ARC Review: The Infects by Sean Beaudoin

Publisher:  Candlewick Press

Publication Date:  September 25th, 2012

A feast for the brain, this gory and genuinely hilarious take on zombie culture simultaneously skewers, pays tribute to, and elevates the horror genre.

Seventeen-year-old Nero is stuck in the wilderness with a bunch of other juvenile delinquents on an “Inward Trek.” As if that weren’t bad enough, his counselors have turned into flesh-eating maniacs overnight and are now chowing down on his fellow miscreants. As in any classic monster flick worth its salted popcorn, plentiful carnage sends survivors rabbiting into the woods while the mindless horde of “infects” shambles, moans, and drools behind. Of course, these kids have seen zombie movies. They generate “Zombie Rules” almost as quickly as cheeky remarks, but attitude alone can’t keep the biters back.

Serving up a cast of irreverent, slightly twisted characters, an unexpected villain, and an ending you won’t see coming, here is a savvy tale that that’s a delight to read—whether you’re a rabid zombie fan or freshly bitten—and an incisive commentary on the evil that lurks within each of us.

(Courtesy of Goodreads)

FINALLY!  A real, true, blood-and-gore, zombie book!  The zombies are actually the ones of lore!  You know?  The shambling, mindless, human flesh-eating, living-dead?  You know?  You get bitten and you become one?  As a firm and unwavering member of Team Zombie, I have to say that this book rocked!  It is all of the aforementioned, but it is also SO much more!  Where do I even start?  How about with my favorite part of The Infects... 

• Characters:  This book had some really awesome ones!  Actually, there are too many great ones to detail in this review, but I will touch on my absolute favorites... First, there is Nick/Nero.  This dude rules.  He is a reluctant hero; a guy who is SO much cooler than he thinks he is.  He is smart, funny, and quick on the uptake, but the best part of Nick/Nero is the voice inside his head.  It's The Rock, people!  You know, Dwayne Johnson, the hot-stuff wrestler-turned-actor?  And he was funny!  Then, of course, there were the other Inward Trek guys; they had nicknames like Heavy D, Idle and Billy, Estrada, and Tripper, just to name a few.  Each one had his own gigantic personality, often providing comic relief, or at the very least, a victim for the zombies to dine on.  Add to the guys, a camp of Inward Trek girls with similarly sized personalities, and you have a recipe for some seriously awesome banter to go along with the flesh eating.  I also loved Nick/Nero's little sister Amanda, who has Asperger's and is a kick-ass video game savant.  She added an element of humanity to the story, and although it wasn't necessarily needed, it was a nice touch.  Then there was the book's antagonist, Win Fuld.  He's the type of guy you love to hate!  The author's description of him made my stomach turn, he was so repulsive, but in a fun way! :-)
• The World:  What better place to fight zombies than in a mountain wilderness.  There are plenty of dark places for the undead to hide, and very few other people for them to eat.  A bunch of kids on a character building trek?  Perfect targets.  And what if they happen to stumble upon a ridiculous hunting lodge at the top of the mountain, and it were full of girls?  Bonus!  The world was great.  A perfect setting for this story!
• The Plot:  Evil corporations? Check.  Zombies created from fast-food?  Check.  Government/Corporate cover-ups?  Check.  Zombie/human romantic arc?  Check.  Witty humor?  Check.  Blood, guts, and gore?  Check.  This story was great.  Not only did it have great plot points and fantastic pacing, but it had so many laughs.  The chapter names were fantastic, as were the nicknames.  There were also many extras that enhanced the story like the obvious, yet still fun to read, "Zombrules" scattered throughout,  the police incident reports pertaining to most of the Inward Trek guys, a Fresh Bukket takeout menu, and my favorite, the interview with a zombie expert at the end of the book.  This is a story made up of lots of little things, assembled in a way that makes for a really awesome ride!

Overall, I have to highly recommend this book to anyone who likes zombie books.  Even if you aren't on Team Zombie, if you like to laugh, and enjoy subtle humor and/or pop-culture references, you should give this one a go.  As I closed this book, I had an intense feeling of satisfaction that I rarely have upon finishing a book.  I have to put this up there as one of my biggest "Surprise! I'm an awesome book!" books of 2012.  Bravo, Sean Beaudoin!  I am looking forward to reading more of what you have to offer!

My Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★  

Grade Level Recommendation:  This book is very graphically violent (duh!).  There is also a bit of profanity, many lewd remarks, and references to sexual acts and encounters.  I would say this book is best for grades 8 and up (ages 13+), and generally speaking, would appeal more to boys than girls. 

**Don't forget to enter my GIVEAWAY for a SIGNED copy of Lauren Oliver's fabulous new book, THE SPINDLERS! Click HERE to enter! US/CAN. Ends 10/20/2012.**

ARC Review: This Is Not a Test by Courtney Summers

Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin

Publication Date: June 19th, 2012

It’s the end of the world. Six students have taken cover in Cortege High but shelter is little comfort when the dead outside won’t stop pounding on the doors. One bite is all it takes to kill a person and bring them back as a monstrous version of their former self.

To Sloane Price, that doesn’t sound so bad. Six months ago, her world collapsed and since then, she’s failed to find a reason to keep going. Now seems like the perfect time to give up. As Sloane eagerly waits for the barricades to fall, she’s forced to witness the apocalypse through the eyes of five people who actually want to live.

But as the days crawl by, the motivations for survival change in startling ways and soon the group’s fate is determined less and less by what’s happening outside and more and more by the unpredictable and violent bids for life—and death—inside. 

When everything is gone, what do you hold on to?

