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deltajuliet83's review against another edition
2.0
Not terrible but not good, just kind of there. A bit like a predictable B-movie, only not as funny as those. Any worse and I wouldn’t have finished it.
totalsassreads's review against another edition
4.0
First, and this is not a criticism, I do want to give a warning for sexual violence and threats of sexual violence. It's not overly graphic or anything, but with the world context when I read it (Kavanaugh hearings) I actually had to take a break from the book for a couple days.
Rhonda definitely makes the book worth the read. At first I was worried I was going to get annoyed with her, but we also spend a decent chunk of the book with her and a zombie who can only say Rhonda, and yet I was not bored. A lot happened and a lot was shown during that time and it was really tense. The zombies, referred to by Rhonda as "Cujos" are not all the same and I think that definitely gave this story an edge.
One of my favorite quotes from Jurassic Park is when Dr. Sattler says, "we can discuss sexism in survival situations when I get back." That went through my head because I think it would have been really easy to write Rhonda as helpless, stupid, or weak. In her mind, of course she's freaking out, but how she acts is tough and assured and I enjoyed that about her character. She never falls apart and it definitely kept me turning the page. Sometimes I didn't understand her, but I was always rooting for her. There were definitely men around her that engaged in sexist behavior and attitudes toward her, but it never stopped her. Some of them also learned the error of their ways regarding underestimating her, or negating the emotions that motivated her.
This book will also make you ask yourself questions about the zombie digestion process that you never knew needed answers. I still don't have them, but I'm thinking about them.
The only downside for me is that the ending felt rushed - there's this insane climax and I wanted just a bit more from the resolution afterward. It was still a good ending that fit the story, I just wanted it to be drawn out a bit more.
Fans of badass heroines, girls with guns, and zombie survival stories, will definitely enjoy this book.
Rhonda definitely makes the book worth the read. At first I was worried I was going to get annoyed with her, but we also spend a decent chunk of the book with her and a zombie who can only say Rhonda, and yet I was not bored. A lot happened and a lot was shown during that time and it was really tense. The zombies, referred to by Rhonda as "Cujos" are not all the same and I think that definitely gave this story an edge.
One of my favorite quotes from Jurassic Park is when Dr. Sattler says, "we can discuss sexism in survival situations when I get back." That went through my head because I think it would have been really easy to write Rhonda as helpless, stupid, or weak. In her mind, of course she's freaking out, but how she acts is tough and assured and I enjoyed that about her character. She never falls apart and it definitely kept me turning the page. Sometimes I didn't understand her, but I was always rooting for her. There were definitely men around her that engaged in sexist behavior and attitudes toward her, but it never stopped her. Some of them also learned the error of their ways regarding underestimating her, or negating the emotions that motivated her.
This book will also make you ask yourself questions about the zombie digestion process that you never knew needed answers. I still don't have them, but I'm thinking about them.
The only downside for me is that the ending felt rushed - there's this insane climax and I wanted just a bit more from the resolution afterward. It was still a good ending that fit the story, I just wanted it to be drawn out a bit more.
Fans of badass heroines, girls with guns, and zombie survival stories, will definitely enjoy this book.
lanternsjourney's review against another edition
4.0
This book takes place 6 months after a zombie apocalypse when Rhonda, daughter of a Marine Colonel who heads a survival camp, stumbles upon her fiance Brad from her life before. The book was a very fun, light read. It had action and gore, and also a few moments that I chuckled aloud. It was a good book to break up the heaviness of my previous reads. I also really liked that Rhonda made normal human mistakes because she was leading with her heart and not her head. She wasnt dumb by any means, she just made different decisions than most people looking in from the outside would make.
I wanted a little bit more character development for Rhonda and depth of character for the Colonel and some of the other characters that show up. Overall though, I would recommend this book if you wanted a fun fast zombie read.
