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3.69 AVERAGE
3.69 AVERAGE
Roberta is the new kid in school and hates it with every fiber of her being. She doesn't know anyone and just gets made fun of for sounding American. Her class is coming home from a ski field trip and they stop in a small Scottish town to have lunch in a cafe. Roberta decides to stay in the bus to escape her classmates. Lucky for her she completely avoids the ensuing zombie apocalypse. Her classmates, teachers, and random bystanders all collapse and then get up to eat living flesh. The only ones exempt are her, Smitty the rebellious troublemaker, Alice the cruel and popular queen bee, and Pete the very pale and unpopular nerd. Although they pretty much despise each other in normal life, they have to put aside their differences and band together to survive.
Undead is a fun zombie adventure, kind of like The Breakfast Club meets Night of the Living Dead. A bunch of teenagers that would never, ever spend time together in real life are thrown together and have to work together to live. Each of the characters can basically fit into a typical high school stereotype, but over the course of the book, they prove to be much more. Roberta spends a lot of time being angsty over her life. Some of her lamenting is legitimate, but it does get tiresome after a while. The zombie outbreak brings out a bravery and strength in her that she didn't even know she had. Smitty, although an annoying bad boy, proves to be self sacrificing and good at heart. Alice is a horribly annoying queen bee whose snide and insulting comments flow freely. Just because the world might be ending doesn't mean she's going to magically turn into a nice person, but she does come to feel some loyalty to their little survival group. Pete is very brainy and shy, but he gets to come out of his shell, really get to know the people around him, and put his knowledge to good use. Each character shows their true colors and is allowed to break out of the social constructs of high school.
The novel has a good mix of humor and horror. The teens provide the humor with their scathing or silly comments and quips. The horror comes with the zombies and with other people. The incubation period for the virus varies greatly from seconds to hours, so it's hard to tell who is infected and who isn't. The bus driver helped them multiple times and fell into unconsciousness only to rise and try to eat them a little later. Random people keep backstabbing them and trying to lock them up for mysterious reasons, so the danger doesn't rest solely on zombies. These zombies are slow and constantly shuffling towards their prey. Their entire class turned into zombies plus everyone in the surrounding area that drank the zombie veggie juice. The big climactic zombie attack at the end is heartpounding and edge-of-your-seat exciting.
Undead is a super fun, entertaining, and exciting zombie read. I like how the people behind the zombie virus was revealed in the end and how it tied to our intrepid heroes. The only things I didn't like were the ending and the book cover. The ending felt very abrupt and was a cheap cliffhanger, which is frankly overused in YA books. The cover doesn't have a whole lot to with the book, seeing as there are no cheerleaders, and the tagline "Die young, stay hungry" doesn't really make sense. I will be picking up the next book, Unfed.
Undead is a fun zombie adventure, kind of like The Breakfast Club meets Night of the Living Dead. A bunch of teenagers that would never, ever spend time together in real life are thrown together and have to work together to live. Each of the characters can basically fit into a typical high school stereotype, but over the course of the book, they prove to be much more. Roberta spends a lot of time being angsty over her life. Some of her lamenting is legitimate, but it does get tiresome after a while. The zombie outbreak brings out a bravery and strength in her that she didn't even know she had. Smitty, although an annoying bad boy, proves to be self sacrificing and good at heart. Alice is a horribly annoying queen bee whose snide and insulting comments flow freely. Just because the world might be ending doesn't mean she's going to magically turn into a nice person, but she does come to feel some loyalty to their little survival group. Pete is very brainy and shy, but he gets to come out of his shell, really get to know the people around him, and put his knowledge to good use. Each character shows their true colors and is allowed to break out of the social constructs of high school.
The novel has a good mix of humor and horror. The teens provide the humor with their scathing or silly comments and quips. The horror comes with the zombies and with other people. The incubation period for the virus varies greatly from seconds to hours, so it's hard to tell who is infected and who isn't. The bus driver helped them multiple times and fell into unconsciousness only to rise and try to eat them a little later. Random people keep backstabbing them and trying to lock them up for mysterious reasons, so the danger doesn't rest solely on zombies. These zombies are slow and constantly shuffling towards their prey. Their entire class turned into zombies plus everyone in the surrounding area that drank the zombie veggie juice. The big climactic zombie attack at the end is heartpounding and edge-of-your-seat exciting.
