The Undead: Zombie Anthology

by David Wellington, Elijah Hall (Editor), Travis Adkins (Introduction)

THE UNDEAD is a stunning collection of 23 tales of the living dead by zombie fan favorites and up-and-coming authors. The Undead includes classic tales of survival in a world populated by the living dead as well as an array of unique takes on the zombie genre: zombies as reality entertainment, glimpses from inside the "life" of the undead, intergalactic war with humanity's own dead turned against us, and everything in between. The Undead will leave zombie fans hungry for more!

Genres: Zombies, Horror, Short Stories, Fiction, Anthologies, Apocalyptic, Fantasy

261 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 1, 2005

About the author

David Wellington is a contemporary American horror author, best known for his Zombie trilogy as well as his Vampire series and Werewolf series. His books have been translated into eleven languages and are a global phenomenon.

His career began in 2004 when he started serializing his horror fiction online, posting short chapters of a novel three times a week on a friend’s blog. Response to the project was so great that in 2004 Thunder’s Mouth Press approached David Wellington about publishing Monster Island as a print book. His novels have been featured in Rue Morgue, Fangoria, and the New York Times.

He also made his debut as a comic book writer in 2009 with Marvel Zombies Return:Iron Man.

Wellington attended Syracuse University and received an MFA in creative writing from Penn State. He also holds a masters degree in Library Science from Pratt Institute.

He now lives in New York City with his dog Mary Shelley and wife Elisabeth who, in her wedding vows, promised to “kick serious zombie ass” for him.

Reviews

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a pretty good anthology of zombie short stories. My favorites, several that stood out above the rest, are: Hotline, Only Begotten, and Ann at Twilight

Chuy and the Fish by David Wellington
This story is about a cholo's battle with a giant zombie squid. I like David Wellington, read Monster Island and enjoyed it, but this story didn't really do much for me.

Pale Moonlight by D. L. Snell
In this story - Nathan, the son -a werewolf- kills Jon, the father -a zombie- under a full moon. I liked this one.

Hotline by Russell A. Calhoun
There are two types of zombies in this story: the bestial zombies and the cerebral zombies. Both are starving in a world where the food supply -uninfected humans- is dwindling. Will the government's emergency phone system help the few remaining uninfected humans left? Wow! This one was chilling. I loved it! Excellent!

Home by David Moody
This story follows a crazy man on his way home to his beloved Georgie. What does he find when he gets there? He is too late, as he expected. His plan: for them to be together forever, to rot together. Gross!

Reapers at the Door by Eric S. Brown
This story was chaotic and confusing! There were Reapers and war pods and some dude named Scott who awoke to an alarm on the Talon VIII. I had no idea what was going on even after back-tracking several times!

The Diabolical Plan by Derek Gunn
This was an interesting story of England vs. France with Lieutenant Peter Fowler, and, well, zombies, on the HMS Swift. I really liked the premise of the story, but thought it could have been better.

Dead World by Meghan Jurado
This one was good! It read like a zombie's journal. We follow a zombie woman for 16 days as her 'infection' progresses.

Two Confessions by E. W. Norton

13 Ways of Looking at the Living Dead by Eric Pape

Grinning Samuel by David Dunwoody

Ann at Twilight by Brent Zirnheld

The Last Living Man by Kevin L. Donihe

Only Begotten by Rebecca Lloyd

Undead Prometheus by Rob Morganbesser

Hell and Back by Vince Churchill

The Dead Life by Mike Watt

*Donovan's Leg by Eric Shapiro

*Cold As He Wishes by C. M. Shevlin

*Death Row by James Reilly

*Existence by John Hubbard

*Graveyard Slot by Caven Scott

*The Project by Pasquale J. Morrone

*Like Chicken for Deadfucks by Andre Duza

[Rick · Rating 5 out of 5]

Overall, this is a fantastic anthology of short zombie stories. As a fan of the undead, this was right up my alley. Sure, there were a few stinkers, but not as many as I feared. Almost every story was zombie classic.

