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A review by gatun
Life After the Undead by Pembroke Sinclair
3.0
I requested a review copy of Life After the Undead by Pembroke Sinclair because I have a love for post apocalyptic literature. I think it comes from growing up during the cold war and practicing the bomb drills at school. Life After the Undead is an apocalypse brought about by, you guessed it, zombies.
Zombies are really a hot market right now. One of my son’s friends is taking a zombies in film class to fulfill an degree requirement. A whole class on zombie films, like I said they are a hot item. By virtue of so many mediums (books, films, comics and probably performance art) mining the topic, it is getting somewhat stale. The great zombie creations are fewer and fewer.
Life After the Undead has potential but it is not one of the great ones. Too much of the plot was been there and read that. The main character Krista is a teenager who deals with mean girls at school and parents who do not approve of her fascination with serial killers. When the event happens, her life changes very quickly.
This is where I had problems with the book. Krista is somewhat developed but the secondary characters are not. The first set of mean girls at the very beginning have almost exact twins later in the book. Her safe haven turns out to be working as a servant for one of the powerful families that control the state of Florida. But we never find out how they got control or why people would put up with virtual slavery.
The creepiest character is not the zombies but Krista’s second cousin, Liet. He is much older than her and seems to be grooming her for his own sick reasons. He flashes between psycho, pervert and big brother often and with very little explanation. He was not real to me. He was a cardboard cutout of a villain.
Even though there are aspects of the book I did not like, listed above, there is great potential here. The author has started creating a good universe that more can be done with. Krista is certainly a workable character. Allow her to mature and grow. Please, please allow her to be strong on her own and not need a man to rescue her (pet peeve).
I am sure from the ending of the book that there is a sequel coming. I hope the author does continue writing in this universe and does allow her characters to grow. I think other than the pervy Liet, this would be a great series for a older teen/young adult who likes zombies. I rate it 3 of 5 stars.
I received a free copy from NetGalley in exchange for a honest review.
Zombies are really a hot market right now. One of my son’s friends is taking a zombies in film class to fulfill an degree requirement. A whole class on zombie films, like I said they are a hot item. By virtue of so many mediums (books, films, comics and probably performance art) mining the topic, it is getting somewhat stale. The great zombie creations are fewer and fewer.
Life After the Undead has potential but it is not one of the great ones. Too much of the plot was been there and read that. The main character Krista is a teenager who deals with mean girls at school and parents who do not approve of her fascination with serial killers. When the event happens, her life changes very quickly.
This is where I had problems with the book. Krista is somewhat developed but the secondary characters are not. The first set of mean girls at the very beginning have almost exact twins later in the book. Her safe haven turns out to be working as a servant for one of the powerful families that control the state of Florida. But we never find out how they got control or why people would put up with virtual slavery.
The creepiest character is not the zombies but Krista’s second cousin, Liet. He is much older than her and seems to be grooming her for his own sick reasons. He flashes between psycho, pervert and big brother often and with very little explanation. He was not real to me. He was a cardboard cutout of a villain.
Even though there are aspects of the book I did not like, listed above, there is great potential here. The author has started creating a good universe that more can be done with. Krista is certainly a workable character. Allow her to mature and grow. Please, please allow her to be strong on her own and not need a man to rescue her (pet peeve).
I am sure from the ending of the book that there is a sequel coming. I hope the author does continue writing in this universe and does allow her characters to grow. I think other than the pervy Liet, this would be a great series for a older teen/young adult who likes zombies. I rate it 3 of 5 stars.
I received a free copy from NetGalley in exchange for a honest review.