This blog contains spoilers! Downton Abbey spawned such a high degree of loving obsession from people around the world that it would seem wrong if it never featured in this blog series. We were late arrivals to it: by the time we were catching up, there had already been three series and their associated Christmas Specials. Everybody knew that Matthew died in a car accident at the most inopportune moment possible, and that the lovely Lady Sybil died in childbirth. I do wonder how differently I would have felt about the series if I had experienced the same shock as those who watched it the first time round. Now, I'll caveat the following statement with the fact that I love Downton Abbey - it's one of my comfort series that I'll go back to time and time again to watch on my phone. But, in writing terms, I think it's something of a cautionary tale. The tale being: know when to stop. The first three series of Downton Abbey are pure drama, taking us powerfully - and often pa...
Night of the Victorian Dead by Amber Michelle Cook
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| "Night of the Victorian Dead" Book Cover |
"Inspired by beloved works of literature from Charlotte Bronte, Charles Dickens and Jane Austen, and in tribute to the delightful terror of first encountering classic undead creatures comes Night of the Victorian Dead, in which a rich collection of characters - with the endearing manners, gentility and sensibilities of that era - meet the unthinkable horror of an outbreak of the supernatural in the form of Re-risen Dead."
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| 3 Stars |
When I got the review request for this novel, the first thing I thought was "Oh no. I hate zombies!" It's not that I have anything against zombies (I'm sure some of them are very decent) but ever since my sister used to chase me around the room in a Hallowe'en mask pretending to be a zombie, I have been really scared of them.
I'm pleased I agreed to review this book, however. It is a really interesting mix between historical fiction and zombie novels, with some spine-chillingly yet amusing encounters with the living dead.
I didn't realise, when I started reading, there was a connection between the book's characters and those in "Jane Eyre" by Charlotte Bronte so I was slightly confused at first. After the initial confusion, however, I began to appreciate how well the parallel works. The author looks at the Jane Eyre story through the eyes of other characters, for example the ward, which is an ingenious look at the secondary characters in the classic book.
It is also greatly amusing to see how the much-loved characters deal with the unknown threat of zombies, in their perfectly English way. How they remain so prim and proper beats me, but it works!
Because there were a few different groups of characters in different spaces, the author jumped from one group to another which added to the suspense. At the start of the novel, however, this was slightly confusing as I was just getting used to the characters.
Because there were a few different groups of characters in different spaces, the author jumped from one group to another which added to the suspense. At the start of the novel, however, this was slightly confusing as I was just getting used to the characters.
The book would be a great read for someone who is looking for a humourous zombie novel with a bit of a twist.
Find the book here.
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