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Eden #1
Eden
When the world is overrun by flesh-eating zombies, the surviving humans hold up and hold on as best they can. Inside the fortified compound of Eden in Queens, New York, a man named Harris--infected by zombies--races against time to secure justice before his demise. In a world where the dead mass patiently beyond the walls of humanity's last redoubt, the danger and deceit within far surpasses any evil without.
334 pages, Paperback
First published March 19, 2008
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 75 reviews
November 5, 2010
I read a lot of zombie fiction. Just take a gander at my reviews over the past couple of years on Amazon and you will see that 95% of them are zombie fiction. No, this is not all that I read, but typically it is what I review ever since I got on my zombie reading kick a couple of years ago. I have enjoyed zombie movies for many years but I have taken it upon myself to try to read as much zombie stuff as there is available via Amazon more recently.
In this genre there are plenty of graphic novels, a small select group of mass market stuff, a wider array of product published by the likes of Permuted Press, which is a strong genre house that has produced some really solid zombie epics...and then there are the self published works.
I have read many of those, even the ones that previous reviewers have given ample warning that I should not even be considering because of their horrible editing, uninteresting storyline and atrocious character development. I enjoy zombies enough that it seems not to matter at the outset; my craving for stories of the undead seemingly unsatiable, although I have to admit that I really regretted forging ahead with some of the really horrible self published garbage out there.
Not here, not with this book. This one is definitely a keeper. I was hesitant at first. Why? Perhaps it is because of the my own confusion surrounding who wrote this book. It seems obvious that Tony Monchinski wrote the book, cops to it twice here on Amazon, but created an indepth fabrication as to who Tommy Arlin is. I was not sure about that but I can appreciate it as sort of the author's attempt at creating a pen name with a wink and a nod at the reader.
Tony does a bang up job with this story. He does change the writing style part way through but while I got used to quick automatic beat of the words early on I was able to settle in to the more traditional way he writes further on.
Our story centers around a high school principle named Harris who lives in NYC as the zombie plague breaks out. We follow him and numerous other folks that interact with him at one point or another, through his experiences after the zombies come and up to and beyond his time in Eden, a walled in fortress in Queens where a group of survivors are trying to survive and thrive as best they can. The story jumps backwards and forwards on different time tracks, giving us various perspectives and unveiling bits and pieces of the puzzle and mystery that is this story which starts out with our main character bitten and already cognizant that in less than 24 hours he will be dead and rising from the dead to become one of repulsive fiends he hates so much. This little tidbit is not giving away any secrets: we know within the first couple of sentences that Harris has been bit and we go from there. He wants to find out what human being allowed this to happen to him and get to them before he dies.
The story is a bit disjointed with the shifting time frame that allows the author to reveal both minor and major details at his own pace, not allowing us to understand the whole truth of things until the very end. It is a bit confusing but I was certainly able to keep track of it all, enjoying the pace the storyteller was able to set.
The author does a good job coming up with a few "tweaks" to the zombies themselves in addition to having a good story to tell. The undead can be slow, fast, screamers or silent and there are even a few "brains" amongst them, the true predators of the breed. They are smart enough to know how to hunt humans down more effectively and are, by far, the most disturbing of this new breed. If I were to be critical, it would be that we did not really get to see any of them in action during the book, or so it seemed. If you are going to create new varieties, use them. Not a big criticism by any means though.
I thought the author did a great job in describing the rapid breakdown of New York with plausible military intervention and government reaction to such a unthinkable catastrophe. Individuals come and go in the book but are not treated as extras but rather as solid human beings even if their fate is an abrupt and painful one. It is clear that our author knows the city and knows its people and uses this knowledge to great advantage here.
Solid character development, great tone and flow of story, and overall another worthwhile ride into the doomed world of the zombie apocalypse.
In this genre there are plenty of graphic novels, a small select group of mass market stuff, a wider array of product published by the likes of Permuted Press, which is a strong genre house that has produced some really solid zombie epics...and then there are the self published works.
I have read many of those, even the ones that previous reviewers have given ample warning that I should not even be considering because of their horrible editing, uninteresting storyline and atrocious character development. I enjoy zombies enough that it seems not to matter at the outset; my craving for stories of the undead seemingly unsatiable, although I have to admit that I really regretted forging ahead with some of the really horrible self published garbage out there.
Not here, not with this book. This one is definitely a keeper. I was hesitant at first. Why? Perhaps it is because of the my own confusion surrounding who wrote this book. It seems obvious that Tony Monchinski wrote the book, cops to it twice here on Amazon, but created an indepth fabrication as to who Tommy Arlin is. I was not sure about that but I can appreciate it as sort of the author's attempt at creating a pen name with a wink and a nod at the reader.
Tony does a bang up job with this story. He does change the writing style part way through but while I got used to quick automatic beat of the words early on I was able to settle in to the more traditional way he writes further on.
Our story centers around a high school principle named Harris who lives in NYC as the zombie plague breaks out. We follow him and numerous other folks that interact with him at one point or another, through his experiences after the zombies come and up to and beyond his time in Eden, a walled in fortress in Queens where a group of survivors are trying to survive and thrive as best they can. The story jumps backwards and forwards on different time tracks, giving us various perspectives and unveiling bits and pieces of the puzzle and mystery that is this story which starts out with our main character bitten and already cognizant that in less than 24 hours he will be dead and rising from the dead to become one of repulsive fiends he hates so much. This little tidbit is not giving away any secrets: we know within the first couple of sentences that Harris has been bit and we go from there. He wants to find out what human being allowed this to happen to him and get to them before he dies.
The story is a bit disjointed with the shifting time frame that allows the author to reveal both minor and major details at his own pace, not allowing us to understand the whole truth of things until the very end. It is a bit confusing but I was certainly able to keep track of it all, enjoying the pace the storyteller was able to set.
