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All Flesh Must Be Eaten
Best of All Flesh: Zombie Anthology (Paperback) - Common
Bringing the living dead into stark reality, this anthology reveals the best of undead horror and monstrous zombie tales. Culled from the popular All Flesh Must Be Eaten zombie anthology series, this broad collection of stories proves that no place in the world is safe when the dead rise again. Their shambling hordes flood cities, scour the countryside, and leave no part of history untouched. Ideal for fans of supernatural terror and apocalyptic fiction, this horrific array includes narratives by Tobias Buckell, Scott Edelman, Charles Coleman Finlay, and Tom Piccirilli.
Contents:
Introduction by James Lowder
What comes after by Kris Dikeman
Sifting out the hearts of men by Warren and Lana Brown
Susan by Robin D. Laws
Familiar eyes by Barry Hollander
Goddamn redneck surfer zombies by Michael Jasper
Trinkets by Tobias S. Buckell
Murdermouth by Scott Nicholson
Sitting with the dead by Shane Stewart
Electric Jesus and the living dead by Jeremy Zoss
Last resort by Michael Laimo
Charlie's hole by Jesse Bullington
Brainburgers and bile shakes : a love story by Jim C. Hines
Scenes from a foreign horror video : with zombies and tasteful nudity by Mark McLaughlin
Fading Quayle, dancing Quayle by Charles Coleman Finlay
Homelands by Lucien Soulban
Night shift by Rebecca Brock
The ethical treatment of meat by Claude Lalumière
One last, little revenge by Ed Greenwood
Shouting down the moon by Myke Cole
Dawn of the living impaired by Christine Morgan
Naked shall I return by Tom Piccirilli
The last supper by Scott Edelman
Contents:
Introduction by James Lowder
What comes after by Kris Dikeman
Sifting out the hearts of men by Warren and Lana Brown
Susan by Robin D. Laws
Familiar eyes by Barry Hollander
Goddamn redneck surfer zombies by Michael Jasper
Trinkets by Tobias S. Buckell
Murdermouth by Scott Nicholson
Sitting with the dead by Shane Stewart
Electric Jesus and the living dead by Jeremy Zoss
Last resort by Michael Laimo
Charlie's hole by Jesse Bullington
Brainburgers and bile shakes : a love story by Jim C. Hines
Scenes from a foreign horror video : with zombies and tasteful nudity by Mark McLaughlin
Fading Quayle, dancing Quayle by Charles Coleman Finlay
Homelands by Lucien Soulban
Night shift by Rebecca Brock
The ethical treatment of meat by Claude Lalumière
One last, little revenge by Ed Greenwood
Shouting down the moon by Myke Cole
Dawn of the living impaired by Christine Morgan
Naked shall I return by Tom Piccirilli
The last supper by Scott Edelman
279 pages, Unknown Binding
First published January 11, 2010
2 people are currently reading
135 people want to read
About the author
James Lowder
85 books102 followersaka Richard Awlinson, J D Lowder, Jim Lowder
James Lowder has worked extensively in fantasy and horror fiction on both sides of the editorial blotter. He's authored several best-selling dark fantasy novels, including Prince of Lies and Knight of the Black Rose, and has had short fiction appear in such anthologies as Shadows Over Baker Street and Genius Loci. He's penned comic book scripts for several companies and the city of Boston. His book and film reviews, feature articles, and role-playing game design work can be found in such diverse publications as Amazing Stories, Milwaukee Magazine, and The New England Journal of History. As an editor, he's directed lines or series for TSR, Green Knight Publishing, Chaosium, and CDS Books. He's helmed more than twenty anthologies, including Hobby Games: The 100 Best and Curse of the Full Moon. In the media, he is a regular contributor to the Public Radio show "Lake Effect" in Milwaukee, provided werewolf lore on the TV show Weird or What? and tabletop game industry lore for the documentary The Dreams in Gary's Basement, and served as a puppeteer on the indie film Misfit Heights.
James Lowder has worked extensively in fantasy and horror fiction on both sides of the editorial blotter. He's authored several best-selling dark fantasy novels, including Prince of Lies and Knight of the Black Rose, and has had short fiction appear in such anthologies as Shadows Over Baker Street and Genius Loci. He's penned comic book scripts for several companies and the city of Boston. His book and film reviews, feature articles, and role-playing game design work can be found in such diverse publications as Amazing Stories, Milwaukee Magazine, and The New England Journal of History. As an editor, he's directed lines or series for TSR, Green Knight Publishing, Chaosium, and CDS Books. He's helmed more than twenty anthologies, including Hobby Games: The 100 Best and Curse of the Full Moon. In the media, he is a regular contributor to the Public Radio show "Lake Effect" in Milwaukee, provided werewolf lore on the TV show Weird or What? and tabletop game industry lore for the documentary The Dreams in Gary's Basement, and served as a puppeteer on the indie film Misfit Heights.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
October 14, 2017
Zombé Flambé could be a sport, couldn't it?
