Book Review: "Plague Town" & "Plague Nation" (D. Fredsti)

- by V.L. Locey, 18 April 2013

I swear, you can't turn around nowadays without running into a zombie. They are everywhere! Sort of like Justin Bieber fans but far less annoying. Being an author who is privileged enough to write zombie books I'm always up to read what my fellow fans and fanciers of the undead are penning. Over the past few months I have glutted (Eww, sorry, bad choice of words there) myself on various zombie novels.

Some have been superlative (World War Z for example) and some not worth mentioning. I have become one of the millions who are now shuffling around like a snaggle-toothed zombie on Sunday nights at nine with no Walking Dead to watch.

I have been fortunate enough to hear Max Brooks speak live and in person. (Funniest hour ever spent with another author. Highly recommend catching him speak if you can.)

I've had one zom-rom-com (Zombie romantic-comedy. Yes, I know it sounds squicky, but it's not) novella published in an anthology, and have the "further adventures of...” my two guys first solo novel slated to release on May 22nd of this year from Torquere Press. So I've been up to my delicate rear in necrotizing flesh over the past year. Zombies are hot. They are hip. They are the cat's meow.

If you're into the undead then I strongly suggest you grab these books. They are everything you could want in your zombie novels and then some!

Plague Town begins the proposed trilogy of Ashley Parker novels. In which our heroine gets bitten, discovers she is a wild card (a person who for some unknown reason is immune to the zombie virus) and finds herself teaming up with other wild cards to kick zed`s desiccating rump roast.

Plague Nation picks up the tale of Ashley and her fellow wild cards as we discover the zombie virus is now spreading like proverbial wildfire. As of this review Plague World has not been released.

It`s a simple concept and one that runs pretty much through most zombie books. Hero/heroine must survive world gone mad and hopefully locate a Twinkie.

There isn`t much deviation from the norm here and that`s okay. It's a plotline that works and works well. Titan Books was sharp to grab up Dana Fredsti`s novels because they are some of the most entertaining zombie books I`ve read.

Ashley Parker is a smart and sassy leading lady that kicks all sorts of backside. She is sharp, funny as hell, a maven of pop trivia, and isn`t one to hold back on her thoughts. Her relationship with Gabriel, a man who is a rarity among the wild cards because his body has mutated the virus differently than most, is an engaging romance that grows through both books. I found myself cheering for them when they came together after a very rough, and humorous, start.

There are thrills and chills and enough gross-out action scenes to satisfy any hard-core zom fan. Mix in some hilarious dialog, sarcasm up the ying-yang, wit, and blatant nods to the well-known undead legends and what you have is a fun and action-packed book with a very unsettling center. I think it`s this lovely blend of humor, romance, gore, and gutsy characters that grabbed me. The dialog and emotion reminds me of my own two guys. (Well, aside from the fact that my stars are gay men and Ash and Gabe are straight)

No matter the sexual orientation the relationships are strong and carry the leading couple through the horrors and nightmares they are experiencing. And that core of love is what makes these books so damned good. I grew to love Ashley, Gabriel, and those who are striving to save the world and I cannot wait to get my hands on the last novel and see if this rag-tag band of wild cards can pull our keisters out of the undead fire.


"Plague Town"  and "Plague Nation" by Dana Fredsti are available for purchase on the Titan Books website.

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V.L. is a self-published and conventionally published author. Her self-published works are the "Gods & Goats" trilogy, a romantic comedy series revolving around Greek gods, rural lifestyles, and a widowed goatherder. I know, but it works, trust me.

She is also a proud Torquere Press author with several projects contracted. Her novella "Two Guys Walk Into an Apocalypse" is available now from Torquere Press in the anthology "He Loves Me For My Brainsss".

Her second zombie novel "Two Guys Walk into an Apocalypse 2: It Came from Birmingham" is set to be unleashed on the world on May 22nd, 2013 by Torquere Press.

She can be found on Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads, and anywhere Daryl Dixon has been reportedly sighted.

Tagged: books, Reviews.

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