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The Highway to Never After #1
Palpitations
Good girls don't smoke
Good girls get their immunisations
Good girls die in the first five minutes of the zombie apocalypse
It's a good thing that Charlotte's only been pretending to be a good girl. Her naughty streak is either going to save her life, or get her devoured. And there are worse things going bump in the night, than the red-eyes.
A suspenseful, sexy and sinful road-trip to the end of the world and back again.
Good girls get their immunisations
Good girls die in the first five minutes of the zombie apocalypse
It's a good thing that Charlotte's only been pretending to be a good girl. Her naughty streak is either going to save her life, or get her devoured. And there are worse things going bump in the night, than the red-eyes.
A suspenseful, sexy and sinful road-trip to the end of the world and back again.
509 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 1, 2014
101 people are currently reading
342 people want to read
About the author
S.K. Munt
39 books283 followersFollow me on Twitter https://twitter.com/skmunt25
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/skmunt?fref=ts
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Instagram: thearticulatesk
S.K Munt is an author and playwright from north Queensland, Australia. She mostly writes adult paranormal fantasies, but loves to take the sweetness, hope and innocence that makes YA so beguiling, and give it an adult twist. You could say that she has a 'Pan' complex as far as happy endings go.
Samantha has 4 children, and is happily married to her first love. So far she has penned thirty-two novels, and five plays. In her spare time, she can be found at rehearsals for her local theatre groups, surfing, reading or cleaning compulsively.
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/skmunt?fref=ts
Tumblr:https://www.tumblr.com/blog/thearticu...
Wordpress: https://samanthamunt.wordpress.com
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/killerslim/
Instagram: thearticulatesk
S.K Munt is an author and playwright from north Queensland, Australia. She mostly writes adult paranormal fantasies, but loves to take the sweetness, hope and innocence that makes YA so beguiling, and give it an adult twist. You could say that she has a 'Pan' complex as far as happy endings go.
Samantha has 4 children, and is happily married to her first love. So far she has penned thirty-two novels, and five plays. In her spare time, she can be found at rehearsals for her local theatre groups, surfing, reading or cleaning compulsively.
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September 5, 2021I see that the author is Australian, and this is my first book to use the single quote marks around dialogue. I found myself rereading to catch dialogue against the narration. The singles are too easily missed in reading, which slowed my reading time down:(
Some constructive criticism on writing style.
1. Wordy! Wordy! Wordy! Wordy! Wordy! Wordy!
This author’s writing style in VERY wordy and over-telling. What should take a single paragraph, takes pages! What could be said in a single sentence, takes paragraphs. Every single detail is given about every step. Instead of that placing me in the story, I found myself overloaded with info, missing the main idea, and unable to visualize the scene because it was sensory overload. Example…
‘Aha!’ Charlotte shot forward and jammed one of the tiny, odd-shaped keys into the tiny, odd-shaped lock. When she opened the door she knelt and squinted, waiting until her eyes adjusted enough to confirm that she’d found what she was looking for. Her stomach grew taut at the sight of the weapons snuggled into the foam-lined walls of the hidden safe but she pushed her unease aside and grabbed the pistol.
All that could’ve been said … Opening the door, she found the weapons in the hidden safe. She grabbed the pistol and pushed her unease aside. An editor worth salt would whittle ^ that shit down, and for good reason.
It’s the zombie apocalypse, meaning I don’t care about odd-shaped locks and keys. Why is she kneeling and squinting? Do I care that she’s kneeling? Did kneeling, squinting, taut gut, etc contribute to the action or emo state? Why do I need to know that walls are lined with foam? Did that help or hinder the action, contribute to what she’s doing? <<< Point being that she’s grabbing a gun, and we don’t need that small act to take two pages of otherwise useless supplemental info.
It’s the same thing with every move the FMC makes.
A page to collect a bag.
Multiple pages to simply load a gun.
2. G’zus at the length of some of these sentences. This has to be a world record for a run on sentence:
Charlotte frowned, suddenly heartsick that she wouldn’t be getting married to Mr Perfect the next day, until she remembered exactly why and then she was so swiftly besieged by a wave of grief that she made a strangled noise in her throat and rose to her feet, shaking it off: the tears, the fears, the reality she didn’t want to accept as her own…it was way too much for her to process, and she didn’t feel right falling apart over any of it until she’d had an eternity to mourn Abby first. * blinks*
PROBLEM: FMC’s Inner Dialogue Is Exhausting!
She’s doing one thing while thinking about other shit.
She thinks the most asinine shit, such as this….
But then Charlotte looked back at the bridesmaid wondering… was she dying? Sophia certainly didn’t look good, and her movements were stiffening, as Abigail’s had been ten minutes before. But she was still up and at ‘em! Charlotte desperately wanted to know why, but doubted that it was a question Sophia would have been able to answer, even if she hadn’t been dead and missing teeth.
^ A zombie is standing in front of you, and not only are you off in la-la land, but you’re actually pondering asking the zombie trying to eat you a question.
If a standalone, I might have considered trudging onward to see if whatever plot is to be had is ever worth it, but THIS IS A FOUR BOOK SERIES. So, no. An hour to read 10% was painfully exhausting, and given that the FMC left her car running and unlocked with her cellphone in it during the zombie apocalypse while she goes inside a building…. Ah, yeah, she’s clearly going to be one hella TSTL character.
No rating - DNF @8%. Sad because I am a dystopian, zombie, apocalypse w/romance whore. Love it, but this wasn’t it.
Some constructive criticism on writing style.
