I have read this book a couple of times and I love it. I gave it 5 stars. I wanted to reread it again but thought this time I would try it in a differI have read this book a couple of times and I love it. I gave it 5 stars. I wanted to reread it again but thought this time I would try it in a different medium, so I am listening to the audiobook.
This is one of my all time favourite horror novels, and I still loved the story as much as I always have. I enjoyed the audiobook, but not as much as reading the book myself. The narrator was ok but he was very slow, and so for the first time ever I increased the speed to 1.25x. I’ve never done this before and actually don’t really like it as it makes the voice sound unnatural, but I had to do something as this guys voice was sooooo slow! It was a little better after this and I managed to enjoy the recording overall. I still stand by my 5 stars for the book, it's a fantastic story, a wonderful piece of horror literature, and a classic in the genre, but I give the narration 3.5 stars....more
Red Hill is the first book I've read by Jamie McGuire. I've heard a lot of great things about her new adult romance series so this seems quit2.5 Stars
Red Hill is the first book I've read by Jamie McGuire. I've heard a lot of great things about her new adult romance series so this seems quite a bit of a departure from that genre. Sadly it showed. Red Hill brought nothing new to the zombie genre, and contained quite a lot of the same stuff I've read before. And I've read a lot. It also didn't really go into any depth.
Basically it's the journey of several characters that find themselves fighting a zombie outbreak. There's Scarlet, who's looking for her two daughter's; Nathan and his daughter, Zoe, who he's trying to keep safe; Miranda, her sister and their boyfriends; all are heading to one place they think is the safest: Red Hill Ranch.
There are several narrators, all from the first person view point. This didn't work for me at all. The main reason first person is used is to get inside the mind of the character, this can't be done successfully when each chapter flips between several characters. We never got inside the character's mind for long enough to really get to know them, and because of this the first person POV was wasted. I don't really understand the use of first person in this instance, and wonder why the third person POV wasn't used. In my opinion it would have read better a lot better.
Even though each chapter is titled with the character's name, I often had to go back to the beginning if I'd taken a break mid-chapter, to see who it was, as I couldn't gage who was speaking, the voices just weren't distinct enough to determine who was speaking.
None of the characters are particularly likeable, except maybe for Nathan and Scarlet. Miranda starts out likeable, but then I changed my mind after some of her terrible, selfish decisions. One being to not take an eight year old girl because they didn't have any room in the car. Really? She could of sat on someone's lap - to me, there's always room for a child. But no, Miranda was totally happy to leave her to the zombie hordes.
There were also aspects that were glossed over. Such as an elderly couple who took in Nathan and his daughter, Zoe. They became quite close even in the short space of time they had known each other, and I liked their bond. But when something happens to them, it's never mentioned; no emotions - nothing. I found this unbelievable and way too simplistic. After reading quite a lot of really awesome zombie books who's writer's understood that emotions are a huge part of zombie fiction, (namely Rhiannon Frater who wrote the As the World Dies series), Red Hill was sadly lacking in this department.
There was also quite a bit of repetitiveness in the prose; doubling up of words in a short space is one of my pet peeves when it comes to writing, as well as weird descriptions:
Skeeter smiled with his mouth and frowned with his eyes.
I ran to the door and pressed my ear against the door.
Hearing her clumsy footsteps upstairs as the sickness told her braindead body to move to find food was unbelievable.
and then a short time later:
No matter how many times I told myself it was true, seeing someone I knew to be dead moving around was unbelievable.
There were also a few inconsistencies:
Skeeter alternated between checking on his wife and checking the windows in the other room.
then
I wondered who the woman on the floor was to Skeeter, and what her life was like before she was bitten.
The fact that the narrator knew the woman was Skeeter's wife in one sentence, only to wonder who the woman was in the next really irritated me and threw me out of the scene.
The ending was a mishmash of silliness all packed into a few chapters. It felt as though the author was just throwing stuff in there to try and get a better climax to the story. Characters died all over the place, a huge bomb went off, ash fell from the sky, was it nuclear? Nobody knew, but hey let's continue with the birthday party inside! It didn't do anything for me. And due to the way the narration was handled I didn't get to know the characters that well, and as I didn't like many of the characters to begin anyway, I didn't care much about their outcome.
However, even with all these negative points, I did still manage to read until the end. It wasn't awful enough to stop me reading but it certainly wasn't a particularly good zombie novel.