The author does a good job coming up with a few "tweaks" to the zombies themselves in addition to having a good story to tell. The undead can be slow, fast, screamers or silent and there are even a few "brains" amongst them, the true predators of the breed. They are smart enough to know how to hunt humans down more effectively and are, by far, the most disturbing of this new breed. If I were to be critical, it would be that we did not really get to see any of them in action during the book, or so it seemed. If you are going to create new varieties, use them. Not a big criticism by any means though.
I thought the author did a great job in describing the rapid breakdown of New York with plausible military intervention and government reaction to such a unthinkable catastrophe. Individuals come and go in the book but are not treated as extras but rather as solid human beings even if their fate is an abrupt and painful one. It is clear that our author knows the city and knows its people and uses this knowledge to great advantage here.
Solid character development, great tone and flow of story, and overall another worthwhile ride into the doomed world of the zombie apocalypse.
August 13, 2016
Eden is an interesting zombie apocalypse novel as it tells the story of survivors a few years after the outbreak and how they are surviving within a walled compound named Eden. As the story progresses the reader is led into a post apocalyptic world where the problems of the real world are still present and very much alive unlike the masses of infected outside the walls of Eden. We are also introduced to a few new species of zombies like the runners and brains.
Juxtaposed into the storyline are excerpts of various back stories of the survivors from before the outbreak and how they came to be at Eden for the most part.
The story reads well and holds your interest. There are very few issues with grammar and syntax or punctuation. The one very minor error that I was able to find related to spelling was a simple reference to giving something a wide birth whereas it should have been berth. As I said very minor and does nothing to detract from the overall storyline.
Another minor issue is the collection of firearms that the survivors seem to have access to. Some of the weapons are quasi-exotic to really exotic and would be difficult if not impossible to procure within the US and especially within the state of New York where the story takes place.
These exotics would include the South African Striker shotgun, outlawed in the US since 1986 mainly because it had an aggressive sounding name. I know, stupid reason but one worth noting. The US version was known as the Amsel Striker and was made by Sentinel Arms but is no longer produced. The Walther WA-2000, a very exotic bullpup configured sniper rifle that is very difficult to locate outside the UK and even there it’s strictly a military issued rifle. The Spectre M4 submachine gun, a nice concept for a subgun but it has gone the way of HK’s G11 and is no longer in mass production. While considered by some to be an excellent example of a 4th generation submachine gun, it has fallen to the wayside much like the Calico series of rifles and subguns.
The use of these weapons within Eden in no way detracts or is detrimental to the storyline. In fact, most readers won’t even realize what I pointed out if they didn’t work in the firearms industry in some capacity. I only mention them from my perspective and knowledge base of weaponry.
Having spoken to the author, it appears he likes to use exotic weapons as maybe a trademark in his writing based on his past reading of the 1980s-1990s Gold Eagle book titles, The Executioner, Able Team, Soldiers of Barabbas and others. I too was an avid reader of most of these titles and understand why Mr. Monchinski would want to include such firepower into his work as homage to the characters of Mack Bolan, Carl Lyon, Gadgets Schwartz, Pol Blancanales, weapon smith Konzaki and others.
Overall, Eden is highly recommended as one of the best zombie apocalypse novels on the market and Mr. Monchinski has put out several sequels to the original. Eden far surpasses other novels in this genre and I personally look forward to more of Mr. Monchinski’s work.
Hey Tony, how about working in an AA12 into one of your books? You know Carl Lyons famous Atchison shotgun?
Juxtaposed into the storyline are excerpts of various back stories of the survivors from before the outbreak and how they came to be at Eden for the most part.
The story reads well and holds your interest. There are very few issues with grammar and syntax or punctuation. The one very minor error that I was able to find related to spelling was a simple reference to giving something a wide birth whereas it should have been berth. As I said very minor and does nothing to detract from the overall storyline.
Another minor issue is the collection of firearms that the survivors seem to have access to. Some of the weapons are quasi-exotic to really exotic and would be difficult if not impossible to procure within the US and especially within the state of New York where the story takes place.
These exotics would include the South African Striker shotgun, outlawed in the US since 1986 mainly because it had an aggressive sounding name. I know, stupid reason but one worth noting. The US version was known as the Amsel Striker and was made by Sentinel Arms but is no longer produced. The Walther WA-2000, a very exotic bullpup configured sniper rifle that is very difficult to locate outside the UK and even there it’s strictly a military issued rifle. The Spectre M4 submachine gun, a nice concept for a subgun but it has gone the way of HK’s G11 and is no longer in mass production. While considered by some to be an excellent example of a 4th generation submachine gun, it has fallen to the wayside much like the Calico series of rifles and subguns.
The use of these weapons within Eden in no way detracts or is detrimental to the storyline. In fact, most readers won’t even realize what I pointed out if they didn’t work in the firearms industry in some capacity. I only mention them from my perspective and knowledge base of weaponry.
Having spoken to the author, it appears he likes to use exotic weapons as maybe a trademark in his writing based on his past reading of the 1980s-1990s Gold Eagle book titles, The Executioner, Able Team, Soldiers of Barabbas and others. I too was an avid reader of most of these titles and understand why Mr. Monchinski would want to include such firepower into his work as homage to the characters of Mack Bolan, Carl Lyon, Gadgets Schwartz, Pol Blancanales, weapon smith Konzaki and others.
Overall, Eden is highly recommended as one of the best zombie apocalypse novels on the market and Mr. Monchinski has put out several sequels to the original. Eden far surpasses other novels in this genre and I personally look forward to more of Mr. Monchinski’s work.
Hey Tony, how about working in an AA12 into one of your books? You know Carl Lyons famous Atchison shotgun?
May 23, 2011
I am shocked and awed, but I actually finished this book. This was no easy task for much of the book, and it took me a lot longer to read than it would have otherwise. The book is just SO poorly edited, that it's very difficult to follow.
Having said that, if you can get past that, which is extremely difficult, it does 1) get better and 2) become worth it.