1. Wordy! Wordy! Wordy! Wordy! Wordy! Wordy!
This author’s writing style in VERY wordy and over-telling. What should take a single paragraph, takes pages! What could be said in a single sentence, takes paragraphs. Every single detail is given about every step. Instead of that placing me in the story, I found myself overloaded with info, missing the main idea, and unable to visualize the scene because it was sensory overload. Example…
‘Aha!’ Charlotte shot forward and jammed one of the tiny, odd-shaped keys into the tiny, odd-shaped lock. When she opened the door she knelt and squinted, waiting until her eyes adjusted enough to confirm that she’d found what she was looking for. Her stomach grew taut at the sight of the weapons snuggled into the foam-lined walls of the hidden safe but she pushed her unease aside and grabbed the pistol.
All that could’ve been said … Opening the door, she found the weapons in the hidden safe. She grabbed the pistol and pushed her unease aside. An editor worth salt would whittle ^ that shit down, and for good reason.
It’s the zombie apocalypse, meaning I don’t care about odd-shaped locks and keys. Why is she kneeling and squinting? Do I care that she’s kneeling? Did kneeling, squinting, taut gut, etc contribute to the action or emo state? Why do I need to know that walls are lined with foam? Did that help or hinder the action, contribute to what she’s doing? <<< Point being that she’s grabbing a gun, and we don’t need that small act to take two pages of otherwise useless supplemental info.
It’s the same thing with every move the FMC makes.
A page to collect a bag.
Multiple pages to simply load a gun.
2. G’zus at the length of some of these sentences. This has to be a world record for a run on sentence:
Charlotte frowned, suddenly heartsick that she wouldn’t be getting married to Mr Perfect the next day, until she remembered exactly why and then she was so swiftly besieged by a wave of grief that she made a strangled noise in her throat and rose to her feet, shaking it off: the tears, the fears, the reality she didn’t want to accept as her own…it was way too much for her to process, and she didn’t feel right falling apart over any of it until she’d had an eternity to mourn Abby first. * blinks*
PROBLEM: FMC’s Inner Dialogue Is Exhausting!
She’s doing one thing while thinking about other shit.
She thinks the most asinine shit, such as this….
But then Charlotte looked back at the bridesmaid wondering… was she dying? Sophia certainly didn’t look good, and her movements were stiffening, as Abigail’s had been ten minutes before. But she was still up and at ‘em! Charlotte desperately wanted to know why, but doubted that it was a question Sophia would have been able to answer, even if she hadn’t been dead and missing teeth.
^ A zombie is standing in front of you, and not only are you off in la-la land, but you’re actually pondering asking the zombie trying to eat you a question.
If a standalone, I might have considered trudging onward to see if whatever plot is to be had is ever worth it, but THIS IS A FOUR BOOK SERIES. So, no. An hour to read 10% was painfully exhausting, and given that the FMC left her car running and unlocked with her cellphone in it during the zombie apocalypse while she goes inside a building…. Ah, yeah, she’s clearly going to be one hella TSTL character.
No rating - DNF @8%. Sad because I am a dystopian, zombie, apocalypse w/romance whore. Love it, but this wasn’t it.
July 18, 2014
I am somewhat of a book whore! I have been in this genre, done that genre a hundred times over. I am also a fickle one and extremely hard to please. I enjoy each genre nicely done not over done much like subway cookies. Horror for instance, bores me. I don't shy away from a little blood and gore in fact I quite like it but I would rather the eye balls stay in their sockets and not roll around on the floor. I do believe a book can still be classified Paranormal Romance even if the hero does not transfer electricity with his touch and his lover cannot sense him entering the room with her eyes closed. I do love romance. I am a girl after all and sweet is nice but if it's over sweetened I will gag like I've found a Saccharin tablet in my coffee. I don't get poetry and I like my sexy times flavoured, not vanilla but nothing more exotic than rum n raisin. I will not enter the red room as I will only giggle and leave. And don't get me started on over the top try hard humour.
Anyway there is a point to my insane rambling and my point is I do not give out 5 stars all willy nilly but in this case if I could I would reward this book with about 30+ stars. Five for each genre it dominates. Until this book I thought zombie apocalypse stories were dead (pun intended), completely exhausted but this story by far surpasses all the others. It didn't just incorporate all my fave genres but kicked their butts. I was holding my breathe through the suspenseful parts, swooning big time for the hunk a spunk, heating up over the sexy parts, cursing like a sailor at the (you will not see it coming) plot twists and laughing my arse off the whole way through it. This book is hilarious! Munt has a dry wit not many can pull off and throws it in at the most random and inappropriate times. I was so frustrated yet entertained at the comic absurdity of some situations I just wanted to climb into my kindle and shake these characters whilst screaming "people seriously.....wtf?" But isn't that what makes a good horror story? That feeling of superiority as a reader, the knowledge that going that way or opening that door is definitely the wrong move.
The characters, much like the zombie outbreak, are realistic. The way in which Munt has her dead turn is ingenious and not all that far fetched if you really think about it and the leading gal Charlotte is as real as they come. She is not cliche, angelic and adorable, she is not a damsel in distress and she does not suddenly become a sharp shooter or learn she has a hidden samurai inside. She is snarky, speaks her mind, makes human mistakes in stressful situations and throws ciggy butts out the window but she is genuine! And Will...well, Mr Willy is just smokin Hot! I believe he may be hotter than Zac Efron?;) He is a master at the great art of banter!
I believe this is the first in a series but don't worry there is no cliff hanger!
I would recommend this to readers that appreciate something a bit different and can see the funny side of zombies :)
This book is the best Jerry, THE BEST!
