Not bad, but not as good as I'd hoped.

I've said before that this series uses the zombie motif as a stand-in for gay and racial civil rights, and that parallel is even more explicit in this volume. I don't have a problem with that at all, but I do think that it got in the way of other story elements that deserved some more attention. One such element is the zombie who gets better; the question of why some zombies are "high-functioning" (like the heroine) and others are not has been a long-running question in this series, and I'd hoped some answers would be forthcoming in this final novel. Similarly, Pete's behavior at the end is ambiguous, especially given the Reverend's reactions to it.

All in all, I probably would have given this another star if it hadn't been the final novel. There is an anthology of short stories, but I don't expect any of the big questions to get answered there. This was really the author's final shot at doing so, and he dropped the ball. ( )

Ok, this book was a little different than the other 2. This one was told by "Zombie" Karen. She set out on a quest to expose Pete for the true piece of you-know-what that he is. She had to do some pretty outrageous stuff and make some people mad, but in the end she succeeded. Or did she? She also made some pretty incredible discoveries about herself. The ending of this book was not what I was expecting. It doesn't end in a cliff-hanger but it doesn't exactly end end. It leaves the door wide open for more to tell. Hint hint Daniel!! ( )

It took me quite some time to get around to reading the third installment of the Generation Dead series and this largely because, Generation Dead and Kiss of Life were easily amongst the most failtastic books I have ever come across. Were it not for our commitment to finishing series once we start them, there is no way that I would have picked up this book.

Tommy is off in Washington trying to get legal rights for zombies who are living with the fall out for being framed for the death of Gutteridge - the lawyer who was hired to defend Pete after he murdered Layman. The Reverend is still using Pete as his tool to frame as many zombies as possible for different crimes. Despite getting lucky enough to only get probation, Pete does not have the good sense to leave the zombies alone. As much as he is repelled by them, he is angry that the one girl he loved did not come back.

This novel is the first in the series where Karen is the protagonist. She works in the mall and is passing as living. Most of the novel is spent dealing with Karen's feelings about her suicide and depression, as well as building a relationship with her family. I think the best moments in this story involve Karen and her father because we see both sides of the effects of suicide. Karen refers to her depression as a blue fog and waters actually does a good job explaining the pain of living with depression.

Read More ( )

Though a bit young for me, this book was a good read. I was drawn in by the idea of the young dead. It kept me interested through the entire book. Well paced. I need to read the other two in the series. ( )

Best book of the series. I love how even though we are reading a "zombie" book, everything is still relevant, and you learn from it. And OH what a cliffhanger!! ( )