As surprised as I was to have actually made myself overlook the poor editing and continue on with this book, I was just as surprised at how good the story actually is, and how much I am looking forward to reading the sequel, which I have already ordered.
Having said that, if you can get past that, which is extremely difficult, it does 1) get better and 2) become worth it.
As surprised as I was to have actually made myself overlook the poor editing and continue on with this book, I was just as surprised at how good the story actually is, and how much I am looking forward to reading the sequel, which I have already ordered.
January 6, 2022
I sadly abandoned this book at page 61. It is a shame it deteriorated because the first chapter had me hooked. But from Chapter 2 (not that the chapters have numbers), it just didn’t work for me...
The narrative timeline jumps all over the place for no discernible reason. Point of view characters appear, get us to know them, then die. Somewhere amidst the chaos of out-of-sync flashbacks there are snippets of the story we're promised in the blurb (Harris solving his own murder before the time runs out, which would have been facinating), but it's not enough. Not nearly enough. Especially when I have to sit through a whole chapter of people sitting around discussing junk food.
The publisher hasn’t edited this (not the authors fault). Wordsrun togetherlike this. Whole paragraphs lack a single verb, which may be a literary device, but just reads like someone wrote it in a hurry. Other things happen to jolt you out of the story such as the fellow sitting in his cell, then standing outside it, then sitting back inside it again -- all without moving.
Here's a sample, typed verbatim: "When rummage expeditions for canned goods and supplies Harmon always kept an eye out for another flick to add to his library." (When rummage what?). A few lines down on the same page: "Mickey's living room had beenconverted" -- there's those words stuck together again. Scrivener has a habit of doing this when you compile your manuscript: a good reason to actually edit it.
Usually I don't give reviews to books I dislike, putting my lack of interest down to a difference in taste. But this book annoyed me. I am irritated a publisher got it out there into bookshops. I am irritated people I trust told me to buy this. And more irritated that books like this give give indie writers and indie publishers a bad name.
The narrative timeline jumps all over the place for no discernible reason. Point of view characters appear, get us to know them, then die. Somewhere amidst the chaos of out-of-sync flashbacks there are snippets of the story we're promised in the blurb (Harris solving his own murder before the time runs out, which would have been facinating), but it's not enough. Not nearly enough. Especially when I have to sit through a whole chapter of people sitting around discussing junk food.
The publisher hasn’t edited this (not the authors fault). Wordsrun togetherlike this. Whole paragraphs lack a single verb, which may be a literary device, but just reads like someone wrote it in a hurry. Other things happen to jolt you out of the story such as the fellow sitting in his cell, then standing outside it, then sitting back inside it again -- all without moving.
Here's a sample, typed verbatim: "When rummage expeditions for canned goods and supplies Harmon always kept an eye out for another flick to add to his library." (When rummage what?). A few lines down on the same page: "Mickey's living room had beenconverted" -- there's those words stuck together again. Scrivener has a habit of doing this when you compile your manuscript: a good reason to actually edit it.
Usually I don't give reviews to books I dislike, putting my lack of interest down to a difference in taste. But this book annoyed me. I am irritated a publisher got it out there into bookshops. I am irritated people I trust told me to buy this. And more irritated that books like this give give indie writers and indie publishers a bad name.
June 23, 2011
I read this book a few years ago so I don't remember the characters names, but the premise is that there are 3 types of zombies. Walkers, Sprinters, and Thinkers. The story deals with the first 2 types very often, but the 3rd type (thankfully) isn't really ever dealt with. I have since discovered that there's a 2nd book, but since I'm sure it has the thinkers in it, I'm not going to read it.
The main setting is a compound "Eden" where several survivors live and die. And come back.
The main setting is a compound "Eden" where several survivors live and die. And come back.
February 2, 2009
This is what zombie novels were meant to be. Any fans of post-apocalyptic and zombie literature need to pick up a copy of this immediately. Well-written, dark, well-paced, and interest-holding. What else is needed? The only flaws I found were a few editing errors, for which I can't blame the author at all.
January 3, 2012
Joe Lansdale once told me "Charles de Lint is the only writer who could make me read about faeries." Put me down for the same my brother's having--only make mine Tony Monchinski and zombies.
March 2, 2009
If you are looking for a down and dirty Zombie novel, then look no farther. Provided of course that you can wade your way through multiple typos. The author has created almost the stereotypical architype of a zombie book. Masses of undead, survivors banding together, total government breakdown, slow zombies, fast zombies, loud zombies, good survivors and bad survivors - it's all here.
The timeline leaps back and forth starting from within the walls of Eden, a santuary from the undead back to prior to the outbreak, then through various scenes of the pandemonium that followed. Some may dislike this format, I personally didn't mind it. The characters are very real, human, and flawed. Some are tortured by the loss of loved ones, others must deal with what they had to do to survive. The zombies in this book are what many zombie lovers would consider "old school" mindless shambling hoards of the undead.
What is interesting is that even though there isn't a single aspect of this novel that has not been done or seen before, this book reads as an all new story. I would consider this a must have for your zombie library. When I previously referred to typos, and there are plenty of them they mainly involve a lack of spaces between words at times, and at other times the leaving off of the last letter of a word, example the word "took" turning into "too." If you don't mind that then I highly recommend this book to the 15+ zombie fans.
Rated R for gore, violence, language both profane and racist, no sex is shown but it is very strongly eluded to.
The timeline leaps back and forth starting from within the walls of Eden, a santuary from the undead back to prior to the outbreak, then through various scenes of the pandemonium that followed. Some may dislike this format, I personally didn't mind it. The characters are very real, human, and flawed. Some are tortured by the loss of loved ones, others must deal with what they had to do to survive. The zombies in this book are what many zombie lovers would consider "old school" mindless shambling hoards of the undead.
