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3.93 AVERAGE
3.93 AVERAGE
One of my all time favorites! Great characters, nonstop action and zombies! Excellent!
This book is nominated for a state award for young adult readers. A few of my students highly recommended it. I had to admit I wasn't eager to run to the library to pick the book up. I was never really into the zombie genre books. The nearest I came was reading Pride and Prejudice and Zombies simply because I was a Jane Austen fan and was curious.
My students were right! I couldn't put the book down. I completely agree that it brings a more humanistic approach to the zombie genre. I like the depth of the characters and the challenges each character must face both physically and mentally. When I had about 50 pages left I had to rush to the book store to pick up the second book.
I loved this book and am thankful to my students for recommending it. I have also found a lot of my striving readers enjoying the book and not being able to put it down. There were even times I had to remind my students to put the book down since class had started. Great read for any age.
My students were right! I couldn't put the book down. I completely agree that it brings a more humanistic approach to the zombie genre. I like the depth of the characters and the challenges each character must face both physically and mentally. When I had about 50 pages left I had to rush to the book store to pick up the second book.
I loved this book and am thankful to my students for recommending it. I have also found a lot of my striving readers enjoying the book and not being able to put it down. There were even times I had to remind my students to put the book down since class had started. Great read for any age.
Trigger warnings: zombies, death of a friend, gun violence, physical violence, stabbing, murder.
Well this was a lot of fun. I tend to be sceptical of YA zombie stories that aren't The Enemy series by Charlie Higson because he did tension and creepiness and horror SO WELL. This was a very different beast to that series, but still thoroughly enjoyable.
Instead of horror, this is more...dystopian? It's set 14 years after zombies became a problem, so this world is all the 15 year old protagonist has ever known. And up until now, he's only known the town he lives in, not the outside world where the zombies roam. But 15 year olds have to get jobs. So everything is about to change for Benny.
I have mixed feelings about the fact that the protagonist is biracial and that it's really only his Asian half-brother and his surname that indicate that he's biracial. But on the whole, this was full of twists and turns, and I'm intrigued enough to continue with the series.
Well this was a lot of fun. I tend to be sceptical of YA zombie stories that aren't The Enemy series by Charlie Higson because he did tension and creepiness and horror SO WELL. This was a very different beast to that series, but still thoroughly enjoyable.
Instead of horror, this is more...dystopian? It's set 14 years after zombies became a problem, so this world is all the 15 year old protagonist has ever known. And up until now, he's only known the town he lives in, not the outside world where the zombies roam. But 15 year olds have to get jobs. So everything is about to change for Benny.
I have mixed feelings about the fact that the protagonist is biracial and that it's really only his Asian half-brother and his surname that indicate that he's biracial. But on the whole, this was full of twists and turns, and I'm intrigued enough to continue with the series.
Rot & Ruin was a tremendously fun read. It was a very fast page-turner and I found myself engrossed with the story and characters despite the YA pedigree. The story opens with the rage-filled Ben (Benny) Imura living in the post-apocalyptic town of Mountainside. He is bitter and angry about his brother's, his sole remaining family members, actions during the First Night (colloquial for the start of the zombie outbreak).
Maberry does a fascinating job in creating a zombie economy. The isolated community has been muddling through the collapse for over a decade at the opening of the story and so people's livelihoods and careers often rotate around the existence of the undead.
The focus of the story is on Ben, his brother Tom, and Ben's teenage friends Nix, Chong and Morgie. As such the relationship dynamics reflect those typical in a coming-of-age story, including a developing love plot.
As a nitpick, I must admit to rolling my eyes at the appearance of the katana in yet another piece of zombie fiction. At least Maberry had the decency to put it in the hands of a Japanese-American and provide a broader (though thin) cultural context. That trope aside the story manages to combine a lot of familiar aspects of the genre with some new ideas. Maberry leans heavily into the theme of emotional distress and trauma. All of the characters, and even many of the minor ones, carry psychological damage from the First Night and subsequent apocalypse. I thought this idea was somewhat limited by the YA category. Clearly more nightmarish things were going on in this world than was explicitly stated in the story, but writing for a younger audience has some natural restrictions.
Overall I very much enjoyed this book. I found the characters charming and the central mystery in the plot engaging. The themes explored surprised me given the intended audience and I will definitely be checking out the sequel.
Maberry does a fascinating job in creating a zombie economy. The isolated community has been muddling through the collapse for over a decade at the opening of the story and so people's livelihoods and careers often rotate around the existence of the undead.
The focus of the story is on Ben, his brother Tom, and Ben's teenage friends Nix, Chong and Morgie. As such the relationship dynamics reflect those typical in a coming-of-age story, including a developing love plot.
As a nitpick, I must admit to rolling my eyes at the appearance of the katana in yet another piece of zombie fiction. At least Maberry had the decency to put it in the hands of a Japanese-American and provide a broader (though thin) cultural context. That trope aside the story manages to combine a lot of familiar aspects of the genre with some new ideas. Maberry leans heavily into the theme of emotional distress and trauma. All of the characters, and even many of the minor ones, carry psychological damage from the First Night and subsequent apocalypse. I thought this idea was somewhat limited by the YA category. Clearly more nightmarish things were going on in this world than was explicitly stated in the story, but writing for a younger audience has some natural restrictions.
Overall I very much enjoyed this book. I found the characters charming and the central mystery in the plot engaging. The themes explored surprised me given the intended audience and I will definitely be checking out the sequel.
