My review of "The Zom-B Chronicles" by Darren Shan.

This is one of the most difficult reviews I have had to write. It took me a long while to get used to the first person narrative in which Darren Shan’s book, The ZOM-B Chronicles, is written. I found the writing style a little distracting at first. Ignoring the fact that the book is apparently aimed at a young adult audience, the story is very good. I struggled with the first few chapters which were full of teenage angst but once the zombies started to rampage and feast the story became much more interesting.

The book is definitely a book of two halves, having been spliced together from two separate books, “ZOM-B” and “ZOM-B Underground”. As I said, the first half reads like a teenage drama that just happens to have zombies in it. I almost stopped reading it at this point but I persevered and I’m glad that I did.

The second half is like another book entirely. The writing is tighter, the story gripping and full of action and horror. The perspective from a zombie’s point of view is intriguing and the descriptions visceral and unpleasant enough to make you squirm. What saved the book is the clear notion that this is not just another zombie holocaust. There is a sinister power in action behind the scenes, personified in one of the most memorable characters that I can recall from any horror franchise.

Mr Dowling is part clown, part zombie, part insect nest and thoroughly terrifying. Who he is or what he’s up to I assume will be revealed in later books and the desire to know that is enough to encourage me to read more of Darran Shan’s sequels. A book of two halves; persevere to the end and I promise that it will be worth your while.