Mortality by Kellie Sheridan
I found this book when going through a list of YA zombie books in February. I am a sucker for zombie books, they are pretty much the one genre that guarantees a cry at the end. It is my special thing. I spend the whole book rooting for this character, falling in love with him/her, and admiring his/her strength. And then they get bitten. Seriously, not even fair. I cry every damn time. Authors are cruel cruel people.
New Raventown is is a community of survivors who have holed up in the former high school, eking out an existence in a hostile world. The people there have settled in to a life while trying to hold out hope that some day things will be different. But things have already gone wrong twice and there isn't much hope left. When the first wave of zombies appeared, the government started working on a vaccine. The survivors were told that the vaccine wouldn't cure the zombies but it would prevent those vaccinated from turning if they were bitten. They were lied to. The vaccine seemed to work at first, but then the truth was discovered. Stronger, smarter, faster zombies began to appear. So-called Zs were a new breed of zombies. Zs were vaccinated people who had been bitten, they never died but the virus took over their bodies anyways. This new version was called the Hitchhiker Strain. These poor people are trapped inside their heads, conscious of what is happening but unable to stop themselves.
Savannah is a survivor, she and her friends Alex, Zach and Pierce were all in high school when the zombies appeared. Now they are all training to fight the zombies that threaten their new home. When the worst happens and the school is overrun they are in for the biggest fight of their lives. They are on the run when Zach is taken by a militia that has taken over the last of the government. Savannah blames herself and along with Cole, a teen she met along the way, she does what she has to do to get him back.
At the same time we are reading Savannah's story we are also reading Zarra's story. Zarra's story is very differnt from Savannah's. Zarra wasn't lucky enough to have a whole community to depend on when her family is killed by zombies, instead she has the boy she met at school not long before the outbreak. Zarra and Liam go a different route and end up being vaccinated. Their story ends differently from Savannah's, but it is just as tragic at times.
I won't lie, there are some sad times in this story. But there are also some good parts and there is a good love story through out the book. I thought it was an amazing debut novel for Kellie Sheridan, the sequel has already been added to my to read list.
I give this book a 4.5 out of 5. I thought it was well written and was a bit of a lighter zombie book. It wasn't super heavy in to the gore and she added a creative twist to a classic plot. I can honestly say that her zombies are a type that I have rarely seen before. I can think of only one other story that has a similar idea to zombies.
Recommendations:
End Dayz by Kellie Sheridan - This is the prequel to Mortality. From what I can tell of the blurb it is the initial story of Savannah, Pierce, Alex, and Zach.
Duality by Kellie Sheridan - This will be the sequel for Mortality but there isn't any information on it other than a possible release date of December, 2013. There isn't even a cover yet.
Dearly, Departed by Lia Habel - This book is an interesting zombie story. In Dearly, Departed zombies don't truly die as long as they are given a serum to keep them moving. Zombies don't heal and eventually they do decay as the months go by, but until then they are the same person they were before they were bitten. Its the opposite of a steam punk in my opinion. It is a futuristic story that has Victorian ideals.
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