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Title and Author: Time of Death: Induction
by Shana FestaSeries: Time of Death #1
No. of Pages: 198 Pages
Publication Date: May 2014
Language: English
Genre: Post-Apocalyptic, Horror, Zombie, Science Fiction
Book Review:
Emma Rossi is a nurse in training and happily married to the love of her life. Funny, witty and strong, she braves facing cantankerous old nurses, difficult patients and many other challenges each day but no challenge is as horrifying as the outbreak of a deadly virus that suddenly leaves hungry zombies everywhere. With only a handful of survivors, Emma is faced with a challenge that will test her character and her morals as she tries to protect her family and herself from the living dead!
“When no one or nowhere is safe, where do you go to escape the monsters?” said the blurb and I was hooked. Really where will I go if something like this happened? I kept asking myself while reading this book. The cover is attractive and intrigued me. The blurb is catchy and will interest you enough to thumb through the pages.
While I am very scared of zombies and usually do not try watching movies with zombies in it but when Shana told me about her book and I read the blurb I was so intrigued as to want to challenge myself with it and thus, started my adventure with a zombie novel that became my first read in this genre. 🙂
Even if I started out with the book fearing my reaction to it, I was soon so engrossed in the story that I lost track of time. A very realistically brought to life story where the world is afflicted with a virus so deadly that they have no cure for it and where zombies are running wild, I was thrilled as well as chilled while reading the story.
Although this is Shana’s first book yet she weaves the story like a pro and makes every incredible happening believable. I was able to visualize the torn apart world with hungry monsters and a scared bunch of survivors. I was able to visualize Emma’s life before and after the virus attack. The settings are beautifully sketched and the book soon starts running as a movie in your mind.
The book is fast paced and keeps the readers’ interest with well calculated turns. The characterization is noteworthy and all the characters feel like normal people we have met sometime or the other in our lives. They have common lives and face problems like we do except that they soon become the target of a very uncommon problem. I loved Emma’s wit and intelligence. She is strong and fearless as she tries to evade the zombies. Her husband, Jake is so cute with his fear of germs and the yorkie, Daphne is so sweet with her tantrums and her puppy dog eyes. Their transition after the virus attack is interesting to read.
The book is well written and this shows as soon as you read a page or two. Emma’s scenes as a nurse are very real and take you back to the hospitals. The scene when the virus comes out for the first time had me shuddering. The zombies are scary and I could see them advancing with their pale skin, unfocused eyes and hungry expressions.
The book ends in a cliffhanger but I didn’t mind it much because it does not end abruptly. The end leaves the reader anticipating the next book.
Although, I loved almost everything about the book, I did however feel that certain tries to add humor to the story felt forced and very unlikely to me. Like when the virus has spread everywhere and in one scene the soldier tries to joke around felt highly unlikely to me. In such grave situations, I dont think anyone would feel like joking. Anyhow, there are other parts that genuinely made me laugh and enjoy the light atmosphere like Emma’s experiences as a trainee nurse at the starting of the book.
All in all, Time of Death: Induction
is a great debut from Shana Festa and will appeal to all lovers of horror and zombies. 4.5 out of 5 to it and a strong recommendation from me that you go read the book. Shana is a talented writer and I look forward to reading more from her in the future.I received the book from the author and I am very thankful to her. The above review is my honest and unbiased opinion and in no way influenced.
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