I have decided to attempt, yet again, to submit a new sport suggestion to the International Olympic Committee. Previous suggestions of Speed Knitting, Power Pimple Squeezing and Nude Jousting were all rejected. My next suggestion will be “Zombé Flambé” where zombies are dispatched in a sporting like manor (not necessarily flambeing). I think it could be really big. In fact, instead of Faster, Higher, Stronger, the IOC might adopt Spurtier, Squishier, Smellier as the Olympic Ideal.
'Nuf of that. Apparently James Lowder calls for short story submissions for his next zombie book, and picks 20 or so of the best to be published in an anthology. (Cool way of getting your name on a book without having to write anything hey?) So that makes scoring this book difficult since it has 22 authors. Now some of the stories are pretty ordinary – not so bad that you'd rather jump in a cage full of cacti than read any further, but maybe bad enough to furtively skip to the next story. Some on the other hand, are bloody brilliant. You HAVE to read Christine Morgan's “Dawn of the Living Impaired” and Scott Edelman's classy “The Last Supper”. Both are 5 star worthy in my beer-impaired opinion. Also excellent were: “One Last, Little Revenge” by Ed Greenwood and “What Comes After” by Kris Dikeman.
Another plus was the book itself; beautifully printed on high quality, bright, white paper and crisp print. No typos either. A welcome change. Pity I spilled several cups of tea, and Iced Vovo biscuit crumbs on it.
I give it 4 stars for the stories I mentioned above. Meanwhile, I'm off to the next Nude Jousting Tourney.
I have decided to attempt, yet again, to submit a new sport suggestion to the International Olympic Committee. Previous suggestions of Speed Knitting, Power Pimple Squeezing and Nude Jousting were all rejected. My next suggestion will be “Zombé Flambé” where zombies are dispatched in a sporting like manor (not necessarily flambeing). I think it could be really big. In fact, instead of Faster, Higher, Stronger, the IOC might adopt Spurtier, Squishier, Smellier as the Olympic Ideal.
'Nuf of that. Apparently James Lowder calls for short story submissions for his next zombie book, and picks 20 or so of the best to be published in an anthology. (Cool way of getting your name on a book without having to write anything hey?) So that makes scoring this book difficult since it has 22 authors. Now some of the stories are pretty ordinary – not so bad that you'd rather jump in a cage full of cacti than read any further, but maybe bad enough to furtively skip to the next story. Some on the other hand, are bloody brilliant. You HAVE to read Christine Morgan's “Dawn of the Living Impaired” and Scott Edelman's classy “The Last Supper”. Both are 5 star worthy in my beer-impaired opinion. Also excellent were: “One Last, Little Revenge” by Ed Greenwood and “What Comes After” by Kris Dikeman.
Another plus was the book itself; beautifully printed on high quality, bright, white paper and crisp print. No typos either. A welcome change. Pity I spilled several cups of tea, and Iced Vovo biscuit crumbs on it.
I give it 4 stars for the stories I mentioned above. Meanwhile, I'm off to the next Nude Jousting Tourney.
May 5, 2010
As with all anthologies some hits and misses. I had to stop reading this before bed due to creepy dreams, which I would count as a recommendation. A good buy if you are a zombie fan.
April 8, 2024
A zombie anthology defies analysis or review. But if you like zombie stories, this is as good a place as any to curl up with the walking dead. The zombies in this collection come in all varieties and the settings run from the Civil War to Vietnam to a Zombie-Land theme park. The zombies shamble, run, perform in circuses, and converse with loved ones before the hunger overwhelms them. Las Vegas features prominently in a number of the stories, but maybe that makes sense. As one character observes, Vegas may be the only place on earth that could be improved by a zombie apocalypse. The collection is uneven, but I didn’t feel too cheated by the time I spent reading it.
October 3, 2014
This is one of those collections of stories that has something for everyone (if you like zombies, obviously). That's good in a way, but it also means that most people won't like everything in the book. I'll briefly summarise each story, each of which is around 10 to 20 pages in length.
"What Comes After", Kris Dikeman - A sheriff visits his elderly former teacher to try and persuade her to leave her house next to a graveyard as the risk of zombie attack is high.
"Sifting out the Hearts of Men", Warren and Lana Brown - A group of soldiers encounter zombies during the American Civil War.
