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Holiday of the Dead: Zombie Anthology
The zombie apocalypse can really put a downer on your holiday…
38 holiday-themed zombie stories from new and established authors including Night of the Living Dead co-writer, John Russo, Tony Burgess, Shaun Jeffrey, Rod Glenn, Iain McKinnon, Matt Hilton, David Dunwoody, Wayne Simmons, Bowie V Ibarra, Joe McKinney, Remy Porter, A P Fuchs, Thomas Emson and Eric S Brown.
Over 500 pages crammed full of flesh-eating horror and dark humour from the cream of UK, US and Canadian talent. Theme parks, serial killers, seaside resorts, Christmas, Thanksgiving and fishing trips. You’ll scream, you’ll laugh and you might even shed a tear…
Holiday zombie horror has never been so entertaining.
38 holiday-themed zombie stories from new and established authors including Night of the Living Dead co-writer, John Russo, Tony Burgess, Shaun Jeffrey, Rod Glenn, Iain McKinnon, Matt Hilton, David Dunwoody, Wayne Simmons, Bowie V Ibarra, Joe McKinney, Remy Porter, A P Fuchs, Thomas Emson and Eric S Brown.
Over 500 pages crammed full of flesh-eating horror and dark humour from the cream of UK, US and Canadian talent. Theme parks, serial killers, seaside resorts, Christmas, Thanksgiving and fishing trips. You’ll scream, you’ll laugh and you might even shed a tear…
Holiday zombie horror has never been so entertaining.
ebook
First published April 20, 2011
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342 people want to read
About the author
John A. Russo
208 books102 followersJohn A. Russo, sometimes credited as Jack Russo or John Russo, is an American screenwriter and film director most commonly associated with the 1968 horror classic film Night of the Living Dead. As a screenwriter, his credits include Night of the Living Dead, The Majorettes, Midnight, and Santa Claws. The latter two, he also directed. He has performed small roles as an actor, most notably the first ghoul who is stabbed in the head in Night of the Living Dead.
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
December 29, 2011
Holiday of the Undead is one of those ebooks that takes perfect
advantage of the ebook revolution: you'd never get to see something
like this from traditional publishing. What is this book? 500 pages
of stories about zombies and various types of holidays. Christmas,
Thanksgiving, US Independence Day, bank holidays, fishing holidays,
you name it. What makes this collection so great? It's perfect pulp.
These are not stories that you need to sit back and enjoy with a
brandy. These stories are not fine wine. They are good beer, cheap
and lots of it, to quaff. They are cheap melting cheese that goes so
great with nachos. One second you're laughing at the way the writers
are making fun of how we live and how we celebrate...the next you're
flinching with one eye shut to keep the gore out. It's a perfect mix
for pulp zombie stories.
As an example (warning, spoilers for this one story follow), my
favorite story is still one of the earliest ones, "A Side of Cranberry
Sauce," by Clyde Wolfe. It's the Alfred Hitchcock of zombie
stories--and while Big Al was quite the auteur as a director, he had
the heart of pulp master (on his desk). A family is painstakingly
gathered for Thanksgiving by one brother, who feels guilt at the death
of their jointly-murdered uncle. Not one to sit back and bask in
dark feelings, however, he brings his uncle back from the dead (using
the funds conveniently received at his death and the use of his
chemical coroporation's resources) and locks everyone in a room. Time
for a holiday feast!
With consistently straightforward, fun, and horrific writing, this was
a fun read for zombie fans. Thrills! Chills! Mistletoe! Stiffs!
Alice Cooper references! This one has it all.
advantage of the ebook revolution: you'd never get to see something
like this from traditional publishing. What is this book? 500 pages
of stories about zombies and various types of holidays. Christmas,
Thanksgiving, US Independence Day, bank holidays, fishing holidays,
you name it. What makes this collection so great? It's perfect pulp.
These are not stories that you need to sit back and enjoy with a
brandy. These stories are not fine wine. They are good beer, cheap
and lots of it, to quaff. They are cheap melting cheese that goes so
great with nachos. One second you're laughing at the way the writers
are making fun of how we live and how we celebrate...the next you're
flinching with one eye shut to keep the gore out. It's a perfect mix
for pulp zombie stories.
As an example (warning, spoilers for this one story follow), my
favorite story is still one of the earliest ones, "A Side of Cranberry
Sauce," by Clyde Wolfe. It's the Alfred Hitchcock of zombie
stories--and while Big Al was quite the auteur as a director, he had
the heart of pulp master (on his desk). A family is painstakingly
gathered for Thanksgiving by one brother, who feels guilt at the death
of their jointly-murdered uncle. Not one to sit back and bask in
dark feelings, however, he brings his uncle back from the dead (using
the funds conveniently received at his death and the use of his
chemical coroporation's resources) and locks everyone in a room. Time
for a holiday feast!