I wanted a little bit more character development for Rhonda and depth of character for the Colonel and some of the other characters that show up. Overall though, I would recommend this book if you wanted a fun fast zombie read.
the_bookubus's review against another edition
3.0
Rabid Heart is set six months after a zombie outbreak and we follow survivor Rhonda as she is reunited with her fiance...who is now a zombie. It was action-packed and gore-filled, plus it was also surprisingly touching. The last few chapters had me turning the pages as fast as I could to find out what happened. If you're looking for a fun, fast-paced zombie novel I recommend it!
readswithdogs's review
4.0
I loved this book! It's a love story for the ages and was the perfect Valentine's Day read!
The world has been taken over by Necro Rabies and hordes of zombies (or "Cujos" as they call them after a nod to some guy who writes from Maine😉 roam the streets! People who aren't zombies are eating other people to survive the food scarcity! It's madness! Our heroine, Rhonda finds her fiancé turned into a Cujo, but can't bring herself to kill him. Scared that her military father will kill Cujo Brad she sticks a ball gag in Brad's mouth and embarks on a road trip into the unknown to save the love of her life--while putting her own life at risk.
💗
.
Part Shane of the Dead mixed with iZombie realness, this book is a rollicking good time.
The world has been taken over by Necro Rabies and hordes of zombies (or "Cujos" as they call them after a nod to some guy who writes from Maine😉 roam the streets! People who aren't zombies are eating other people to survive the food scarcity! It's madness! Our heroine, Rhonda finds her fiancé turned into a Cujo, but can't bring herself to kill him. Scared that her military father will kill Cujo Brad she sticks a ball gag in Brad's mouth and embarks on a road trip into the unknown to save the love of her life--while putting her own life at risk.
💗
.
Part Shane of the Dead mixed with iZombie realness, this book is a rollicking good time.
findingmontauk1's review against another edition
4.0
I am always a little hesitant to read a zombie book nowadays. It seems that there are SO many out there and they all tend to tell similar stories. And when you pair the book industry with our saturtaed TV and film industry with things like Romero's series, The Walking Dead, etc then you can start to see where I am going with this. RABID HEART, however, does NOT fit into any of these categories. It stands out from the zombie stories and zombie lore that we have come to know and made a fresh impression with me. The way Wagner tells this story is so captivating and entertaining. Our main character is a total beast and I need more of her all the time! For those of you who may be burnt out on zombie books, I recommend checking this one out because you will have a renewed sense of faith in the genre and you may even find a new favorite author in the process! 3.5 stars rounded up to 4 on Goodreads!
lauriereadslohf's review against another edition
4.0
People say they’re sick of zombies or werewolves or vampires or demons or gawdforbid tentacles and I get it but I am not one of those people. I will read everything and anything if the writing is engaging. This is why one day my piles of books shall be the death of me. I don’t really care if the monster has been done to death because it can always be given new life by a new voice and that is most definitely the case with this book RABID HEART. It is a book about a world in the midst of a zombie apocalypse caused by warmongers who manufactured a rabies outbreak which went all kinds of wrong. The virus kills the host and turns them into flesh eating cujos! And words cannot express how much I love the fact that they’re called cujos throughout this entire story.
Rhonda is a young 20-something who was happily living her life before the outbreak. She was engaged to the love of her life and working as a hairstylist. Now she’s stuck on a military-type base with her dad and spends her free time finding supplies and killing cujos. Everything she loved is gone and her relationship with her dad is complicated. In a cruel twist of fate, she runs across Brad , her cujo-fied fiancée, and he recognizes her. Not only that, he protects her. She impulsively decides to take him back to camp but the folks there are not at all thrilled with that idea. Understandably . . . he may be tame but he’s still a smelly flesh eating undead cujo. This forces Rhonda to make a series of choices that land her on a road trip through hell where she finds an important reason to carry on.
This is a fast paced story with an engaging writing style that grabbed me from the beginning. Rhonda is snarky and angry and heartbroken so her choices, crazy as they may be, are 100% understandable. The story is filled with gore and dark humor and a disgusting wet dream that made my black heart really freaking happy and it won’t rip out your soul like that damned Walking Dead show! I recommend it to anyone looking for a fun horror novel.
