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Zombie Queen

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The beginning... The beginning is always the best place to start when reflecting on what has been. Thinking back on it, my life had been perfect. Middle class girl in high school with a happy home life. My life had been full of nothing but promise. Life was good. Everything was great. And then my whole world went to shit. In one day. The disease came first. Then the dead. It was a fight for my life every single day from the start. But I was different from all the rest. I had heard my mother's screams while watching my sister become one with the undead. All the while feeling like there was absolutely nothing I could do to help them. It killed me. What’s more, it changed me. I did everything I possibly could to survive on my own. And then I learned how to survive with others. By being their Queen. Their Zombie Queen. And by being the most feared woman they ever came in contact with. This is a WhyChoose novel full of zombies, a sword wielding badass chick, and an army of dudes. Recommended age 17+ due to content and language.

283 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 27, 2020

233 people are currently reading
345 people want to read

About the author

Mary Martel

56 books417 followers
Instagram: mary.martel

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5 stars
335 (38%)
4 stars
252 (29%)
3 stars
173 (20%)
2 stars
75 (8%)
1 star
24 (2%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 118 reviews
Profile Image for Silvia Andrito.
333 reviews20 followers
July 29, 2020
The story starts in an exciting point; how Emerald (Em for short) survives the zombie apocalypse. From there it gets a bit slower, just showcasing her day to day survival, alone in her small town. This was interesting enough but a bit of info-dump.

Eventually the harem gets introduced, however at first you are not sure if they are the love interests or villains. And I don’t mean villains as in the “sexy, misunderstood, dark, antihero”, I mean that we seriously don’t know if they are good or just a creepy stalker and a gang that is going to steal her and try to rape her. So that was a bit of a weird choice.

Then, once things are cleared up, Em is still a bit apprehensive (understandably so). But right away, even though she makes it clear how she doesn’t trust them and she is leaving as soon as she can, she starts uncontrollably lusting after all of these guys.

The harem is big, there are 7 guys, and then 2 more get introduced at the end of the book. The original 7 are not that memorable, and frankly they don’t get enough story time for us to get to know them and care about them, the last 2 we don't know at all since they are there for very little of it.

By the 75% mark only a week maybe 2 has gone by since she met these guys (not sure because at one point the authors say 10 days and at another they say 5 days have gone by) and Em is already claiming all the guys as hers. Even though up to the previous day she had been trying to distance herself therefore she doesn't really know much about them, so that felt extremely abrupt and even presumptuous of her in a way. To be honest, we assume this is an RH because of what is said, but none of the relationships get developed AT ALL. This reads like the first book of a series (which apparently it isn't since the authors say it is a standalone).

-- Spoiler?--
Let's keep in mind that she is a virgin. Did I mention that she spent the majority of that 1-2 weeks trying to distance herself from the guys instead of getting to know them? Also that the first sexual (not sex) encounter is super cringie? She leaves the door open to the bathroom as she takes a shower, because in her words “if they wanted to come in they can just break the door” (wtf?) which the guy obviously takes as an invitation to come in (duh) and then she freaks out because she is a virgin (double duh) and tells him, to which he replies that they will have sex next time for sure, and that he doesn’t care if she sleeps with the others (huh? random), and then after the encounter she bursts into tears (cringe). Needless to say this scene felt a little icky. The following sexual encounter is not much better. Frankly the relationship and interactions are pretty awkward in this one, it does not feel real at all.