Anyway there is a point to my insane rambling and my point is I do not give out 5 stars all willy nilly but in this case if I could I would reward this book with about 30+ stars. Five for each genre it dominates. Until this book I thought zombie apocalypse stories were dead (pun intended), completely exhausted but this story by far surpasses all the others. It didn't just incorporate all my fave genres but kicked their butts. I was holding my breathe through the suspenseful parts, swooning big time for the hunk a spunk, heating up over the sexy parts, cursing like a sailor at the (you will not see it coming) plot twists and laughing my arse off the whole way through it. This book is hilarious! Munt has a dry wit not many can pull off and throws it in at the most random and inappropriate times. I was so frustrated yet entertained at the comic absurdity of some situations I just wanted to climb into my kindle and shake these characters whilst screaming "people seriously.....wtf?" But isn't that what makes a good horror story? That feeling of superiority as a reader, the knowledge that going that way or opening that door is definitely the wrong move.
The characters, much like the zombie outbreak, are realistic. The way in which Munt has her dead turn is ingenious and not all that far fetched if you really think about it and the leading gal Charlotte is as real as they come. She is not cliche, angelic and adorable, she is not a damsel in distress and she does not suddenly become a sharp shooter or learn she has a hidden samurai inside. She is snarky, speaks her mind, makes human mistakes in stressful situations and throws ciggy butts out the window but she is genuine! And Will...well, Mr Willy is just smokin Hot! I believe he may be hotter than Zac Efron?;) He is a master at the great art of banter!
I believe this is the first in a series but don't worry there is no cliff hanger!
I would recommend this to readers that appreciate something a bit different and can see the funny side of zombies :)
This book is the best Jerry, THE BEST!
July 24, 2014
Full review now up! https://onceuponabookblog.squarespace...
I am a big S. K. Munt fan (even though I still don’t think I have fully recovered from Unchained Melody), and as I have said before – where she leads, I will follow. This time she led me straight into a zombie book. Awww, my first ever zombie read. There’s a reason I’m more of a romance girl than an action girl, and it’s the blood and guts. I’m really not down with blood and guts. It squicks me out. However, being the loyal fan that I am, I one-clicked Palpitations as soon as it was out. And….I liked it!! Zombies still make me want to stab my eyes out with a fork, but as per usual S.K. Munt has spun an awesome tale.
Palpitations was sort of a mix of insane apocalyptic zombies and quirky second-chance romance. The two main characters Charlotte and Will were a lot of fun - or as fun as one can be during a zombie apocalypse. One moment they were all teeth, claws and hatred and the next they were panting over each other and desperately in love. I adored their playful banter, especially during the scenes where they had to work together as a team to survive. Also – Will was a crier. Gawd I LOVE me a crier! It’s just adorable.
"I told you - every time I light up a smoke or kiss you, something bad happens. Not that you've actually put out, I'll probably get eaten."
As per usual, S. K. Munts writing was spot on. I’m always absorbed by her story telling and love the characters and worlds she builds. You can’t help being caught up in it! Palpitations is the first book in this series but there is no relationship cliff-hanger and from what I can tell (I may be totally wrong) the next story is a continuation of this one but told from different characters POVs. Either way, I’ll definitely be carrying on with this series. Colour me intrigued!
"Is this seriously fucking happening?"
https://www.facebook.com/onceuponaboo...
I am a big S. K. Munt fan (even though I still don’t think I have fully recovered from Unchained Melody), and as I have said before – where she leads, I will follow. This time she led me straight into a zombie book. Awww, my first ever zombie read. There’s a reason I’m more of a romance girl than an action girl, and it’s the blood and guts. I’m really not down with blood and guts. It squicks me out. However, being the loyal fan that I am, I one-clicked Palpitations as soon as it was out. And….I liked it!! Zombies still make me want to stab my eyes out with a fork, but as per usual S.K. Munt has spun an awesome tale.
Palpitations was sort of a mix of insane apocalyptic zombies and quirky second-chance romance. The two main characters Charlotte and Will were a lot of fun - or as fun as one can be during a zombie apocalypse. One moment they were all teeth, claws and hatred and the next they were panting over each other and desperately in love. I adored their playful banter, especially during the scenes where they had to work together as a team to survive. Also – Will was a crier. Gawd I LOVE me a crier! It’s just adorable.
"I told you - every time I light up a smoke or kiss you, something bad happens. Not that you've actually put out, I'll probably get eaten."
As per usual, S. K. Munts writing was spot on. I’m always absorbed by her story telling and love the characters and worlds she builds. You can’t help being caught up in it! Palpitations is the first book in this series but there is no relationship cliff-hanger and from what I can tell (I may be totally wrong) the next story is a continuation of this one but told from different characters POVs. Either way, I’ll definitely be carrying on with this series. Colour me intrigued!
"Is this seriously fucking happening?"
https://www.facebook.com/onceuponaboo...
September 6, 2021
Didn't realise this was YA. It's not bad, it's quite well edited, it's a good read (I stayed awake till nearly 3 a.m. to finish it). It's got many of the right ingredients for a decent zombie novel. So why the lack of enthusiasm? Because it felt like most of what I was reading was the "will I, won't I?, will he, won't he?" infuriating discussions and inner thoughts of the two main characters agonising about whether or not they were going to "do it". I felt like I was eavesdropping on a couple of horny teenagers and it was just so boring. Also, my ability to suspend disbelief was stretched to the utmost in the countless scenes where these discussions were happening WHILE they were under attack by zombies. Cut out 95% of the adolescent romance and this would be a better book. And for pity's sake, did she really have to spend so much time dressed only in her underwear? But I guess I'm just not the main target audience.
I did like the fact that I only found a couple of handful of editing errors in the book. This is a rarity in these early kindle versions of indie books, which are often riddled with mistakes. Congratulations for that!
Like this review? Why not check out my book review site: BelEdit Book Reviews?
I did like the fact that I only found a couple of handful of editing errors in the book. This is a rarity in these early kindle versions of indie books, which are often riddled with mistakes. Congratulations for that!
Like this review? Why not check out my book review site: BelEdit Book Reviews?
April 21, 2021
This book gets a few extra points from me for taking place in Australia. All too often we get zombie/vamp tales taking place in the USA, England, or Europe (in that order). In fact, the only other apocalyptic Australian book I can remember reading is Jam.