"Susan", Robin D Laws - A man takes part in more and more extreme hobbies in the quest for an adrenaline rush.
"Familiar Eyes", Barry Hollander - A man's wife keeps coming back from the dead and he keeps killing her.
"Goddamn Redneck Surfer Zombies", Michael Jasper - Zombies visit a small coastal town to go surfing. A slightly weird story.
"Trinkets", Tobias S Buckell - Seems to be set around 150 years ago in America. Not really a zombie story in my opinion.
"Murdermouth", Scott Nicholson - Told from the perspective of a caged zombie in a travelling freak show.
"Sitting with the Dead", Shane Stewart - A man is employed to sit with a dying woman in order to dispatch her when she dies and becomes a zombie.
"Electric Jesus and the Living Dead", Jeremy Zoss - A boy trapped in a house by a zombie horde starts hearing voices from a statue of Jesus.
"Last Resort", Michael Laimo - A father and son reach Las Vegas in their search for a safe location.
"Charlie's Hole", Jesse Bullington - American soldiers investigate tunnels during the Vietnam War.
"Brainburgers and Bile Shakes: A Love Story", Jim C Hines - An inspector visits a theme park that contains real zombies.
"Scenes from a Foreign Horror Video, with Zombies and Tasteful Nudity", Mark McLaughlin - This one is weird the point where I didn't understand what was going on. There isn't a story as such.
"Fading Quayle, Dancing Quayle", Charles Coleman Finlay - A zombie rescues a living woman and she mistakes him for a surviving human.
"Homelands", Lucien Soulban - A zombie uprising in colonial era Shanghai.
"Night Shift", Rebecca Brock - Zombies attack a house where young offenders and their guardians live.
"The Ethical Treatment of Meat", Claude Lalumiere - A gay zombie couple adopt a human pet. One of the best stories.
"One Last, Little Revenge", Ed Greenwood - A toy maker seeks revenge on the corporation that has bought out his business. Not really a zombie story.
"Shouting Down the Moon", Myke Cole - An African tribe encounter zombies.
"Dawn of the Living Impaired", Christine Morgan - A new treatment to subdue zombies is demonstrated live on a TV show.
"Naked Shall I Return", Tom Piccirilli - A student's mother dies and he finds out what she has been doing in her lab.
"The Last Supper", Scott Edelman - A good story from a zombie's perspective about his quest for food.
"What Comes After", Kris Dikeman - A sheriff visits his elderly former teacher to try and persuade her to leave her house next to a graveyard as the risk of zombie attack is high.
"Sifting out the Hearts of Men", Warren and Lana Brown - A group of soldiers encounter zombies during the American Civil War.
"Susan", Robin D Laws - A man takes part in more and more extreme hobbies in the quest for an adrenaline rush.
"Familiar Eyes", Barry Hollander - A man's wife keeps coming back from the dead and he keeps killing her.
"Goddamn Redneck Surfer Zombies", Michael Jasper - Zombies visit a small coastal town to go surfing. A slightly weird story.
"Trinkets", Tobias S Buckell - Seems to be set around 150 years ago in America. Not really a zombie story in my opinion.
"Murdermouth", Scott Nicholson - Told from the perspective of a caged zombie in a travelling freak show.
"Sitting with the Dead", Shane Stewart - A man is employed to sit with a dying woman in order to dispatch her when she dies and becomes a zombie.
"Electric Jesus and the Living Dead", Jeremy Zoss - A boy trapped in a house by a zombie horde starts hearing voices from a statue of Jesus.
"Last Resort", Michael Laimo - A father and son reach Las Vegas in their search for a safe location.
"Charlie's Hole", Jesse Bullington - American soldiers investigate tunnels during the Vietnam War.
"Brainburgers and Bile Shakes: A Love Story", Jim C Hines - An inspector visits a theme park that contains real zombies.
"Scenes from a Foreign Horror Video, with Zombies and Tasteful Nudity", Mark McLaughlin - This one is weird the point where I didn't understand what was going on. There isn't a story as such.
"Fading Quayle, Dancing Quayle", Charles Coleman Finlay - A zombie rescues a living woman and she mistakes him for a surviving human.
"Homelands", Lucien Soulban - A zombie uprising in colonial era Shanghai.
"Night Shift", Rebecca Brock - Zombies attack a house where young offenders and their guardians live.
"The Ethical Treatment of Meat", Claude Lalumiere - A gay zombie couple adopt a human pet. One of the best stories.
"One Last, Little Revenge", Ed Greenwood - A toy maker seeks revenge on the corporation that has bought out his business. Not really a zombie story.