Amazing:
Home; The Diabolic Plan; 13 Ways of Looking at the Living Dead; Grinning Samuel; Ann at Twilight; The Last Living Man; Undead Prometheus

Good:
Chuy and the Fish; Dead World; Two Confessions; Only Begotten; Hell and Back; The Dead Life; Donovan's Leg; Cold as He Wishes; Death Row; Existence; Graveyard Slot; The Project; Like Chicken for Dead Fucks

Not so good:
Pale Moonlight; Hotline; Reapers at the Door

My two favorites were The Diabolic Plan, set during the Napoleonic wars at sea, and Grinning Samuel, which had a great mythic feel.

[JW Manus · Rating 5 out of 5]

I purchased this collection of short stories because of the David Wellington story, "Chuy and the Big Fish." I loved Wellington's zombie trilogy (Monster Island, Monster Nation, Monster Planet). Contains stories by David Wellington, David Moody, Derek Gunn, Vince Churchill, Eric S. Brown, Andre Duza, Brian Keene (Author, Foreword), D.L. Snell (Author, Editor), Elijah Hall (Author, Editor), Travis Adkins (Author, Introduction) and others. All the stories share a zombie theme, but the style and tone offer a little bit of something for every reader from poignant to gross and gory to laugh out loud funny.

My only gripe is that the authors failed to include a table of contents, so navigating the stories and finding the names and titles are a pain.

[D.m. Anderson · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a free Kindle book, this was a very pleasant surprise. A lot of great, horrific stories...some scary, some funny, some flat-out sick. With the exception of a few clunkers, this is a terrific collection of zombie fiction.

[Russell · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this book to be quite a Joy. I thoroughly enjoyed the short stories. The book was quite Gruesome, bloody, graphic, and contained some adult content. I would NOT recommend this book for a younger audience.

[David]

Features my short story "Home"

[James · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wide range of zombified entertainment. There is bound to be something for everybody in this huge anthology. A great read!

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great collection of short stories looking at the rise of the dead from all different views.
If you're a fan of The Walking Dead or World War Z, this is a great read.

[Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wonderful collection of short stories, some with the normal "The Walking Dead" take on zombies and quite a few with new and interesting scenarios. A must-read for zombie fans.

[Jude Felton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic Anthology

[Ben Mizrahi · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have read this anthology as a teenager back in 2012, and thought it was a masterpiece. Returning to it now, I really have no idea what I found here. Only the first couple of stories were good, the rest were tiresome cliches and pure garbage.

[Ryan M Pratt · Rating 4 out of 5]

My favorite zombie anthology yet. Second best is World War Z.

[Nathan Shumate · Rating 3 out of 5]

Despite the overmined territory of the zombie subgenre, this collection had remarkably few stinkers.

[Kelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dear Zombie Sub-Genre,

As much as it pains me to say this, it’s over. I’m sorry. I saw this coming a few months ago, but I tried to ignore it out of love. Love for you, for the genre, and for the fans. But now it has to end. Believe me, this is as hard for me as it is for you. I wanted to work things out, but I just can’t hold out in the hopes that it will get better. It won’t.

Please, don’t be that way. Really, it’s not you, it’s me. Remember what Brian Keene said in the Afterword of The Undead Zombie Anthology. No? Let me refresh your memory. He stated that, “Zombies are the new vampires”. See that, right there, is exactly the problem. When we first met, it was new and different. Before Horror-Web, I never even really knew you existed. Sure I saw you from time to time on the T.V. or on the bookshelves, but I hadn’t really been paying attention. In fact, did you know that I grew up never having watched any of the Romero films and rarely read any books about you? Well, it’s true. In fact, it took me eight months just to remember the man’s name so I’d know whom people were always referring to at parties. And now, well, now I can honestly say that I have had my fill. It was fun at first, but now it’s just sad.

You’re everywhere now. I turn on the T.V. and there you are. I go into a bookstore, and you’re there. Hell, you’re even coming up in everyday conversations. It’s just too much. And even though the last time we were together, it was horrible, I want you to know that this last experience, this last moment we shared, well, it was beautiful. Well, maybe not beautiful, but it was perfect. A perfect ending to a very intense, very fulfilled relationship.