Anyone who's read my reviews for a while now knows the following:
- I have lots of books I didn't specifically buy - they came from Humble Bundles, Story Bundles, or free books from Barnes and Noble or Amazon
- I create my Digital To-Read bookshelf every 1-2 years, setting my reading order
So by the time I got to this book, I had no idea what it was about or where it came from. But I get a bit of a thrill by not reading the equivalent of the back of the book before reading it. It's like going in to a movie without having seen the trailer. Anyway, most authors write the first few chapters of any book as if you haven't read the back, so I have more fun that way. From looking at the cover I had no idea what I was in for.
Turns out this is a romance at the end of the world. I've been telling my wife about the book as I read it and she was asking me yesterday if I thought it was more romance or more zombie/vamp (more about that in a second). She's the one who's into horror, so after talking it out for a while, we came to the conclusion that just like there are comedy horrors (like Shawn of the Dead or that zombie movie with Bill Murray), this one is a romance horror. So it's got all the usual* romance tropes: will they/won't they, lots of physical descriptions, eventual graphic sex. (* I say the usual, but I think I've read about 3 romance books...so what do I know?) It's also got all the usual zombie/vamp tropes - namely the enemy always seems to be right around the corner. How well does this combo work? Well, I kept debating with myself just how horny I could be at the end of the world. On the one hand....might as well before you die? On the other hand, can't focus? And a couple times our main characters get a hold of the idiot ball and decide to make out or more while surrounded by the undead.
OK, let's get to the undead. Ms. Munt got a couple more points from me here from being creative. I guess SLIGHT spoiler for something that happens in the first two chapters - her monsters in this book act like the usual shambling zombies when they're first turned or after some time has passed. But if they've recently fed, they're something more akin to a combination of fast zombies/vampires.
Also, in a year in which I keep reading books that seem to be tailor made for 2020/2021 even if they were written a while ago - the zombie virus comes from a purposely tainted HPV vaccine. For future readers, there's a lot of vaccine hesitancy right now around the COVID-19 vaccines. (With a couple brands causing extremely rare, but devastating if you're one of the unlucky, blood clots) So, yeah!
We're in our main character's head during this story and it's a mess in there. Her thought processes constantly threatened to derail the story for me and almost knocked things back to 2 stars. I want to say that I've had a pretty lucky/blessed life. I haven't had to deal with abuse of any kind (verbal, physical, emotional, sexual). While acknowledging that men can be victims, it's not something that goes through my mind like it (may) for women. So keep that in mind when I say that it was distracting to eventually learn that our main character has basically suffered from ALL those categories of abuse. I'm sure there are folks like that. Maybe it rings true for Ms. Munt or someone she knows. But as a reader - it was a lot. And it contributed to an exceptionally fraught will they/won't they when combined with my least favorite trope - https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.ph... - very often seen in comics when characters punch first and ask questions later. There were also more twists and turns to the stories our main characters told each other than if it were a 1940s noir story.
Would I recommend it? That's a tough one.
What's it got going for it?
- Unique location: Australia
- Unique Monsters: zombie/vamps
- Sexy-time scenes - if that's what you're into
Against:
- hard to pin down characters' motivations because they're all over the place
- probably every single trigger warning needed for this book.
At the end I found out there's a sequel. I'm done with these characters, so I'm not going on. But I didn't hate reading this story. It was often quite entertaining. When the main character isn't oscillating between her two choices of what to do, her inner monologue is sassy and fun to read. The two main characters trade some fun barbs. I think if you'd like to try out some zombie apocalypse romance, give it a shot.
Anyone who's read my reviews for a while now knows the following:
- I have lots of books I didn't specifically buy - they came from Humble Bundles, Story Bundles, or free books from Barnes and Noble or Amazon
- I create my Digital To-Read bookshelf every 1-2 years, setting my reading order
So by the time I got to this book, I had no idea what it was about or where it came from. But I get a bit of a thrill by not reading the equivalent of the back of the book before reading it. It's like going in to a movie without having seen the trailer. Anyway, most authors write the first few chapters of any book as if you haven't read the back, so I have more fun that way. From looking at the cover I had no idea what I was in for.
Turns out this is a romance at the end of the world. I've been telling my wife about the book as I read it and she was asking me yesterday if I thought it was more romance or more zombie/vamp (more about that in a second). She's the one who's into horror, so after talking it out for a while, we came to the conclusion that just like there are comedy horrors (like Shawn of the Dead or that zombie movie with Bill Murray), this one is a romance horror. So it's got all the usual* romance tropes: will they/won't they, lots of physical descriptions, eventual graphic sex. (* I say the usual, but I think I've read about 3 romance books...so what do I know?) It's also got all the usual zombie/vamp tropes - namely the enemy always seems to be right around the corner. How well does this combo work? Well, I kept debating with myself just how horny I could be at the end of the world. On the one hand....might as well before you die? On the other hand, can't focus? And a couple times our main characters get a hold of the idiot ball and decide to make out or more while surrounded by the undead.
OK, let's get to the undead. Ms. Munt got a couple more points from me here from being creative. I guess SLIGHT spoiler for something that happens in the first two chapters - her monsters in this book act like the usual shambling zombies when they're first turned or after some time has passed. But if they've recently fed, they're something more akin to a combination of fast zombies/vampires.
Also, in a year in which I keep reading books that seem to be tailor made for 2020/2021 even if they were written a while ago - the zombie virus comes from a purposely tainted HPV vaccine. For future readers, there's a lot of vaccine hesitancy right now around the COVID-19 vaccines. (With a couple brands causing extremely rare, but devastating if you're one of the unlucky, blood clots) So, yeah!
