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kimlynn77's review
4.0
Read all but 4 of the stories. (One I skipped involved zombie animals, eww. This why Pet Sematary disturbed me so.) Some very interesting takes on what zombies are. I especially liked the introduction by Golden and the first story in the anthology.
bigbookgeek's review
3.0
This was an interesting anthology full of "modern" zombie stories. Interesting to see how many of the authors envisioned zombies with a 21st century twist. Some of the stories took the zombie mythos very loosely and the stories really had little to do with the theme. Standout story by far was "Ghost Dog and Pup" by Thomas E. Sniegoski, one which I don't think had anything to do with zombies but was still exceptional. Overall, this is a treat for horror and zombie fans!
git_r_read's review
5.0
Zombies aren't always my first choice when I look for a paranormal critter to read about, but I changed my tune when I saw the list of authors on this anthology. Writers I admire like Jonathan Maberry, Brian Keene, Chelsea Caine, Simon R. Green, Thomas E. Sniegoski, Amber Benson, Caitlin Kittredge...all with a unique way of telling a zombie tale.
I don't typically dig anthologies as there are usually one or two really strong stories sandwiching a passle of weak ones. Not a weak tale in the bunch here as edited by Christopher Golden. He has a fine editing hand and each of the nineteen stories are excellent. Zombies being the root of the tales, but reflecting what it is we fear that is going on in the world today.
I don't typically dig anthologies as there are usually one or two really strong stories sandwiching a passle of weak ones. Not a weak tale in the bunch here as edited by Christopher Golden. He has a fine editing hand and each of the nineteen stories are excellent. Zombies being the root of the tales, but reflecting what it is we fear that is going on in the world today.
cashleykate's review against another edition
4.0
I found this anthology really interesting especially given, depending on the author, it varied in what zombies were. Some were our more standard flesh eating fiends while others were apathetic stand ins for the living. I found the mix of ideas and perceptions to be one of the best parts of this read, and I appreciated the vast majority of the short stories.
If you, like me, are craving some zombie reading because you reentered your Walking Dead hyperfixation? This hits right.
If you, like me, are craving some zombie reading because you reentered your Walking Dead hyperfixation? This hits right.
wyrmbergmalcolm's review against another edition
4.0
As this is a short story collection, here’s a brief review for each story in it:
Story Name: Biters by Mark Morris
What is it about? 30 years after the zombie apocalypse some school children bring zombie babies home for a school project.
Thoughts: This was an interesting take on the zombie genre, looking at life after the zombie apocalypse once it’s returned to some semblance of ‘normal’. As disturbing as it was, it did make logical sense. The ending was a bit sudden.
Score: Worth reading
Story Name: Why Mothers Let Their Babies Watch Television: A Just-So Horror Story by Chelsea Cain
What is it about? A very short story giving about the importance of TV in raising children.
Thoughts: Told and read in the style of a children’s book being read aloud to a small child, this was more a joke with a punchline.
Score: Worth reading
Story Name: Carousel by Orson Scott Card
What is it about? All the dead are brought back to life, in perfect bodies and with no interest or tact. A man loses his family to this ennui and finds he is able to provide suggestions in how to possibly improve things.
Thoughts: This started out quite dismal and depressing but had some great dialogue in. By the end, I was really into this and enjoyed it immensely.
Score: Buy the book of this story.
Story Name: Reality Bites from S. G. Browne
What is it about? Zombies are harmless decomposing creatures, not too dissimilar to the contestants of the various reality TV shows they feature in. Some TV execs come up with a way to spice things up a bit.
Thoughts: This is a not very subtle dig at the ruthlessness of the screen industry and the lengths they are willing to go to get views. More of a satire, but worryingly on point. Strangely, this story was very familiar to me, though I don’t appear to have read it before.