What is interesting is that even though there isn't a single aspect of this novel that has not been done or seen before, this book reads as an all new story. I would consider this a must have for your zombie library. When I previously referred to typos, and there are plenty of them they mainly involve a lack of spaces between words at times, and at other times the leaving off of the last letter of a word, example the word "took" turning into "too." If you don't mind that then I highly recommend this book to the 15+ zombie fans.
Rated R for gore, violence, language both profane and racist, no sex is shown but it is very strongly eluded to.
August 20, 2012
This book has to be one of the best zombie books I have read, even if I haven't read that many, but I plan to and I'm going to be reading Blood Crazy by Simon Clark next.
The fact that the chapters aren't in order makes the book just that much more enjoyable because you don'y know what's going to happen in the next chapter. The way the book is done, with the chapters being out of order, shows how life would be in an apocalypse. There are no rules or government or anything. This book is a perfect display of that.
The characters are easy to like or dislike and some of them just stick with you. Tony Monchinski did a great job at the characters. None of them were the same, they were all different which is part of what makes the book good. All of the characters had something interesting about them and not really boring, so it made the book easier to read.
The book has it's funny moments, sad moments, "oh my god, I need to know what happens next!" moments and many others. I look forward to reading the next book "Crusade" as I'm sure it will be just as enjoyable as the first one.
This is definitely a must read for zombie lovers! You'll most definitely enjoy it.
The fact that the chapters aren't in order makes the book just that much more enjoyable because you don'y know what's going to happen in the next chapter. The way the book is done, with the chapters being out of order, shows how life would be in an apocalypse. There are no rules or government or anything. This book is a perfect display of that.
The characters are easy to like or dislike and some of them just stick with you. Tony Monchinski did a great job at the characters. None of them were the same, they were all different which is part of what makes the book good. All of the characters had something interesting about them and not really boring, so it made the book easier to read.
The book has it's funny moments, sad moments, "oh my god, I need to know what happens next!" moments and many others. I look forward to reading the next book "Crusade" as I'm sure it will be just as enjoyable as the first one.
This is definitely a must read for zombie lovers! You'll most definitely enjoy it.
January 30, 2011
This book drove me nuts because of the errors. There were so many typing errors that it distracted me from the story. Plus, I was not a fan of the jumping around in the timeline. It would take me a while to figure out where they were were in the story. Other than that, it wasn't an awful zombie book. I plan on reading Crusade. I have hopes that it has been spellchecked.
March 9, 2013
Couldn't get through first 50 pages. The chronology was skipping around the place without any signposts. I was looking for an entertaining read but this book had me checking back to see if I'd accidentally skipped pages as well as trying to work out who he was talking about. I wont put up with that in the highest literary novel let alone a zombie book.
March 3, 2012
A very enjoyable zombie story with a wonderful variety of characters. My only complaint was the way the author jumped back and forth between the past and the present constantly. It messed with the flow of the story and was a little difficult to follow at times.
June 19, 2013
One of the best, most well written, and creative books about the zombie apocalypse that I have found to date. I actually bought this one as a paperback a few years ago and I have read it three times since then.
July 27, 2011
Raw, and generally awesome if you can get past the typos (which aren't too bad once you're sucked in)
February 25, 2012
For a book whose cover looks like it was made by an amateur with photoshop, this book totally blindsided me. It was great. Barnes and Noble has recommended me crap before (see The Forest of Hands and Teeth), but this one was an A+ choice. It catered to everything I loved in a zombie novel, plus some. (And, yes, I judge books by their covers.)
Most of the story revolves around a man named Harris who is doomed to die from the very first line of the book. The rest of the book follows accordingly, taking the reader through the events of Harris’ life and the people that surround him as they pertain to the apocalypse. Through snippets only pages long, Monchinski introduces a list of characters and places that define the corner of New York known as Eden—a colony of survivors scraping by within the confines of two blocks of former suburbia.
It’s amazing what was fit into just over 300 pages of work. I can’t really say I was invested in the characters, because I wasn’t. I was invested in the story. I felt like an observer watching these characters go about their daily lives (Creepy? Yeah.) and I felt an impact when one of them died, but I always wanted to know how it was going to end.
There were more than a few graphic scenes. It’s a zombie novel, and Monchinski beat that undead horse for all it was worth. There was just enough description to make my stomach lurch in the most pleasant way possible.
Not only were there shamblers, but sprinkled throughout were other zombies—sprinters, lurkers, howlers. There were even times when the characters would come across a zombie that had no interest in the living, which was a nice touch.
The only problem I had with this book—and, when I got to the end, I considered it a minor one—was the fact that each chapter was at a different time in Harris’ experience and some were from the perspective of other characters completely. It takes some getting used to, and as events unfold it’s easy to get the minor characters confused.
All in all, Eden is spectacularly written and beautifully plotted with an ending that made me want to punch somebody. It’s not the best zombie book I’ve ever read, but it’s easily in the top five. It’s not an all-purpose, recommend-this-to-everybody zombie novel like World War Z, but zombie lovers will enjoy it.
High five, Tony Monchinski, I will definitely be buying the sequel.
Most of the story revolves around a man named Harris who is doomed to die from the very first line of the book. The rest of the book follows accordingly, taking the reader through the events of Harris’ life and the people that surround him as they pertain to the apocalypse. Through snippets only pages long, Monchinski introduces a list of characters and places that define the corner of New York known as Eden—a colony of survivors scraping by within the confines of two blocks of former suburbia.
It’s amazing what was fit into just over 300 pages of work. I can’t really say I was invested in the characters, because I wasn’t. I was invested in the story. I felt like an observer watching these characters go about their daily lives (Creepy? Yeah.) and I felt an impact when one of them died, but I always wanted to know how it was going to end.
There were more than a few graphic scenes. It’s a zombie novel, and Monchinski beat that undead horse for all it was worth. There was just enough description to make my stomach lurch in the most pleasant way possible.
Not only were there shamblers, but sprinkled throughout were other zombies—sprinters, lurkers, howlers. There were even times when the characters would come across a zombie that had no interest in the living, which was a nice touch.
