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Undead: Ten Tales of Zombies

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Ten stories by ten authors, edited by Rayne Hall.

1. IMMUNITY by Jeff Strand
What if the body’s immune system can shake off the infection?

2. GREYWALKER by Rayne Hall
A dying man will pay any price to gain time.

3. LAST CHANCE TO SEE by Tracie McBride
You have twenty-four hours before death becomes permanent.

4. FURZBY HOLT by Jonathan Broughton
Collecting census information in this English village should be an easy job.

5. ANOTHER OLDIE BUT GOODIE by Paul D. Dail
Retirement home resident Margaret is hearing music that no one else can hear.

6. ZOMBIE MOTHER-IN-LAW by Tara Maya
Mama lives in the basement.

7. I’LL LOVE YA, FOREVER, BUT… by April Grey
Faithful to a fault, that’s my Fred.

8. DECISION OF THE COUNCIL by John Hoddy
The year is 2225. Is it safe to reanimate a person from the barbarous past?

9. THE REASON FOR ZOMBIES by Douglas Kolacki
My limbs are not as cooperative as they used to be.

10. FEEDING FRENZY by Matt Hults
These zombies are hungry.

Some of these stories have been previously published in magazines, ezines and anthologies.

The zombies are different types: virus-infected, raised from the dead.. and others.

169 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2012

6 people are currently reading
114 people want to read

About the author

Rayne Hall

115 books1,437 followers
Rayne Hall writes fantasy and horror fiction, some of it quirky, most of it dark. She is the author of over sixty books in different genres and under different pen names, published by twelve publishers in six countries, translated into several languages. Her short stories have been published in magazines, e-zines and anthologies.

After living in Germany, China, Mongolia and Nepal, she has settled in a small Victorian seaside town in southern England. Rayne holds a college degree in publishing management and a masters degree in creative writing. Over three decades, she has worked in the publishing industry as a trainee, investigative journalist, feature writer, magazine editor, production editor, page designer, concept editor for non-fiction book series, anthology editor, editorial consultant and more. Outside publishing, she worked as a museum guide, apple
picker, tarot reader, adult education teacher, trade fair hostess, translator and belly dancer.

Currently, Rayne Hall writes fantasy and horror fiction and tries to regain the rights to her out-of-print books so she can republish them as e-books.

Her books on the writing craft (Writing Fight Scenes, Writing Scary Scenes, The Word-Loss Diet, Writing Dark Stories, Writing About Villains, Writing Short Stories to Promote Your Novel, Writing About Magic, Twitter for Writers) are bestsellers.


Rayne Hall is the editor of the Ten Tales anthologies:
"Bites: Ten Tales of Vampires"
"Scared: Ten Tales of Horror"
"Haunted: Ten Tales of Ghosts"
"Cutlass: Ten Tales of Pirates"
"Beltane: Ten Tales of Witchcraft"
"Spells: Ten Tales of Magic"
"Undead: Ten Tales of Zombies"
"Seers: Ten Tales of Clairvoyance"
"Dragon: Ten Tales of Fiery Beasts"
"Cogwheels: Ten Tales of Steampunk"
with more titles coming soon.


The stories in her Six Scary Tales series and the Thirty Scary Tales collection are subtle horror: suspenseful, creepy atmospheric, unsettling. Although they contain little violence and gore, they may not be suitable for young readers. Many of these stories have been previously published in other books or magazines.

British English: All Rayne Hall's books use British words, spellings, grammar and punctuation. If you're allergic to British English, avoid them. ;-)

Mailing list:
http://eepurl.com/boqJzD

Website: http://sites.google.com/site/raynehal...

YouTube "Ten Random Facts about Rayne Hall" (2 minute video) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sXR4T...

Contact Rayne Hall on Twitter
@RayneHall follows back writers and readers. http://twitter.com/RayneHall

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5 stars
26 (35%)
4 stars
18 (24%)
3 stars
17 (23%)
2 stars
11 (15%)
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1 (1%)
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
569 reviews5 followers
November 23, 2020
Excellent!

That is definitely a collection of fine stories! Nothing like the usual, it gets better and better as long as you read it. The only thing that is sad, is the length... I was so into it when it finished, it was like a coït interrompu!
Profile Image for chucklesthescot.
3,000 reviews134 followers
August 25, 2017
1. IMMUNITY by Jeff Strand
What if the body’s immune system can shake off the infection?