(Courtesy of Goodreads)

This book has gotten some seriously rave reviews! Every time I turn around, one of my blogger peers is gushing over This Is Not a Test. Between that and the fact that this book involves zombie apocalypse, I was sold; I definitely went into to reading it with high expectations. I was forewarned that although this book was an end-of-the-world story, complete with a zombie invasion, that it was actually NOT a zombie story. I have to admit that I was a bit disappointed when I heard that; I was really looking forward to loads of action and hard-core fighting-zombies-in-order-to-preserve-the-human-race stuff. Still, I went on to read it, and while I can't necessarily say I enjoyed it, I did think it was very well done.

There are a few parts of the book that involve some of the aforementioned (zombie fighting and action), but this story was more about the protagonist, Sloane, coming to terms with the abuse she suffered at the hands of her father, the loss of her older sister, the desire to escape it all, and her internal struggle over whether or not her feelings have changed now that her circumstances have. Holed up in a school with five other kids her age, Sloane doesn't know if she wants to go on, but she knows that if she offs herself, she puts the others at risk, and so the struggle goes. This book primarily takes place inside Sloane's head, and I have to say that she is a piece of work- I'm still undecided on whether or not I liked her. I know she is damaged, so I never faulted her for her lack of likability, but I couldn't connect with her either. As for the other characters, I didn't really find most of them very likable either. Rhys was alright, and he seemed to really care for Sloane, but he was so guarded. Grace had her kindness to redeem her somewhat, but her spinelessness when it came to her brother pretty much cancelled that out. Cary seemed to at least have a survival instinct that was much more developed than any of the others, and was probably the reason they made it as far as they did, but he knew it and didn't hesitate to remind everyone at every opportunity. Trace was a total douche and Harrison was absolutely worthless. Since I have kind of a hard time with books that don't involve people I like, I a bit struggled with This Is Not a Test. As for the story, it was very well written. The emotions came through the pages in a very real, very raw way. I actually had to pick up a different book than I intended after reading this because I needed something light; this book really gutted me at times. I felt kind of depressed and hopeless after reading it, and that didn't sit well with me.

Overall, while I think this book definitely has a large audience who will love it, I just didn't. I read for escape, and this book didn't do that for me. That said, I will admit that it was extremely well written, and I loved that it was a totally unique take on the woe-is-me-let-me-come-to-terms-with-myself YA Contemporary, I just didn't feel good after reading it...

My Rating: ★ ★ ★ ½

Grade Level Recommendation: This book is really heavy emotionally. There is also some sex, teen drinking, lots of language, and violence. I would say this book is most appropriate for grades 9 and up (ages 14+).

Review: Bad Taste In Boys by Carrie Harris

Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers

Publication Date: July 12th, 2012

Someone's been a very bad zombie.
Kate Grable is horrified to find out that the football coach has given the team steroids. Worse yet, the steriods are having an unexpected effect, turning hot gridiron hunks into mindless flesh-eating zombies. No one is safe--not her cute crush Aaron, not her dorky brother, Jonah . . . not even Kate! She's got to find an antidote--before her entire high school ends up eating each other. So Kate, her best girlfriend, Rocky, and Aaron stage a frantic battle to save their town  . . . and stay hormonally human.

(Courtesy of Goodreads)

Okay, so I am firmly Team Zombie (if you don't know what I'm talking about, go read the fantabulous Zombies Vs. Unicorns); they are probably near the top of  my list of favorite paranormal creatures.  When a new YA about zombies comes out, I am always eager to read it.  When I saw this book, I had a double urge to read it because of the cover.  It's awesome.  

Carrie Harris is a 2011 debut author, so I didn't have much by way of expectations, but I decided to give it a go because of the aforementioned reasons, plus the authors that blurbed this book are awesome!  You can't go wrong when the fabulous Andrea Cremer (Nightshade, Wolfsbane), Kiersten White (Paranormalcy, Supernaturally), and Jeri Smith-Ready (Shade, Shift) all give a book positive, gushing reviews like these:

"With this laughing, shrieking riot of a debut, Carrie Harris captured my heart...and my braaaaiins." -Andrea Cremer

"Kate Grable is my new hero. Thanks to Harris's darkly funny, twisted, and sexy tale of high school drama gone un-deadly wrong, I know who I'm calling during the next zombie apocalypse. Science nerds have never been so cool." -Kiersten White

"BAD TASTE IN BOYS is a nonstop romp, with more mayhem than a mall full of mocha-chugging monkeys. I loved watching Kate try to keep her sensible, scientific head amidst rampaging zombies and amorous football players (often the same people). Bring me my next dose of Carrie Harris NOW!" -Jeri Smith-Ready

So, I read it and I really, really liked it.  I liked Kate, the main character A LOT.  She was smart, nerdy, driven, angsty, and best of all, funny!  The supporting characters were great too.  Carrie did a great job with her descriptions, and I could totally picture her lame-ish/awesome brother with his foam sword, her swoon-worthy love interest, her troglodyte-ish football player/zombie ex, the takes-it-a-bit-too-seriously football coach, and her bubbly BFF.  

I laughed many times throughout this book, and am still kind of smirking as I write this review.  The book was an easy read; the plot moved quickly and there was lots of action to go with the laughs.  I loved that Kate is a normal teenage girl with teenagey things on her mind (boys, homework, fitting in), while still managing to be a little different from the norm.  There were a few holes, and a few parts felt a tiny bit rushed, but overall I thought it was really well done.  

Carrie's next book in this series, Bad Hair Day, comes out November 13th, 2012 and I will definitely be reading it for Shanyn over at Chick Loves Lit's Sophomore Reading Challenge.

My Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ 

Grade Level Recommendation:  Pretty mild.  Standard zombie stuff (killing and eating of humans, appendages falling off, etc.).  A couple of make-outs mentioned.  Teen drinking.  Overall though, I think Kate is a great role-model, so I would say this book is fine for grades 7 and up (ages 12+).