We're in our main character's head during this story and it's a mess in there. Her thought processes constantly threatened to derail the story for me and almost knocked things back to 2 stars. I want to say that I've had a pretty lucky/blessed life. I haven't had to deal with abuse of any kind (verbal, physical, emotional, sexual). While acknowledging that men can be victims, it's not something that goes through my mind like it (may) for women. So keep that in mind when I say that it was distracting to eventually learn that our main character has basically suffered from ALL those categories of abuse. I'm sure there are folks like that. Maybe it rings true for Ms. Munt or someone she knows. But as a reader - it was a lot. And it contributed to an exceptionally fraught will they/won't they when combined with my least favorite trope - https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.ph... - very often seen in comics when characters punch first and ask questions later. There were also more twists and turns to the stories our main characters told each other than if it were a 1940s noir story.
Would I recommend it? That's a tough one.
What's it got going for it?
- Unique location: Australia
- Unique Monsters: zombie/vamps
- Sexy-time scenes - if that's what you're into
Against:
- hard to pin down characters' motivations because they're all over the place
- probably every single trigger warning needed for this book.
At the end I found out there's a sequel. I'm done with these characters, so I'm not going on. But I didn't hate reading this story. It was often quite entertaining. When the main character isn't oscillating between her two choices of what to do, her inner monologue is sassy and fun to read. The two main characters trade some fun barbs. I think if you'd like to try out some zombie apocalypse romance, give it a shot.
August 21, 2014
My sincere thanks to the author for providing me with a complimentary e-book copy in exchange for my honest review.
Good girls don't smoke.
Good girls get their injections.
Good girls are excited on the eve of their wedding.
Good girls die in the first five minutes of the zombie apocalypse
Charlotte's naughty streak is either going to pay off, or get her devoured.
And there are worse things going bump in the night than the red-eyes.
A hostage. A viral outbreak. A sexy, suspenseful apocalypse road-trip adventure unlike NO either.
Wow! S.K. Munt sure knows how to write a great zombie apocalypse story! There was lots of blood, gore, action, humour, and even romance that kept you on the edge of your seat, biting your nails and turning the pages as quickly as possible. It felt like watching a horror movie where you're yelling at the characters to get moving, don't get out of the car, don't go in there, seriously! you're taking time for a kiss now!!
I loved the snark and wit of the characters and was blown away by the twists in the story. Doesn't hurt to have such a hot male character either!
I will definitely be purchasing the next book in the series. Highly recommended for any paranormal romance, zombie lovers!
Good girls don't smoke.
Good girls get their injections.
Good girls are excited on the eve of their wedding.
Good girls die in the first five minutes of the zombie apocalypse
Charlotte's naughty streak is either going to pay off, or get her devoured.
And there are worse things going bump in the night than the red-eyes.
A hostage. A viral outbreak. A sexy, suspenseful apocalypse road-trip adventure unlike NO either.
Wow! S.K. Munt sure knows how to write a great zombie apocalypse story! There was lots of blood, gore, action, humour, and even romance that kept you on the edge of your seat, biting your nails and turning the pages as quickly as possible. It felt like watching a horror movie where you're yelling at the characters to get moving, don't get out of the car, don't go in there, seriously! you're taking time for a kiss now!!
I loved the snark and wit of the characters and was blown away by the twists in the story. Doesn't hurt to have such a hot male character either!
I will definitely be purchasing the next book in the series. Highly recommended for any paranormal romance, zombie lovers!
July 25, 2014
I was given this book from the author for an honest review. I have to say this story was good. The writing was amazing. If you like zombie stories and the end of the world type stories this book should be the top of your list. I did find that half way through I was getting a little bored but that was only for a few chapters. This book picked right back up and was AMAZING!! I love the twists & turns this author put into her story! Amazing read!!! I love how this story played out and now I understand why it was a little slow in the middle. Read this you wont be sorry! :)
March 4, 2015
*ARR (Advance Reader Review) - copy provided as a gift in exchange for an honest review...
Witty, snarky, funny and sexy!
Funny as heck and hot as heck - Will is delicious! I love the interaction between the characters, the history and the drama - and the secrets (yes they are revealed later).
Go grab this book, you won't be disappointed
Check out my full review on my blog: http://ljsecretaddiction.blogspot.com...
Witty, snarky, funny and sexy!
Funny as heck and hot as heck - Will is delicious! I love the interaction between the characters, the history and the drama - and the secrets (yes they are revealed later).
Go grab this book, you won't be disappointed
Check out my full review on my blog: http://ljsecretaddiction.blogspot.com...
July 14, 2014
I loved it. Such a different way to write a zombie novel YES it has loads of blood teeth n nails to keep with the gore we all love. But is also full of black humour that had me laughing as much as biting my nails .. Well done!! A true zombie story I loved it.
October 13, 2014
I liked this one. I liked that the author went somewhere different and with zombies too!
January 8, 2015
I'm not really a fan of zombie apocalyptic novels but this - this has converted me! The characters were great, the story was fantastic, the sex scenes and sexual tension had me panting.
February 25, 2015
I loved every minute of this book! I am so glad I found this author!
June 1, 2017
First of all I would like to thank the author profusely for the free e-book copy of her book that I received in exchange for this review.
An apocalypse, sexy banter and blood and gore! What is not to love about S.K. Munt's book, Palpitations.
This is the first opportunity I have had to read the work of S.K. Munt and am overly eager for a chance to read more! Action and Suspense with a little bit of romance has always been exactly what I have look for in a story and I found all of that right here in Palpitations. The twists and turns always kept me guessing what what about to jump out from around the next corner.
The amazing characters of this book drove me ABSOLUTELY CRAZY! The main characters, Charlotte and Will, always kept me either laughing, crying or pulling my hair out at the stupidity. Like, the power dying all around you, bullets are flying through the air and the red-eyes are closing in, so what? You decide to make out? WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU?! GET THE H*** OUT OF THERE!!!