A man is bitten by a zombie and his friend prepares to kill him before he turns. The bitten guy decides he's immune and better just kill his friend first. Then he turns zombie and kills someone. And that's it. The end. At one and a half pages it was too short and underdeveloped to be a decent read. Just damn I'm bitten, hey don't kill me I'm immune, RARG I've killed someone. (1 star)

2. GREYWALKER by Rayne Hall
A dying man will pay any price to gain time.

A dying man wants a chance to tell his former wife that he's sorry he beat her and makes a deal with a witch for more time as a temporary zombie but he must kill himself within a time limit before he eats people. This was ok but I'm not a fan of these historical, middle age village kind of settings for stories so not really my thing. Nicely written though. (2 star)

3. LAST CHANCE TO SEE by Tracie McBride
You have twenty-four hours before death becomes permanent.

After her death Sharon is reincarnated for 24 hours to say goodbye to her family and friends. At her 'party' people are too busy fighting or watching TV to take advantage of those last few hours with her and one relative finds it funny to poke her with a fork to see if it hurts. It was a sad but slightly scary story as you can imagine technology of the future allowing this to happen. Lets just hope you don't have relatives like Sharon! (3 star)

4. FURZBY HOLT by Jonathan Broughton
Collecting census information in this English village should be an easy job.

A census taker goes to a remote village to find the residents are all undead and can't fill in the forms. This was ok but the side story of the fight with his girlfriend distracted the reader from what was a quirky story. It was ok. (2 star)

5. ANOTHER OLDIE BUT GOODIE by Paul D. Dail
Retirement home resident Margaret is hearing music that no one else can hear.

Margaret can hear the singing of her beloved dead husband and knows he is coming to claim her for the grave but with help from a care home assistant, she has another plan. This one was clever and had a decent little twist which I won't spoil. You get a good background to their life together in with the creepy aspect of the ghost story. (2.5 star)

6. ZOMBIE MOTHER-IN-LAW by Tara Maya
Mama lives in the basement.

This was a great wee story about a couple who have Marlie's dead mother locked in the basement and a dead neighbour who keeps escaping his family to come and annoy them. Frank wants to kill the zombies who were created by giving dead relatives an immortality serum but Marlie can't imagine life without Mother. Frank is funny and his comments about Poo Tube made me laugh while Marlie wonders if hashtags are a new kind of hash brown. Not the smartest pair in the world and not great at staying safe! Nice story! (4 star)

7. I’LL LOVE YA, FOREVER, BUT… by April Grey
Faithful to a fault, that’s my Fred.

A houseproud woman is horrified when her newly risen zombie husband comes home and starts leaving slime trails around the house. This was quite an amusing story as she tries to coax him away from her carpets and back to the grave. (3 star)

8. DECISION OF THE COUNCIL by John Hoddy
The year is 2225. Is it safe to reanimate a person from the barbarous past?

In the 23rd century a reanimated man will ever be allowed to live and be studied, or be terminated after a council meeting. This was far too technical for me with info dumps about cryogenics, voodoo and sci-fi stuff that I didn't find that interesting. (1 star)

9. THE REASON FOR ZOMBIES by Douglas Kolacki
My limbs are not as cooperative as they used to be.

A zombie man keeps escaping from his home to find the entity that made them and ask to be released into death. This was a very long winded and confusing story. The conversations in it were weird and I just didn't get what the author was trying to do with this. (1 star)

10. FEEDING FRENZY by Matt Hults
These zombies are hungry.

Ron and Greg want to buy an abandoned fast food joint but when they get inside the zombie customers want never ending service and they can't find a way out or a way to call for help. This one was quirky and I liked the ideas in it. I would have marked it higher but there was no real conclusion to the story which was a bit frustrating. (3 star)

Overall I have to mark this anthology based on there being more stories that left me cold.

Profile Image for Debbie Christiana.
Author 9 books109 followers
January 10, 2013
The best thing about UNDEAD is its uniqueness. These storytellers have used their imaginations to the fullest and presented ten tales of Zombies that are unusual and original. There isn’t a traditional storyline among them. They were well-written and I enjoyed them all.