"Shouting Down the Moon", Myke Cole - An African tribe encounter zombies.
"Dawn of the Living Impaired", Christine Morgan - A new treatment to subdue zombies is demonstrated live on a TV show.
"Naked Shall I Return", Tom Piccirilli - A student's mother dies and he finds out what she has been doing in her lab.
"The Last Supper", Scott Edelman - A good story from a zombie's perspective about his quest for food.
October 12, 2010
Let’s get this out of the way first thing; zombies scare me. The mindless violence and relentless, insatiable hunger and lack of pain response of the George Romero-style walking dead creep me the heck out. So when Jim Lowder handed me a copy of The Best of All Flesh at GenCon to review for Flames Rising, I admit I approached it with some trepidation.
The Best of All Flesh is just that; the finest tales collected from Eden Studios’ The Book of All Flesh, The Book of More Flesh, and The Book of Final Flesh, all edited by Mr. Lowder. These in turn were inspired by Eden’s All Flesh Must Be Eaten tabletop roleplaying game.
Starting off with a bang, the first story – “What Comes After” by Kris Dykeman – spins a yarn about a small-town deputy rounding up survivors into a guarded, fenced, safe zone after a zombie outbreak. One lone holdout, a retired schoolteacher, refuses to come in, so Deputy Reade must try one last time to convince his former teacher to go to safety. As it turns out, she has a plan of her own that will chill readers to their very souls.
Robin Laws’ “Susan” is a disturbing tale of a jaded man who seeks new thrills to make him feel alive. He has a friend with connections that can help him find the stimulation he’s looking for, but there’s danger involved, not to mention the price he’ll have to pay for his thrills…
“Familiar Eyes” by Barry Hollander is a heartbreaking tale of a man and the wife he lost. She keeps coming back though, and John keeps hoping that the next time she rises, she’ll be herself again. It hasn’t happened yet, but John keeps hoping, and keeps reburying her secretly in the back yard.
“Trinkets” harkens back to the original zombie myths from the Caribbean. Written by Tobias Buckell, Trinkets is about George Petros, who is compelled to seek out a particular man to show him an artifact – compelled by a vengeful zombie master who has him under her control.
The rest of this review can be found at FlamesRising.com
The Best of All Flesh is just that; the finest tales collected from Eden Studios’ The Book of All Flesh, The Book of More Flesh, and The Book of Final Flesh, all edited by Mr. Lowder. These in turn were inspired by Eden’s All Flesh Must Be Eaten tabletop roleplaying game.
Starting off with a bang, the first story – “What Comes After” by Kris Dykeman – spins a yarn about a small-town deputy rounding up survivors into a guarded, fenced, safe zone after a zombie outbreak. One lone holdout, a retired schoolteacher, refuses to come in, so Deputy Reade must try one last time to convince his former teacher to go to safety. As it turns out, she has a plan of her own that will chill readers to their very souls.
Robin Laws’ “Susan” is a disturbing tale of a jaded man who seeks new thrills to make him feel alive. He has a friend with connections that can help him find the stimulation he’s looking for, but there’s danger involved, not to mention the price he’ll have to pay for his thrills…
“Familiar Eyes” by Barry Hollander is a heartbreaking tale of a man and the wife he lost. She keeps coming back though, and John keeps hoping that the next time she rises, she’ll be herself again. It hasn’t happened yet, but John keeps hoping, and keeps reburying her secretly in the back yard.
“Trinkets” harkens back to the original zombie myths from the Caribbean. Written by Tobias Buckell, Trinkets is about George Petros, who is compelled to seek out a particular man to show him an artifact – compelled by a vengeful zombie master who has him under her control.
The rest of this review can be found at FlamesRising.com
October 8, 2012
A great quick read of short stories which spans a wide continuum of what can be considered zombie literature. I'm not a Romero purist and while I did have to roll my eyes a bit, I'm a big believer that good zombie fiction after all isn't about the walking dead, but only a catalyst to think about how people live, learn, and interact in a post-apocalyptic society. If nothing else anthologies like these are a great way to find authors that you enjoy.
February 18, 2010
I didn't really find too many stories in this book that I really absorbed in, but it was okay.
July 9, 2010
I enjoyed all of the short stories contained in this collection. There were some very interesting and unusual takes on the zombie theme.
October 6, 2010
The most interesting thing about this anthology is that many of the authors have made the choice to approach their stories from the zombie's perspective.
March 9, 2014
one of the best zombie anthologies i have ever read
February 12, 2012
Terrifying. Why am I reading horror? Make me stop!
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May 1, 2017Edition: 1
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews