by Fishmuffins of Doom
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by Susanne Winnacker
Review from Fishmuffins of Doom:
It's been just over three years since Sherry and her family have been outside. In post-apocalyptic Los Angeles, they have holed up in a bomb shelter, relying on their provisions and a bike power generator to live on. Unfortunately, they discover the food has run out 2 years before predicted and they will starve to dead if they do nothing. The government told them to stay hidden until they are notified to leave, but they have heard no word yet. Sherry can't stand to see her family starve, so she and her father venture out into the world for the first time in three years to find any supplies to bring back. When they venture into a supermarket, Sherry's dad is taken by the Weepers, feral and diseased people that make her world practically uninhabitable. Sherry teams up with Joshua to safe her father and take her family to Safe Haven, the protected and fortified home he and other survivors have built for themselves.
My librarian sister recommended this book to me and practically forced me to read it. I should listen to her more often because it turned out to be really good. Sherry is an interesting protagonist. Through being trapped in a bunker for years, she has become obsessed with counting everything, everything in the bunker, the amount of days since doing anything, even the amount of minutes or seconds. This made it more realistic because it's something to do when there is nothing else to pass the time. Beyond this, she proves to be strong and brave. Consistently, she overcomes her fear of the Weepers time and time again to save her loved ones. She wasn't always completely competent in wielding weapons and such, but her heart was in the right place. The page before each chapter, a small glimpse of her life before the Weepers is provided. It starts out with fairly normal, happy experiences, but then get more and more effected by the Weeper infection. Joshua and the others at Safe Haven are fully fleshed out and varied people. Even though they come from different places and have different backgrounds, they have formed a sort of close knit family, brought together by circumstance.
The Weepers are interesting creatures who are different than the run of the of mill zombies. They aren't dead, but are savage and animalistic as a result of the rabies-like disease. Their name comes from the disease that makes their eyes leak and appear as if they are crying. Despite their appearances, they are quite intelligent. This mixed with their inhumanity make them more frightening and tougher to kill than conventional zombies. Strategy and thought process come into play instead of just mindless shuffling. Every scene with the Weepers in it is frightening and suspenseful. Some crazy revelations about them and their world come out at the end of the novel, so I hope there will be a next book.
The Other Life is an awesome book that creates a different type of zombie and has vivid characters. I even enjoyed the budding romance between Sherry and Joshua. I can't get enough of this world and I highly recommend this to any zombie fan.
My rating: 4.5/5 fishmuffins
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Guest post created for Keep Calm and Carry On: Zombie Edition event by Fishmuffins of Doom
© 2012. All rights reserved.
by Fishmuffins of Doom
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* check out this year's batch of September Zombies at Fishmuffins of Doom
* image source for Keep Calm and Carry On