With the relationship going from zero to sixty so quickly and yet somehow managing to not advance at all, and so little character development done for the guys, I honestly struggled to complete this book, and only made myself finish it because I had bought it.
Profile Image for ❀ Crystal ✿ -  PEACE ☮ LOVE ♥ BOOKS .
2,532 reviews308 followers
September 14, 2020
3.5 Stars
The intro and setup for the heroine was great. Emerald went from being this regular teenager afraid of her own shadow to a year after the zombie apocalypse and she's a badass sword wielding force of nature. Emerald also uses the time in the after to train herself in everything she can find by READING! For months she doesn't see anyone until of course all these people randomly just start showing up threatening her peaceful existence. I kind of hated this because she was so easily overtaken by these guys and it kind of went against what we knew about her. Of course the guys are OK guys, not actually out to harm her but come on, tying a girl up sans sexy times is very uncool lol. When it comes to the relationship between them all, things are a dang mess. I'm not even 100% sure in the end how many guys she ends up with, especially since two more randoms pop up and since there's a attraction there I'm left assuming they to will be in her harem too, maybe??!?!. A harem that may or may not include around 7-9 people. Not to mention throughout the book she only fools around with one of the guys and has sex with one. To me this is just disappointing (and not RH) if the relationship is not to be cemented and I'm not even sure who she's with, isn't with or will be with in the end. It was an OK read but certainly needs some fleshing out, no pun intended. I'm surprised the author did not do more with the gang threat in the area, I think we all know other humans are more of a threat than the zombies. Once the moment comes it was over so quick I almost missed it all by blinking and I'm just left wondering why it was even included if the situation would be resolved so easily. However, I won't lie and say I didn't appreciate the heroine having to come to the rescue of her men, one in particular who was the more dangerous and crazy of the bunch.
Profile Image for Motaung.
352 reviews35 followers
September 16, 2020
The premise and the start were not bad but I don't think this is a story that could have been told in a single book of less than 300 pages. Not with so many characters that had to be covered.

This supposedly a reverse harem book. There is 7 plus 2 (added towards the end) guys and a teenage girl. By the end of the book she had only been physical with just 2 and only one of them was actual sex, which was rather clumsy. Its a post apocalyptic world and she had survived mostly alone for about 16 or 18 months. She is straight from high school but in that alone time she had read, understood and put into practice every zombie fiction book and every survival book she had in her hideout. And from this reading she knows every plant, animal, fight moves including sword skills, basically everything she has read she can do like a pro 🙄.

Within a week or 2 of meeting the 7 guys, she claims them as hers. Despite having spent most of that time thinking of going sole again and not having any visible chemistry with any of them, except for may be lustful thoughts here and there. I am not even sure I know the names of the last 2 new guys.
Profile Image for Jennifer G.
2,872 reviews54 followers
June 19, 2020
Emerald was lucky...or not depending on your point of view. The virus hit. Friends, family, acquaintances, and neighbors turned. Then the nightmare began. The world was broken, the dead eating the living. Emerald was there when her mother and sister were attacked but she got away, she survived. She had help in the beginning but after that she was alone living in a bookstore, fighting each day to survive. After a while, she forgot how to live with others. However, that changes when she hears the screams of a human and makes the decision to rescue him. As they say, no good deed goes unpunished. When his friends decide to 'rescue' her in return, she suddenly finds herself in a house full of guys. Little did they know the impact one small girl could have on all their lives.

I was afraid at the beginning that this book was going to be all gore. I have a complicated relationship with zombies. I love post-apocalyptic books, I love the psychological aftermath, the hardships, the human adaptation, and spirit to survive; I do not like the gross factor. Zombies fall into the latter. However, the zombies acted as more of a backdrop than a feature. Yes, they were a complication but the characters were the focus. And these characters were wonderful. Emerald was a little spitfire. There were so many guys they make up quite the assortment. There was at least one guy who would appeal to any reader. Let's be honest, more than one for most. I loved it. Emerald's random afternoon spent reading to grandma was priceless. This is what I liked most. There is a large cast of characters that had little in common but have now become family. Their days are filled with danger. Survival is the goal. And yet, there are unexpected moments of silliness thrown in. There are meaningful moments. There is happiness. People find a way to keep going. Family makes it worth it. Life is still for the living even when the dead roam.
Profile Image for Missy Brown.
1,750 reviews30 followers
May 30, 2020
So I am a big fan of The Walking Dead. This book reminded me of that show so much. I literally felt like I was watching a show, about a kick a@@ female lead who was learning to survive in this new world where zombies were everywhere and what was left of humanity was evil. We follow Emerald on her day to day life as on her own. Little does she know that her life is about to change when she helps two strangers. She has always tried to avoid people, since her last encounter turned out so horribly. Can she finally find a place to call home in this dead world or will she continue to be alone.



