Slay Together, Stay Together

Married with ZombiesMarried with Zombies by Jesse Petersen
Living with the Dead # 1
Publisher: Orbit
Number of pages: 244
My copy: paperback, ARC from Janice — thank you!

A heartwarming tale of terror in the middle of the zombie apocalypse.

Meet Sarah and David.

Once upon a time they met and fell in love. But now they’re on the verge of divorce and going to couples’ counseling. On a routine trip to their counselor, they notice a few odd things – the lack of cars on the highway, the missing security guard, and the fact that their counselor, Dr. Kelly, is ripping out her previous client’s throat.

Meet the Zombies.

Now, Sarah and David are fighting for survival in the middle of the zombie apocalypse. But, just because there are zombies, doesn’t mean your other problems go away. If the zombies don’t eat their brains, they might just kill each other.

* * *

So zombies. I think I’ve established enough in this blog that I love zombies. They’re my favorite paranormal creatures, and despite the gore that is normally associated with them, I think they’re a great plot device (hey, look I’m spouting NaNoWriMo terms already!). When I heard about Jesse Petersen’s novel about a married couple who starts slaying zombies, I knew I just had to have it. Zombie + chick lit? Come on, it’s a no-brainer for me. :P

I think the common thing about all the zombie novels I’ve read and reviewed (The Forest of Hands and Teeth, The Dead Tossed Waves, Feed and Z) is they’re all post-apocalyptic novels. The zombie apocalypse has happened, and I’m brought to a setting where I read about how the people coped, is coping and will cope with the reality that zombies are among the people. Some books are set early enough after the apocalypse that the characters still remember why and how the zombies rose, while others are set so far off into the future that no one really knows how the zombies came.

What sets Married with Zombies apart from the other zombie novels (aside from the pink in the cover) is how it’s set during the apocalypse instead of post. Everything was normal for David and Sarah up until their marriage counselor tried to eat them, and from there everything goes haywire. I find this setting quite creative because I’ve never read a zombie book that focused exactly on how people tried to survive as the zombies came. There’s a certain sense of the unknown in this, and I got to see fresh terror and denial from the humans as they wrestled with this new and terrifying fact of life. I found myself rooting for the characters to survive because…well, who else is there to root for?

However, that’s pretty much what I found unique in this book. I think the real selling point of this book is not that it’s a zombie novel, but the romance/chick lit aspect. Yeah, the chick lit aspect is there, but it’s not the same chick lit aspect that I’m looking for in those I read. I think I agree with how other reviewers viewed Sarah — she’s kind of annoying. She did admit she was a Type-A person, but I never really felt much sympathy or connection with her. David seemed too much like the typical guy who turned out to be a hero, but I’m also kind of lukewarm to him. Come to think of it, I don’t think I really connected with most of the characters here. Normally this is an issue for me, and it is kind of one here, but somehow I think the zombies managed to make it up for me.

The love angle is kind of cheesy, really, and there’s nothing too special about it. I am glad that they worked out their marriage even if it took a zombie apocalypse to mend their marriage. Which brings me to the point that a relationship will work out if you have a common goal. I’m not so sure how sound zombie busting is as a common goal will work, but well, I can suspend my disbelief.

I think the most surprising part in this novel — at least for me — is the gore. For some reason, I felt extra queasy with this novel as I read it. There’s so much blood and gore and guts and black sludge (ew) in this novel that I found myself grossed out for the first time in a zombie novel. Remembering it now is still kind of making me queasy. Eh.

Overall, it’s not a bad zombie book. It’s not the best one either, but I’m still willing to give the second book, and maybe the third book a chance. I would love to read David’s point of view, though — I hope we read that in one of the future books?

If you’re a zombie fan and you don’t mind reading something “light” in terms of this literature, go and pick up Married with Zombies. Don’t expect to be wowed, but it could provide some mild entertainment. However, if you’re just starting out in the zombie fad, I would recommend you to get other more established zombie books before moving to this one.

Rating: [rating=3]

Other reviews:
Taking a Break
Janicu’s Book Blog

In My Mailbox (8): Zombies and shoes

I mean to write an In My Mailbox post last week but of course, I didn’t because I was just lazy to do so. I did buy some books last week, but I’ve been sort of good because I didn’t buy much. I did succumb to retail therapy, though, because I had a very bad Friday last week. Fridays aren’t supposed to be bad, so when you have a bad Friday, you just have to cope up, and my way of coping is of course, through books. ;) Then this week, I actually received something in my mailbox, so it’s high time to write something about it.

In My Mailbox is a weekly book meme hosted by Kristi from The Story Siren, where bloggers post about what books received that week, be it via  mailbox, library or store. And here we go with this week’s (and last week’s) stash!

From  bottom up:

  1. Rot & Ruin by Jonathan Maberry (Fully Booked) – this book isn’t mine, but a birthday gift to one of the Mighty Evil Overlords. ;)  Gifts are supposed to be a surprise, but I wouldn’t want him to get the same book, so I told him not to get this one on his birthday. When I opened the book, though, I knew I’d a copy for myself eventually — the artwork inside is awesome. :)
  2. Paper Towns by John Green (Fully Booked) – I was having a bad Friday, yes? I saw this in Fully Booked and got it to appease my mood. That, and I know it’s a good book, and last because it’s hard to find this book here. :P I’ll read this soon, promise.
  3. Flight to the Stars by Samantha Mae Coyuito (National Bookstore) – I’m always on the lookout for Filipino fiction. When I spotted this at NBS, I knew I had to have it, because it’s Filipino fiction. That, and it was written by a 16 year old! Seems like an interesting book. :)
  4. Married with Zombies by Jesse Petersen – my first ARC for the longest time! And the first one from a fellow blogger! I read Janice’s review of this book on her blog, and left a comment, which led to her offering to send me her extra ARC. Of course I can’t say no to that. :) And again, I am amazed at the speed of our post office here — this arrived two weeks after she sent it. It pays to have the post man know that you get packages a lot and have it delivered to your home. Thanks again, Janice! :)

That’s it for me this week. :) It’s been a very busy week, hence the lack of posts here, and the lack of books I finished reading. Work was (still is, and will be) crazy, I have to prepare for NaNoWriMo, and it was my brother’s wedding last week! Craziness, but all is still good (and that’s a good thing because if it’s bad craziness, I’m going to get wrinkles on forehead)! Because of my brother’s wedding, I decided to hold off reading The Ask and the Answer by Patrick Ness for a little more and pick up something romantic. I settled on re-reading Sarah Dessen’s This Lullaby and I am enjoying it a lot. :)

I must go back to reading now, and try to ignore the gloominess that’s going on outside . There’s a typhoon (Megi) heading for our country, so if you can spare a prayer or a good thought for us, please do so! In the meantime, I leave you with another photo of my stash this week, plus the shoes I wore at my brother’s wedding — just because. :P

In My Mailbox + Shoes! :)

Have a great Sunday, everyone. :) To my fellow Filipinos, stay safe!