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3.93 AVERAGE
3.93 AVERAGE
*Spoilers*
I really really enjoyed this book. It was fast and kept me entertained. The characters were interesting and not boring and I might be a little in love with Tom.Rot and Ruin is a moving tale about two brothers and it is pretty deep if you think about it and it makes you look at the living dead in a new light. I love how Nix isn't a flimsy heroine character but she is not completely tough and strong. I find this perfect. I love how Benny isn't the most perfect guy. He messes up which is only normal because he's not prefect. I got really sad during Tom's "death". I knew deep inside that he wasn't really dead, that he will show up later, but you get distracted from that so when he shows up, you are surprised and probably happy. I know I was. I am planning to read the next book in the series and I apologize for my very unorganized review.
I really really enjoyed this book. It was fast and kept me entertained. The characters were interesting and not boring and I might be a little in love with Tom.Rot and Ruin is a moving tale about two brothers and it is pretty deep if you think about it and it makes you look at the living dead in a new light. I love how Nix isn't a flimsy heroine character but she is not completely tough and strong. I find this perfect. I love how Benny isn't the most perfect guy. He messes up which is only normal because he's not prefect. I got really sad during Tom's "death". I knew deep inside that he wasn't really dead, that he will show up later, but you get distracted from that so when he shows up, you are surprised and probably happy. I know I was. I am planning to read the next book in the series and I apologize for my very unorganized review.
This book is fun and light with a few serious parts that bring it together. Good over all even though some parts are slow. I feel like the sequels will be better because Benny was really annoying at the beginning but he changed later on into something better.
Zombies aren't usually my thing, but this was a pretty good read. Although some parts were predictable, there was believable character development and the story moved along at a good pace. Enough was wrapped up that there's closure, but enough is still unexplained to leave room for the sequel, which I'm sure I'll read, eventually.
Notes:
3 Stars for Narration by Brian Hutchinson - Doesn't do well with multiple characters.
Man, did I dislike Bennie for the first quarter of the book. A sheltered youth with blind rage against his only family. Overall, I liked the general progression & ideas that the story was trying to convey. Having read all of Joe Ledger and Dead of Night, there are story inconsistencies about the undead that bug the heck out of me.
Tom is awesome. =)
Bennie is a brat that's growing up. He's ok.
3 Stars for Narration by Brian Hutchinson - Doesn't do well with multiple characters.
Man, did I dislike Bennie for the first quarter of the book. A sheltered youth with blind rage against his only family. Overall, I liked the general progression & ideas that the story was trying to convey. Having read all of Joe Ledger and Dead of Night, there are story inconsistencies about the undead that bug the heck out of me.
Tom is awesome. =)
Bennie is a brat that's growing up. He's ok.
I love a good zombie book, and this is a good, but flawed, young adult introduction to the zombie genre. We're in a post-outbreak world, the dead are rising, and the survivors in the area have established a small town in the area. There are good guys, there are bounty hunters, and there are some bad guys who have established questionable practices outside the town boundaries.
Fairly riveting overall, but significantly longer than it ultimately had to be. A little better tied together and this book ends up being a really tight book, but it's still a solid book for the age group intended.
Fairly riveting overall, but significantly longer than it ultimately had to be. A little better tied together and this book ends up being a really tight book, but it's still a solid book for the age group intended.
So, this book reminded me of [b:The Knife of Never Letting Go|2118745|The Knife of Never Letting Go (Chaos Walking, #1)|Patrick Ness|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1277071696s/2118745.jpg|2124180] in a lot of ways. (Except it was way better, to be honest.)
There's the sheltered city, the post-apocalyptic world just beyond the gate and a young main character who sort of gets thrust into the world because of circumstance.
It doesn't feel forced though, not often. Benny, at the very least, has a mentor in his older brother, Tom. Which I appreciated. Because let me tell you how I feel about a 15 year old's ability to navigate this kind of reality alone. Spoiler alert: I teach middle school--there's not much faith there.
And, okay, I maybe have a tiny fictional crush on Tom. What of it?
But beyond that, there's clearly a lot going on here. This world is rich and layered. And some of those layers get peeled back and we get to peer into the secrets. And some of them not. There's this whole feeling that something else, something bigger is happening out there. Just beyond our sight.
And there's all this built up history. Like Mountainside and its weird hang-ups and superstitions. The monks and their whole worldview. Hell, even Tom's outlook in and of itself is complex. As it should be.
And Benny is a reasonable narrator. The book has its moments--for the better and worse--but overall I kept turning the pages. Books I can't put down, even after major chapter or section breaks, are good ones as far as I'm concerned.
So yeah. If you're looking for a teenage zombie novel, you should probably read this. And if you're not, you should anyway. Because it's so much more than just a teenage zombie novel. It's Benny's coming of age story. His story of death, grief and loss. His story about ethics and morals and the reshaping of his worldview.
It's worth the read.
There's the sheltered city, the post-apocalyptic world just beyond the gate and a young main character who sort of gets thrust into the world because of circumstance.