Undead is a super fun, entertaining, and exciting zombie read. I like how the people behind the zombie virus was revealed in the end and how it tied to our intrepid heroes. The only things I didn't like were the ending and the book cover. The ending felt very abrupt and was a cheap cliffhanger, which is frankly overused in YA books. The cover doesn't have a whole lot to with the book, seeing as there are no cheerleaders, and the tagline "Die young, stay hungry" doesn't really make sense. I will be picking up the next book, Unfed.
I finished this book last night. Even though I started it yesterday morning. I finished it way too fast. But it was a lot better than I expected. From the synopsis, I kind of expected it to be really kind of a joke? Not sure why, that's just the vibe I got from it. But it was actually a really dorky, interesting, and surprising book. I really liked it! I absolutely love Smitty. So much. I want a Smitty.
It was a thoroughly fun and entertaining read. I only had a few gripes with it. A few gripes I hade. I thought Smitty would grow on me but he never does, he never grows as a character or demonstrates any redeeming qualities. It was a pretty massive leap to have Bobby’s mom be one of the progenitors of the zombie “stimulant”. I assumed the corporation planned for her to be a test subject but the extras on the ebook version make it very clear that this was actually unintentional. So there’s that.
Regardless it was a fun read for fans of the zombie genre.
Regardless it was a fun read for fans of the zombie genre.
I was quite drawn into this book. After the first couple chapters, I thought I was going to put it down and forget about it, but I rather enjoyed this one and just wanted to keep reading and reading. I now want to go find the sequel to find out what's going to happen next.
it's cool I liked it
I had a good time with this book.
I had a good time with this book.
Undead is like a rollercoaster: once it starts you can't stop. I really enjoyed it overall. It kinda felt like watching a SyFy original movie or a B horror movie. Bobby was a solid heroine and she was the perfect protagonist for this type of book and Smitty was an awesome side kick and my favorite character of the book.
I thought some elements of the books were a bit silly (like how the zombies became zombies), but I felt that was just another lovable aspect of the book. It doesn't take itself too seriously and it's a good book to read if you're looking for something light.
I thought some elements of the books were a bit silly (like how the zombies became zombies), but I felt that was just another lovable aspect of the book. It doesn't take itself too seriously and it's a good book to read if you're looking for something light.
I was really unsure about reading this book; I thought it looked weird or random, and to be honest it was! But it was great. It's such a light-hearted funny book that it's hard NoT to enjoy it. I recommend to all, especially if you feel like you need cheering up :)
Bobby was never keen on the class ski trip anyway, but her mother thought it would be a good idea. After living in the states for a number of years, their return to England has left her feeling out of whack as the new girl who doesn't quite fit in. They stop at a remote cafe for dinner but Bobby decides hanging out on the bus would be better than joining her classmates for another round of meal time teasing. And boy is she right! Before long, all of Bobby's fellow students - with a few exceptions - have become literal mindless zombies ready to chow down on the few remaining living.
It's no secret that I love a good fun read. That's exactly what Kirsty McKay's books are: fun times with zombies. A school trip, a zombie outbreak in the middle of nowhere, zombie kills with snowboards, a creepy castle, and a super fun conspiracy, what's not to love?
Sure it's all teen. The characters are a little cliche: the new girl, the bad boy, the smart kid, and the popular girl. And of course this is a pretty typical zombie outbreak story when it comes down to it. But McKay has a snarky way of writing and I was in the mood for exactly this kind of book this week - fast, easy, gory zombie horror.
It's no secret that I love a good fun read. That's exactly what Kirsty McKay's books are: fun times with zombies. A school trip, a zombie outbreak in the middle of nowhere, zombie kills with snowboards, a creepy castle, and a super fun conspiracy, what's not to love?
Sure it's all teen. The characters are a little cliche: the new girl, the bad boy, the smart kid, and the popular girl. And of course this is a pretty typical zombie outbreak story when it comes down to it. But McKay has a snarky way of writing and I was in the mood for exactly this kind of book this week - fast, easy, gory zombie horror.
A great new take on the zombie story line. I loved the humor and fast pacing. Funny and gory- can't wait for the sequel.