4 ½ stars
Rhonda is a young 20-something who was happily living her life before the outbreak. She was engaged to the love of her life and working as a hairstylist. Now she’s stuck on a military-type base with her dad and spends her free time finding supplies and killing cujos. Everything she loved is gone and her relationship with her dad is complicated. In a cruel twist of fate, she runs across Brad , her cujo-fied fiancée, and he recognizes her. Not only that, he protects her. She impulsively decides to take him back to camp but the folks there are not at all thrilled with that idea. Understandably . . . he may be tame but he’s still a smelly flesh eating undead cujo. This forces Rhonda to make a series of choices that land her on a road trip through hell where she finds an important reason to carry on.
This is a fast paced story with an engaging writing style that grabbed me from the beginning. Rhonda is snarky and angry and heartbroken so her choices, crazy as they may be, are 100% understandable. The story is filled with gore and dark humor and a disgusting wet dream that made my black heart really freaking happy and it won’t rip out your soul like that damned Walking Dead show! I recommend it to anyone looking for a fun horror novel.
4 ½ stars
jess_reads_books's review against another edition
4.0
Six months have passed since the Necro Rabies pandemic swept the Earth. Rhonda is now living in a world filled with hordes of rabid undead humans known as “Cujos”. She has thought for these last six months that her fiance, Brad, was lost to her, until she discovers his newly zombified version while out on a supply run in her former hometown. Brad isn’t like all the other Cujos. He seems to want to protect Rhonda and she wants to protect him.
The military base Rhonda currently calls home is run by her Marine Colonel father and his reaction to her returning to camp with her zombie fiance is not what Rhonda was hoping for. In the name of the greater good, the Colonel wants Brad dead. Rhonda can’t imagine losing Brad all over again and sets off on a road-trip into the Cujo-ravaged new world. Can Rhonda create a new life with her undead love?
RABID HEART is a fresh take on the much loved zombie, post-apocalyptic genre. This book is like walking into a horror movie with a fun-loving, campy spirit at heart. You don’t normally think of the words apocalyptic and fun falling in the same sentence, but that’s exactly what this book does!
The main character of Rhonda was mentally prepared to kill any Cujo that might walk into her life until that Cujo was her presumed dead fiance, Brad. Now that her heart can feel again, Rhonda wants to follow it and will stop at nothing to attempt to build a life with Brad. What she finds is herself on a road-trip leading to several near-death experiences. This road trip is filled with exciting, action-packed moments and a cast of characters you’ll love to hate! RABID HEART is easily one of the most fun books I’ve read lately. The pages are filled with gore and dark humor set at a fast pace to keep you on the edge of your seat.
The military base Rhonda currently calls home is run by her Marine Colonel father and his reaction to her returning to camp with her zombie fiance is not what Rhonda was hoping for. In the name of the greater good, the Colonel wants Brad dead. Rhonda can’t imagine losing Brad all over again and sets off on a road-trip into the Cujo-ravaged new world. Can Rhonda create a new life with her undead love?
RABID HEART is a fresh take on the much loved zombie, post-apocalyptic genre. This book is like walking into a horror movie with a fun-loving, campy spirit at heart. You don’t normally think of the words apocalyptic and fun falling in the same sentence, but that’s exactly what this book does!
The main character of Rhonda was mentally prepared to kill any Cujo that might walk into her life until that Cujo was her presumed dead fiance, Brad. Now that her heart can feel again, Rhonda wants to follow it and will stop at nothing to attempt to build a life with Brad. What she finds is herself on a road-trip leading to several near-death experiences. This road trip is filled with exciting, action-packed moments and a cast of characters you’ll love to hate! RABID HEART is easily one of the most fun books I’ve read lately. The pages are filled with gore and dark humor set at a fast pace to keep you on the edge of your seat.
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