But, FURZBY HOLT, by Jonathan Broughton inched a little above the rest as my favorite. Even the title made me smile. A census taker travels to FURZBY HOLT, which unbeknownst to him is a town whose residents are zombies. The interaction between the census taker, the zombies and their care-giver/interpreter as he asks about the type of dwellings, income, etc., while keeping his fear intact, was wonderfully funny and dark.

GREYWALKER, by Rayne Hall has her zombie adventure set in a distant Middle Eastern country during the Bronze Age and DECISION OF THE COUNCIL, by John Hoddy takes us to the year 2225 where a beloved hero (for me) from the 20th century is reanimated back to life. Both are very cool, clever stories.

A little dark humor always hooks me. I'LL LOVE YA, FOREVER, BUT... by April Grey, ZOMBIE MOTHER-IN-LAW, by Tara Maya and LAST CHANCE TO SEE, by Tracie McBride deliver top notch stories that are creepy but with enough wit to bring a smile to your face.

IMMUNITY, by Jeff Strand, ANOTHER OLDIE BUT GOODIE, by Paul Dail, THE REASON FOR ZOMBIES, by Douglas Kolacki and FEEDING FRENZY, by Matt Hults are quality stories with an eerie and atmospheric tone all their own.

A great read from start to finish. I highly recommend it.
Profile Image for Lia Burres.
Author 4 books6 followers
October 25, 2013
Halloween is Upon us, growing closer every day. Weird things will soon begin happening. The moon will shine brighter or cover by clouds. You'll hear things that go bump in the night.
Will you be ready for the short stories that Rayne brings to you of the Undead? Zombies are coming for the night of Halloween. Have a party, gather around the fire, start reading and taking turns. Have your guests on edge.
The stories are great for also reading alone, at night in the den with a candle lit. Beware if anything moves outside or on the other side of the room.
You'll even read of a zombie love story. Yes, a Zombie Love Story. I could sit and tell you the story, but that will ruin the Halloween night surprise.
Get ready for your skin to crawl, the hair on the back of your neck to raise up, your blood to start flowing fast and your senses to go on high alert. It's time for one of the best reading tales for Halloween, with friends or by yourself.

Check it out on Good Reads or Amazon
Right now it's free for eBooks on Amazon. I don't know how long it lasts, so be sure to grab it while you can.
- See more at: http://www.bitoeverything.com/2013/10...
Profile Image for Kaitlyn  .
210 reviews2 followers
December 6, 2014
I received this product through a promotion in exchange for a honest and unbiased review.

These tales are different versions of what it'd be like undead or how the undead would impact our lives if they existed.

I found the tales infectious. I'm so used to thinking of zombies just as mindless creatures. It's refreshing and interesting to be inside the zombie's mind while or after it's been infected. Many of the authors gave them the ability to think, but their priorities have changed.

Immunity amused me because the person had been bitten by a zombie. Soon the infection will take place, but the person is in denial. He's so sure that he's immune to the disease that he doesn't notice the changes.

Last Chance To See made me sad. The husband reanimated his wife, so she'd have 24 hours to say goodbye to loved ones, to see them once more, before death becomes permanent. It's like they have to go through death all over again.