Charlotte seriously needed to pick her opinion about Will and Stick with! Half the book it Was 'I love you' one minute and then 'I hate you' the next while all Will tried to do was protect her and get to his son.
"Go? He said that no matter what, he'd claw his way out of hell to keep me safe! Was that a lie too? Was it all a lie?
HE IS DOING THIS TO KEEP YOU SAFE! CANT YOU SEE THAT?!
All in all this was an absolutely amazing book that always kept you guessing. I definitely recommend this book to all apocalyptic/ zombie/ romance lovers out there!
An apocalypse, sexy banter and blood and gore! What is not to love about S.K. Munt's book, Palpitations.
This is the first opportunity I have had to read the work of S.K. Munt and am overly eager for a chance to read more! Action and Suspense with a little bit of romance has always been exactly what I have look for in a story and I found all of that right here in Palpitations. The twists and turns always kept me guessing what what about to jump out from around the next corner.
The amazing characters of this book drove me ABSOLUTELY CRAZY! The main characters, Charlotte and Will, always kept me either laughing, crying or pulling my hair out at the stupidity. Like, the power dying all around you, bullets are flying through the air and the red-eyes are closing in, so what? You decide to make out? WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU?! GET THE H*** OUT OF THERE!!!
Charlotte seriously needed to pick her opinion about Will and Stick with! Half the book it Was 'I love you' one minute and then 'I hate you' the next while all Will tried to do was protect her and get to his son.
"Go? He said that no matter what, he'd claw his way out of hell to keep me safe! Was that a lie too? Was it all a lie?
HE IS DOING THIS TO KEEP YOU SAFE! CANT YOU SEE THAT?!
All in all this was an absolutely amazing book that always kept you guessing. I definitely recommend this book to all apocalyptic/ zombie/ romance lovers out there!
July 16, 2014
I absolutely loved this book, I literally had 1h15min sleep last night reading it and dashed through my work so I could finish it this afternoon. Without going into any spoilers.... the characters had depth and you find yourself rushing to get to the next page to see what happens next. A cross country road trip, dodging red-eyes and some nerve wracking situations, filled with humour and a decent plot that made sense, best of all the characters were believable and not one dimensional.
Yup I will definitely be purchasing the next in the series. This was not a cliff hanger (thank you so much for that!).
Yup I will definitely be purchasing the next in the series. This was not a cliff hanger (thank you so much for that!).
April 8, 2015
This book was unexpected. I'm not usually into zombie books but I'm really glad I gave this book a try. The author did an amazing job creating strong emotions from the reader. One moment you hate Wills character, then the next you love him. Chars character was surprising with unexpected twists. The only annoying thing about her character was how much she kept falling. The plot was amazing and held the readers interest. This really was a good book. There were some grammatical flaws but the plot made up for it.
November 15, 2014
S.K. Munt has a natural talent for pulling the reader into her stories. This is not your typical zombie apocalypse. The characters are great, diverse and very interesting. It's hard to imagine anything to laugh about during the apocalypse but this book managed to make me laugh more than once. The sarcasm and banter were ever present between the characters. It was hard to put this book down, as a matter of fact I stayed up all night to finish it. This is a great book!
February 24, 2016
This is my first zombie apocalypse book I've read. It was fantastic! The characters are great and very real. The situations are extremely realistic. The characters are not treated with kid gloves; people die and they die gruesomely. There's no time for remorse or grief - it's all about survival here. The infection/spreading theory is reasonable and well-thought out.
I immensely enjoyed the story and hope there's a book 2 to follow the characters into their new reality.
I immensely enjoyed the story and hope there's a book 2 to follow the characters into their new reality.
August 27, 2014
This book had me hooked from the first paragraph. Not just the usual apocalyptic zombie story but a storyline so potentially real and filled with characters I found myself wanting to know more about. I got so caught up with such great descriptive writing I could see every scene in my mind. Now the author just needs to hurry up with the follow up book;-)
November 17, 2014
What a rollercoaster of a story. I am a big fan of zombie apocalypse films, however this was my first book. I enjoyed it! It was everything you'd hope to expect from an S.K. Munt book, with a zombie twist. Along with more twists in the story. Which is fantastic. Some parts of this book I would be like WOAH WAIT WHAT JUST HAPPENED!!!...then I couldn't turn the pages quick enough. Loved it!
March 12, 2015
Palpitations is a fun disfunctional "love" story with a zombie apocalypse backdrop. The story is full of twists and turns that will keep you guessing until the very end. The characters have a real feel to them, all are flawed, damaged goods with redeeming qualities. I really enjoyed S.K. Munt's sense of humor, in her writing and in real life.
October 17, 2014
Amazing
this book was spectacular. I really enjoyed it. I had so much trouble putting it down. I don't really read zombie apocalypse type stuff but it really surprised me. i love how the main characters are crazy but that's how they work so good together. highly recommend this book.
this book was spectacular. I really enjoyed it. I had so much trouble putting it down. I don't really read zombie apocalypse type stuff but it really surprised me. i love how the main characters are crazy but that's how they work so good together. highly recommend this book.
September 14, 2016
S.K. Munt has written another great book. Starting out I wasn't into but the further I got the better it got. Not a big fan of the relationship Char had with Ike. They way will Char gets her childhood crush back and the obstacles they go through are the best.
March 20, 2016
Page turner
Love all of S.K Munts books. This one did not disappoint.
I'm not into zombie books but this one got me hooked
Love all of S.K Munts books. This one did not disappoint.