Red Hill wasn't the best zombie novel I've read, but it also wasn't the worst. It's a 'meh' book for me. There were a few good parts, but many were quite silly, most of the characters were unlikeable, and the pacing was all over the place....more
Plague Nation is the second book in the Ashley Parker zombie series and I enjoyed it a lot. It isn't as good as book one, Plague Town, but it3.5 Stars
Plague Nation is the second book in the Ashley Parker zombie series and I enjoyed it a lot. It isn't as good as book one, Plague Town, but it is still a really fun read.
Ashley is a great heroine. I love her snark and attitude, but she's also genuine and caring. This continues to show through her actions towards her friends. Gabriel on the other hand is a strange one. In the first book I thought he was soooo sexy, but here he is a little generic. I got tired of his hard-arse attitude and wanted him to grow the hell up.
I'm also disappointed that there isn't much of a fall out from the revelation regarding Gabriel's secret. It is sort of washed over and Ashley has apparently forgiven him for lying and accepts everything, and yet Gabriel is the one with the stony-face? I really didn't like the way he treated Ashley. I know he has a lot going on with his particular condition, but he acts like a douchebag at times.
They do get back together in this instalment but it felt all wrong. Their relationship is barely touched upon and when they are together I was hoping for fireworks, but they just act as though they have been with each other for years rather than just having their first amazing sexual encounter a few days previously.
I wanted more heat, more angst... just more.
Having said that, I do love these two characters and I suppose that's why I am slightly disappointed that their relationship isn't really dealt with, considering what they went through in the previous book. I like the fact they give each other such a hard time though as it makes for a fun relationship.
To make up for the lack of relationship growth between Ashley and Gabriel, there is a lot of action and a lot of zombies, and I mean a lot. So much happens, and even one of the team dies *sniffles* But I'm not telling you who. The fall out from this is handled really well. The emotions that emulate from each of the team comes off as so real it nearly made me cry.
The ending is good, and as predicted, has me gagging for book three.
Verdict
A really good addition to the series, just not as good as book one. However, there's plenty of zombie action even if there isn't any bedroom action, if you know what I mean *wink, wink*. This is definitely a series that should be on your bookshelf if you're an urban fantasy / zombie fan. Roll on 2014 and Plague World....more
Dead Tropics was a really good zombie horror, and I enjoyed the author’s writing style. It’s the typical surOriginally posted on www.bookchickcity.com
Dead Tropics was a really good zombie horror, and I enjoyed the author’s writing style. It’s the typical survival plot of a group of people helping each other to survive with one leader.
Lori Nelson is an unapologetic heroine, killing zombies from the get go without hesitation, whether adult, child or baby. Going from an ordinary woman, performing the normal day to day routines, to an extraordinary woman, wielding a parang. The transition from one to the other is quick, but so is the action. It moves fast and furious, without letting up, which to be honest is how it would be if the zombie apocalypse actually happened. You either step up or become one of the walking dead.
It’s an incredibly easy read too and the writing flows really well. Although there’s not a lot of depth or world building I still connected with the characters.
Some of Lori’s decisions are slightly stupid though, like the futile attempt at trying to save a street full of people from a large zombie horde, which could have potentially led the zombies back to her family. Other decisions are more calculated and selfish, but ultimately life-saving for herself, her friends and her family; such as leaving abandoned children to die at the hand of the walking dead. I’m not sure I would have made the same decisions, I’m not sure I could watch children die, even if I didn’t know them. They had nobody to save them as their parents were already dead. But although Lori’s decisions were out of sync with mine, she is admirable in certain situations. And with a large gaggle of zombies descending upon me, I’m sure it would be difficult to make instant decisions under such panic and duress.
At times it seemed that all the adults wanted to have a go at being the hero, and on occasion all together. This is one of those stupid decisions, being as they had numerous children to care for. My eyes rolled to the heavens. Really? Leave all those children unprotected with just one adult, Emma, who really wasn’t much use, as past history showed.
However, for the most part, Dead Tropics is a really fun, action-packed read. It was non-stop, but in a good way. Edge kept the tension and suspense wracked up high for most of the novel. Sometimes I wished it would slow down so I could catch my breath, but I loved how the action drove the novel forward.
Although the title suggests it is based in a tropical rainforest, it is actually set in urban areas for about 75% of the story. When it does move into the rainforest, it’s a nice change of scenery as it’s a fresh and original setting. I wish more of the book took place in the rainforest rather than the town and roads, as this has been done to death.
VERDICT
Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed Dead Tropics. It’s a fun, adrenaline-fuelled ride with lots of zombies. I can’t wait for book two, which I’ve been told by Permuted Press, is set for release sometime in 2014....more
The Autumn series by David Moody continues with Purification. It's a great instalment. This series is getting better and better and I'm really enjoyinThe Autumn series by David Moody continues with Purification. It's a great instalment. This series is getting better and better and I'm really enjoying it. The tension, suspense and horror is still prevalent as the zombies continue to evolve into something even more terrifying.
