Down the Road: A Zombie Horror Story (Special Edition) by Bowie Ibarra
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Book Reviews of Down the Road: A Zombie Horror Story (Special Edition)
Book Review: Unrealistic even for a zombie novel
Summary: 1 Stars
The book started off well, but quickly went downhill. While the writing itself isn't bad, the behavior of the people in the book is simply too unbelievable. Certain parts reminded me of the plot a a cheap porno. Example: while hordes of zombies are literally on the other side of the wall, and could break in at any time, the main character has sex multiple times with a colleague (who was grading papers in the middle of the apocalypse) in various different rooms of a school. Perhaps a bit unrealistic? The ruthlessness of the common American soldier is also unrealistic. They are portrayed as mindless killers who blindly follow the orders of the government to kill all people who refuse to go to a FEMA camp. Members of the military are our sons and daughters, brothers and sisters, friends and relatives. Do you really think they would go around killing helpless Americans simply because they were told to? The ATF would (and has), but as a member of the US military, I can tell you that most of us are normal people who would never obey an order to fire on unarmed Americans. Basically, the characters in this book are just too two dimensional and ruin what could be a good story.Book Review: not that great
Summary: 1 Stars
Didn't really care for this book, felt short and low class. This book will sell at any trailer park gift shop.Book Review: A fun zombie tale to read on vacation.
Summary: 4 Stars
Down the Road is the tale of one man's attempt at surviving a plague of zombies overtaking the nation. George Zaragosa, like many Americans, did not believe the news reports of the dead rising until it was nearly too late. He finally decides to flee his apartment in Austin and head "home" to San Uvalde. This is the tale of that trip. I like how the author works in the book's title more than once throughout the text, the addition is clever and not forced.
As George makes his way through a city torn up by zombies, looters, police and other survivors the reader learns bits and pieces of his past. These story elements are inter-mixed with the ongoing "current" plot as flashbacks and memories. The author handles this rather well, blending something from the survival plot with character development.
Down the Road is a relatively short read, wrapping up in 168 pages or so. I read it in one day while traveling across the state of Wisconsin. The adventure George has throughout the book is a fun and scary read for anyone who enjoys zombie fiction. I'm looking forward to getting my hands on the sequel.
Book Review: Not bad for a first time author
Summary: 3 Stars
I liked this book. Its not nearly as good as some other zombie books I've read, such as Dying to Live or World War Z, but still has the guts (pun intended) of a decent zombie story to satisfy your undead apetite (pun intended, again). It starts off like most books, where the infection is starting and people are getting misinformation, no one really knows what's going on, and our protagonist decides to head out and find his family. Cue chaos.
This book has a lot of anti government rhetoric (you can tell he does not trust FEMA), so if you're sensitive about that sort of thing, you will definitely get offended at his take on government 'help'. Sometimes I felt this was more a book about how the government falls short, under the guise of zombie-lore. But then again, isn't that what most zombie books are? Use of zombies to get across a bigger point? Perhaps this author is a Romero in the making, hmm?
The only reason I gave this book 3 stars versus 4 (would have done 3.5 stars if given the option) is that a lot of sex was thrown in needlessly, I felt. I get that different people respond to stress in different fashions, but the author had the main character having sex just one day into the infestation. Seemed a bit much. I could have bought it if his character were a couple of weeks into it and needed some sort of emotional release, but I would think that just a single day into seeing the undead tearing people apart would leave one wanting to just basically survive instead of having carnal relations! But that's just my opinion. Just sort of seemed like the author threw that in because he thought he could get away with it, not that it actually had anything to do with the plot or the emotional development of the protagonist.
I will say that the ending was what secured that I would read more from the author. I don't want to give it away and ruin it for would-be readers, but I'll say that its a little different than most zombie books, so I will definitely go read any other books from Ibarra.
Summary: political commentary, undead chomping on mankind, sex thrown in unecessarily, but in all, a good book and worth the time to check it out.
Book Review: A Most Excellent Adenture
Summary: 5 Stars
Down the Road: A Zombie Horror story is as good as it gets with the idea of a "Hero's Journey." In a time when most zombie stories are concentrated more on the Zombies themselves, Ibarra's story is focussed on this ordinary drama teacher trying to make it back to his ordinary world, under such extraordinary circumstances. The writing is visceral, and he makes you feel like you are a part of the story. For all of you who are familiar with Texas (especially Central Texas) this will be an even bigger thrill. Still, this story is much more about humanity, and how evil people can be, but at the same time how the determination of one man, and the love he has for his wife, can help all of us get... down the road, to the place we call home! An excellent, excellent read!