Dead Reckoning: Dawning of the Dead

by Anthony Giangregorio

THE DEAD HAVE RISEN! In the dead city of Pittsburgh, two small enclaves struggle to survive, eking out an existence of hand to mouth. But instead of working together, both groups battle for the last remaining fuel and supplies of a city filled with the living dead. Six months after the initial outbreak, a lone helicopter arrives bearing two more survivors and a newborn baby. One enclave welcomes them, while the other schemes to steal their helicopter and escape the decaying city. With no police, fire, or social services existing, the two will battle for dominance in the steel city of the walking dead. But when the dust settles, the question is: will the remaining humans be the winners, or the losers? When the dead walk, the line between Heaven and Hell is so twisted and bent there is no line at all.

Genres: Zombies

252 pages, Paperback

First published January 14, 2009

About the author

Anthony Giangregorio is the author and editor of more than 25 novels, almost all of them about zombies. His work has appeared in Dead Science by Coscomentertainment, Dead Worlds: Undead Stories Volumes 1, 2, 3, and 4, and an upcoming anthology (Zombology) by Library of the Living Dead Press and their werewolf anthology titled War Wolves. He also has stories in End of Days: An Apocalyptic Anthology Volumes 1 & 2. Check out his website at www.undeadpress.com.

Reviews

[Mike · Rating 2 out of 5]

Oh man.
I really, really wanted to like this book.
It's a sequel to the 1978 "Dawn of the Dead" film. Picks up right where the movie ends. I really, really wanted to like it.
But all I can say is "meh."

You can tell Giangregorio is a fan of the movie, as the characters of Peter and Fran are dead on. But you can just as easily tell that an editor never stepped within 10 feet of the book.

There are a few typos, but that didn't bother me as much as the disjointed style. It felt a lot more like a friend telling you about an awesome book rather than an actual engrossing book.

Every time you started to get immersed in the story, a jarring change in style would smack you in the head and leave your ears ringing.

Giangregorio is a master of describing gore, and he puts his talents to good use, but by the end of the book, you're ready to put "ichor" on the list of words you never want to see again.

I stuck with the book to the end, hoping for an original twist or thought-provoking theme worthy of the man who's work Giangregorio is seeking to continue, but alas all I got was a lumbering corpse, it's empty eye sockets leaking a sticky, black ichor.

[Semi-spoiler alert:]

What was most disappointing was that the book's ending was pretty much just a repeat of the movie's ending—only with more explosions.

What's more, the second half of the book was almost a repeat of the first half, with absolutely none of the "good guys" learning a lesson from the first encounter. It seems like learning from near-death experiences would be mandatory for life in the Zombpocalypse.

[end semi-spoiler:]

All in all, the book was a decent read. Some cool ideas, and some decent imagery—the forklift in particular comes to mind :)
But in the end, those cool bits are dangling of a rotting, decrepit frame that needs to be shot in the head and put out of its misery.

[Jared · Rating 5 out of 5]

Real decent follow up to the original Dawn of the dead.