Read more reviews at The Sirenic Codex
I've always considered zombies to be absolutely terrifying. They're gross, ugly, and as far as monsters go, they're probably the least dangerous because they can't think and move incredibly slowly. What frightens me is that they were people who lost the essence of who they were. They don't think or reason anymore. They are eternally dead and hungry, and it's not like they chose it. They're mindless.
Rot & Ruin explores a world torn apart by these type of zombies. It's a post apocalyptic world years after the First Night and it's bleak. While the writing is pretty light, even through the worst parts, when you really think about it the world in Rot & Ruin is tragic. People have given up on technology and live their lives in fear. Imagine the life you have right now, and imagine it being taken away and all that remains is you. You exist but everything you've known is gone. It's frightening. People lash out and react in different ways, ranging from denial to hatred. There are some very nasty people in Rot & Ruin and they are irredeemable. That being said, even the worst has experienced things no one should see.
Benny is one of those guys that is full of hatred. He's 15 years old and completely immature. It was annoying at some times, but other tines it was hilarious. What I like about Benny is that slowly, he and his friends grow up and change. They learn about this world they live in and make decisions about the future they want. The decisions Benny in particular makes impress me because he is changed by the end of the story.
Benny's relationship with Tom was also a highlight. Their banter wasn't irritating so much as endearing to me, just because I have a little sister and we get into many nonsensical arguments as well. I appreciated how Tom dealt with Benny and Tom became a guy I admired a lot.
There was a lot to enjoy in Rot & Ruin, but there were some issues I had. The first is that nothing happens for a very long time. Most of the first half of the story is about learning about the world, the situation, and the characters. Stuff does happen during that time, but it's not very clear what this book is ultimately about until a little over halfway through. There is also a great deal of dialogue early on which isn't a bad thing, except it gets a little heavy. I think there are at least two huge stories that are told to Benny.
Once you get past the initial hump, the story is entertaining. The characters deal with pain and loss and to be honest, while there may not be an initial connection to them, by the end there is. The ending is also very satisfying and it definitely makes me want to read the sequel.
I like where this story is heading. Maybe Rot & Ruin was long and felt long, but the characters were endearing by the end. I would have liked to have more of a connection to the characters, and I think that will grow with the sequel. So far, Rot & Ruin is a nice start to the series.
I've always considered zombies to be absolutely terrifying. They're gross, ugly, and as far as monsters go, they're probably the least dangerous because they can't think and move incredibly slowly. What frightens me is that they were people who lost the essence of who they were. They don't think or reason anymore. They are eternally dead and hungry, and it's not like they chose it. They're mindless.
Rot & Ruin explores a world torn apart by these type of zombies. It's a post apocalyptic world years after the First Night and it's bleak. While the writing is pretty light, even through the worst parts, when you really think about it the world in Rot & Ruin is tragic. People have given up on technology and live their lives in fear. Imagine the life you have right now, and imagine it being taken away and all that remains is you. You exist but everything you've known is gone. It's frightening. People lash out and react in different ways, ranging from denial to hatred. There are some very nasty people in Rot & Ruin and they are irredeemable. That being said, even the worst has experienced things no one should see.
Benny is one of those guys that is full of hatred. He's 15 years old and completely immature. It was annoying at some times, but other tines it was hilarious. What I like about Benny is that slowly, he and his friends grow up and change. They learn about this world they live in and make decisions about the future they want. The decisions Benny in particular makes impress me because he is changed by the end of the story.
Benny's relationship with Tom was also a highlight. Their banter wasn't irritating so much as endearing to me, just because I have a little sister and we get into many nonsensical arguments as well. I appreciated how Tom dealt with Benny and Tom became a guy I admired a lot.
There was a lot to enjoy in Rot & Ruin, but there were some issues I had. The first is that nothing happens for a very long time. Most of the first half of the story is about learning about the world, the situation, and the characters. Stuff does happen during that time, but it's not very clear what this book is ultimately about until a little over halfway through. There is also a great deal of dialogue early on which isn't a bad thing, except it gets a little heavy. I think there are at least two huge stories that are told to Benny.
Once you get past the initial hump, the story is entertaining. The characters deal with pain and loss and to be honest, while there may not be an initial connection to them, by the end there is. The ending is also very satisfying and it definitely makes me want to read the sequel.
I like where this story is heading. Maybe Rot & Ruin was long and felt long, but the characters were endearing by the end. I would have liked to have more of a connection to the characters, and I think that will grow with the sequel. So far, Rot & Ruin is a nice start to the series.
The best zombie books work when they're not really about zombies. I'm thinking specifically of Colson Whitehead's Zone One here, which is essentially an elegy for the 21st Century. But now I can add Jonathan Maberry's Rot & Ruin to that short list, which is all the more surprising because it's a Young Adult book. While America (and California, specifically) post-zombie apocalypse is the setting for the book, it's really about the relationship between siblings and how, even after the end of the world, humans are still the biggest danger. Most impressively, though, it raises some fascinating questions about the soul and the half-light of zombie existence; it's one of the few books I've read to treat the undead as people. It's got action and suspense and horror, true, but the sensitive reader who likes to entertain thorny issues about ethics and morality will also find a lot to like in here.
A more compassionate book on the zombie apocalypse. Benny is, at times, annoying and stubbornly obtuse but he comes around in the end. The plot and action were compelling enough to keep me reading and I finished most of the book in one day.