Score: Worth reading
Story Name: The Drop
What is it about? I wish I could tell you…
Thoughts: No idea what was going on here, didn’t care for the main character and the plot did something at some point. Not a zombie story, possibly an allegory about gamers’ addiction to gaming? Hated it.
Score: Boring – nonsensical
Story Name: Antiparallelogram by Amber Benson
What is it about? In a world where everyone is clearly marked into their caste, a member of the lowest looks for an opportunity to improve their prospects.
Thoughts: An interesting twist on the walking death theme, in that the main character was due for euthanasia at his 31st birthday so was literally a dead man walking. The actual zombie angle was a little odd, but I think fitted the theme. Overall, I enjoyed the story which had an ending with implications.
Score: Worth reading
Story Name: How We Escaped Our Certain Fate by Dan Chaon
What is it about? A man and his 16 year old son survive during the zombie apocalypse.
Thoughts: Another interesting take on the zombie genre where this time the undead are more of a nuisance akin to bears and wolves. More likely to run from humans but will attack sometimes too. The story itself is all about dealing with trauma.
Score: Worth reading
Story Name: A Mother’s Love by John M. McIlveen
What is it about? It turns out there’s no limits to what a mother will do to feed her baby, even if it’s dead.
Thoughts: This one started out as disturbing and progressively got more disturbing as it went on.
Score: Worth reading
Story Name: Down And Out In Dead Town by Simon R. Green
What is it about? A homeless man travels to a zone created for the harmless walking dead.
Thoughts: A reflection on today’s society and how the homeless are viewed and treated as being already dead.
Score: Worth reading
Story Name: Devil Dust by Caitlin Kittredge
What is it about? The survivor of a home invasion executes a world-changing revenge.
Thoughts: For the longest time, I was wondering where the ‘zombie’ aspect would come into the story. Yes, there was the poetic analogy to the character’s situation, but then, it delivers them in a very interesting way.
Score: Worth reading
Story Name: The Dead Of Dromore by Ken Dromore
What is it about? A team of mercenaries are sent in to a zombie infected area to retrieve a rich man’s daughter.
Thoughts: Pretty standard fare for this subject – certainly the most tropey. It was alright, but nothing special.
Score: Worth reading
Story Name: All The Comforts Of Home: A Beacon Story by John Skipp and Cody Goodfellow
What is it about? During the zombie apocalypse, there’s a small area of security in a hotel. One man and his daughter try to come to terms with the new normal.
Thoughts: This story was made more interesting with its flashbacks. It was otherwise a little bland.
Score: Worth reading
Story Name: Ghost Dog & Pup: Stay by Thomas E. Sniegoski
What is it about? A young boy and his dog discover a mysterious stone in the woods containing a great evil that kills the dog. The dog’s ghost is tasked with keeping the boy from making the wrong choice or the world will be overcome by the walking dead.
Thoughts: Such a powerful story with a very gentle narration. I was a mess by the end of this one.
Score: Storytastic!
Story Name: Tic Boom: A Slice Of Love by Kurt Sutter
What is it about? It’s the zombie apocalypse and a man with Tourette’s finds his affliction deters the undead. It’s not his only condition…
Thoughts: A standard survival story with some interesting twists.
Score: Worth reading
Story Name: Jack And Jill by Jonathan Maberry
What is it about? A child dying of cancer is watching the news about an oncoming storm, but as it hits, an unexpected flood descends upon the community.
Thoughts: This story certainly has lingered with me since reading it. Quite visceral.
Score: Worth reading
Story Name: Tender As Teeth
What is it about? There has been a cure to the zombie disease, but a journalist interviewing a former zombie finds that the cure may not be as beneficial as first thought.
Thoughts: Such a clever concept really well told with some interesting ramifications I’ve not seen covered before.
Score: Buy the book for the story
Story Name: Couch Potato by Brian Keene
What is it about? A neglected child in a poor area watches the outbreak with her drug addicted mum, all is safe until mum runs out of drugs.
Thoughts: A critical look at drug abuse.
