The Infects

{ I received this as an ebook ARC from NetGalley. Review originally posted on my blog, PidginPea's Book Nook. }

This one was not for me. With bizarre plot twists, generic minor characters, and a writing style that was more off-putting than intriguing, this was actually a chore to get through. I gave it 2 stars because I did keep reading just see how strange it got, which I guess may have been the author's intention? I don't know.

On top of all that, there were major formatting issues in my ARC. (Seems like a lot of other ARC readers had this issue too.) Symbols and random letters would show up in the middle of words or in place of other letters; sometimes I could decipher it, but there were some words where I had absolutely no idea what was actually written. I'm sure none of this is an issue in the final version. But it did make it harder to read a book I was already not enjoying.

I'm sure there are lots of readers who would enjoy this book and the author's style (and the graphic zombie feasts). Unfortunately, I'm not one of them. ( )

It took me forever to get into this book and I'm not sure why because once I stuck to it this turned out to be a oretty good read. Yes, Zombies are the new vampires and I'm a bit jaded on that (perhaps that was my delay in reading, or maybe it was that the pace took a little bit to pick up) but this still stands apart as a fairly fresh black comedy take on the genre. Good fun for young adults or young at heart adults. ( )

Strong & irreverent start. I loved it. But the ending fizzled out in a confusing nihilistic phffttt. Like a burst balloon for me. Couldn't tell if it's because the author has ADHD or if there's a sequel planned, hopefully the latter. ( )

The Infects
By: Sean Beaudoin
Genre: YA Zombie-A-pocilypse
Pub Date: Sept. 25, 2012
Rating: PG-13 for all sorts of awesome, I won’t be able to eat for a week, gore
Coffee Beans: A solid 3.5
Spoilers: No
Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for this honest review (Oh, and don’t read this book while eating. Trust me.)

First Line: “The neighborhood was trashed, funeral pyres in the distance burning against a raw pink sky.”
Favorite Line: “Duff was an ancient janitor who had been at Rebozzo’s since before the Romans invented aqueducts. He’d probably ridden out the Flood in his mop bucket.” (ebook, pf 32)
Cover Appeal: I like it
Instalove Factor: None present
Personal Recommendation: Worth the read. If you’re into zombies and gore

Publisher’s Summary:

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.

My Review:
Visit my blog at RaeLynnFry.BlogSpot.com for more reviews.
So, I just finished reading this book, and while it was good, I can’t help but be a little disappointed. From the description from the publisher, I was expecting something more like the movie Zombieland. And while there were some chuckle-worthy parts, it was, in the end, just okay.
I enjoyed the voice of the MC, Nero/Nick, and I know that it will appeal to a lot of the male readers out there—especially with the addition of the flesh-eating zombies. I enjoyed the two punch-in-the-face twists at the beginning of the book (totally didn’t see those coming), and the interesting turn of events during the middle. I enjoyed the grisly DISGUSTING details Sean goes into when the kids are being attacked by the undead. Seriously. I was eating dinner. And then I wasn’t. It happened just like that. I think I lost my appetite for about 3 days after reading those scenes. But that’s something that Sean rocks at: painting an “I’m so there” scene in a surprising limited amount of words.
There was a lot about this book that was jarring for me. The introduction of left-field elements half-way through the book, that for me, didn’t need to be there. The writing style at times, etc. And I have to say, that towards the end, I got a little muddled with what was going on and confused about how everything was going to be pulled together. There seemed like there were a lot of loose ends that didn’t need to be there in the first place because they didn’t add anything to the story (ie – The Dude and his involvement with Fresh Bucket. It played no part what-so-ever in the progression of the plot. Yeah, his initial involvement with the company, that happened way off stage, years ago, did, but the rest of his role in the book was obsolete). I’m thinking they’re going to try to push this into a series…
There were only a few other things that I felt meh about: I got the epub from the publisher, and the formatting was all weird. Half the letters were missing, there was some weird code in place of a certain sequence of letters (06 = ff, __ = fl, etc) I felt like a spy with a secret decoder ring. And to go along with that, the “rules” were all messed up, too. For me, to make that kind of thing work, there needed to be more of them and they needed to be more entertaining. Also, a the story moves on, you find out that (little spoiler here) Nero hears the voice of The Rock in his head. Which doesn’t pop up as much as it should in order for it to have worked for me. I also got confused as to the tense of the story. It’s written in 3rd person, but when the voice popped up, I always got the impression it was in 1st. Then I was ripped out of the story as it jogged back to 3rd. I would’ve liked to have seen the entire story written in 1st.
Okay, so it may sound like I didn’t like this book, but I did! It’s definitely for a certain crowd (mainly boys who like zombies), but for anyone else out there who just likes a good book, it’s for them, too. So pick it up, it’s worth your time.
Happy reading, my friends! ( )

This book was a blast to read. I, personally, have a rather dark sense of humor, like zombie tales, and teen lit. They all come together nicely in this novel. I have already ordered it for my library because I have a handful of patrons in mind for it already. I know they'll love it as much as I did!! ( )