It doesn't feel forced though, not often. Benny, at the very least, has a mentor in his older brother, Tom. Which I appreciated. Because let me tell you how I feel about a 15 year old's ability to navigate this kind of reality alone. Spoiler alert: I teach middle school--there's not much faith there.
And, okay, I maybe have a tiny fictional crush on Tom. What of it?
But beyond that, there's clearly a lot going on here. This world is rich and layered. And some of those layers get peeled back and we get to peer into the secrets. And some of them not. There's this whole feeling
Spoiler
even before the jet thingAnd there's all this built up history. Like Mountainside and its weird hang-ups and superstitions. The monks and their whole worldview. Hell, even Tom's outlook in and of itself is complex. As it should be.
And Benny is a reasonable narrator. The book has its moments--for the better and worse--but overall I kept turning the pages. Books I can't put down, even after major chapter or section breaks, are good ones as far as I'm concerned.
So yeah. If you're looking for a teenage zombie novel, you should probably read this. And if you're not, you should anyway. Because it's so much more than just a teenage zombie novel. It's Benny's coming of age story. His story of death, grief and loss. His story about ethics and morals and the reshaping of his worldview.
It's worth the read.
After his success with Patient Zero and The Dragon Factory, Jonathan Maberry turns his zombie writing skills to Rot & Ruin, giving young adult readers a chance to enjoy a good story of the living dead. Maberry creates a strong and interesting post-apocalyptic world akin to that of Justin Cronin’s The Passage, and while the book contains strong themes, it’s a lot lighter and accessible because it’s written for teenagers.
Benny Imura just turned fifteen. For any normal kid in our world that would mean he’s in the prime of his teen years, carefree and enjoying life with little responsibility. But this is a different world, overrun by zombies, while protected pockets of humanity fight to keep the zombies – or walkers as they’re known – at bay while attempting to have some semblance of a normal life. At fifteen, Benny has to get some sort of job that helps to improve society, whether it’s a fence tester, a fence technician, a locksmith (zombies can’t unlock doors), or an erosion artist – which is creating images of what specific people look like when they’ve been turned into zombies. But Benny basically fails at all these jobs and has little choice other than to join his brother in the family business.
Benny’s brother, Tom is a renowned and respected zombie killer, a type of bounty hunter. Upon request with the use of an erosion artist, he will seek out and kill a known zombie that was once a relative of a caring family. Tom is trained with a number of weapons, but prefers to use a katana, which is quiet and deadly. Benny reluctantly joins his brother, as Tom shows him the ropes and begins his training. Benny soon discovers that there’s a reason they don’t teach the kids much about the real world in school, but Benny has to find out the hard way. Tom’s generation was the one that created stability for these pockets of society, so they could get some control over their lives. Benny’s generation is one that is looking to do something, to make a change to their sequestered lives. There are rumors of a distant ocean and islands where there might be no zombies, or at least a controllable population.
Rot & Ruin is a great fun read for teens and adults, with a compelling story and a broad and well created world; a worthy addition to the large growing monster of zombie media.
Originally written on October 29, 2010 ©Alex C. Telander.
For over 500 book reviews, and over 40 exclusive author interviews (both audio and written), visit BookBanter.
Benny Imura just turned fifteen. For any normal kid in our world that would mean he’s in the prime of his teen years, carefree and enjoying life with little responsibility. But this is a different world, overrun by zombies, while protected pockets of humanity fight to keep the zombies – or walkers as they’re known – at bay while attempting to have some semblance of a normal life. At fifteen, Benny has to get some sort of job that helps to improve society, whether it’s a fence tester, a fence technician, a locksmith (zombies can’t unlock doors), or an erosion artist – which is creating images of what specific people look like when they’ve been turned into zombies. But Benny basically fails at all these jobs and has little choice other than to join his brother in the family business.
Benny’s brother, Tom is a renowned and respected zombie killer, a type of bounty hunter. Upon request with the use of an erosion artist, he will seek out and kill a known zombie that was once a relative of a caring family. Tom is trained with a number of weapons, but prefers to use a katana, which is quiet and deadly. Benny reluctantly joins his brother, as Tom shows him the ropes and begins his training. Benny soon discovers that there’s a reason they don’t teach the kids much about the real world in school, but Benny has to find out the hard way. Tom’s generation was the one that created stability for these pockets of society, so they could get some control over their lives. Benny’s generation is one that is looking to do something, to make a change to their sequestered lives. There are rumors of a distant ocean and islands where there might be no zombies, or at least a controllable population.
Rot & Ruin is a great fun read for teens and adults, with a compelling story and a broad and well created world; a worthy addition to the large growing monster of zombie media.
Originally written on October 29, 2010 ©Alex C. Telander.
For over 500 book reviews, and over 40 exclusive author interviews (both audio and written), visit BookBanter.
I honestly did not like the feel of this story when it first started. It took me a while to connect with the characters, but I eventually did, and now I feel like a part of the family. They live in a frightening world, and as with most zombie fiction, the walking dead are merely a catalyst to serious wtfuckery among humans. Can't wait to see where the story goes!