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mrschy's review
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
4.0
Solid zombie book. Could definitely see it as a movie and I'm looking forward to continuing the series. There are some chapters from the zombie POV which was interesting, and the science was wild.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
stepriot's review
2.0
I was looking for something fun and got something mindless instead. Could make a drinking game out of all the overused tropes in this one. Mayberry didn't do anything interesting in this book and used every low hanging fruit to cobble together something less interesting than a Dan Brown movie. War vet? Check. Kids we don't know in danger? Check! Cop with a drinking problem. Got you covered! For a little added spice, he even threw in a reporter for the cops to bicker with. I wanted to like the internal monolog from the zombies, but even that became repetitive and tedious. There is an actual villain, which should have added something interesting, but I suspect he's more a tool for the sequel, but I can't deal with more "American military! F*ck yeah!"
lynguy1's review
4.0
Jonathan Maberry continues to amaze and entertain me with his range and quality of writing. Dead of Night, the first book in a series by the same name is no different. A prison doctor injects a condemned prisoner with a formula designed to punish him by keeping him awake while his body rots in its grave. However, things don’t follow his plan. The drugs have unforeseen side-effects. When the killer wakes up before he’s buried, he’s hungry, infected, and contagious.
Several main characters are well-defined with depth, but many of them are not likeable. The main local police officers are Officer Desdemona Fox and Sergeant JT Hammond. Fox is not a congenial main character, but she does care about protecting the community. She likes high speed chases, swears a lot, is a good cop and ex-military, and acts quickly under pressure, but she’s not a very nice person. JT is the most likeable character in the story. He’s organized, tidy, loves comics, and is detail-oriented. However, despite his long tenure with the department, he’s never experienced true danger. Readers also get a perspective from the antagonists in this novel, providing more insight into the situation.
The story has a solid plot and there is a feeling of deep anxiety throughout the novel. The story moves at a reasonable pace, but could have been tightened a bit to make it more impactful. Despite this it’s got plenty of exciting scenes, a different twist on zombies, and great world-building. Themes include scientific experiments, revenge, grief, rage, murder, fear, confusion, family, friends, community, and political and military maneuvering and actions.
Overall, this was an entertaining and emotional story filled with tension that kept me turning the pages. I am looking forward to reading the next book in the series.
I purchased a copy of this novel. All opinions expressed in this review are my own. Publication date was October 25, 2011.
Several main characters are well-defined with depth, but many of them are not likeable. The main local police officers are Officer Desdemona Fox and Sergeant JT Hammond. Fox is not a congenial main character, but she does care about protecting the community. She likes high speed chases, swears a lot, is a good cop and ex-military, and acts quickly under pressure, but she’s not a very nice person. JT is the most likeable character in the story. He’s organized, tidy, loves comics, and is detail-oriented. However, despite his long tenure with the department, he’s never experienced true danger. Readers also get a perspective from the antagonists in this novel, providing more insight into the situation.
The story has a solid plot and there is a feeling of deep anxiety throughout the novel. The story moves at a reasonable pace, but could have been tightened a bit to make it more impactful. Despite this it’s got plenty of exciting scenes, a different twist on zombies, and great world-building. Themes include scientific experiments, revenge, grief, rage, murder, fear, confusion, family, friends, community, and political and military maneuvering and actions.
Overall, this was an entertaining and emotional story filled with tension that kept me turning the pages. I am looking forward to reading the next book in the series.
I purchased a copy of this novel. All opinions expressed in this review are my own. Publication date was October 25, 2011.
badseedgirl's review against another edition
4.0
I love Zombie Books. I love Jonathan Maberry. I have been aware of this book since 2014 (according to when I put this book on my Goodread TBR List). So why did I wait this long to read this series?
As always with Maberry's books, this was a fast action packed read. The characters are well written, if a little cliched. It is a different take on the Zombie Apocalypse, and a perfect summer read.
As always with Maberry's books, this was a fast action packed read. The characters are well written, if a little cliched. It is a different take on the Zombie Apocalypse, and a perfect summer read.
billymac1962's review
4.0
So yeah, a zombie book. I really don't go looking for these, honest. But it's hard to ignore when I come across reviews and tons of raves for works like this and Brian Keene's The Rising. I just have to read for myself.
I had promised myself I would read more Jonathan Maberry after I had given up on his Pine Deep trilogy. The first novel of that was very good, but once he got into a romantic angle in the second book, it was so pedestrian that it almost made me physically ill.
But, it was becoming evident that he was vastly improving since then, so I stuck this one on the list.
I was on vacation in Cancun last week and thought this would be a fun beach read. Was it ever.
Maberry takes the zombie trope and makes it totally his own. Very entertaining and suspenseful stuff, and the romantic angle? Very well done. This was great news because I really like his ideas and pacing.
I'll read more of him for sure now, four really solid stars!
I had promised myself I would read more Jonathan Maberry after I had given up on his Pine Deep trilogy. The first novel of that was very good, but once he got into a romantic angle in the second book, it was so pedestrian that it almost made me physically ill.
But, it was becoming evident that he was vastly improving since then, so I stuck this one on the list.
I was on vacation in Cancun last week and thought this would be a fun beach read. Was it ever.
Maberry takes the zombie trope and makes it totally his own. Very entertaining and suspenseful stuff, and the romantic angle? Very well done. This was great news because I really like his ideas and pacing.
I'll read more of him for sure now, four really solid stars!
crazypuglady's review
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
carriethis's review
3.0
A bit like cranked up Dean Koontz with lots more swearing and gore. But - hard to put down, even while I was thinking "this isn't that great." Subtle, this book is not. Actually, it reminded me most of Jack Kilborn's Afraid, which I thought was juvenile and eye-rollingly heavy-handed. I really like Maberry's stories in the 2 Limbus Inc collections, but I don't think I like his zombie novels. No biggie, since there are plentaayyy other zombie books out there.