Dead 'Til Dawn - Gerald Dean Rice 5/5 stars
I recieved Dead in exchange for an honest review
When I recieved this my first thought was of course; "Not another zombie novel!" Then, I began to read it, and I began to laugh at the plight of Gary and Jim. Gary is the kind of guy we all know. He has good intentions, but somehow he screws everything up. They take a pill that turns them into zombies for three days, but that's not the entire story. There's a cult called the Ascension after them and want the pill that they took. If you want to call Dead 'Til Dawn something, it would be a buddy comedy. These are two guys stuck in a situation that just keeps getting worse. Is it implausible? Of course it is, but it's a fun book that you can't help but laugh at. There is one plot line that doesn't fit but it doesn't detract from the story at all. Once you see it, you'll know what I'm talking about.
Gerald is a talented writer, and he has a knack for witty dialouge, and he's created two characters you can't help but like. Gary and Jim are the main characters, so if you didn't like them, the story wouldn't work. There's just enough of a straightman in Jim to balance out Gary, and it works beautifully. You can see Gary's influence over this guy, and you almost feel bad for him. Gary never grew up while Jim has, but they have a chemistry together that adds a lot to the story. The story itself is interesting, and moves at a pretty steady clip. There's a great deal of humor here, and a little horror thrown in just to keep things interesting. The main question is, what's going to happen to these guys once the pill wears off.
There are a lot of weird elements that keep the novel going. You have the Ascension and their quest to get the Bloom. Gary and Jim trying to survive, and keep from being captured, but it all leads to a satisying conclusion. There are bits here and there that have nothing at all to do with the over all plot, but it's still a solid read. It was a lot of fun, and proves that you can play with the zombie genre and create something unique. Dead 'Til Dawn is an ambitious novel and it works based on the characters, and the solid writing. If you want to read a novel that's entertaining and different, this is one you'll have a good time with.
I recieved Dead in exchange for an honest review
When I recieved this my first thought was of course; "Not another zombie novel!" Then, I began to read it, and I began to laugh at the plight of Gary and Jim. Gary is the kind of guy we all know. He has good intentions, but somehow he screws everything up. They take a pill that turns them into zombies for three days, but that's not the entire story. There's a cult called the Ascension after them and want the pill that they took. If you want to call Dead 'Til Dawn something, it would be a buddy comedy. These are two guys stuck in a situation that just keeps getting worse. Is it implausible? Of course it is, but it's a fun book that you can't help but laugh at. There is one plot line that doesn't fit but it doesn't detract from the story at all. Once you see it, you'll know what I'm talking about.
Gerald is a talented writer, and he has a knack for witty dialouge, and he's created two characters you can't help but like. Gary and Jim are the main characters, so if you didn't like them, the story wouldn't work. There's just enough of a straightman in Jim to balance out Gary, and it works beautifully. You can see Gary's influence over this guy, and you almost feel bad for him. Gary never grew up while Jim has, but they have a chemistry together that adds a lot to the story. The story itself is interesting, and moves at a pretty steady clip. There's a great deal of humor here, and a little horror thrown in just to keep things interesting. The main question is, what's going to happen to these guys once the pill wears off.
There are a lot of weird elements that keep the novel going. You have the Ascension and their quest to get the Bloom. Gary and Jim trying to survive, and keep from being captured, but it all leads to a satisying conclusion. There are bits here and there that have nothing at all to do with the over all plot, but it's still a solid read. It was a lot of fun, and proves that you can play with the zombie genre and create something unique. Dead 'Til Dawn is an ambitious novel and it works based on the characters, and the solid writing. If you want to read a novel that's entertaining and different, this is one you'll have a good time with.
Thanks Michael for this great review. Much appreciated!
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