~REVIEW of Rhiannon Frater's THE FIRST DAYS~

The First Days (As The World Dies: A Zombie Trilogy #1)

 

On the heels of my Walking Dead obsession, THE FIRST DAYS fit the bill perfectly and I would recommend it to anyone who’s a fan of the zombie genre. From the very first page I was hooked, I mean how could you not be both intrigued and freaked out by passages like this …

“Tiny fingers. So small. So very, very small. The fingers pressed under the front door of her home were so very small. She couldn’t stop staring at those baby fingers straining frantically to reach her as she stood shivering on the porch.”

Jeez, and it only gets better too. Fast paced, scary and gore filled, Rhiannon Frater has created an imaginative and haunting new world here and I wasn't ever entirely sure where she was going to go with it. She never lets the pace up either; every chapter has some form of chaos, action or horror involved. Probably because this was first written as an online serial (later self published and now released by Tor books) There’s also hints of humour (mostly in the absurd) romance, and a multitude of new and interesting Zombie personalities. Old granny zombie comes to mind, still clutching her very much alive cat as it tries to claw its way free from her arms.

Both the main characters are unique and interesting. Jenni is pretty screwed up and had a tendency to be all over the place (huh?) but I still found it refreshing to read about a zombie apocalypse from the female perspective. (Think Thelma and Louise meet George A Romero) All the secondary characters they contact along the way (living and dead) leave lasting impressions too and I can’t wait to continue on with this trilogy.

The story begins with those tiny fingers; they belong to Jennie’s baby who, along with her young son has just been eaten by her abusive husband. All three have risen, transformed forever into ravenous zombies. Just as her husband manages to break through the living room window a truck pulls up, the female driver yelling at her to get in. The driver is Katie, a former prosecutor who has just lost her wife but somehow in the mayhem managed to secure a truck, a weapon and a dog. The two form an instant bond and hit the road, trying to get out of the infested city.

With no real plan Jenni suddenly remembers that she has a stepson away at camp so they head out to rescue him. Throughout this read our characters kept having revelations; like sexual orientation or how many members are in the family. This was somewhat annoying but at least it kept me guessing. Before long Katie and Jenni discover the joys of watching zombie heads explode, how the rules (established in the movies) don’t necessarily apply and to what means their world has changed forever.

They eventually meet other survivors; a husband and wife team holed up in a gun store and a large group of refugees building a walled fort in a small Texas town -where the girls decide to settle. Here we meet Travis and Juan, the love interests and leaders who set about establishing a new safe community while the dead scratch endlessly at the outside walls and the survivors slowly begin to turn on each other. Cheers

~REVIEW of Jennifer Armintrout's THE TURNING: Blood Ties Book One~

The Turning (Blood Ties, #1)

Opening Line: “I read a poll in the newspaper once that said the number one fear of Americans aged eighteen to sixty-five is public speaking. Spiders are second and death is a distant third.”

Wow, this was a fun. Not quite what I was expecting but as it turned out a great ride. For some reason I went into this thinking paranormal romance which is so not the case here. I would categorize Armintrout’s world as urban fantasy/horror. Its dark, violent, blood spattered and often gory and that would include the sex scenes (notice I said sex and not love.) I should also mention that even though this is not my genre of choice I did really enjoy it.

 BLOOD TIES is unique and let’s face it that’s saying something with all the vampire books on the shelves these days. The writing is smart, sassy and the overall plotline managed to surprise me several times along the way. Each chapter comes with a title heading, which I loved, there’s a love triangle (of sorts) and a wonderful balance of good VS Evil, made all the better because once I got to know the back-story of the characters I was sympathetic to all of them. Yes even the sadistic and maniacal Cyrus, which to me is the sign of some clever writing when you feel for the bad guy. So be warned there aren’t any sparkly vampires here and it’s a bit of a blood bath but its also super good.

Dr. Carrie Ames is working in the ER the night they bring in the horrifically injured “John Doe”. Through his one remaining eye, he seems to reach out to her, and when he succumbs to his injuries she is drawn to visit him in the morgue. Bad idea Carrie. John Doe is the evil vampire Cyrus Kerrick and Carrie’s blood is what he needs to heal himself. Through the violence of Cyrus’s feeding (attack) Carrie ingests some of his blood and the “blood tie” is forged. Over the following weeks as she recovers Carrie undergoes some major changes including a new sensitivity to sunlight and an insatiable hunger that no amount of food, drink or cigarettes will quench.

Eventually Carrie is found and rescued by Nathan Grant, a member of the “movement.” (His job is to destroy all non affiliated vampires and protect mankind.) Nathan takes Carrie in and quickly schools her in all things vamp which includes reading the Vampire bible (available on eBay FYI) He then offers her a choice; join the movement or be destroyed.

It should be an easy decision right? Especially with the growing attraction between them but Carrie can’t get past the invisible leash that binds her to the monster that sired her. She is quite literally a slave to the evil yet arousing Cyrus and he is of course #1 on the movement’s hit list and Nathan’s arch enemy. When a jealous witch vying for her sire’s attention casts a spell over Nathan the only way Carrie can save him is to give herself over to Cyrus for the cure. And that’s when the games begin. Hang onto your heart folks. Cheers