I'm not into zombie books but this one got me hooked
October 7, 2025
ok - this is my kind of book! Zombies that turn into vampires? Yes please! There is a lot to unpack in this book as it is not your normal Apocalyptic romance book. I find the main characters - Will and Char - extremely interesting and their interactions very fun to read. What makes the story work is how their relationship evolves and matures and how the traumatic episode on one fatal night pushed their lives into a tailspin for 3 years until, finally they can have a change to correct course, even if they are surrounded from flesh eating and perv zombies. What I likes is that the correction for Char is about taking ownership of herself and start living - there is a very steep curve in her character from the beginning, more so than Will - even if he had his share of trouble from other people. Interesting also are the secondary characters like Isaac and his possessive and suffocating nature and all the other characters off pages that we are introduced to in the first book.
The 4 stars are for the story and the humour, originality and badassery of the FMC mainly.
Why it is not a 5?
However I have to admit that, especially in the middle, there are moments, even in the heat of battle, that I skipped ahead as the descriptions and the narrative was dragging along sooo slowly I could not take it - I am sure a good editor would have cut some of the overworded passages in the middle and taken nothing from the whole story (maybe would have been more enjoyable).
Also something that got me really irritated me while reading was 1) she left curlers in her hair for half the book - not only it is unrealistic but they were also getting stuck in things when running from Zombies; 2) she was in her underwear (bra and G-string) for 50% of the book - that was unnecessary to the story and just weird;
The 4 stars are for the story and the humour, originality and badassery of the FMC mainly.
Why it is not a 5?
However I have to admit that, especially in the middle, there are moments, even in the heat of battle, that I skipped ahead as the descriptions and the narrative was dragging along sooo slowly I could not take it - I am sure a good editor would have cut some of the overworded passages in the middle and taken nothing from the whole story (maybe would have been more enjoyable).
Also something that got me really irritated me while reading was 1) she left curlers in her hair for half the book - not only it is unrealistic but they were also getting stuck in things when running from Zombies; 2) she was in her underwear (bra and G-string) for 50% of the book - that was unnecessary to the story and just weird;
August 18, 2021
Funny, romantic, suspenseful and.......ZOMBIES!
Secretly pining for an older boy who works for her abusive dad. He cancels being her prom date then dipped out of town. Never got to tell him she loved him...... years pass so she settles for her friend.
Night before Charlotte's wedding, while at a spa, everything hits the fan. Spa employee throwing up everywhere, Made of honor attacks bridesmaid, bridesmaid attacks different spa employee, who all then go for Charlotte. With hair full of curlers, purple face mask dripping, decked out in Bride to be gear. And all she wanted was an excuse to call off the wedding.......and a cigarette. What does she get? A zombie apocalypse, attacked by her bestfriend, then car jacked and forced to be a driver.
Hijacker turns out to be her unrequited love and he doesn't remember her! .... will she ever get a break?
Had some funny, dark, romantic moments. Zombie moments
Well written and entertaining. Setting in Australia. I will continue reading. Recommended to all zombie readers
Secretly pining for an older boy who works for her abusive dad. He cancels being her prom date then dipped out of town. Never got to tell him she loved him...... years pass so she settles for her friend.
Night before Charlotte's wedding, while at a spa, everything hits the fan. Spa employee throwing up everywhere, Made of honor attacks bridesmaid, bridesmaid attacks different spa employee, who all then go for Charlotte. With hair full of curlers, purple face mask dripping, decked out in Bride to be gear. And all she wanted was an excuse to call off the wedding.......and a cigarette. What does she get? A zombie apocalypse, attacked by her bestfriend, then car jacked and forced to be a driver.
Hijacker turns out to be her unrequited love and he doesn't remember her! .... will she ever get a break?
Had some funny, dark, romantic moments. Zombie moments
Well written and entertaining. Setting in Australia. I will continue reading. Recommended to all zombie readers
May 4, 2020
Read: May 4, 2020
Rating:4 Crazy Stars
This was one extremely wild ride!
I'm giving it 4 stars just because of the complete madness that was this book, I'm not actually sure if it was really good or not.
At times so hilarious that it felt like a parody of itself and some parts were hmm, not very clear or made any sense what so ever BUT!
It was all great in the end, it's like a soap opera with zombies and sex and crazy shit and I can't say I have ever read a book anything like this one, so bravo.
Rating:4 Crazy Stars
This was one extremely wild ride!
I'm giving it 4 stars just because of the complete madness that was this book, I'm not actually sure if it was really good or not.
At times so hilarious that it felt like a parody of itself and some parts were hmm, not very clear or made any sense what so ever BUT!
It was all great in the end, it's like a soap opera with zombies and sex and crazy shit and I can't say I have ever read a book anything like this one, so bravo.
October 19, 2023
Pretty good!
This was better than I expected it to be! When trying to read the run-on sentence that was the description of this book, plus the fact that most zombie rom books are garbage, I didn't have high hopes for this. Here I am, pleasantly surprised!
The writing was decent, the plot was good, and there were a lot of Gorey and gross zombie scenes, which is great! My only gripe is this long old book takes place in two literal days which was a little weird.
This was better than I expected it to be! When trying to read the run-on sentence that was the description of this book, plus the fact that most zombie rom books are garbage, I didn't have high hopes for this. Here I am, pleasantly surprised!
The writing was decent, the plot was good, and there were a lot of Gorey and gross zombie scenes, which is great! My only gripe is this long old book takes place in two literal days which was a little weird.
September 24, 2016
( I received this book directly from the author, in exchange for my honest opinion and review. )
Good girls don't...
Well, good girls don't really do anything do they? and I'm far from good.
Let's hope Charlotte's naughty streak is enough to get her through on hell of a zombie apocalypse.
A sassy, sexy, suspenseful apocalyptic story.
Viral outbreak leaving thousands of red-eyed, bloodthirsty, sex crazed monsters on the prowl.
A Hostage situation and a road trip like no other. What more could you want?
I want, to begin with, how brilliant S.K.Munt's stories are! By god, her books leave you with one hell of a book hangover!
