Dearly, Departed is the first in the Gone With the Respiration series by debut author Lia Habel. Goodreads says:
Love can never die.
Love conquers all, so they say. But can Cupid’s arrow pierce the hearts of the living and the dead—or rather, the undead? Can a proper young Victorian lady find true love in the arms of a dashing zombie?
The year is 2195. The place is New Victoria—a high-tech nation modeled on the manners, mores, and fashions of an antique era. A teenager in high society, Nora Dearly is far more interested in military history and her country’s political unrest than in tea parties and debutante balls. But after her beloved parents die, Nora is left at the mercy of her domineering aunt, a social-climbing spendthrift who has squandered the family fortune and now plans to marry her niece off for money. For Nora, no fate could be more horrible—until she’s nearly kidnapped by an army of walking corpses.
But fate is just getting started with Nora. Catapulted from her world of drawing-room civility, she’s suddenly gunning down ravenous zombies alongside mysterious black-clad commandos and confronting “The Laz,” a fatal virus that raises the dead—and hell along with them. Hardly ideal circumstances. Then Nora meets Bram Griswold, a young soldier who is brave, handsome, noble . . . and dead. But as is the case with the rest of his special undead unit, luck and modern science have enabled Bram to hold on to his mind, his manners, and his body parts. And when his bond of trust with Nora turns to tenderness, there’s no turning back. Eventually, they know, the disease will win, separating the star-crossed lovers forever. But until then, beating or not, their hearts will have what they desire.
In Dearly, Departed, romance meets walking-dead thriller, spawning a madly imaginative novel of rip-roaring adventure, spine-tingling suspense, and macabre comedy that forever redefines the concept of undying love.
Love conquers all, so they say. But can Cupid’s arrow pierce the hearts of the living and the dead—or rather, the undead? Can a proper young Victorian lady find true love in the arms of a dashing zombie?
The year is 2195. The place is New Victoria—a high-tech nation modeled on the manners, mores, and fashions of an antique era. A teenager in high society, Nora Dearly is far more interested in military history and her country’s political unrest than in tea parties and debutante balls. But after her beloved parents die, Nora is left at the mercy of her domineering aunt, a social-climbing spendthrift who has squandered the family fortune and now plans to marry her niece off for money. For Nora, no fate could be more horrible—until she’s nearly kidnapped by an army of walking corpses.
But fate is just getting started with Nora. Catapulted from her world of drawing-room civility, she’s suddenly gunning down ravenous zombies alongside mysterious black-clad commandos and confronting “The Laz,” a fatal virus that raises the dead—and hell along with them. Hardly ideal circumstances. Then Nora meets Bram Griswold, a young soldier who is brave, handsome, noble . . . and dead. But as is the case with the rest of his special undead unit, luck and modern science have enabled Bram to hold on to his mind, his manners, and his body parts. And when his bond of trust with Nora turns to tenderness, there’s no turning back. Eventually, they know, the disease will win, separating the star-crossed lovers forever. But until then, beating or not, their hearts will have what they desire.
In Dearly, Departed, romance meets walking-dead thriller, spawning a madly imaginative novel of rip-roaring adventure, spine-tingling suspense, and macabre comedy that forever redefines the concept of undying love.
I'm not gonna lie, it weirded me out at first reading a love story with a legitimate zombie as one of the love interests. I mean, just the idea of it gave me the creeps. But as I read this book, my mind completely changed, and I was totally rooting for Bram and Nora to be together. I did find it irritating, as a few bloggers I read said, that women in New Victoria just gave up their rights that easily. It just blew my mind. Also, I didn't like the number of narrators there were. That works for some books, but it didn't seem to jibe with this one. I wanted more of the awesome love story between Bram and Nora, and more of Nora's fantastic point of view. While it was nice getting different perspectives, I hope Ms. Habel does not do this again in Dearly, Beloved. Especially since I found myself skipping some of the chapters that had other POVs in them. I loved this story, a mix of zombie fiction, a love story, family drama, steampunkness and good old fashion historical stuff (yup, that's right, stuff). The fight scenes were pure epicausity, and I lapped it up like tomato juice. And I have to say it, that ending damn near made me tear up and scream in horror/sadness.
Nora was flipping awesome. I loved her sarcasm, her loyalty and intelligence. I loved that she defied the norm, loving military history instead of following the norm. She was another character who I think would make a great best friend in real life. Her reactions were appropriate, plus she kicked some serious ass. Her journey was so cool, and I was rooting for her the whole time. Bram, damn what do I say about Bram? Is it weird that I have a literary crush on a zombie? I mean it definitely is weird, but I still think Bram is bleeping hot. He's so sweet and caring, loyal and smart, funny and kick-ass. I loved how his and Nora's relationship developed. It did take place in a short time, but there was a reason for that, and despite the time frame, their relationship developed at a nice pace. The romantic moments between them were sugary sweet, and I can't wait to get back to them in the second book. Pamela was a cool character. Her POV was alright to read, mostly because of how she dealt with everything, from her parents to the zombie outbreak, to her station in life. Chas was by far one of my favorites. She made me laugh out loud so many times, and I loved how her relationship with Nora was.
Ms. Habel is a wonderful author. She built up her world so well, and it's clear she knew what she was doing when it came to writing the Neo-Victorian parts. She wrote such great characters, story, and just drew me into this world that she created. I can't wait to see more from her.
So did it live up to the hype? Hells yes it did!
So did it live up to the hype? Hells yes it did!
I'll next be reviewing Bad Taste in Boys by Carrie Harris.
Until next time, viva la literature!
No comments:
Post a Comment