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jamieh2024's review against another edition
3.0
I have to say that finding a new author to follow is always a treat. That being said, this is not the first work of Mr. McKinney's that I have read. I actually stumbled (shambled?) across his work about a year or so ago when I took advantage of an Amazon.com promotion to get one of his ebooks for a low price. I have to say I have found some real gems by doing this on the other hand I have found some ,while trying this method,that are not at all worth the time and effort to download. Fortunately, Mr. McKinney's work is squarely placed in the former category and not the latter. He spends time fleshing out his characters and makes them matter.
Now on to the review of this particular collection. I really enjoyed revisiting Dead World in these stories. While some of the characters are ones regular readers of the series will be familiar with others are new and interesting additions to this world. Each story in the collection brings you squarely into the Dead World and I found each story entertaining. While some are perhaps more thought provoking than others, all are solid entries into the series and genre. Overall, it was perfect reading for this last week when it has been rainy, cold and wet. It brought closer to home the privations the survivors in the quarantine zone would be going through.
I have to say though that my favorite part of the entire collection is the author's story notes. The background behind the stories and the Reader's Guide to the Dead World brought me up to date on parts of the story I had missed and also gave me some more background on the series as well as guidance on the chronology of the series.
Thanks Mr. McKinney for giving me the chills so effectively!
Now on to the review of this particular collection. I really enjoyed revisiting Dead World in these stories. While some of the characters are ones regular readers of the series will be familiar with others are new and interesting additions to this world. Each story in the collection brings you squarely into the Dead World and I found each story entertaining. While some are perhaps more thought provoking than others, all are solid entries into the series and genre. Overall, it was perfect reading for this last week when it has been rainy, cold and wet. It brought closer to home the privations the survivors in the quarantine zone would be going through.
I have to say though that my favorite part of the entire collection is the author's story notes. The background behind the stories and the Reader's Guide to the Dead World brought me up to date on parts of the story I had missed and also gave me some more background on the series as well as guidance on the chronology of the series.
Thanks Mr. McKinney for giving me the chills so effectively!
git_r_read's review against another edition
5.0
I expected to like this book, but I was extremely happy to find that I loved this book! I don't always have the best luck with anthologies. Each author having a different way of handling the theme with he individual voices can be jarring. That could, in part, be why this book went so smoothly...one author one voice..no jarring...Really though it's because each story is zombie at heart, but each one is told in a different design. There is zombie future, present, past. Zombies are worldwide, but not necessarily pandemic.
Love can be found during the zombie apocalypse, power struggles abound, one story presents a survival guide and a list of supplies.
Some of the stories are longer than others, some are only a few pages. They all move quickly.
Heartily engrossing and highly recommended!
Love can be found during the zombie apocalypse, power struggles abound, one story presents a survival guide and a list of supplies.
Some of the stories are longer than others, some are only a few pages. They all move quickly.
Heartily engrossing and highly recommended!
jch2022's review against another edition
3.0
I have to say that finding a new author to follow is always a treat. That being said, this is not the first work of Mr. McKinney's that I have read. I actually stumbled (shambled?) across his work about a year or so ago when I took advantage of an Amazon.com promotion to get one of his ebooks for a low price. I have to say I have found some real gems by doing this on the other hand I have found some ,while trying this method,that are not at all worth the time and effort to download. Fortunately, Mr. McKinney's work is squarely placed in the former category and not the latter. He spends time fleshing out his characters and makes them matter.
Now on to the review of this particular collection. I really enjoyed revisiting Dead World in these stories. While some of the characters are ones regular readers of the series will be familiar with others are new and interesting additions to this world. Each story in the collection brings you squarely into the Dead World and I found each story entertaining. While some are perhaps more thought provoking than others, all are solid entries into the series and genre. Overall, it was perfect reading for this last week when it has been rainy, cold and wet. It brought closer to home the privations the survivors in the quarantine zone would be going through.
I have to say though that my favorite part of the entire collection is the author's story notes. The background behind the stories and the Reader's Guide to the Dead World brought me up to date on parts of the story I had missed and also gave me some more background on the series as well as guidance on the chronology of the series.
Thanks Mr. McKinney for giving me the chills so effectively!
Now on to the review of this particular collection. I really enjoyed revisiting Dead World in these stories. While some of the characters are ones regular readers of the series will be familiar with others are new and interesting additions to this world. Each story in the collection brings you squarely into the Dead World and I found each story entertaining. While some are perhaps more thought provoking than others, all are solid entries into the series and genre. Overall, it was perfect reading for this last week when it has been rainy, cold and wet. It brought closer to home the privations the survivors in the quarantine zone would be going through.
I have to say though that my favorite part of the entire collection is the author's story notes. The background behind the stories and the Reader's Guide to the Dead World brought me up to date on parts of the story I had missed and also gave me some more background on the series as well as guidance on the chronology of the series.
Thanks Mr. McKinney for giving me the chills so effectively!
mindym99's review against another edition
5.0
Let's face it, zombies have had their heyday and are on the wane. They've gone from being an esoteric area of genre fiction into a mainstream trope, thanks to the meteoric rise of their popularity in the past few years. I've been a fan of zombie fiction for years (I was zombie when zombie wasn't cool?) and have read every piece of zombie fiction I can get my hands on, but even I've gotten a little weary of the topic. It takes something special to stand out in the zombie arena these days, and although I enjoy Joe McKinney's work, I have to admit I wasn't expecting much from this collection of zombie short stories. I thought maybe I was going to read a collection of leftovers, scenes and shorts that had been cut from previous novels. I was pleasantly surprised. McKinney has managed to make zombies seem fresh and new again (fresh- a word not often associated with zombies) and without trying too hard. In this collection of stories he doesn't reach too far beyond the traditional zombie themes, but it feels creative nonetheless. Although I thought some were better than others, that assessment is more a matter of personal taste rather than quality of storytelling or writing. If you're a zombie fan, and particularly if you're a McKinney fan, this collection is worth a look.
caroline_carnivorous's review against another edition
4.0
I received the Advance Reader Copy for free from the author through Goodreads First Reads.
Before I get started, I just have to state: No, I do not watch Walking Dead or am especially interested in zombie apocalypse stuff. But I DO am a fan of horror. So that's what made me excited to get this book!
This is a 350-page treat for any horror fan. There are almost 20 short stories, and what I especially loved about them is that they are different. I am amazed at how McKinney can write so many different types of stories, with such detail and such.. care, that I end up caring for the characters even in that short amount of time and want to read more about them and what happens.
I have not read anything by Joe McKinney before, but I bet a fan of his would be really interested in this, as this book even includes notes on a bunch of the stories, plus the inspiration behind his other books and about the Dead World series and what order he would like you to read them in.
So if you're a horror fan, and ESPECIALLY a zombie fan, you should definitely get this book!
Before I get started, I just have to state: No, I do not watch Walking Dead or am especially interested in zombie apocalypse stuff. But I DO am a fan of horror. So that's what made me excited to get this book!
This is a 350-page treat for any horror fan. There are almost 20 short stories, and what I especially loved about them is that they are different. I am amazed at how McKinney can write so many different types of stories, with such detail and such.. care, that I end up caring for the characters even in that short amount of time and want to read more about them and what happens.
I have not read anything by Joe McKinney before, but I bet a fan of his would be really interested in this, as this book even includes notes on a bunch of the stories, plus the inspiration behind his other books and about the Dead World series and what order he would like you to read them in.
So if you're a horror fan, and ESPECIALLY a zombie fan, you should definitely get this book!
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