What do you think?
Rate this book
My Name Was Nigel: Memoirs of a Killer Zombie
Told by a creature with a unique perspective, this is the definitive, first-hand account of how the world (as Beans have known it for millennia) came not to be. From his humble beginnings, rising as a discarded corpse in the metropolis dump (London) in the early days of the plague and the discovery of his appreciation of Bean flesh, to the acquisition of his many followers and the discovery of his mission, Nigel describes how he brought death and enlightenment to the unforgiving, miserable existence of Beankind. This truly remarkable story concludes with Nigel masterminding the ‘Great Handover’ of the metropolis to Muterdom.
Authoritative, moving, inspiring, brutal, terrifying and written by the Muter who was at the centre of it all, these memoirs lead the reader through a whole world of hurt, death and illumination.
The past is written by the living; the future, by the dead.
Authoritative, moving, inspiring, brutal, terrifying and written by the Muter who was at the centre of it all, these memoirs lead the reader through a whole world of hurt, death and illumination.
The past is written by the living; the future, by the dead.
324 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 15, 2020
33 people are currently reading
23 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
July 26, 2023
There’s currently only one other Goodreads review for My Name Was Nigel, but I hope that there will be more in the coming light-darks.
This zombie memoir takes us through the rising and subsequent 400 or so days of an early Muter (zombie). New Muters are brought into the fold, and their stories documented with some quietly funny and infrequently gory details. The author’s witty and good writing carry the story along at a fairly steady pace, although there are sections where I began to wonder if ‘anything’ was going to happen. They do, and it’s a bit of a wild turn of events.
The best parts of the memoir for me were some of the early encounters with Beans (those still ‘existing’), and the learnings and philosophical reflections of the narrator. I had a good time reading this book, and it felt good enough in that way to be worthy of four stars.
There were parts of this novel that felt like a three or four star read, but not enough to fully take the entire rating to less than five stars, though at times I thought that’s where this would end up. Some of the Bean dialogue didn’t feel authentic. I didn’t catch how the Muters communicated with each other. There were so many minor Muters that I was a bit lost at times as to whether I had missed a story, but I hadn’t and the story was yet to come. There are other little things that detracted a bit from the overall reading experience, but I don’t think those things should stop anyone from picking up this book.
Worth giving My Name Was Nigel a try, especially if you’re looking to shake up your reading list.
This zombie memoir takes us through the rising and subsequent 400 or so days of an early Muter (zombie). New Muters are brought into the fold, and their stories documented with some quietly funny and infrequently gory details. The author’s witty and good writing carry the story along at a fairly steady pace, although there are sections where I began to wonder if ‘anything’ was going to happen. They do, and it’s a bit of a wild turn of events.
The best parts of the memoir for me were some of the early encounters with Beans (those still ‘existing’), and the learnings and philosophical reflections of the narrator. I had a good time reading this book, and it felt good enough in that way to be worthy of four stars.
There were parts of this novel that felt like a three or four star read, but not enough to fully take the entire rating to less than five stars, though at times I thought that’s where this would end up. Some of the Bean dialogue didn’t feel authentic. I didn’t catch how the Muters communicated with each other. There were so many minor Muters that I was a bit lost at times as to whether I had missed a story, but I hadn’t and the story was yet to come. There are other little things that detracted a bit from the overall reading experience, but I don’t think those things should stop anyone from picking up this book.
Worth giving My Name Was Nigel a try, especially if you’re looking to shake up your reading list.
January 20, 2021
This is the first book I read from this author and let me tell you that I loved it! Such a good book with great characters that keeps you obsessed with every page since the first one. The ending of this book.. come on! I just didn´t expect it! Can´t wait to read other books from this great writer! Amazing job! a must-read! A fantastic book that has it all! I happily endorse this story to any and all who are looking for a fiction enjoyable read and a completely different experience than anyone could imagine on their own. ¡Great book! ¡Awesome!
April 21, 2025
Nigel the muter attempts to bring enlightenment to all of bean-kind.
This was honestly a super fun read! I love the inherent irony in this book. Like it's so academic sounding, and interestingly structured...But it's from a zombie (or "muter") perspective. I loved the progression of Nigel throughout the book; his writing does change as he gets familiar with the vocabulary. I always love books from the "bad guys" perspective, so this was really enjoyable.
This was honestly a super fun read! I love the inherent irony in this book. Like it's so academic sounding, and interestingly structured...But it's from a zombie (or "muter") perspective. I loved the progression of Nigel throughout the book; his writing does change as he gets familiar with the vocabulary. I always love books from the "bad guys" perspective, so this was really enjoyable.
November 25, 2025
This book was different than a normal book about zombies. I liked that he called his zombie offspring “nibblings” & people were “Beans”.
The writing style was kind of hard to get into so it took me a little longer to finish but it wasn’t bad, just different.
The writing style was kind of hard to get into so it took me a little longer to finish but it wasn’t bad, just different.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews