Title: The Zombie Generation
Author: Drake Vaughn
Genre: Horror
Published: 2012
Formats: Paperback/Ebook
Available at:
Amazon
Amazon UK
Review:
"The Zombie Generation" by Drake Vaughn is an interesting take on the post-apocalyptic zombie genre. The story follows Warner, a survivor who is trying to stay alive in a world overrun by infected people whom he calls "Buggers". What makes things even worse for Warner is that he is quite clearly losing his grip on reality. He is tormented by hallucinations and is no longer sure what is actually real and what isn't.
This novel was anything but a standard zombie story, the zombies themselves were very unique with features such as an obese bodies, a love of alcohol, and the fact that they sleep in piles which can reach the height of a building. In addition, Warner's weak grasp of reality actually leads the reader on an intriguing psychological journey which I found to be just as unique as the zombies themselves. Warner's hallucinations result in him being the epitome of an unreliable narrator which kept me wondering if what was happening was actually real or not.
In regards to the characters, the book is centred around Warner and his life alone so unless you feel like an overweight, alcoholic zombie, I suspect he is the only characters that a reader can actually relate to. I felt that Vaughn has done a great job in bringing him to life as everything he does comes across as natural. His choices and actions were realistic, especially when you consider the world he has survived and how well his sanity is holding up. I actually gave a damn about him as the main characters which is something I always appreciate in a book.
My only real issue with the book is that the plot could be a little bit slow at times. This was exacerbated by some of the background information that Vaughn decided to include in the story. Don't get me wrong, I like to know about the history of a world but not when seemingly unrelated and overly detailed points cause the story to actually drag.
Overall, I did find this story entertaining enough with the rather different take on the zombie genre keeping me intrigued from start to finish. I can imagine that some people may dislike the unreliability of Warner's narrative but this is the very thing which helps give it a unique feeling.
