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Rosamilia, Armand, ed. Undead Tales: An Extreme Zombie Release. Rymfire eBooks, 2011.
These aren’t your somewhat comically endearing Shaun-of-the-Dead type zombies in this anthology; rather, they live up to their billing in the title: They’re extreme! Like Armand Rosamilia points out in his introduction, “There’s nothing ‘pretty’ or ‘romantic’ about a zombie…” Yet, they’re also as varied as the different authors writing them, and though not really a romantic zombie tale, Rosamilia’s story titled “The Zombie with the Dragon Tattoo” does feature a rather sexy female zombie named Roxi, who’d been a stripper when still alive…. All the stories were well-written and entertaining, but the ones in addition to the aforementioned that really stood out to me for the uniqueness they bring to zombie lore are: 1) Chantal Boudreau’s “What a Man’s Gotta Do” because it showcases a human addict’s desperation in the face of what she terms the “infested” or “teeters.” 2) “Till Death Do Us Part” by Scott M. Goriscak for portraying a new kind of zombie awakening, via electricity, etc. 3) “I Forget My Own Name” by JD Gillam because it’s told from a zombie’s point-of-view. Plus, the poetry by Rich Orth peppered throughout is fittingly perverse, yet strangely relatable. For example, in Orth’s poem titled “Zombie Preamble!” I didn’t feel it was a nonsensical neologism; rather, I found it believable as a reader, albeit in a willing state of disbelief/belief, with lines like those found on page 146:
In this city of sin
Where life is a gamble
Heard my first rendition
Of the Zombie preamble
Now a minority rule
Constitution theirs to change
We the Living Dead people
In order to form a more perfect union
No matter how deranged…
In conclusion, if you like good gruesome zombie tales and poetry, then get a copy of this book where the nineteen different stories ultimately chosen were all conflated brilliantly together.
Review by Lucas McPherson
