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3.71 AVERAGE
3.71 AVERAGE
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Holy crap. I just finished this one, so excuse me if I'm still trying to process it. I've only read a handful of zombie novels, but I can easily say that this was one of the freakiest. It starts out with this guy named Lamar, a gay African-American who is hiding out with his neighbor, Alan, during the zombie apocalypse. Alan unfortunately gets bitten at some point, and Lamar goes off on his own until he runs into a couple of kids that he takes under his wing. They receive help from another man, Mitch, and the group of four runs toward the harbor and joins more survivors on board a ship that's heading out to sea.
What makes this book stand out from the plethora of zombie novels out there is that not only can humans become infected and turn into zombies, but animal species can, as well. According to Lamar's character, this disease, dubbed 'Hamelin's Revenge,' first appeared in rats, and then spread to humans as the rats began attacking people. The disease would periodically jump from species to species, until even fish weren't safe from catching it.
I think the reason I found this book to be creepy was because of how the disease began infecting animals. It's scary enough trying to imagine surviving and fighting off hordes of human zombies, but what about zombie sharks? Or zombie birds? What the heck do you do then?!
This novel was a quick read, with lots of suspense, but I admit that I soon found myself visibly cringing while reading certain scenes - after all that Lamar had witnessed, he still seemed to let his guard down at the worst possible moments. For one, he shrugged off a gaping wound on a fish they had caught, which is not something you should do when you know that with a wound in any other species your first thought would be "zombie!" It's the middle of the apocalypse, for Pete's sake! Then, while knowing that zombie fish actually were roaming the seas, Lamar put his freakin' hand into the ocean, just to feel the water on his skin! C'mon! How could you possibly forget about the fish?!
At any rate, despite the fact that Lamar was clearly very lucky to make it past the first day, let alone the first chapter, I still enjoyed reading this book. It was unique, and really made zombie apocalypses sound even scarier than they normally do. I'd recommend it to anyone who's a fan of the genre!
What makes this book stand out from the plethora of zombie novels out there is that not only can humans become infected and turn into zombies, but animal species can, as well. According to Lamar's character, this disease, dubbed 'Hamelin's Revenge,' first appeared in rats, and then spread to humans as the rats began attacking people. The disease would periodically jump from species to species, until even fish weren't safe from catching it.
I think the reason I found this book to be creepy was because of how the disease began infecting animals. It's scary enough trying to imagine surviving and fighting off hordes of human zombies, but what about zombie sharks? Or zombie birds? What the heck do you do then?!
This novel was a quick read, with lots of suspense, but I admit that I soon found myself visibly cringing while reading certain scenes - after all that Lamar had witnessed, he still seemed to let his guard down at the worst possible moments. For one, he shrugged off a gaping wound on a fish they had caught, which is not something you should do when you know that with a wound in any other species your first thought would be "zombie!" It's the middle of the apocalypse, for Pete's sake! Then, while knowing that zombie fish actually were roaming the seas, Lamar put his freakin' hand into the ocean, just to feel the water on his skin! C'mon! How could you possibly forget about the fish?!
At any rate, despite the fact that Lamar was clearly very lucky to make it past the first day, let alone the first chapter, I still enjoyed reading this book. It was unique, and really made zombie apocalypses sound even scarier than they normally do. I'd recommend it to anyone who's a fan of the genre!
"Dead Sea" is a horror novel. It's not going to be a feel-good kind of experience. But when you can see the end telegraphed a couple hundred pages in advance, it makes the journey a rough slog.
This is a zombie book. You pretty much know what you're going to get from zombie fiction: blood, guts, gore, violence, some shambling, and a lot of head shots if the human characters have guns. You have tight spaces, overwhelming crowds of zombies, dwindling supplies, and dwindling characters. Maybe there's a "man is the real menace" subplot thrown into the mix. This book has all of those things, done with a minimum amount of craft and skill, with nothing particularly new to say. The zombie animals are a nice touch, but again, telegraphed from a mile off.
"Dead Sea" is competently written, for the most part. I may pick up another one of Keene's books when I'm looking for a basic gory horror book. But maybe zombie stories just aren't suited to be novels. I can't imagine how padded the zombie trilogies and series must be.
