Book Review: Zombies Don't Cry

Author: Rusty Fischer
Publisher: Medallion Press
Release Date: May 1, 2011
Pages: 371
Read it in: 2 days

Summary: In the sleepy small town of Barracuda Bay, Maddy Swift leads the life of a fairly typical teenager, but while attending a party one night, Maddy is struck by lightning and awakens to realize she has been reanimated and turned into a zombie. While becoming acquainted with her new "lifestyle," Maddy stumbles upon two unexpected undead chaperones, fellow students Dane and Chloe, who begin to teach her the ways of zombie life, including defending the populace from Zerkers—the bad zombies. Together, on prom night, the three teens must ultimately defend Barracuda Bay High from an all-out zombie Armageddon.

LC's Take:

OK, so-- this book was pretty much fa-reaking awesome. Now, I'll be totally honest-- zombies? Not so much my fave paranormal creature (SORRY Ashley!) But this book-- the story, the characters, the dialog-- I don't know which one I liked more. Zombies Don't Cry was so much fun to read, and I'm really glad I decided to pick this one up as my first ever zombie-themed book!

Maddy Swift is just your typical high-school girl. She's not popular, but she's not an outcast, she's not gorgeous, but she's not ugly-- just an average chick, who happens to have a huge crush on Stamp, the new guy in town. That is, until the night Maddy sneaks out of the house to go to a party, gets struck by lightning, and wakes up feeling... different. Like, stone-cold, no-heartbeat kind of different.

Maddy was so funny-- her snarky attitude had me laughing throughout the entire book, and it was beyond hilarious to read about life as a teenage zombie-- who knew? Poor preppy Maddy has to turn Goth in order to hide her "zombiness" from everyone, she can't date any "Normals" (AKA living, breathing humans) meaning Stamp is out of the picture, and she can't even cry about the injustice of it all because-- zombies have no tears!

The thing I loved about this book was how Rusty Fischer actually managed to make you able to relate to zombies. They weren't your typical clumsy, lurching, brain-crazed creatures-- they actually had personalities, coherent thoughts, and a conscience (well, the good ones anyways). This is the first time I've ever seen zombies from this kind of human perspective, which was really cool. I mean, I never thought I'd actually be feeling sorry for a zombie!

The character dialog is something else I want to point out, because it rocked-- it was just done so incredibly well. I've read quite a few YA books and I don't think I've ever read dialog quite this witty and still have it come across as being natural. There was nothing contrived about it-- and I always notice when dialog sounds fake or like the author is trying too hard to sound "hip" (jeez, did i just use the word "hip?") But yeah, awesome dialog made this story that much more amazing, and I was pretty much doubled over in laughter throughout the whole thing.

All in all, this book was just so fantastically original and creative. Seriously, I can't even pick what part I loved more-- the fact that Maddie eats lamb brains chilled on ice and seasoned with spices? That there's a Zombie Guide that every Good Zombie has to follow? (not to be confused with the Zerkers!! They're the BAD zombies that eat human brains!) That Stamp AND Dane were the cutest guys ever and I completely felt Maddie's pain in having to choose between the two? Yeah, total win right here. The only one **small** thing I would bring up for the faint-of-heart is the gross-out factor-- I know, I know, I can be such a wimp, but be prepared for lots o' gore if you read this one.  Otherwise, all I have to say is: Read this book. Like, now. Like, really. It was amazing. You are gonna love it, I promise!

LC's Rating:

This book was so much fun to read! The story line was absolutely brilliant, the characters were interesting, and the author's sense of humor had me laughing out loud. This is a MUST for any zombie fan out there, and a great pick for everyone else who loves a quick, fun read that you cannot put down!