Empire: A Zombie Novel (New York: Gallery Books, 2010)
Review by G.L. Giles
Author: David Dunwoody
As the PROLOGUE informs the reader, the zombie outbreak began in 2007 when a zombie virus accidentally spread. These zombies, or afterdead (as the military classified them), were resurrected due to a dark energy emitted from a source in a swamp in Louisiana. So it should come as no surprise that most of the action in this novel takes place in Louisiana (Jefferson Harbor specifically). However, the main storyline takes place over a hundred years after the outbreak. It’s set mostly in 2112. And, although it’s good to see that some humans have survived over a hundred years after the outbreak, their living conditions are hardly to be envied with little food, shelters that don’t always keep the afterdead out, etc. The reader is kept up to speed on what occurred over a hundred years ago or so, by a letter, a magazine interview, etc. When the military pulls out of the badlands (areas infiltrated with the afterdead, or rotters as they’re referred to slang-wise) things get really desperate for the humans that remain as they are left to fend for themselves against these grotesque rotters anyway they can with no military aid. Most of Dunwoody’s rotters are more the classic sort of zombies in that they don’t see well, walk well, etc. However, there are a few of the more terrifying type that can run. They’re the type of afterdead fittingly referred to as “runners.” Then there are some afterdead who have been trained to keep themselves relatively clean and can even fire a gun, etc. So, it’s fascinating to read about the different types of afterdead. By the book’s end, there is even a new kind of afterdead that has come about who craves other zombie/afterdead flesh, etc. Yet, this isn’t just a novel of human and afterdead survival. It also cleverly weaves in the story of the Grim Reaper versus the Afterdead. The Grim Reaper/Death is determined to eradicate the abominations (the afterdead) that, much to his consternation, don’t die like they should (like a normal human would). The Grim Reaper’s job is redefined in more ways than one before the end. And, though Death is one of the both primary and powerful characters in the novel, he’s not the only one. There’s an insidious pedophile with a God-complex named Baron Tetch who gives both Death and the surviving humans of the plague-ridden badlands a run for their money throughout most of the novel. Yet, even in the midst of great carnage and general filth, Dunwoody manages to masterfully fit in human compassion and even a love story between two characters named Jenna and Mark. This was one of those books that I couldn’t put down. At 293 pages, it’s a great weekend read! And, fortunately, there’s a sequel in the works.
Highly recommended. I give it a 10 out of 10.