Guys I meant what I said, Zombie Queen was like watching a movie with words. Everything starts out fast from the gate. I felt so bad for Emerald. You have to be a survivor to be in this new world and she definitly is. Think Machone, from Walking Dead. She is who I would want to be if something like this happened.



The guys, wow, I enjoyed everyone. You have all of these different personalities and uses in this new world. I do not really have a favorite, I liked them all the same.



Overall, Zombie Queen was a good getaway for myself. I enjoyed the characters, the world, the pace, and the ending. I really enjoyed everything about it. These two ladies did a wonderful job in this world and I hope to visit it again one day. This is a standalone as of now the authors have stated.
Profile Image for Mummy's Naughty Corner.
1,513 reviews88 followers
November 1, 2020
Well this gripped me more then I thought it would. I liked the horror of the zombies and how even during all that she finds love. I liked some of the characters and could have done without others. The Doctor was my favorite and lets not forgot about Grandma every zombie book needs a grandma in it. The romance was okay and I liked her Christmas shopping part that was sweet.
Profile Image for Dallass.
2,233 reviews
October 27, 2020
Not for me.

I downloaded this as I was looking to try something different, and although it started okay, once the guys came into the picture it lost that lone survivor edge I was enjoying. The guys were mostly jerks, and I wasn’t all that engaged with what was happening. By the 2/3 point I just skimmed as I’d had enough.

Definitely not what I was after.

2 stars ⭐️ for that great opening encounter.
Profile Image for Amber.
489 reviews63 followers
July 9, 2022
Fun and fast paced.

This had me hooked right from the start. I loved Emerald and really felt for her. Was she safer in her own keeping herself safe, or should she take a chance and trust these guys?
I also really fell for each of the guys for different reasons. They all had something about them.
Lots of moments of action, horror, romance and even comedy. This was a really great read. I seriously hope the authors do more because I fell for Em and her guys.
Profile Image for Ms. Cyn.
1,544 reviews
September 11, 2020
Want more

Zombie apocalypse stories can be thrilling and intense. Emerald's story is one of these. I have a hard time imagining her becoming so strong without training after just a year and a half. Perhaps I read that wrong though. Either way she is one amazing young woman. The group of men are great too but not sure how she can juggle so many. The way that their perspectives changed between the different characters was very smooth and I enjoyed it. I wish there was more.
Profile Image for ♡ Rosella Swan ♡.
484 reviews
April 17, 2022
I wanted another book like April Fool's and this came close to it. I loved it. Emerald is a freaking badass and I loved the Granny though too bad she didn't last long. The men are awesome and I loved the character and relationship development. The storyline was interesting and I liked the plot.
Profile Image for LeiT.
382 reviews5 followers
October 3, 2020
Great book!

This book was great and I'm not sure if there is going to be a second book but I would sure love to read more.
Recommend 100%
Profile Image for Nikki.
906 reviews82 followers
September 8, 2020
“I’ve slowly come to realize dreams are nothing more than broken thoughts we take to the grave with us.”


—» 3 Stars
I was excited to start Zombie Queen after reading its synopsis which depicted the heroine—Em—as a feared zombie slayer and a hardened leader of a group of survivors in a post-apocalyptic world. Add that it also had great reviews, and I couldn’t pick this book up fast enough! Sadly, I found that the synopsis wasn’t an accurate representation of the story, which caused it to fall short of the expectations I had for it.

Now, I know it’s my own fault for making presumptions based on a synopsis, so—despite my disappointment—I decided to continue reading based on the fact that the story must be amazing based on its great reviews. But once again, I was disappointed. This was a good story, but it wasn’t great . I usually love RH romances, but this one was lacking—chemistry, depth, development, passion. The relationships were handled so poorly that they detracted from the parts of the story that I did like.