The only problem I had with this book—and, when I got to the end, I considered it a minor one—was the fact that each chapter was at a different time in Harris’ experience and some were from the perspective of other characters completely. It takes some getting used to, and as events unfold it’s easy to get the minor characters confused.
All in all, Eden is spectacularly written and beautifully plotted with an ending that made me want to punch somebody. It’s not the best zombie book I’ve ever read, but it’s easily in the top five. It’s not an all-purpose, recommend-this-to-everybody zombie novel like World War Z, but zombie lovers will enjoy it.
High five, Tony Monchinski, I will definitely be buying the sequel.
December 13, 2011
Imagine a world where you lived in a gated community. It was you and your closest friends and neighbors. Sounds nice…so what is the catch? The catch is that you can not venture outside of the walls. For what lies beyond the walls are the remains of another world, where other friends and family may have once resided but they have all turned into zombies. Welcome to Eden.
While, I don’t really judge a book by its cover, I admit that the cover for this book was a bit corny and so, I thought the story would be as well. Nope, the story was better than I expected it to be. While, there were some flaws, I did find myself drawn to the main character Harris. He was just a normal guy, trying to survive. He was smart and had a good personality. Some of the other characters I did find uninteresting and this did take away from the story.
On that note, there was a lot of jumping around between the time lines of past and present and many different characters coming at me that in beginning I was confused. The transfer involving the past and the present was not smooth at all. I do have to give props that there is plenty of action. Right away from page one, the reader finds Harris and his wife, Julie fighting for their lives as their home is invaded by flesh-eating, brain-sucking zombies. This book had elements of Dawn of the Dead. So if you are a zombie fan, you will enjoy this book.
While, I don’t really judge a book by its cover, I admit that the cover for this book was a bit corny and so, I thought the story would be as well. Nope, the story was better than I expected it to be. While, there were some flaws, I did find myself drawn to the main character Harris. He was just a normal guy, trying to survive. He was smart and had a good personality. Some of the other characters I did find uninteresting and this did take away from the story.
On that note, there was a lot of jumping around between the time lines of past and present and many different characters coming at me that in beginning I was confused. The transfer involving the past and the present was not smooth at all. I do have to give props that there is plenty of action. Right away from page one, the reader finds Harris and his wife, Julie fighting for their lives as their home is invaded by flesh-eating, brain-sucking zombies. This book had elements of Dawn of the Dead. So if you are a zombie fan, you will enjoy this book.
December 13, 2011
In some ways I enjoyed this book more than I expected and in other ways I did not. I found that I don't like the gore in your typical zombie novel. People getting their guts ripped out, being dismembered, or otherwise being ingested by the living dead is just not for me. Also, I expected a bit more social commentary or something rather than just an all-action story. There was some of this, but it remained relatively hidden. Some more came out at the end, which, as with so many series, is what actually compels me to find the next book. I did enjoy the characterizations. They were complex - some were never even fully explained - and well-developed. I found Harris' characterization as a tough survivor but still committed to living well and pursuing lasting relationships refreshing from many other similar novels, too. Though I was at times a bit confused with the nonlinear storyline, flashing between characters, events, and dates every chapter, I thought it added more depth to the development of the overall plot. I'm definitely looking forward to finding out more about this zombie apocalypse and its survivors in the sequel, Crusade.
Disclaimer: I received my copy of this book from the publisher in return for an honest review.
Disclaimer: I received my copy of this book from the publisher in return for an honest review.
December 18, 2011
MY THOUGHTS
REALLY LIKED IT
The earth has been devastated by a disease that turns humans into zombies that crave human flesh and a core group of characters, some neighbors, some traveling from safe site to site across the North East of the United States try to band together to form a community in order to exist. The story centers around Harris who dreams of a zombie free life once again and reminisces about the past with the new citizens of a walled in area that protects them from the invading hoards. The story focuses on the small day to day interactions and the horror that has become their survival.
When Harris finds himself bitten he knows he is infected with the disease that will soon turn him zombie. I found it fascinating that he goes through all of the grief stages, much like a terminal cancer patient. He also refers to three types of zombies: walkers, sprinters and thinkers. The thinkers are few, while the sprinters are the scariest. Most of the action in the story is trying to get away from the invading zombies and killing them with a shot to the head. Overall, this is a psychological horror tale that should please most zombie lovers!
REALLY LIKED IT
The earth has been devastated by a disease that turns humans into zombies that crave human flesh and a core group of characters, some neighbors, some traveling from safe site to site across the North East of the United States try to band together to form a community in order to exist. The story centers around Harris who dreams of a zombie free life once again and reminisces about the past with the new citizens of a walled in area that protects them from the invading hoards. The story focuses on the small day to day interactions and the horror that has become their survival.
When Harris finds himself bitten he knows he is infected with the disease that will soon turn him zombie. I found it fascinating that he goes through all of the grief stages, much like a terminal cancer patient. He also refers to three types of zombies: walkers, sprinters and thinkers. The thinkers are few, while the sprinters are the scariest. Most of the action in the story is trying to get away from the invading zombies and killing them with a shot to the head. Overall, this is a psychological horror tale that should please most zombie lovers!
December 13, 2011
I tried really hard to like this book because I am very pro zombie but it was just hard for me to get into. This is one that would have made a far better movie than book because of all the jumping around it did. It just did not read well for me because it starts out with zombies attacking then it jumps to the past then to a set of totally different folks then back to the zombie situation then another visit to the past and so on and so forth.
It's sad because it has the potential for a remarkable story had it been put together more chronologically. It was just to hard to keep up with what was going on as it is. I may have even been able to deal with it had the author marked the chapters like I have seen in some books like where they say "present day" or "2 months ago" ect... I should have been able to read this book in about an hour or so but instead it took me about a week because I kept wanting to throw it against a wall and not because it was that bad a book but because I wanted to like it so bad and couldn't I kept getting frustrated and puttin it down and reading books in between it and kept trying to get into the flow of it but alas it was to no avail.