With consistently straightforward, fun, and horrific writing, this was
a fun read for zombie fans. Thrills! Chills! Mistletoe! Stiffs!
Alice Cooper references! This one has it all.
September 19, 2011
A fantastically varied range of stories by some very talented writers. There's every possible take on the zombie condition imaginable. A great anthology at a great price. A must read for fans of the genre.
A triumph for Wild Wolf. A publisher to look out for.
A triumph for Wild Wolf. A publisher to look out for.
May 4, 2012
This is anthology of 38 zombie stories with holidays as a theme. Be it vacation holidays or public holidays.
I will put my hand up and say I am not a fan of the zombie genre on the whole. I have read a couple of zombie novellas and enjoyed them, and this. This has changed my mind totally. This is the perfect introduction to the genre for people unsure. Bite sized chunks of zombie goodness that are perfect to dip in and out of. There is also a bonus story from 'Night of the Living Dead' co-author, John Russo. This one is not a zombie story but it is a very clever little story nonetheless! In conclusion, this is a belter of an antho I totally recommend.
I will put my hand up and say I am not a fan of the zombie genre on the whole. I have read a couple of zombie novellas and enjoyed them, and this. This has changed my mind totally. This is the perfect introduction to the genre for people unsure. Bite sized chunks of zombie goodness that are perfect to dip in and out of. There is also a bonus story from 'Night of the Living Dead' co-author, John Russo. This one is not a zombie story but it is a very clever little story nonetheless! In conclusion, this is a belter of an antho I totally recommend.
August 12, 2016
Holiday of the Dead is a rather sizable volume of zombie short stories that mostly stick to the theme of being on holiday, though a few seemed to stretch that concept a bit. For us Yanks, a holiday means a day of festivities, while with the Brits it is what we call a vacation. There is a pretty healthy mix of both types of tales to be found here. It isn’t just a mix, but a mixed bag, with a few stories forgotten as soon as I finished them. Fortunately, quite a few others were memorable and demonstrated the author’s ability to have some fun with the theme and with zombie fiction in general. When you have a book filled with nearly forty short stories, things are going pretty well when you come away feeling that at least thirty were worth the price of admission.
Often I try to provide a mini-review of each story in an anthology, but not with a tome this size. There are far too many to recount in detail. Suffice it to say, you will get an assortment of traditional and inspired here. There are some very recognizable names in the table of contents, well know writers of zombie and horror fiction, including Iain Mckinnon, Eric Dimbleby, Tonia Brown, David Dunwoody, Eric Brown, William Meikle, Joe McKinney, and Wayne Simmons. A couple of special guests, John Russo and Tony Burgess, add tales of their own at the end of the book.
Perhaps Holiday of the Dead could have been pared down a bit, but overall it was an entertaining read with only a few minor speed bumps. The most inventive tales should more than make up for any issues you may have with the handful that don’t resonate. Stories like Change Is As Good As Rest, Naked Fear, Daddy Dearest, Home Is The Sailor, Home From The Sea, Burj, The Day The Music Died, Where Moth And Rust Destroy, and Crossover kept things popping, though quite a few others were just as fun to dive into.
Solidly entertaining zombie shorts with a few misfires, but more than enough undead goodness between its pages.
Often I try to provide a mini-review of each story in an anthology, but not with a tome this size. There are far too many to recount in detail. Suffice it to say, you will get an assortment of traditional and inspired here. There are some very recognizable names in the table of contents, well know writers of zombie and horror fiction, including Iain Mckinnon, Eric Dimbleby, Tonia Brown, David Dunwoody, Eric Brown, William Meikle, Joe McKinney, and Wayne Simmons. A couple of special guests, John Russo and Tony Burgess, add tales of their own at the end of the book.
Perhaps Holiday of the Dead could have been pared down a bit, but overall it was an entertaining read with only a few minor speed bumps. The most inventive tales should more than make up for any issues you may have with the handful that don’t resonate. Stories like Change Is As Good As Rest, Naked Fear, Daddy Dearest, Home Is The Sailor, Home From The Sea, Burj, The Day The Music Died, Where Moth And Rust Destroy, and Crossover kept things popping, though quite a few others were just as fun to dive into.
Solidly entertaining zombie shorts with a few misfires, but more than enough undead goodness between its pages.