At the beginning of our “special” moment, I was a little disappointed and a little sad. I mean, really, a zombie octopus? Sure, David Wellington’s story, “Chuy and the Fish”, was classic in a George Romero kind of way, but it was so predictable. And D.L. Snell’s “Pale Moonlight”, well, that just really didn’t work for me. I didn’t get the point of it. Plus, I think he could have worked a little bit better with the werewolf angle. But Russell A. Calhoun’s “Hotline” brought me back to you. It was constantly surprising me. You know how I love that. And while I still held love for you after reading “Home”, by David Moody, the resentment began to settle in. It’s not that it was a bad story; just that it was so slow. Which is amazing, considering that it was only 17 pages.

But it was right after reading Eric S. Brown’s “ Reapers at the Door” that I began to really consider leaving you. Maybe it was the whole Aliens-meets-Day-of-the-Dead that ruined it for me, or maybe it was the sophomoric style. Either way, this is the exact moment it all began to go downhill for us. And even though I know it was wrong, I have to admit to you that I didn’t even read “The Diabolical Plan”, by Derek Gunn. I know, I’m so ashamed. But I just could not get into it, and every time I tried my eyes would glaze over and I would start imagining what it would be like to die of an embolism. I don’t mean to hurt you, but I have to be honest. And just when I thought I would be revived by Meghan Jurado’s story, “Dead world”, it turned out to be false hope and indigestion. Well, that and the whole Holocaust-reversed thing she was going for just irritated me.

Yes, I know, I’m rambling. I’m sorry; I’ll try to wrap it up. What I’m trying to say is this: even though stories such as “Grinning Samuel”, “Ann at Twilight” and “Donovan’s Leg” almost made me pack up and leave without so much as a word to you, it was the other stories that made me realize that even though we have to part, it won’t be forever. Stories that I thought were brilliant and creative, original and unique. Stories such as: “13 Ways of Looking at the Dead”, “The Last Living Man”, ”Undead Prometheus”, ”The Dead Life” and “The Graveyard Slot”. Oh, and Andre Duza’s “Like Chicken for Deadfucks”, that was beautiful.

I’ll come back to you now and then, but right now what I need is time and some space. Even though I know there are fans out there that would rate this experience as a 4.5, I have to be fair to myself and to you. I give it a solid 3.

I’ll be seeing you…



-As posted on Horror-Web.com

[Brendan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This collection of zombie stories has quite a few interesting entries, with some a bit afield of the usual zombie story, but overall much tighter to the genre than the collection I read last year, The Living Dead. We will be using this anthology in my Zombie class this year, so I’ve now got to figure out which story goes with which film/reading combination. Here are five stories I thought worth commenting on:

* “The Diabolical Plan” by Derek Gunn recounts a British ship captain’s hunt and sinking of a French ship loaded with zombies. It’s a rip-roaring sea story with a good ending.
* “13 Ways of Looking at the Living Dead” by Eric Pape tells the story of a conventional zombie outbreak using a post-modern storytelling style reminiscent of “The Heat Death of the Universe.” I like the disconnected bits that slowly weave into a narrative of creepiness. See also: The Re-Animator
* “Ann at Twilight” by Brent Zirnheld also really compelled me. It’s a strong, tough story about a blind woman struggling to make it in a world full of zombies.
* “Hell and Back” by Vince Churchill grabbed me most strongly, with its brutal story and heart-breaking situation. The zombie stories that get me most brutally are the ones that capture a slice of life (see the beginning of the new Dawn of the Dead) and make it entirely plausible that this slice of life could go very wrong very quickly.
* “Undead Prometheus” by Rob Morganbesser stands out as my favorite story in the collection. I love the premise that Frankenstein’s monster is real and has survived this whole time, only to find himself in the midst of a zombie outbreak. The story captures the monster’s angst and perspective beautifully, and there’s solid zombie mayhem to boot.

Overall, it’s a satisfying anthology, one that will provide some good extra servings of zombies to my class.