It's sad because it has the potential for a remarkable story had it been put together more chronologically. It was just to hard to keep up with what was going on as it is. I may have even been able to deal with it had the author marked the chapters like I have seen in some books like where they say "present day" or "2 months ago" ect... I should have been able to read this book in about an hour or so but instead it took me about a week because I kept wanting to throw it against a wall and not because it was that bad a book but because I wanted to like it so bad and couldn't I kept getting frustrated and puttin it down and reading books in between it and kept trying to get into the flow of it but alas it was to no avail.
November 16, 2012
I was debating how many stars to rate this book. I really enjoyed it, but one thing bothered me. The book flips from different time periods after every chapter. This in itself would not be so bad, but there aren't any dates to let you know what the setting of the chapter is. Sometimes new characters are introduced and you have to keep reading to find out the time relation of this chapter to the present. It also slowed the pacing of the main story. At times it was confusing, but I did get used to it. One benefit of this method was that it allowed the author to go back in time and show how some things came to be. This was especially effective for the ending.
There are some very intense, action-packed scenes in this book. A couple of my favourites are the drugstore raid and operation kitten rescue. Not a book for the squeamish. I'm a jaded horror reader, but there were parts of this novel that made me go "ugh". There are some sequels to this book. The way this one ends makes me want to jump right into the next one. Overall I think the structure of the novel worked and made it more interesting than your typical zombie fare.
There are some very intense, action-packed scenes in this book. A couple of my favourites are the drugstore raid and operation kitten rescue. Not a book for the squeamish. I'm a jaded horror reader, but there were parts of this novel that made me go "ugh". There are some sequels to this book. The way this one ends makes me want to jump right into the next one. Overall I think the structure of the novel worked and made it more interesting than your typical zombie fare.
February 9, 2011
I really enjoy reading zombie novels, but this one was very difficult to get through. This is one of the worst edited books I have ever read making it very difficult to get through. The idea was interesting, but I really can not recommend this book. The author jumps so much back and forth in time that I never knew where I was in the story. Yes, this book would have worked better if someone had edited it and fixed some of the jumping around issues.
I like the story premise. The background stories that hold this book together are great. Also, the ending is good. I liked the surprises that the author threw in. However, I can't give this book more than 2 stars.
The only reason why I finished this book was because a friend of mine really liked it. This seemed more like a bunch of short stories that take place among the same group of people over a period of time, then the author broke the stories up into sections, tossed them into the air and randomly compiled the book together.
I like the story premise. The background stories that hold this book together are great. Also, the ending is good. I liked the surprises that the author threw in. However, I can't give this book more than 2 stars.
The only reason why I finished this book was because a friend of mine really liked it. This seemed more like a bunch of short stories that take place among the same group of people over a period of time, then the author broke the stories up into sections, tossed them into the air and randomly compiled the book together.
January 23, 2013
I read a lot of zombie books. I mean a lot. And they have run the gamut from "How many monkeys did it take to write this tripe?" to "Well, that was an interesting story."
Then came the Eden trilogy.
Twists and turns, characters dying that you think should live, characters living that you think should die, and painfully. Yet, you care about each and every one of them because Monchinski, while not overly descriptive, gives you enough to care about the most minor of characters.
From the very first book, and the very uncommon idea behind it, I was hooked. It took me years to get the last two books of the trilogy and I had to force myself not to devour them immediately.
I wish it wasn't a trilogy. I wish it could go on and on and on, but then we might run the risk of diluting the story, like so many authors do when they let series go on too long.
The Eden trilogy is simply the best set of zombie novels I have ever read. Any fan of the genre should read this one.
Then came the Eden trilogy.
Twists and turns, characters dying that you think should live, characters living that you think should die, and painfully. Yet, you care about each and every one of them because Monchinski, while not overly descriptive, gives you enough to care about the most minor of characters.
From the very first book, and the very uncommon idea behind it, I was hooked. It took me years to get the last two books of the trilogy and I had to force myself not to devour them immediately.
I wish it wasn't a trilogy. I wish it could go on and on and on, but then we might run the risk of diluting the story, like so many authors do when they let series go on too long.
The Eden trilogy is simply the best set of zombie novels I have ever read. Any fan of the genre should read this one.
October 8, 2008
Eden is a walled in community of survivors, located in post-zombie-apocalypse NYC. The walls keep the undead out, and the survivors in. One morning, Harris wakes to his bedroom being overrun by zombies, and is bit while trying to fend off the small horde. A bite is a death sentence, causing the bitten to deteriorate within hours and rise again after death. Knowing this, Harris sets out to solve the mystery of who opened Eden's gates and exact his revenge before he turns.
I loved it, but frequent typographical errors interrupted my flow. Occasionally I run across an isolated typo or two and it's easily forgotten, but this book really could have used some better proofreading. It's really too bad - this is a new treasure of the genre that hopefully is blessed with another printing and another edit.
I loved it, but frequent typographical errors interrupted my flow. Occasionally I run across an isolated typo or two and it's easily forgotten, but this book really could have used some better proofreading. It's really too bad - this is a new treasure of the genre that hopefully is blessed with another printing and another edit.
March 28, 2013
I kind of feel bad for this book. Not because it was poorly written, but because I have this nasty habit of reading too many books at once. I started Eden, then I started reading Stephen King's The Stand.....The Stand won, and I completely lost track of what was happening in Eden.
I will say that I do remember the last 100 pages (cause I just finished them), and by golly, it seemed like an interesting story. Nothing incredibly new for the genre, but a nicely rounded experience.
So Eden and Tony Monchinski, I'm sorry for the lame-o review. I'll have to re-read this one when I'm not distracted by late 80's Post Apocalyptic literature.
