REVIEW: Zombie Ohio by: Scott Kenemore
Kenemore has a way of hitting it out of the ballpark. His novels are always both smart and entertaining, each one a gem in it’s own right that are perfect additions to my collection of zombie novels. Maybe it’s because I have a twisted sense of humor, maybe it’s because Scott is from Chicago, or maybe his writing really is just that entertaining but he is one of the few authors I almost always add to my suggestion lists for those looking for a new zombie book. With Zombie Ohio Scott mixes horror with my second favorite genre for reading – the murder mystery.
Plot: I’m sure it’s safe to say that you can guess that the novel itself takes place in Ohio. The story focuses on Peter Mellor, a regular college professor who happens to get into an unfortunate car accident. It’s unfortunate because Peter actually ends up dying in the accident – he just doesn’t realize it. When Peter comes back to life he is able to think, to reason, to speak. Clearly he isn’t one of the undead and he has no reason to think that he is right off the bat. Oh is he in for a surprise! Trying to reconnect with his girlfriend and regular life as one of the undead isn’t going to work quite as he’s hoping it will.
While he’s working on trying to put together the missing pieces from his memory, finding out he’s one of the undead, and reconnect with his friends and girlfriend all hell breaks loose. Peter realizes not only that he is dead but that he’s been killed. Zombies are on the rise and he has to avoid redneck and military alike as he tries to put together who killed him. It is fun to see that Scott brings out the fall of humanity into depravity that is such a strong factor in many zombie novels and something you would think may not fit the tone of this book but is the perfect (and realistic) addition that I’m happy he does. Oh, and for you gore fans out there – nothing to worry about! Zombie Ohio gets a bit graphic when needed.
Writing:
Scott’s writing is playful and sprinkled with dark humor throughout all of his novels and this one is no different! He does a great job at developing his main characters and drawing you into the story with the perfect mixture of a good plot, well developed characters, and an interesting tale. I love the mix of a murder mystery with zombies and feel it’s a trend that should be continued (if not still fully sold on intelligent zombies.) The world that has been created is a good mix of modern America and a bit of a post-apocalyptic setting that shows how easily parts of our ordered chaos truly breaks down without rules. If you enjoy Scott’s style (which we do!) you’ll be instantly drawn in and want to keep reading without putting the book down!
Overall:
I’m a bit biased. As I mentioned in the beginning of this article Scott’s books are often the ones that stand out on my suggestion lists. While I’m still unsure of this whole intelligent zombie theme that keeps coming up, Scott has once again delivered a great book that’s worth picking up!
Available from Amazon!