The opening scene is fantastic. The underground army is plotting to go up into the world and push back the thousands of zombies that have accumulated above the underground bunker. The vents, which are keeping the soldiers and civilian's alive are being blocked by the growing number of zombies. After a few attempts at trying to secure the vents and clear the zombies, they decide to try and push back the zombies even further and all hell breaks lose.
This battle scene is just brilliant. Although the zombies aren't particularly hard to deal with individually, the are a terrifying force when grouped together in their thousands. It was so exciting and horrifying all at once. What was a relatively safe place is now over run and the remaining survivors have to fight their way out.
Once secure in a building away from the hordes, Michael, Emma and the others are dumbfounded when a helicopter lands outside the building they are hiding in. This is the beginning of something new and to realise there are others out there scares and excites them. They are told other survivors are safely contained in an airport where they have a small plane as well as the helicopter. With slight trepidation they decide to join the new survivors at the airport. Once there they learn that these survivors will eventually head out to an island they've found and are happy for Michael and his group to join them.
We meet lots of new characters, as well as continuing to follow Michael and Emma (my favourite characters). Their relationship has moved on (luckily in the way I had hoped) but are finding it difficult. But being in a larger group of people, new faces and a new, more secure home, they all begin to feel hope again and make new friends, but of course this doesn't last for long...
Another brilliant instalment from David Moody. As with the previous books in the Autumn series, I couldn't put Purification down. This series is a fantastic addition to the zombie genre. If you haven't read it, then seriously, go pick it up, you won't be sorry....more
I found White Horse very interesting but irritating at first. The format is a little off putting with "Now" and "Then" being used throughout to tell tI found White Horse very interesting but irritating at first. The format is a little off putting with "Now" and "Then" being used throughout to tell the story of the present and the past, with very short passages between each one, which interrupted the flow of the story. Then there was the 'jar'. One of the most intriguing aspects to White Horse and one of the most frustrating.
A mysterious jar turns up in Zoe's apartment, with no note and no reason. And whereas you or I might just throw it in the recycling bin without too much thought, Zoe leaves it in the middle of her room, looks at it, discusses it with her friends and even has therapy because of it - I found this difficult to understand. I wanted to know what the jar was all about, but at the same time not knowing irritated me and I just couldn't understand Zoe's actions.
So, after the first 80 pages or so I was ready to give up.
And then the unforeseen happens. White Horse switches from a possible did not finish (DNF) to one of the most surprising reads of the year. What was at first annoying becomes the driving force of the novel and the reason for the unrelenting pace. It was now the reason I didn't want to put the book down. I was fascinated, perplexed, captivated. What's wrong with the world? What's the meaning of the jar? Why has all this happened? And who is Swiss? Thankfully we are rewarded answers to these questions at the end.
The world is a very desolate place. The worst traits of the human race is prevalent; rape, murder, selfishness.There are many disturbing scenes such as incestuous rape, abortion and suicide. Everybody we meet seem to be beaten down or have the worst traits of human kind, which made this a very dark and depressing book to read.
The main character, Zoe, isn't much better, thinking only of herself until she meets Lisa, a blind young English woman who Zoe saves from an existence of continuous rape by her father. Although the world is a depressing place, Zoe begins to meet inspirational people on her journey to find the man she loves and the father of her unborn baby. These people care, still human with the best traits. It must rub off on Zoe as she begins to grow as a character, helping others along the way, being selfless, kind and compassionate.
Very slowly we learn that the world was exposed to a disease called White Horse and now humans are mutating, changing into something else, or die. They aren't described very much until the end of the book when you begin to get more of an understanding of what those who are infected have become.
The Swiss, a man who attaches himself to Zoe and Lisa on their journey hurts them physically and mentally. He's a totally vile human being and has no morals, no sense of right and wrong and no lingering humanity. But when we finally find out Swiss's own story, it's completely unpredictable, although a tad unbelievable and even slightly cheesy compared to the rest of the novel.
The ending feels complete and doesn't lend itself to a sequel, but being part of a trilogy there's obviously more to come. I'm looking forward to finding out what that is.
A brilliant debut, White Horse surprised and delighted me. It's wonderfully written with complex characters and visually descriptive prose of a post-apocalyptic landscape. What started out as a contender for the did not finish pile, found its way to my pile of best books of 2012. I can't wait for the next book in the series....more
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