Die deutsche Rezension findet ihr hier.
3.5
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Bobby thought that it could not get any worse. Against her will, she is back in the UK and instead of starting school right away she has to go on a class trip with all those kids she does not know. When they are finally on their way back, the unexpected happens: Bobby’s classmates drop down dead and her teacher comes back as a zombie. For now she barricades herself into the bus with three others: Smitty, the stereotypical rebel, Alice, who definitely earned herself the title “Barbie” and Pete, who is rather shy and the brains of the group. Together they try to find a way to get help, but that is more difficult than they thought. Mr. Taylor is not the only one who returned from the dead …
“Undead” starts instantly. At first, we get to know Bobby, who would like to be anywhere but here, but then she is on the run from zombies. Boredom really is not something you could blame the book for; the characters barely get time to catch their breath. They need to try to find help and if they want to escape the zombies, they need to keep moving. This is what they do, though not always in a way I expected them to.
The thing is: the book is full of stereotypes. It is the traditional horror story with the, pardon my English, annoying chick, the cool guy, the nerd and the uncomplicated heroine. The only one missing was the clown, but you could debate about whether he really does not appear or whether he does.
The story itself is nothing new. In fact, I was surprised when the author started to explain the zombie situation. I really did not expect that and had been willing to accept the apocalypse as it was, without any explanations. On the other hand, without some background information there would be no link to the next book; however, this link is – together with the amusing ending – well established.
After all, there do not have to be many new things to write an entertaining story and that is what Kirsty McKay managed to do. The mix of killing zombies, horror and humour is fun, and I did not expect anything else from this book.
When it comes to the language, it is more a case of “someone tried to sound youthfully casual a little bit too hard”. The book sounds as if Bobby is telling us right now what happened. Might be that I am already too old with my once 20 years of age, but sometimes it was simply too much. Still, most of the time I was not put off and it would not be the first time I was surprised about how some people talk.
“Undead” offers nothing new but solid entertainment with fun and horror. If you are up to blood and gallows humour, you do not make a mistake by reading this book. The youthful style suits the protagonist and makes it sound as if you are told the story instead of reading it, but sometimes it is a little bit too much of effort.
3.5
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Bobby thought that it could not get any worse. Against her will, she is back in the UK and instead of starting school right away she has to go on a class trip with all those kids she does not know. When they are finally on their way back, the unexpected happens: Bobby’s classmates drop down dead and her teacher comes back as a zombie. For now she barricades herself into the bus with three others: Smitty, the stereotypical rebel, Alice, who definitely earned herself the title “Barbie” and Pete, who is rather shy and the brains of the group. Together they try to find a way to get help, but that is more difficult than they thought. Mr. Taylor is not the only one who returned from the dead …
“Undead” starts instantly. At first, we get to know Bobby, who would like to be anywhere but here, but then she is on the run from zombies. Boredom really is not something you could blame the book for; the characters barely get time to catch their breath. They need to try to find help and if they want to escape the zombies, they need to keep moving. This is what they do, though not always in a way I expected them to.
The thing is: the book is full of stereotypes. It is the traditional horror story with the, pardon my English, annoying chick, the cool guy, the nerd and the uncomplicated heroine. The only one missing was the clown, but you could debate about whether he really does not appear or whether he does.
The story itself is nothing new. In fact, I was surprised when the author started to explain the zombie situation. I really did not expect that and had been willing to accept the apocalypse as it was, without any explanations. On the other hand, without some background information there would be no link to the next book; however, this link is – together with the amusing ending – well established.
After all, there do not have to be many new things to write an entertaining story and that is what Kirsty McKay managed to do. The mix of killing zombies, horror and humour is fun, and I did not expect anything else from this book.
When it comes to the language, it is more a case of “someone tried to sound youthfully casual a little bit too hard”. The book sounds as if Bobby is telling us right now what happened. Might be that I am already too old with my once 20 years of age, but sometimes it was simply too much. Still, most of the time I was not put off and it would not be the first time I was surprised about how some people talk.
“Undead” offers nothing new but solid entertainment with fun and horror. If you are up to blood and gallows humour, you do not make a mistake by reading this book. The youthful style suits the protagonist and makes it sound as if you are told the story instead of reading it, but sometimes it is a little bit too much of effort.