Monster and Book Guest Post ~ Zombies with Lillian

I had an idea of doing a guest post during the month of October so I asked a few of my friends from COYER what is their favorite Monster is (some are not so scary) and what book they read that they loved that associated with the Monster they picked. The answers are great and the recommendation are even better! Enjoy!

The Monster & The Book

Why I Like Zombies:

Zombies have always, ALWAYS scared the living daylights out of me!! I don’t know what it is about the living dead that freaks me out most: the fact that they eat you or the fact that they are literally the dead walking. I first became engrossed with zombies as a kid when I read the first book in the classic Goosebumps series by RL Stine, Welcome to Dead House. That particular book kept me up at night for weeks and I dreaded going to sleep for fear that another kid would eat me!!!

Now I can’t resist a good zombie story. Whether that be watching The Walking Dead on TV or reading a good book, I find myself drawn to the gore and sheer horror of a dead human being chasing a living one to eat them. One of my favorite zombie series to date is by author Tracey Ward and – BONUS – it’s actually three separate series: Quarantined, Survival, and Rising. My favorite book from this series remains the very first one Until the End.

Synopsis of Book:

Goodreads

An outbreak of The Fever has taken hold of Portland, Oregon, bringing the population to its knees. The Fever spreads and kills quickly, but the dead aren’t staying dead.

When her neighbor, Jordan, saves her from one of the infected, Alissa joins him in his plan to escape the city, the disease and the threat of a quarantine that will lock the living in with the undead.

What she doesn’t tell him is that she has an illness of her own, one that plays tricks with her mind and makes her a dangerous companion. But Jordan has a secret as well, one that compels him to keep Alissa, a veritable stranger, safe at all costs.

As they fight for their lives and race for their freedom, they’ll discover that what they truly need in order to survive is to stay together until the end.

*The Quarantined Series is followed by the Survival Series, a spinoff trilogy of books chronicling life 10 years after the outbreak with a few familiar faces…

Review:

Until the End by Tracey Ward is, in my humble opinion, one of the best zombie stories I’ve read to date. The book begins with Alissa, a not-so-normal, twenty year old college student who after attending a therapy session returns to her dorm to find it ransacked and one of her roommates eating the other one in their shared bathroom. Hearing her screams, her neighbor Jordan runs in and saves her. Together they decide to leave Portland and a crazy journey begins.

I seriously loved these characters! Alissa, at the age of 16, found her mother after she had killed herself by a bullet in the head. After this event, her uncle Syd forced her to attend therapy and because she hears/sees things that aren’t there she is also on medication. Unfortunately for her, what she usually sees/hears is now reality. The dead are walking and want to eat the living. I found Alissa to be a survivor in every sense of the word. She is strong-willed, determined, and a fighter. She’s also loyal, and by all rights scared to death of what will happen when her meds run out. But this doesn’t stop her.

She asks Jordan to accompany her out of the city to her Uncle’s place, where “the Fever” hasn’t spread. Jordan is young, athletic, and a bit of a conspiracy theorist or at the very least a zombie/game enthusiast. Jordan has an uncanny knowledge about the zombies, how it’s spread, how to escape it, and how to fight. He becomes Alissa’s rock and who she looks to as the world falls apart around them. I really love Jordan. He’s stoic, determined, just as stubborn as Alissa, but also lighthearted and tries to cheer her up when he can. He’s determined to make sure he saves Alissa from this new world and keep her safe.

“The Fever” as it is dubbed in the book is unique from other zombie stories I’ve read. The zombies aren’t slow, instead they are freakishly fast until they use up their own blood supply, then they are slow like all the other zombies out there. Personally the fast zombies freak me out!!! There’s not much to stop them as they are both fast and strong. The characters can only hope they come across the slow ones.

AND the chemistry between Alyssa and Jordan is HOT! Both are from completely different worlds and are now thrown together by chance or fate to fight their way out of Portland. Both have a unique sense of humor, very dark humor! They rely on each other and become very close. Sharing in each other’s fears and dreams, I love the way the author depicted the slow falling in love of these characters.

I loved the whole thing, from start to finish, every word. It’s just that awesome! Told from Alissa’s POV, I felt her emotions as I read (which is awesome from a reader’s standpoint). The suspense as they fight their way out of Portland, the ironic dark humor of the characters, and the slow romance make for a quick easy read. The ending isn’t exactly cliffhanger, but it left me wanting more so badly that I went and bought book two immediately! So if you like suspense, horror with not too much gore (but who am I kidding? It’s zombies, there’s gore!), and a little romance, this book is for you!

About the Guest

Thanks for stopping by to check out A Monster and A Book!

Have a fantastic day!

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