I will say that I do remember the last 100 pages (cause I just finished them), and by golly, it seemed like an interesting story. Nothing incredibly new for the genre, but a nicely rounded experience.
So Eden and Tony Monchinski, I'm sorry for the lame-o review. I'll have to re-read this one when I'm not distracted by late 80's Post Apocalyptic literature.
November 17, 2010
Pretty good zombie story. Kept it interesting by jumping around. The beginning giving us the end was cool but smearing the hero is not a good way to go. Also giving a pothead that much intelllectual credit bothers me. Bah, you can't like everything.
December 13, 2010
This is the best zombie book I have ever read. (It is also the only zombie book I have ever read.)
I would have prefered more character development. The detailed descriptions of killing the zombies gets boring at times.
I would have prefered more character development. The detailed descriptions of killing the zombies gets boring at times.
March 24, 2012
Brutal, frightening, gore-soaked and utterly satisfying.
Monchinski has brought about an ugly, hideous and truly inspired tale of the zombie apocalypse. From the first page, you'll be sucked in.
BRAVO!
Monchinski has brought about an ugly, hideous and truly inspired tale of the zombie apocalypse. From the first page, you'll be sucked in.
BRAVO!
March 30, 2020
I read the novel in the German translation so there's a German version below.
"Eden" is not quite easy to read. There are many different lines of action that seemingly don't belong together, short scenes and chapters showing how the whole world is going to hell from the view of different persons, and none of it in chronological order.
The very first sentence in the very first chapter tells us that the protagonist will die: Harris is bitten by a Zombie that, followed by others of it's kind, found it's way into the more or less safe fort "Eden" which was built in the remains of New York. Somebody must have let the monsters inside on purpose, and Harris finding out who and getting his revenge is a small but important part of the book.
At the same time the book tells us about how the apocalypse started - without naming a specific cause, which I liked very much. Harris' way through the new world, his friends and foes are shown in a quite random order. It's not easy to keep track of what happens when, but once you get used to it, the story is exciting and well-told.
The style is easy but enthralling, the novel full of action and also some quite philosophical thoughts about good and bad, morals and ethics. Knowing right from the start that the protagonist dies makes everything even more fascinating.
There was one thought I couldn't get rid of throughout the whole novel: How good it is, how practical for apocalypse-novels (and movies) that in the USA, there are weapons just about everywhere. I guess here in Germany the zombies would have it a lot easier.
I have not read anough zombie-novels to put "Eden" into any context whatsoever. But I liked it, even if I am a beginner in this genre. It was a good one to begin with and surely not the last zombie-novel I will read.
German version:
"Eden" ist ein Zombie-Roman, der nicht ganz einfach zu lesen ist. Es gibt viele unterschiedliche Handlungsstränge, die scheinbar keinen Zusammenhang haben, blitzlichtartige Szenen, in denen geschildert wird, wie die ganze Welt zum Teufel geht, und zwar nicht in chronologischer Reihenfolge.
Gleich im ersten Kapitel, im ersten Satz wird der Tod dess Protagonisten beschlossen: Harris wird von einem Zombie gebissen, und das innerhalb der vergleichsweise sicheren Festung "Eden" in den Resten von New York. Jemand muss die Zombies absichtlich hereingelassen haben, und die Suche nach dem Schuldigen sowie Harris' Rache nehmen einen kleinen, aber wichtigen Teil des Buches ein.
Gleichzeitig wird erzählt, wie die Apokalypse ausbrach - ohne einen Grund zu nennen, was ich sehr sympathisch finde. Harris' Weg durch die neue Welt, seine Freunde und Feinde werden in einer scheinbar zufälligen Reihenfolge beleuchtet. Es ist nicht einfach, den Überblick zu behalten, was wann passiert, aber wenn man sich daran gewöhnt hat, ist die erzählte Geschichte wirklich spannend.
Der Schreibstil ist einfach, aber packend, der Roman actionreich und trotzdem nicht frei von philosophischen Gedanken über Gut und Böse, Moral und Ethik. Dass man von Anfang an weiß, dass der Protagonist sterben wird, macht das Ganze noch eine Spur fesselnder.
Ein Gedanke hat mich das ganze Buch hindurch begleitet: Wie gut, dass US-Amerikaner überall Waffen rumfliegen haben. Hier in Deutschland hätten die Zombies sicherlich leichteres Spiel...
Ich habe zu wenige Zombie-Romane gelesen, um "Eden" mit irgendetwas vergleichen zu können. Als Anfängerin in diesem Genre hat der Roman mir jedoch wirklich gut gefallen. Ein guter Einstiegsroman für mich persönlich und sicherlich nicht der letzte Zombie-Roman, den ich lesen werde.
"Eden" is not quite easy to read. There are many different lines of action that seemingly don't belong together, short scenes and chapters showing how the whole world is going to hell from the view of different persons, and none of it in chronological order.
The very first sentence in the very first chapter tells us that the protagonist will die: Harris is bitten by a Zombie that, followed by others of it's kind, found it's way into the more or less safe fort "Eden" which was built in the remains of New York. Somebody must have let the monsters inside on purpose, and Harris finding out who and getting his revenge is a small but important part of the book.
At the same time the book tells us about how the apocalypse started - without naming a specific cause, which I liked very much. Harris' way through the new world, his friends and foes are shown in a quite random order. It's not easy to keep track of what happens when, but once you get used to it, the story is exciting and well-told.
The style is easy but enthralling, the novel full of action and also some quite philosophical thoughts about good and bad, morals and ethics. Knowing right from the start that the protagonist dies makes everything even more fascinating.
There was one thought I couldn't get rid of throughout the whole novel: How good it is, how practical for apocalypse-novels (and movies) that in the USA, there are weapons just about everywhere. I guess here in Germany the zombies would have it a lot easier.
I have not read anough zombie-novels to put "Eden" into any context whatsoever. But I liked it, even if I am a beginner in this genre. It was a good one to begin with and surely not the last zombie-novel I will read.
