all the different sub-plots and I found the overall experience distracting. In my opinion, he could have easily cut out one of the sub-plots and made the book better overall. As it stands, everything feels cramped and rushed. I felt he wasn't able to fully develop any of the plots or characters because he had too much different threads he had to muscle along and tie up before the end of the book.
My other complaint is that nearly every character is very archetypical, which makes the book feel very formulaic overall.
It wasn't a bad book. But it also wasn't a good book. I'm stopping here and not continuing on with the series.
shh_reading85's review
4.0
Two years down the road following the novel Dead City, this sequel brings to light of what happened after the fact. A large wall now surrounds the city, trapping both zombies and survivors behind it. They become the expendable tragedy of not being prepared and not knowing how to be prepared for well...zombies.
One thing to note in these novels. These zombies aren't dead, not right away at least. I enjoyed that he included explanations for what a stage 1 zombie is and what a stage 3 zombie is. Think of 28 Days Later zombies, these people weren't dead, they didn't feel pain and their ability to hunt and spread their virus was honed, greatly.
I think people always hope for the best in dire situations like in AotD, especially encountering a thriving community among the ruins of life. A safe community, ha, sure. I have always been fascinated by how people think and why they make choices that other people would run away screaming from. That preacher/minister was nuts. I pictured him like the creepy old man in Poltergeist 2. Yup, that kind of creepy.
If the Walking Dead has taught us anything, humans are just and if not more dangerous than zombies. Always be wary of people. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
One thing to note in these novels. These zombies aren't dead, not right away at least. I enjoyed that he included explanations for what a stage 1 zombie is and what a stage 3 zombie is. Think of 28 Days Later zombies, these people weren't dead, they didn't feel pain and their ability to hunt and spread their virus was honed, greatly.
I think people always hope for the best in dire situations like in AotD, especially encountering a thriving community among the ruins of life. A safe community, ha, sure. I have always been fascinated by how people think and why they make choices that other people would run away screaming from. That preacher/minister was nuts. I pictured him like the creepy old man in Poltergeist 2. Yup, that kind of creepy.
If the Walking Dead has taught us anything, humans are just and if not more dangerous than zombies. Always be wary of people. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
mountainblue's review
5.0
4.5 stars!
What a huge improvement from the first book! I really love the new characters, multiple POV and the time shift which shows the impact of the virus to best advantage. This was entertaining, intense and kept me at the edge of my seat second guessing myself until the end. I can't wait to reread the whole series soon.
What a huge improvement from the first book! I really love the new characters, multiple POV and the time shift which shows the impact of the virus to best advantage. This was entertaining, intense and kept me at the edge of my seat second guessing myself until the end. I can't wait to reread the whole series soon.
jungle_catfish's review
2.0
This book is deeply sexist. I think the author noticed the complaints of sexism in response to the first book and tried to fix it in this one. There is a female leader in this book! Who is described by another character as attractive, because latinas keep their looks into their 40s and 50s. (wut) Also she ran a daycare pre-apocalypse and her primary action in the book is taking care of an orphan.
One female character is a porn star with an extended seduction scene who immediately morphs into a preschool teacher when needed.
One female character is literally blind and thus completely dependent on the big strong men to defend her from zombies.
Aaaand that's it. All the rest of the characters are brave manly men. Including the most ridiculous 70yo who is super badA in all fights and an expert marksman and can roll under trucks and tips his hat to ladies. Gag me with an f-ing spoon.
The story was interesting enough, thus 2 stars. But seriously McKinney have maybe, oh I don't know, a WOMAN read your draft next time? It's the 20th century.
One female character is a porn star with an extended seduction scene who immediately morphs into a preschool teacher when needed.
One female character is literally blind and thus completely dependent on the big strong men to defend her from zombies.
Aaaand that's it. All the rest of the characters are brave manly men. Including the most ridiculous 70yo who is super badA in all fights and an expert marksman and can roll under trucks and tips his hat to ladies. Gag me with an f-ing spoon.
The story was interesting enough, thus 2 stars. But seriously McKinney have maybe, oh I don't know, a WOMAN read your draft next time? It's the 20th century.
mftaylor's review
4.0
This was the 2nd book for the zombie series (Dead World) by McKinney. I liked the first one but the second one is much better. I found the first seemed repetitive and a little boring. The second has lots of characters and you really get into the story-lines. I found myself worrying about some characters and hoping some got what they deserved. A good zombie read, looking forward to the third :)
kayswear's review
2.0
Not sure why I finished this one. Same as every other zombie book but more scattered. The first third of the book has new characters in every chapter, too many to track. This was not a badly written book, it just has flaws.
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