Score: Worth reading
Story Name: The Happy Bird And Other Tales by Rio Youers
What is it about? A farmer in a village besieged by a war where soldiers are drugged to not feel anything so that they can perform atrocities, tries to find closure with one captured soldier after losing everything.
Thoughts: Disturbing and dark, with the real kicker being that the atrocities in the real world are done by individuals who do know what they are doing.
Score: Worth reading
Story Name: Parasite
What is it about? In a war against a machine army, flesh and blood soldier find themselves infected by machines and fighting for the other side, until they regain control and discover how ravaged their bodies are.
Thoughts: Another nice take on the zombie theme. Another good look at what happens next.
Score: Worth reading
Final thoughts: All in all a really good coverage of the walking dead theme with only a few falling into the generic tropes.
Story Name: Biters by Mark Morris
What is it about? 30 years after the zombie apocalypse some school children bring zombie babies home for a school project.
Thoughts: This was an interesting take on the zombie genre, looking at life after the zombie apocalypse once it’s returned to some semblance of ‘normal’. As disturbing as it was, it did make logical sense. The ending was a bit sudden.
Score: Worth reading
Story Name: Why Mothers Let Their Babies Watch Television: A Just-So Horror Story by Chelsea Cain
What is it about? A very short story giving about the importance of TV in raising children.
Thoughts: Told and read in the style of a children’s book being read aloud to a small child, this was more a joke with a punchline.
Score: Worth reading
Story Name: Carousel by Orson Scott Card
What is it about? All the dead are brought back to life, in perfect bodies and with no interest or tact. A man loses his family to this ennui and finds he is able to provide suggestions in how to possibly improve things.
Thoughts: This started out quite dismal and depressing but had some great dialogue in. By the end, I was really into this and enjoyed it immensely.
Score: Buy the book of this story.
Story Name: Reality Bites from S. G. Browne
What is it about? Zombies are harmless decomposing creatures, not too dissimilar to the contestants of the various reality TV shows they feature in. Some TV execs come up with a way to spice things up a bit.
Thoughts: This is a not very subtle dig at the ruthlessness of the screen industry and the lengths they are willing to go to get views. More of a satire, but worryingly on point. Strangely, this story was very familiar to me, though I don’t appear to have read it before.
Score: Worth reading
Story Name: The Drop
What is it about? I wish I could tell you…
Thoughts: No idea what was going on here, didn’t care for the main character and the plot did something at some point. Not a zombie story, possibly an allegory about gamers’ addiction to gaming? Hated it.
Score: Boring – nonsensical
Story Name: Antiparallelogram by Amber Benson
What is it about? In a world where everyone is clearly marked into their caste, a member of the lowest looks for an opportunity to improve their prospects.
Thoughts: An interesting twist on the walking death theme, in that the main character was due for euthanasia at his 31st birthday so was literally a dead man walking. The actual zombie angle was a little odd, but I think fitted the theme. Overall, I enjoyed the story which had an ending with implications.
Score: Worth reading
Story Name: How We Escaped Our Certain Fate by Dan Chaon
What is it about? A man and his 16 year old son survive during the zombie apocalypse.
Thoughts: Another interesting take on the zombie genre where this time the undead are more of a nuisance akin to bears and wolves. More likely to run from humans but will attack sometimes too. The story itself is all about dealing with trauma.
Score: Worth reading
Story Name: A Mother’s Love by John M. McIlveen
What is it about? It turns out there’s no limits to what a mother will do to feed her baby, even if it’s dead.
Thoughts: This one started out as disturbing and progressively got more disturbing as it went on.
Score: Worth reading
Story Name: Down And Out In Dead Town by Simon R. Green
What is it about? A homeless man travels to a zone created for the harmless walking dead.
Thoughts: A reflection on today’s society and how the homeless are viewed and treated as being already dead.