Decision of the Council made me laugh when I read who they were trying to reanimate.
Profile Image for Britt.
206 reviews14 followers
November 23, 2013
Wow this compilation of zombie novels was amazing. The short stories provide a wide variance of types of zombies. Who Knew! Before reading the ten stories in this novel I thought I was a zombie aficionado and expert, but Undead pushes the imagination further into science fiction. Who knew zombies had feelings "Immunity" by Jeff Strand puts that little nugget into the reader's mind and explores zombies from their point of view. Excellent story by the way. Another great story, "ANOTHER OLDIE BUT GOODIE" by Paul D. Dail, elderly people amaze me. This one is based in a retirement home; gives a new meaning to old love and memories. One of my favorite stories in this novel was "Feeding Frenzy" by Matt Hults, where we are reminded what looks good on the outside may not be good for you on the inside. All the short stories enclosed in this novel bring a brand new vision to the term "Zombie" and some stories as the reader I wished never ended.
Profile Image for Erika Messer.
176 reviews18 followers
December 3, 2014
Who doesn't love zombies???? Well if you don't get with it! LOL just kidding :) I thought I loved vampires until zombies became the big thing, and now I am obsessed with zombies - I even have a zombie survival kit :) What a fun anthology for zombie lovers like me, and from writers all over the world - every story a different style and setting, there is something for everyone in this book. My favorite story? Zombie Mother-In-Law by Tara Maya. You think YOUR mother in law is bad? Wait until you see this one! She will literally have you for dinner! I also liked Immunity by Jeff Strand because even though I love zombies, the thought of being immune to becoming one is always an interesting concept. All ten stories are perfect for the anthology and again Rayne Hall has not let the reader down with her skills :) Pick up one of these ebooks for that special zombie-lover in your life and watch them devour it! I received a complimentary ebook to review.
Profile Image for R..
1,693 reviews51 followers
March 14, 2014
There were some original stories in here and it was definitely worth the whopping pricetag of FREE on the Nook. That said, it's basically a plug for other stories and books because of the 150 some odd pages in this, the last 50 are excerpts from other books that did nothing for me reading it the way it is. I can honestly say that I have NEVER read an excerpt from another book at the end of one I finished. What's the point? If I like it it's just a tease and odds are there isn't enough for me to get into it anyway. Not a good marketing ploy in my opinion.
Profile Image for Michelle.
305 reviews9 followers
April 9, 2014
As a collection of short zombie stories from varing authors I really have to compliment the editor for puting them together in a way where they still managed to feel cohesive. The 10 tales themselves are enjoyable. There is even a cute one that features the James Bond character.

After you are finished with the short stories you will also find excerpts of other tales in the back. One in particular, Elijah's Chariot by Douglas Kolacki has caught my eye and I may have to give this whole story a read at a later date and time.
Profile Image for C.J. Burright.
Author 21 books384 followers
February 10, 2013
Undead: Ten Tales of Zombies is a diverse collection of short stories ranging from humorous to poignant, thought-provoking to disturbing. Each tale held an unexpected twist ending and more than a few times I laughed out loud or cringed. I enjoyed every one of the stories, but if I had to choose a favorite, it would be a tie between Furzby Holt and Feeding Frenzy. Furzby Holt was downright scary and Feeding Frenzy was a perfect blend of horror and humor.
Profile Image for Emmanuelle.
367 reviews
January 14, 2014
First of all, zombie tales aren't my thing. I read this compilation because I support the work of author Tara Maya, who had a short story in this title. That said, none of these short stories were "gonna-have-bad-dreams-for-three-nights" scary. Most of them were quite funny. It's a quick, fast read.
Profile Image for Maggie Fout.
50 reviews4 followers
November 4, 2013
If you are looking for a fun read try Undead: Ten Tales of Zombies!! The stories were delightfully creepy, and some even a bit humorous. My fave was FURZBY HOLT by Jonathan Broughton. So zombie lovers check out this awesome book!!!
Profile Image for Brianna Andreda.
10 reviews4 followers
July 13, 2014
This was definitely not what I had expected. I did like the different ways people became zombies and the different concepts about zombies. The best stories were the first and last ones. If those stories would have been the only stories in the book, I would have given this book 5 stars.
Profile Image for Lagina Johnson.
8 reviews2 followers
June 7, 2014
Strange stories

I don't usually read short stories but decided to give this one a go since it was about zombies. The stories kept my interest to finish the book but I can't say that I would follow any of these authors. Good for a free read.
Profile Image for Tina Garrett.
2 reviews
December 2, 2014
Each story is completely different from the next in Undead: Ten Tales of Zombies. Ten fantastic authors come together to share their visions of the undead, each with their own unique writing style and techniques. I enjoy reading books like this. I have recommended this book on social media.
Profile Image for John.
493 reviews2 followers
December 21, 2014
Putrefaction Guaranteed! A wonderfully unique collection dealing with all things undead and rotting.  Ten different authors with ten different tales to tell of zombies, all well-written, and a good couple that happily make the hairs on the back of the neck stand up.
Profile Image for Patti.
2,116 reviews
January 2, 2014
The first and last story were the best. The rest were eh.
Profile Image for Nancy Hammond.
143 reviews3 followers
December 14, 2014
interesting and unique zombie shorts. you can pick up and read at your leisure or skip around the stories. quite entertaining. I would recommend as a good read for the horror short story fan.
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews

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