[Justin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Briefly offered as a giveaway (and still available at a bargain rate), The Undead: Zombie Anthology was one of Permuted Press's earliest offerings. It's a collection of 23 zombie-themed short stories from some of their up-and-coming authors. There's something about the zombie genre that just translates really well into short stories. Don't get me wrong, I love a good novel-length zombie tale, but with these shorter bites (yeah, I know), authors can explore new ideas and situations without worrying about larger plotlines or world-building. It seems more creative and vital somehow.

In this collection, the authors serve up traditional zombie/post-apocalyptic stories, but there are several that incorporate historical, literary, sci-fi, and socio-political elements and observations. Some of these stories work really well, and others don't, but the overall quality level is pretty good and there's definitely a lot for zombie fans to sink their teeth into (sorry). Even if you only find one or two stories here that really speak to you (and chances are you'll like more than that), it's still well worth the price tag to sample so many authors in one sitting.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think my two favorites were the story of the blind woman and the one about game show where the woman finds herself on a reality show where the producers record people being attacked by and fighting zombies, and how she gets her revenge. That story reminded me a little of "cabin in the woods." There was also one that was a comedy of zombie hunters competing to kill zombies in the basement, a tale set in outer space where aliens use zombies as weapons, a story of a giant zombie squid, a story with Frankenstein monster, some with sentient zombies, some where the zombie state is caused by a virus, by aliens, by scientific experiments, by a flue that causes blackouts and violence, then goes away....all different. Some very unique and original stories. I did find the book a little tedious after a while though. I should have broken it up by reading other books in between the stories, because all those zombies kind of run together after a while.

[Jess · Rating 3 out of 5]

Alright book, some of the stories fell way flat on the worth reading scale, but a few were pretty intriguing, especially the one about the blind girl, quite a original take on the zombie yarn. All in all the book has a very varied amount of stories, running zombies, talking zombies, smart zombies, and your good old fashioned stagger around type as well, and various mixes in between. This anthology covers a lot, I just felt that the stories themselves as a whole were a little lacking.

[Nora Peevy · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Undead Zombie Anthology edited by D.L. Snell and Elijah Hall from Permuted Press wasn't all that memorable. It wasn't bad, but truthfully, after letting the stories sit for a few weeks, not one really remains stuck in my head. If you're a lover of zombie fic, this one shouldn't be passed up, but if you're expecting something earth shattering, this isn't the collection for you. The stories are written well, but they just catch my interest.

[Wendy · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very wide selection of Zombie stories. As with all anthologies some stories are more memorable than others. There were some good stories in here, but nothing absolutely fantastic. I did however enjoy Brian Keene's afteword.

A couple of the more interesting stories for me

Undead Prometheus by Rob Morganbesser
Chuy and the Fish by David Wellington

[Bruce Pitt Jr · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reviewing anthology books is always hard. Some of the stories in here are great reads while some others seem like a pity placement for a struggling/cold author because they are hard to read through. Give it a read though, it is entertaining and each story is short enough that you can put it down easily if you get interupted.

[D Books · Rating 3 out of 5]

As with any book that is filled with short stories from different authors, there are good stories and then there are the bad stories that just aren't worth reading. Best part of the book: are you kidding me, IT'S THE ZOMBIES! :)

[Kevin · Rating 3 out of 5]

There were a couple of stories in this anthology that I didn't like, but mostly these were pretty fun zombie stories. They were kind of on the light side with most of them being more comical than intense but I enjoyed it.

[Not Now...Mommy's Reading · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed most of the stories within this anthology. A rather good read.

[Shannon · Rating 2 out of 5]

Overall not that great. There were a few gems in the bunch. Hotline, which is just creepy to think about. Undead Prometheus, which was kinda sad. And, Dead World.

[Nerissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was okay, kinda hit or miss. Some stories were really good and creepy, others were just meh. For a book that cost less than $5 US, I guess that's pretty good.

[Lafcadio · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some of the stories were excellent, some I skipped without finishing.

[Erath Juarez · Rating 4 out of 5]

buena antología de Zombis, relatos muy originales. Un gran Calamar Zombi, en el primer relato. Frankestein luchando contra zombis. De todo un poco.

[Mark · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love short stories. I particularly liked "Home"

[Sabur76 · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not exactly my cup of tea. It's nice to see an anthology entirely made up of zombie fic.