Reviews

As a fan of Night of the Living Dead since shortly after its release in the 60's I found this book to be a great continuation of the story. The Blackstone audio edition has some amazing narration I just wish they did a better job of giving credit to the narrators. I particularly want to know who narrated Jay Bonansinga's, Fast Entry, but I am interested in whose voice I was hearing telling each tale.

skylercauldron's review

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adventurous dark mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

mssunnyskies's review

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adventurous dark

4.0

nightwing's review

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dark emotional reflective tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

A collection of short stories surrounding zombies. My favorites were "Orbital Decay" "The Day After" "You Can Stay All Day" and "Deadliner".

Dead Man's Curve by Joe R. Lansdale: Follows drag racers in the middle of a zombie apocalypse. I thought the dialogue was entertaining, but the writing pretty flat. Fun, though!

A Dead Girl Named Sue by Craig E. Engler: Interesting story following a rich kid being arrested by the sheriff in the middle of a zombie apocalypse. The town handles the zombies well, however, they set their eyes on the spoiled kid who has gotten away with far too much. Entertaining and dramatic, really liked this one.

Fast Entry by Jay Bonansinga: A woman with telepathic abilities is employed by the government and in this case, she is investigating the zombie uprising. I really like the telepathy angle, it added to the story. Being able to read a zombie’s mind...terrifying!

In That Quiet Earth by Mike Carey: Follows Cadbury, a scientist experimenting with zombies in order to figure out how to reunite with his deceased loved one. His slow detachment with humanity was fascinating to read and it ended pretty bittersweet.

Jimmy Jay Baxter's Last, Best Day on Earth by John Skipp: Jimmy has a blast during the zombie apocalypse while reflecting on certain political philosophies. His gun-obsessed behavior unnerves me, but that’s a personal thing. Also useful in the middle of a zombie apocalypse, ha. It’s entertaining but still somewhat disturbing.

John Doe by George A. Romero: A medical examiner try to figure out John Doe and what exactly happened to him. The parts with Charlene felt disjointed and out of place, I couldn’t understand why they were there in the first place...it was interesting seeing the autopsy people try to figure out how John Doe died.

Mercy Kill by Ryan Brown: A war vet deals with the zombie apocalypse. This one was kinda ridiculous to me, I couldn’t really finish it.

Orbital Decay by David Wellington: Zombies in space. SPACE. Dialogue driven but highly entertaining. I mean, the concept is ridiculous but I think Wellington handled it pretty well here. I would love to see this as a short, like on YouTube because it would translate really well.

Snaggletooth by Max Brallier: Jack kills Deb’s husband, due to them being in love with one another. Jack takes the dead husband’s tooth as a reward. I thought him taking the tooth was pretty macabre...despite him killing the guy, lol. An interesting story with Jack feeling guilt over the murder and the body disappears…

The Burning Days by Carrie Ryan: This story is most similar to The Walking Dead with the concept of a group of survivors sticking together to outlast the zombie apocalypse. I liked the writing style here and the dialogue worked very well. The romance felt shoved in though. “It’s the end of the world. No one wants to die alone.”

The Day After by John A. Russo: Survivors deal with zombies. I really liked the writing style here, it works well for the story. Poor traumatized kids though.

The Girl on the Table by Isaac Marion: This story follows the zombie girl in the basement of “Night of the Living Dead”. Psychological horror, but written well!

Williamson's Folly by David J. Schow: A bunch of survivors deal with the zombie apocalypse, this covers a larger amount of POVs. I couldn’t really finish this one, it felt chaotic and fragmented.

You Can Stay All Day by Mira Grant: Taking place entirely in a zoo from a zookeeper’s perspective, this follows Cassandra during the invasion of the zombies. I liked how the animals were reacting to the zombies, it was fascinating to see. This one was one of my favorites in the anthology.

Pages from a Note-book Found Inside a House in the Woods by Brian Keene: Bank robbers band together to survive the zombies in an abandoned house. A cliffhanger ending but it was a pretty interesting story told from an interesting POV.

Dead Run by Chuck Wendig: Two brothers have opposing viewpoints on how to survive. Wasn’t really a fan of the writing but it was an interesting concept.

Lone Gunman by Jonathan Maberry: A soldier is trapped under a mound of bodies. Claustrophobic….bleh. Couldn’t read this one for obvious reasons.

Live and On the Scene by Keith R. A. DeCandido: A reporter trying to hide his family heritage reports on the zombie apocalypse. I really liked this one! Dark, but also reflective.

Deadliner by Neal and Brendan Shusterman: A circus owner sees zombies as dollar signs. An interesting look into the morality of using zombies as entertainment...really enjoyed this one.

Content Warnings

andersenmom's review

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4.0

This was a fun book, all well written.

thaatswhatsheread's review

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4.0

4.5
I REALLY enjoyed this anthology. I liked it a lot more than I thought I would. The zombie craze had just ended, and I thought I was done with them. I was wrong. These stories all take place in the world and setting of the Night of the Living Dead movie. I actually live near Evans City where the movie takes place, so it was so FUN to hear the names of nearby towns in the stories. I had a difficult time choosing favorites, but here they are:
A Dead Girl Named Sue by Craig E. Engler
Orbital Decay by David Wellington
Pages From a Notebook Found Inside the House by Brian Keene
Dead Run by Chuck Wendig
and Live and On Scene by Keith RA DeCandido

avhollow's review

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4.0

There are some real stand-outs in this collection and I found all the stories to be at least well-written. The audiobook is terrifically narrated by various narrators. There was a wide array of stories, some playing up the gore and many focusing on the human element and concluding in bittersweetness.

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