Review by little_nell15 -- Undead Redhead by Jen Frankel

[Vera_bookily]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Undead Redhead" by Jen Frankel.]

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4 out of 4 stars

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Undead Redhead by Jen Frankel is a story about Sharon Backovic, a sweet, sensitive vegan, who has been treated as a general-purpose doormat by her entitled friends and uncaring family, all her life. After dying in a freak accident at a wedding, she wakes up as a zombie, slips out of her coffin, and tries valiantly to cope. But the sentient, hungry, still sweet and surprisingly still vegan redhead needs to figure out her new reality and more importantly her new diet. She meets an odd assortment of characters who help her in her quest, including the tragic but confident crack lady, the gallant Malcolm, another former doormat Deanna, the teenaged voodoo-specialist Waglet and Morgoni the cryptoparapsychocriminologist. Will she be able to reclaim her life? (or unlife?)

This is a wacky novel with an ingenious premise and hilarious situations. Absurd yet plausible scenes abound in this zombie romance without appearing forced, along with puns and tongue-in-cheek humour. But the author has also used subtle intelligent satire aimed at the modern world's absurdities, especially the insanity of internet sensations and viral videos on social media. The writing style is deliberately light and casual, but actually, the book has been painstakingly designed and written. The shifting point of views are particularly well constructed, providing a bit of mystery in the first half and later melding together flawlessly as the story progresses

There were a few moments that did not seem entirely complete. Sharon’s immediate realisation and acceptance, that she was a zombie, seemed a bit unrealistic. Talking about unrealistic, the romance (postmortem romance) part was also unconvincing. but I felt that the book was more about self-actualisation than either romance or zombies. Also, the zombie dating scenes were not really necessary to the story.

I am rating this book 4 out of 4 stars, because it is a fast-paced, brilliantly witty novel about a sensitive but repressed girl finding her place in the world, albeit a little late(pun intended). I was able to connect and empathise with the protagonist and that is quite impressive considering that the protagonist is a zombie. The insightful humour and lovable characters kept me fully engaged and entertained. The editing was also good.

This book may not be for fans of traditional zombie apocalypse stories. There is very little gore, surprisingly. In fact, other than an occasional maggot or a bag of rotten carrots there is nothing unsavoury. No mention of the apocalypse, no cracking open of skulls and almost nothing that can be classified as horror. It is more suitable for readers who like romance and happy endings. Overall a well-written novel with an interesting premise.

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Undead Redhead
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