This is a zombie book. You pretty much know what you're going to get from zombie fiction: blood, guts, gore, violence, some shambling, and a lot of head shots if the human characters have guns. You have tight spaces, overwhelming crowds of zombies, dwindling supplies, and dwindling characters. Maybe there's a "man is the real menace" subplot thrown into the mix. This book has all of those things, done with a minimum amount of craft and skill, with nothing particularly new to say. The zombie animals are a nice touch, but again, telegraphed from a mile off.
"Dead Sea" is competently written, for the most part. I may pick up another one of Keene's books when I'm looking for a basic gory horror book. But maybe zombie stories just aren't suited to be novels. I can't imagine how padded the zombie trilogies and series must be.
adventurous
challenging
dark
reflective
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
The third of his Zombie novels, but nothing like the first 2. These are your typical brainless, slow moving zombies. He adds to twist that animals can become infected. Tells the story of a young man who meets ups with some young children and together they flee a burning city onto a ship. Very engaging and interesting novel.
Pretty interesting. I really liked the plague and it's slow spread to all of the animal kingdom. The part with the crazy priest will haunt me for quite some time.
adventurous
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Pretty typical zombie book. A few good twists.
The whole archetype thing received way too much focus for something that really wasn’t relevant.
A solid, stand-alone zombie book.
The whole archetype thing received way too much focus for something that really wasn’t relevant.
A solid, stand-alone zombie book.
Let me start this review off with something I’m embarrassed to admit. It’s 2019 and I’ve JUST read my first Brian Keene novel. He’d Been on my TBR for some time, I just didn’t know where to start. I received quite a few recommendations of Ghoul, however, I already knew I’d love it so I decided to go for one Mr. Keene himself recommended to me on Twitter. Dead Sea.
Dead Sea follows Lamar Reed as he attempts to survive hell on earth, this particular hell taking place in Baltimore. The apocalypse as seen in Baltimore somehow manages to turn even more horrific early on, and Lamar must escape the city. Fans of gore are in for a treat as Keene does an exceptional job of describing the walking corpses and the aftermath of their brutal attacks. The novel hits the ground running and rarely lets up. Dead Sea is full of action, it moves at a rapid pace and is highly readable. I’d have finished it in one day if life real life hadn’t gotten in the way. For everything I loved about Dead Sea, and there’s a lot, the protagonist is easily my favorite. Lamar Reed is what sets Dead Sea apart from other zombie affair. The book is written from the first person perspective. Lamar Reed isn’t a highly trained badass, steamrolling through zombies on a warpath through Baltimore. He’s a young man from the inner city just trying to survive. Being a gay, black man, Lamar must confront bigotry in addition to the undead. In 2019 when equal representation is talked about now more than ever, Reed stand outs to me. What’s more impressive is that this book was written in 2007, not 2019.
When I reached the end of Dead Sea, I was pleasantly surprised. I’m skeptical when I read or watch anything to do with zombies. The genre is flooded at this point. A relentless pace, good action, and an exceptional protagonist keep Dead Sea floating above the competition.
Dead Sea follows Lamar Reed as he attempts to survive hell on earth, this particular hell taking place in Baltimore. The apocalypse as seen in Baltimore somehow manages to turn even more horrific early on, and Lamar must escape the city. Fans of gore are in for a treat as Keene does an exceptional job of describing the walking corpses and the aftermath of their brutal attacks. The novel hits the ground running and rarely lets up. Dead Sea is full of action, it moves at a rapid pace and is highly readable. I’d have finished it in one day if life real life hadn’t gotten in the way. For everything I loved about Dead Sea, and there’s a lot, the protagonist is easily my favorite. Lamar Reed is what sets Dead Sea apart from other zombie affair. The book is written from the first person perspective. Lamar Reed isn’t a highly trained badass, steamrolling through zombies on a warpath through Baltimore. He’s a young man from the inner city just trying to survive. Being a gay, black man, Lamar must confront bigotry in addition to the undead. In 2019 when equal representation is talked about now more than ever, Reed stand outs to me. What’s more impressive is that this book was written in 2007, not 2019.
When I reached the end of Dead Sea, I was pleasantly surprised. I’m skeptical when I read or watch anything to do with zombies. The genre is flooded at this point. A relentless pace, good action, and an exceptional protagonist keep Dead Sea floating above the competition.