Review: EVE BRENNER, ZOMBIE GIRL by A. Giacomi

Hail, blogketeers!  As you know from my guest policy (you have read my guest policy, right?) I'm not accepting review requests at this time, and I don't really read books quickly enough to ever turn this into a review blog.  That being said, I do owe favors all around town, so from time to time I do actually review books, and, when they're particularly deserving, crosspost to the blog.  A. Giacomi is a stellar new talent, not to mention a downright decent human being, and I really hope you'll check out her debut.

 



About EVE BRENNER: ZOMBIE GIRL

Eve used to be an ordinary girl, from an ordinary town, with ordinary dreams, but her dreams rapidly turn into nightmares when one grave mistake leaves her a little less than human and a lot less average.

Eve’s not quite the same girl she used to be. She desperately clings to her humanity as new desires, new abilities, and new urges take over with each passing day.

Eve Brenner: Zombie Girl is a tale that takes you on an emotional and terrifying journey as Eve struggles to cope with her new life and find a cure for her strange illness before time runs out. She desperately clings to her humanity as she tries to control the monster she knows is lurking inside her.

Turns out living was the easy part.

Purchase it on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Smashwords, and Kobo.

Review

I was delighted to receive an advanced reader's copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

Equal parts sexy and gory, hilarious and heartwrenching, EVE BRENNER: ZOMBIE GIRL is an astonishing debut.  I can think of little to compare it to outside of Stuart Gordon's film version of Lovecraft's RE-ANIMATOR.

It's rare to read a debut novel written with such confidence, not to mention such momentum.  EVE BRENNER covers a lot of ground: geographically from small-town Canada to the Egyptian ruins and back again, and emotionally from a tight-knit trio starting college together to total zombie pandemonium.

The story begins as our eponymous heroine is learning about ancient Egyptian anthropology and stumbles upon a taboo gravesite, where she is infected after a strange scuffle.  For our characters, Eve's new condition is a mystery, though I don't think it's a spoiler to say that the audience will have guessed from the third word of the title what Eve has become.

And from a beginning so well-trodden as to be almost a cliché, EVE BRENNER takes a hard left turn deep into undiscovered territory.  Combining elements of the zombie, mummy, werewolf, and vampire mythoses, Eve is nevertheless a unique monster.  She and her best friends from childhood, Cameron and Alex, must come to grips with Eve's burgeoning bloodlust as they are also learning the ropes of college and adulthood.  

The classic coming-of-age tale and questioning of childhood relationships that comes with that territory is thrown on its ear when your childhood friend turns into a bloodthirsty monster.  Cameron's long unrequited crush on Eve suddenly becomes a dangerous, potentially lethal liability.  Eve's hiking trip to Lover's Lane one night (easily the highlight of the book for me) turns from an abortive ménage a trois into an orgy of violence.  This book is packed with love bites that lead into braineating, soft caresses that end with rending flesh, and romantic rivalries that turn into one-armed chainsaw duels.  Giacomi has truly accomplished a feat with this novel and, as I said, I can't think of anything else quite like it.

I'm eager to gobble down the next three books in this promising new series.  EVE BRENNER is a great book and Eve Brenner is a great character.  I'm terrified to admit I've fallen in love with both, especially knowing what happens to everyone who falls in love with the zombie girl...

About A. Giacomi

A. Giacomi is the author of the wildly entertaining Zombie Girl Saga, a four part series from Permuted Press. Eve Brenner: Zombie Girl is A. Giacomi's debut novel. You can catch the latest updates about her writing on her blog.

A. Giacomi is a wife, and mother to one small human child. She is a Canadian born writer, educator, and artist. She proudly waves her York University Alumni flag and continues to thirst for knowledge and devour books. She is a zombie enthusiast, lover of all things Tim Burton, Shakespeare, Jane Austen, Marvel, Star Wars and just generally just loves film, essentially she's a fangirl.

You can follow her on Twitter, Facebook, and her blog.