Palpitations is brilliant. I can not recommend this book enough it certainly is a must read! I personally have always been into your normal Paranormal fantasy, Y/A, Romance, with a little contemporary thrown in. Sam Munt with palpitations has managed to create a true masterpiece that covers many genres in one.
Starting this book I felt like OMG... The graphic Gore! I don't know of this is for me. Well, let me tell you it was! Palpitations lived up to it's name and gave me palpitations all the way through.
Firstly we have the human race turning into Zombies and my god it's gory. Graphic scenes that leave you cringing. Eye's rolling on the floor, Blood, Blood, Gaping holes through bodies, bit's falling off zombies being; Beaten, shot, ran over, set on fire and still getting back up!
Then we have Charlotte's story. She is naughty, sneaky, snarky and full of attitude, a dirty and very warped mind. But I totally loved her.
Charlotte is the kinda person you'd want to be stuck with in an apocalypse.
Then we have Will. Arghhhhh Will... He is to die for. I love how he was introduced into this story and charlotte's world. He is brilliant oozing sexual tension. I must say I loved how this book ended between Will and Charlotte.
There are so many twists and turns this book will give you whiplash. ( In the best possible way! )
This is full of dry humor, and thick sexual tension you could cut with a knife. There is so much drama, secrets, lies, manipulation you don't know who to trust and it gives the story a great edge.
The story progressed superbly and I enjoyed watching charlotte grow stronger and stronger, The ending was just Wow.
I 100% recommend this Quicky, insane, gory smoking hot read!
Bring on Book Two!!!
Good girls don't...
Well, good girls don't really do anything do they? and I'm far from good.
Let's hope Charlotte's naughty streak is enough to get her through on hell of a zombie apocalypse.
A sassy, sexy, suspenseful apocalyptic story.
Viral outbreak leaving thousands of red-eyed, bloodthirsty, sex crazed monsters on the prowl.
A Hostage situation and a road trip like no other. What more could you want?
I want, to begin with, how brilliant S.K.Munt's stories are! By god, her books leave you with one hell of a book hangover!
Palpitations is brilliant. I can not recommend this book enough it certainly is a must read! I personally have always been into your normal Paranormal fantasy, Y/A, Romance, with a little contemporary thrown in. Sam Munt with palpitations has managed to create a true masterpiece that covers many genres in one.
Starting this book I felt like OMG... The graphic Gore! I don't know of this is for me. Well, let me tell you it was! Palpitations lived up to it's name and gave me palpitations all the way through.
Firstly we have the human race turning into Zombies and my god it's gory. Graphic scenes that leave you cringing. Eye's rolling on the floor, Blood, Blood, Gaping holes through bodies, bit's falling off zombies being; Beaten, shot, ran over, set on fire and still getting back up!
Then we have Charlotte's story. She is naughty, sneaky, snarky and full of attitude, a dirty and very warped mind. But I totally loved her.
Charlotte is the kinda person you'd want to be stuck with in an apocalypse.
Then we have Will. Arghhhhh Will... He is to die for. I love how he was introduced into this story and charlotte's world. He is brilliant oozing sexual tension. I must say I loved how this book ended between Will and Charlotte.
There are so many twists and turns this book will give you whiplash. ( In the best possible way! )
This is full of dry humor, and thick sexual tension you could cut with a knife. There is so much drama, secrets, lies, manipulation you don't know who to trust and it gives the story a great edge.
The story progressed superbly and I enjoyed watching charlotte grow stronger and stronger, The ending was just Wow.
I 100% recommend this Quicky, insane, gory smoking hot read!
Bring on Book Two!!!
September 20, 2016
I really did enjoy this book, even though it was very long(like epic novel long). Charlotte is my soul mate in the sense of her snarky, foul mouth and abrasive tendencies. I enjoyed the story between Charlotte and her captor (I refuse to ruin any of the build up about that part of the story). If you pay attention to the little details at the beginning of the book, you will be pleased to see them come together throughout the rest of it. I love books that have depth enough to pull that off. I also really like the take on how the zombie outbreak started. It's a little "28 Days Later" with it's own very unique twist.
But, there were times where I sat there, grinding my teeth because the characters found themselves in situations that no rational human would during a zombie apocalypse. Especially not in a world where they know about zombies from movies and books.
People don't argue about stupid stuff when zombies are surrounding a house. They don't make out when out in the open and surrounded by zombies. They just don't. And it bothered the hell out of me.
And my biggest irk of the whole book was that Charlotte had damn rollers in her hair until 56% of the book and was literally running around half naked until 76% of the book. I don't know why that bothered me, but it did. Obviously enough to know the exact percentage of the book that it took to rectify it.
There were quite a few typos including the wrong name being used and at least a handful of continuity problems. Which proof reading or an editor should have caught. And some of the actions scenes were quite hard to follow, leaving me going back to reread it.
I read that there are at least 2 more books in this series. I liked the characters and the story enough to say that I will definitely give them a read.
But, there were times where I sat there, grinding my teeth because the characters found themselves in situations that no rational human would during a zombie apocalypse. Especially not in a world where they know about zombies from movies and books.
People don't argue about stupid stuff when zombies are surrounding a house. They don't make out when out in the open and surrounded by zombies. They just don't. And it bothered the hell out of me.
And my biggest irk of the whole book was that Charlotte had damn rollers in her hair until 56% of the book and was literally running around half naked until 76% of the book. I don't know why that bothered me, but it did. Obviously enough to know the exact percentage of the book that it took to rectify it.
There were quite a few typos including the wrong name being used and at least a handful of continuity problems. Which proof reading or an editor should have caught. And some of the actions scenes were quite hard to follow, leaving me going back to reread it.
I read that there are at least 2 more books in this series. I liked the characters and the story enough to say that I will definitely give them a read.
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