—» Would I Recommend? This book has so much potential, it was just executed poorly. I would still say give it a try because despite its faults, I still found it enjoyable.
—» Would I Read Again? Maybe

Profile Image for Aaron James.
2 reviews
January 9, 2021
This book didn't know what it wanted to be. At times a pretty decent post-apocalyptic tale, it veered off track when forcing sexual situations while avoiding telling a love story. The main character and primary narrator seemingly goes from a tough survivalist who was injured and kidnapped, to an overly horny virgin - willing to fantasize about each of the men who kidnapped her, as well as a man she vaguely remembered from high school who recently admitted to stalking her. I'm all for a woman pursuing multiple men while not attached, but this seemed super forced just to get a few sexual encounters included in the zombie story. Even the zombie angle let's you down in the end, as they live comfortably with power and more than enough rations the whole time. The only two times the zombie takeover even causes them any mild trouble, both situations are easily overcome with no more than a mild inconvenience to the main characters. Hell, the entire final "battle" takes place outside of the narration and serves as nothing more than another chance for a character to describe how infatuated they are with the only female they've seen (other than granny) since the end of the world. Pass on this one unless you are desperate.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Melissa.
778 reviews17 followers
January 18, 2021

~Disclaimer: I received a free audiobook copy of this book~

The narrators do an excellent job. The fact that there were two folks doing the narration increased the immersion for me.

I like Emerald. She reads to educate herself, she still has some empathy for others and she has a realistic point of view (most of the time). I feel that Emerald is the only one we actually get to know in the story unfortunately.

I enjoyed the zombie interactions, they had a good amount of gore and intensity.

However, where this book really fails is in the romance department. Since this is a huge chunk of the book......well, lets just say I didn’t enjoy a lot of the content of this book. There is a lot of insta-lust in this book. Including in scenarios where it makes no sense. She is attracted to men that she thinks might rape and kill her and wants to jump them I would note I have no problem with polyamourous relationships and that isn’t what is the problem. Honestly, a lot of the flirtatious banter also was more cringey than witty.

The story goes heavy on the trope humanity is the real monster.
122 reviews
June 16, 2020
A good take on a zombie apocalypse

The thing I liked most about this was that Emerald wasn't a whimpering girl needing to be rescued. It starts off a little like that but she quickly grows self reliant and is hesitant to accept help from anyone.
This felt more real to me as people in an apocalyptic world, especially women would see the bad side of humanity come out and trusting the wrong people would be extremely dangerous, so it would be far more likely that you wouldn't trust anyone when you first meet them, and you're trust would be hard to earn.

There were some genetic things to do with this book, but that is hard to avoid in a zombie novel as the genre is so established and certain rules are universally applied. The main thing is I wish it had been a little longer. It only took a few hours to read so just as I was getting really invested in the story it was nearly over.
174 reviews6 followers
July 31, 2020
Sweet RH

I really liked this book for several reasons. The MC was self reliant, the action was fat, and the overall feel was very sweet. Not insta-love or 5 page sex scenes.

However, there wasn't a lot of character development. I could barely tell you any backstory on the guys or really the MC. There is a 16 time jump where she is alone. She starts from scared girl to bad ass in that time with no explanation. The guys are pretty generic with their only differences seeming to be hair color, age, and tats. Really they pretty much all felt the same.

So why 3 stars? It was light and fluffy and sometimes that's what you need. Hope this is the start of a series as I would like to explore the character's relationships more and see what happens with the MC an the guys. It would give the authors more chance to fill out the characters and make them more interesting.

I bought it on a lark and don't regret it.
Profile Image for Heather Mccloud.
42 reviews
September 21, 2020
Great but wanting more

I was going to give this 4 stars but I felt that it would be wrong of me to do so. Here is the reason why. I think that this book should be a series. It was beautifully written and the characters were so well rounded. Each person has put overwhelming stain on your heart for their pasts and how they all work together to overcome trials. Spoilers ahead........