Score: Worth reading
Story Name: Devil Dust by Caitlin Kittredge
What is it about? The survivor of a home invasion executes a world-changing revenge.
Thoughts: For the longest time, I was wondering where the ‘zombie’ aspect would come into the story. Yes, there was the poetic analogy to the character’s situation, but then, it delivers them in a very interesting way.
Score: Worth reading
Story Name: The Dead Of Dromore by Ken Dromore
What is it about? A team of mercenaries are sent in to a zombie infected area to retrieve a rich man’s daughter.
Thoughts: Pretty standard fare for this subject – certainly the most tropey. It was alright, but nothing special.
Score: Worth reading
Story Name: All The Comforts Of Home: A Beacon Story by John Skipp and Cody Goodfellow
What is it about? During the zombie apocalypse, there’s a small area of security in a hotel. One man and his daughter try to come to terms with the new normal.
Thoughts: This story was made more interesting with its flashbacks. It was otherwise a little bland.
Score: Worth reading
Story Name: Ghost Dog & Pup: Stay by Thomas E. Sniegoski
What is it about? A young boy and his dog discover a mysterious stone in the woods containing a great evil that kills the dog. The dog’s ghost is tasked with keeping the boy from making the wrong choice or the world will be overcome by the walking dead.
Thoughts: Such a powerful story with a very gentle narration. I was a mess by the end of this one.
Score: Storytastic!
Story Name: Tic Boom: A Slice Of Love by Kurt Sutter
What is it about? It’s the zombie apocalypse and a man with Tourette’s finds his affliction deters the undead. It’s not his only condition…
Thoughts: A standard survival story with some interesting twists.
Score: Worth reading
Story Name: Jack And Jill by Jonathan Maberry
What is it about? A child dying of cancer is watching the news about an oncoming storm, but as it hits, an unexpected flood descends upon the community.
Thoughts: This story certainly has lingered with me since reading it. Quite visceral.
Score: Worth reading
Story Name: Tender As Teeth
What is it about? There has been a cure to the zombie disease, but a journalist interviewing a former zombie finds that the cure may not be as beneficial as first thought.
Thoughts: Such a clever concept really well told with some interesting ramifications I’ve not seen covered before.
Score: Buy the book for the story
Story Name: Couch Potato by Brian Keene
What is it about? A neglected child in a poor area watches the outbreak with her drug addicted mum, all is safe until mum runs out of drugs.
Thoughts: A critical look at drug abuse.
Score: Worth reading
Story Name: The Happy Bird And Other Tales by Rio Youers
What is it about? A farmer in a village besieged by a war where soldiers are drugged to not feel anything so that they can perform atrocities, tries to find closure with one captured soldier after losing everything.
Thoughts: Disturbing and dark, with the real kicker being that the atrocities in the real world are done by individuals who do know what they are doing.
Score: Worth reading
Story Name: Parasite
What is it about? In a war against a machine army, flesh and blood soldier find themselves infected by machines and fighting for the other side, until they regain control and discover how ravaged their bodies are.
Thoughts: Another nice take on the zombie theme. Another good look at what happens next.
Score: Worth reading
Final thoughts: All in all a really good coverage of the walking dead theme with only a few falling into the generic tropes.
thaydra's review against another edition
4.0
Collection of short stories about zombies- whatever form that takes for the author. As with any compilation, the stories were hit and miss for me. However, for the most part they were all really good, with some being better than others.
I got this in audio, and the readers were all mostly good as well.
I got this in audio, and the readers were all mostly good as well.
ashreec's review
2.0
The review is closer to 1.5 stars. Very few of these stories are worth reading but the ones that are, they are pretty good. There are better zombie anthologies out there.
dinosaurhorrorshow's review
3.0
I'm a big fan of anthologies and of zombies, this collection was good to quench my zombie craving. A few of the stories were memorable, creepy and really good; while others were forgettable, a bit long winded, and dull. But that's what you get when you read of collection of stories by various authors.