Review & Giveaway: The Girls' Guide to Dating Zombies by Lynn Messina

The Girls' Guide to Dating Zombies

by Lynn Messina
Release Date: February 9th, 2012
2012 Potatoworks Press
Ebook Edition; 242 Pages
ASIN: B00762LMQQ
ISBN: 978-0984901814
Genre: Fiction / Paranormal / Dystopian
Source: Review Copy from Novel Publicity & Co.

4  / 5 Stars

Summary
Hattie Cross knows what you're thinking: Zombie sex? Ewwwww. But she also knows that since a virus turned 99.9999 percent of human males into zombies, it's statistically impossible to meet—let alone date—the remaining 0.00001 percent. So she writes "The Girls' Guide to Dating Zombies" to help her fellow single women navigate the zombie-relationship waters.

Her practical how-to impresses the CEO of the largest drug company in the world, and before she knows it, Hattie, a reporter for a downmarket tabloid that specializes in conspiracy theories, is sitting down with the woman who single-handedly invented the zombie-behavioral-modification market. Granted access to the inner sanctum of zombaceuticals, she meets an actual, living, breathing M-A-N.

Now Hattie, the consummate professional, is acting like a single girl at the end of the twentieth century: self-conscious, klutzy and unable to form a coherent sentence without babbling. Worst of all, the human male appears to have impaired her ability to think clearly. Because all of a sudden she's convinced a conspiracy is afoot at the drug company and it seems to go all the way to the top!

My Thoughts
The Girls' Guide to Dating Zombies was a really fun book to read.  I do have to admit that  I choked a bit on my popcorn as I was reading the chapter that discussed the advantages to having zombie sex and stopping all activity at once if your special boyzomb should happen to lose a finger or toe during the act in order to sew the lost appendage back on before resuming the activity.  What??  I definitely took a little while to get that particular image out of my head.

The world is considerably different than our own, as a zombie plague hit most of the male population roughly twenty years ago, turning them into zombies.  Luckily, the zombies weren't looking for human brains to eat this time, but were quite happy to chomp on Fluffy or Rocky, your cute and cuddly cat and dog.  The descriptions of the most popular places to meet a zombie male were rather funny as dance clubs and bars were set up at slaughterhouses and similar venues as zombies would haunt these places looking for their next meals.  The author writes about these places in a no-nonsense fashion, yet I couldn't help laughing at the irony and sarcasm inherent in her writing and in her words as the word byplay was rather funny.  The scene where Hattie, the main character, takes her boyzomb out to dinner where he can eat a live cow was too funny as you have to be careful that he doesn't splash blood and guts all over your clothes and food.  I couldn't help but laugh and note how people adapted to situations, yet at the same time, there was a message implicit in the descriptions as well.

Hattie was quite fun as a main character and I loved the impulsiveness in her nature.  She was the author of The Girls' Guide to Dating Zombies and we are given parts of her book throughout the story, a practical guide for the modern women to follow in a world where there are few men.  You want to learn how to deal with zombie smell, it's in the book.  You need to find a zombie that hasn't been used before, it's in the guide.  You want a zombie with all of its limbs, check out the guide.  You are too pampered in your life, and want a zombie that comes prepared and pre-packaged, spend a day at the zombie spa; to find out where and how, check out the guide.  Hilarious stuff!!  And I'm still stuck on zombie kissing and sex, and having to deal with squishy and gooey!!  Not sure if I could get past that one myself.   One of the things I'm surprised was not mentioned, in a world that dominates with women, is the concept of same-sex relationships; everything was geared towards having relationships with zombies. 

Verdict
The Girls' Guide to Dating Zombies was great fun, and I would highly recommend it to anyone who likes their zombie novels.  Although this one is more on the lighter comedy style, rather than the horror genre, there are still some darker elements to it if you read between the lines.  If anything, the novel will make you ponder whether the world will be a better place with or without men.


Novel Publicity Blog Tour Notes:

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Lynn Messina is the author of six novels, including Little Vampire Women and Fashionistas, which has been translated into 15 languages and is in development as a feature film. She attended Washington University in St. Louis where she studied English Literature. Her writing has also appeared in Self and Modern Bride, among other publications. She lives in New York City with her husband and sons. Connect with Lynn on her website, blog, Twitter or GoodReads.


Join us for a live twitterview with the author on Saturday, March 10th at 4 PM EST. Search #emlyn on Twitter, and bring your questions for this lively chat.