The reason why I was going to give four stars is because I felt robbed in the end. I wanted to see Em with each guy in an intimate way but we didn't get that just with Russ and Kemp and a few kisses with Dex and Joseph. I felt like the new guys Gideon and Graham could have been involved too but they mind of got pushed back. I feel like there should be a second or even a third book. I ended up giving it a five star because I did enjoy the book and had no complaints with grammar or errors. Plus the writing was too par! All in all a must read.
Profile Image for Mia LeNae.
482 reviews5 followers
July 16, 2020
Harem Army

Yeah I’m asking the same question. How did Emerald survive for so long? When she gets with this new group it reads as if she just needed saving. She gets to redeem herself though towards the end. Even with the zombies and deaths of her family, it’s a “cutesy” story. Don’t know how else to explain it. Has moments lol and tongue in cheek dialogue that I found myself chuckling at. The characters aren’t completely developed. You think you may start to see what they are like then the story jumps somewhere else or just ends as if the happily ever after doesn’t quite make sense. Kemp... aka Wild Man had more story time and for his character to shine through. Not so much anyone else.
Profile Image for Jacquie.
107 reviews1 follower
August 10, 2020
***CONTAINS SOME SPOILERS***

This was an alright read. I had issues with some of the things in the book. Like the guys for one. At first I really thought the guys were bad guys. Sam with watching her for days before finally “meeting” Emerald. Then let’s not forget the other 6 guys *face palm*. Who kidnaps someone because they’re trying to “help”? Because of that I found it kind of hard to connect with the guys. There really wasn’t a lot of romance between all the guys for it to be considered a “harem”. Or to maybe help redeem my opinion of the guys. The ending just kind of snuck up on you. I was thinking there was more, (there should have been more). If not for those issues the book would have been better (IMO).
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Margaux Espinosa.
1,301 reviews21 followers
February 22, 2021
Too good, must have more!

What a great zombie read! Em is a badass, and her guys are great, Kemp is my favorite by far. I definitely want more of these guys, even though it has an ending that was all wrapped up it would be insanely amazing to have another book, with another crazy adventure and more steamy sexy moments to read with these characters. I seriously love these characters. Anyway, I definitely recommend this book to anyone that enjoys a good zombie read and likes a little RH.
Profile Image for Samantha.
88 reviews1 follower
May 31, 2020
This book was really good, although the beginning was kind of slow for me. A lot of things happened all at once but it’s all told from the FMC’s inner monologue and it fell a little flat for me. However, I powered through and I’m glad I did because I looooooved the story. I’m only mentioning my issue with the beginning to encourage other readers to power through if you have the same issue. ♥️
23 reviews1 follower
September 13, 2020
Abrupt ending

It was coming along nicely. I was interested in the characters, it felt like there could be a second book but the way it ended. It was like the author saved some people and said, "oh crap. I have an appointment, better end it fast." Then the girl was happy, the end. I was hoping for more and the hardest part is that the book was going so well.
Profile Image for Flea.
340 reviews6 followers
September 30, 2020
Almost DNF'd at 84%
It started off alright but I lost interest after the guys made an appearance.
Not a fan of the characters or their development. The RH relationships were basically nonexistent and hard to keep track of which guy was which. I skimmed through the 1.5 actual sex scenes that felt more awkward than anything.
5 reviews
October 5, 2020
Like.... okay

This book, whilst good, left me wanting me from literally every character in it. I'm disappointed in all honesty. Hopefully this turns into a series as I think the authors were onto something, but it felt very rushed.
Profile Image for Stacey Whittock.
11 reviews
October 7, 2020
Ok

It was ok. Good action in it but very disappointed with just the shower scene and the one with Russ. It's supposed to be a reverse harem book so youd expect alot more sex scenes in it.
2,600 reviews15 followers
January 27, 2021
Can you imagine zombie apocalypse? Well you will after reading this book. How Em survived and how her survival goes from day to day. Very detailed. Some things however are underexplained as to her relationship with the guys, distrusting them but still wanting them. Still enjoyed the book.
20 reviews
June 4, 2020
I’m not even into Zombie books and this was amazing

Another hit from this amazing lady! Beware, it’s a book that you can’t put down. You just keep saying, “just one more chapter!”
Profile Image for Jessica.
70 reviews1 follower
August 1, 2020
Ended too quickly. Left with the feeling that there was more of the story to tell. Great world building and plot development as always.
Profile Image for Charlotte.
38 reviews1 follower
August 1, 2020
Good read

I loved this story but the ending was super rushed and the epilogue was pointless and confusing, I would of atleast like to find out what happened to them all
555 reviews
August 31, 2020
So much didn't add up, especially in the end. It felt rushed & uncomplete.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 118 reviews

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