German version:
"Eden" ist ein Zombie-Roman, der nicht ganz einfach zu lesen ist. Es gibt viele unterschiedliche Handlungsstränge, die scheinbar keinen Zusammenhang haben, blitzlichtartige Szenen, in denen geschildert wird, wie die ganze Welt zum Teufel geht, und zwar nicht in chronologischer Reihenfolge.
Gleich im ersten Kapitel, im ersten Satz wird der Tod dess Protagonisten beschlossen: Harris wird von einem Zombie gebissen, und das innerhalb der vergleichsweise sicheren Festung "Eden" in den Resten von New York. Jemand muss die Zombies absichtlich hereingelassen haben, und die Suche nach dem Schuldigen sowie Harris' Rache nehmen einen kleinen, aber wichtigen Teil des Buches ein.
Gleichzeitig wird erzählt, wie die Apokalypse ausbrach - ohne einen Grund zu nennen, was ich sehr sympathisch finde. Harris' Weg durch die neue Welt, seine Freunde und Feinde werden in einer scheinbar zufälligen Reihenfolge beleuchtet. Es ist nicht einfach, den Überblick zu behalten, was wann passiert, aber wenn man sich daran gewöhnt hat, ist die erzählte Geschichte wirklich spannend.
Der Schreibstil ist einfach, aber packend, der Roman actionreich und trotzdem nicht frei von philosophischen Gedanken über Gut und Böse, Moral und Ethik. Dass man von Anfang an weiß, dass der Protagonist sterben wird, macht das Ganze noch eine Spur fesselnder.
Ein Gedanke hat mich das ganze Buch hindurch begleitet: Wie gut, dass US-Amerikaner überall Waffen rumfliegen haben. Hier in Deutschland hätten die Zombies sicherlich leichteres Spiel...
Ich habe zu wenige Zombie-Romane gelesen, um "Eden" mit irgendetwas vergleichen zu können. Als Anfängerin in diesem Genre hat der Roman mir jedoch wirklich gut gefallen. Ein guter Einstiegsroman für mich persönlich und sicherlich nicht der letzte Zombie-Roman, den ich lesen werde.
May 1, 2018
This novel which has a very strange introduction and then is theoretically written by Tommy Arlin, but maybe not is about what you would expect from a zombie novel. In fact, it is fairly standard for the genre. Essentially it follows a group of characters, mostly one, that have created a safe haven (Eden) in the middle of the zombie apocalypse. We can deduce Eden as being somewhere in New York, but it is not actually defined.
The book suffers from one major flaw, but is redeemed by its innovative take on the zombies themselves. The zombies are a combination of the various classic cannibal corpses - slow shamblers that overwhelm their prey - but also combining the newer fast zombies, and with a nod towards the smart zombies of the later post-zombie inundation styling. However, while this gives both a nuance to the world of the novel, and allows for interesting plot developments, the book doesn't really use them to great effect. Yet, the major flaw of this novel is the scattered thread of the plot.
We begin the novel in Eden when the zombies have broken in, but after this first chapter, we bounce back and forth between our main characters timeline in such a way that it becomes impossible to keep track of which events take place when, aside from certain key moments (meeting of characters/death of characters). In addition, scattered into this labyrinthine narrative are random tidbits from people who are just in the zombie apocalypse. Unfortunately, these narrative decisions pull us away from the overall story and ultimately leave us wanting some form of consistency. In fact, the final chapters don't fit with the early story line at all, and almost feel as if they were added as sequel bait - of which there are a number of novels.
Basically, if you like zombie novels you will enjoy this book as I did, but will be frustrated by the inconsistency in the story. If however, you are a casual reader of the genre you may find many things to interesting, but you will most likely not enjoy the novel overall.
The book suffers from one major flaw, but is redeemed by its innovative take on the zombies themselves. The zombies are a combination of the various classic cannibal corpses - slow shamblers that overwhelm their prey - but also combining the newer fast zombies, and with a nod towards the smart zombies of the later post-zombie inundation styling. However, while this gives both a nuance to the world of the novel, and allows for interesting plot developments, the book doesn't really use them to great effect. Yet, the major flaw of this novel is the scattered thread of the plot.
We begin the novel in Eden when the zombies have broken in, but after this first chapter, we bounce back and forth between our main characters timeline in such a way that it becomes impossible to keep track of which events take place when, aside from certain key moments (meeting of characters/death of characters). In addition, scattered into this labyrinthine narrative are random tidbits from people who are just in the zombie apocalypse. Unfortunately, these narrative decisions pull us away from the overall story and ultimately leave us wanting some form of consistency. In fact, the final chapters don't fit with the early story line at all, and almost feel as if they were added as sequel bait - of which there are a number of novels.
Basically, if you like zombie novels you will enjoy this book as I did, but will be frustrated by the inconsistency in the story. If however, you are a casual reader of the genre you may find many things to interesting, but you will most likely not enjoy the novel overall.
February 19, 2024
Wir haben hier einen Zombieroman, der mir vom Schreibstil eigentlich ganz gut gefallen hat. Auch die Story fand ich gut…Was mich total genervt hat, war, dass hier keine chronologische Erzählfolge stattfand….hier gab es Zeitsprünge vom Ende wieder zurück zum Anfang und dann in die Mitte des Ausbruchs…..Das hat mich immer aus meinem Lesefluss geworfen und ich fand auch den Roman etwas die Spannung genommen….die Kapitel waren meist recht kurz und wenn man im nächsten Kapitel zeitlich weggeschupst wird fand ich das nervend…..man hat es an den etwas längeren Kapiteln gemerkt….da konnte sich richtig Spannung aufbauen….da hat man dann auch gemerkt, dass es ein richtig gutes Buch sein könnte…..Also wen das nicht stört und gerne Zombieromane im Stil von Walking Dead liest sollte hier echt zugreifen…. Mich persönlich hat es gestört……
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