Scan barcode
A review by emrodav
Graveminder by Melissa Marr
4.0
I've never really read a zombie book before. That being said, Graveminder isn't extremely focused on being a 'zombie book.' There's no apocalypse, few mentions of flesh-eating, etc. Instead, these zombies--or the Hungry Dead--are simply people from Claysville who haven't been properly 'minded' (taken care of after their death.) I really enjoyed this take on the undead and thought Melissa Marr's world-building was very well done, especially during the passages where she describes the place most dead go to. The descriptions are amazing (even if the phrases "land of the living" and "land of the dead" are overused).
As for the plot, there isn't much of one. It's mostly Rebekkah coming to terms with the idea of being a graveminder and taking care of a problem that has arisen--the living-dead girl Daisha. The plot twist (I don't know if it's a twist really, but let's just say it is) felt overwrought and cliche, but it was resolved quickly enough that I didn't mind it too terribly much.
The characters were okay. Rebekkah gets very tedious at times, lamenting about how she can't be with Byron because of something that I suppose is a spoiler. Byron's extreme devotion and the nature of their Graveminder/Undertaker relationship was also sometimes cloyingly romantic and over-done, but it was certainly original.
So, I give Graveminder probably something more like 3.75 stars (but I'll round up because 3 stars just seems too low) because of the fresh take on the undead and the beautiful descriptions of the 'land of the dead,' but some points have to be taken away for the sloppy plot and my dislike for Rebekkah.
As for the plot, there isn't much of one. It's mostly Rebekkah coming to terms with the idea of being a graveminder and taking care of a problem that has arisen--the living-dead girl Daisha. The plot twist (I don't know if it's a twist really, but let's just say it is) felt overwrought and cliche, but it was resolved quickly enough that I didn't mind it too terribly much.
The characters were okay. Rebekkah gets very tedious at times, lamenting about how she can't be with Byron because of something that I suppose is a spoiler. Byron's extreme devotion and the nature of their Graveminder/Undertaker relationship was also sometimes cloyingly romantic and over-done, but it was certainly original.
So, I give Graveminder probably something more like 3.75 stars (but I'll round up because 3 stars just seems too low) because of the fresh take on the undead and the beautiful descriptions of the 'land of the dead,' but some points have to be taken away for the sloppy plot and my dislike for Rebekkah.