May 7, 2013
David Dunwoody (ed.), Holiday of the Dead (Wild Wolf Publishing, 2011)
Sometimes themed collections get ridiculous. Holiday of the Dead is exactly what you think it is—zombie stories that focus on people on, well, holiday. It's an amusing conceit, though Dunwoody probably carried it on a bit too long (thirty-eight stories?); this would have worked better at about half the length, as well as cutting out some of the chaff. For this is the other usual problem with anthologies—there's a quality variance that seems almost unavoidable. I've always put it down to the editor having different tastes than the reader. Which explains it, but doesn't lessen the problem.
To be fair, the good stories in here are very good. They're usually the ones that take the holiday conceit and do something with it that's just a little bit off; Vallon Jackson's “Apocalypse Noo” is exemplary at this, Thomas Emson's “Where Moth and Rust Destroy”, and of course one expects great things from contributors like Tony Burgess, David Moody, and Joe McKinney (and of course gets them). And I'll go out of my way to say it—I'm not usually a fan of authors publishing their own stuff in anthologies they're editing, but Dunwoody's own contribution to this effort, “Roman Holiday”, just plain rocks, even if he did take the conceit straighter than I'd have liked.
In other words, it's a typical short story collection: some good, some not so hot, and themed, so if you like the theme, you should like this collection (or most of it anyway); if you don't, you probably won't. But who doesn't like vacations? And zombies? ***
Sometimes themed collections get ridiculous. Holiday of the Dead is exactly what you think it is—zombie stories that focus on people on, well, holiday. It's an amusing conceit, though Dunwoody probably carried it on a bit too long (thirty-eight stories?); this would have worked better at about half the length, as well as cutting out some of the chaff. For this is the other usual problem with anthologies—there's a quality variance that seems almost unavoidable. I've always put it down to the editor having different tastes than the reader. Which explains it, but doesn't lessen the problem.
To be fair, the good stories in here are very good. They're usually the ones that take the holiday conceit and do something with it that's just a little bit off; Vallon Jackson's “Apocalypse Noo” is exemplary at this, Thomas Emson's “Where Moth and Rust Destroy”, and of course one expects great things from contributors like Tony Burgess, David Moody, and Joe McKinney (and of course gets them). And I'll go out of my way to say it—I'm not usually a fan of authors publishing their own stuff in anthologies they're editing, but Dunwoody's own contribution to this effort, “Roman Holiday”, just plain rocks, even if he did take the conceit straighter than I'd have liked.
In other words, it's a typical short story collection: some good, some not so hot, and themed, so if you like the theme, you should like this collection (or most of it anyway); if you don't, you probably won't. But who doesn't like vacations? And zombies? ***
July 15, 2014
I R&R'd this a couple of years ago, when I was just starting to do reviews and discussions on Zombie Fiend.
I did my review story by story, (I still use that style today). The majority of the authors were also ZF members :) and I got to chat with them while I read Holiday of the Dead: Zombie Anthology. I'm still friends with most of them - (uh-huh, online friends DO TOO count!), and I always look forward to reading their work.
Sadly, I wasn't backing up any files back then. This is on my list to re-read & review - (right after I review the new ZF anthology, Feast or Famine: A Banquet of Tales for the Zombie Prepper!)
Check out the rebirth of Zombie Fiend!
I did my review story by story, (I still use that style today). The majority of the authors were also ZF members :) and I got to chat with them while I read Holiday of the Dead: Zombie Anthology. I'm still friends with most of them - (uh-huh, online friends DO TOO count!), and I always look forward to reading their work.
Sadly, I wasn't backing up any files back then. This is on my list to re-read & review - (right after I review the new ZF anthology, Feast or Famine: A Banquet of Tales for the Zombie Prepper!)
Check out the rebirth of Zombie Fiend!
February 15, 2013
A great Zombie collection - 40 short horror stories by various authors...there is something here for everyone as this collection covers zombie encounters during holiday periods (calendar and vacations). The stories were fun to read, I especially liked those written by British authors (seems like all of them), their descriptive jargon and use of English slang made me laugh at times and think about the dialog in those Harry Potter movies. One of the stories within had a different slant that I hadn't seen before: Zombies that could think and talk - ruling the world where "undead" humans are categorized in one of three classes - food, workers and breeders. Another is about reincarnation and Satan worship. Bloody hell, Jack the Ripper is even featured and has a go of things. There are so many choices within these 500 pages that if the storyline isn't to your liking, it is easy to scan forward a few pages to the next story. I only did this once, finding the rest enjoyable and fascinating. I would recommend this book to anyone wanting to explore this genre - seeing it from many different angles. Lastly, I found it enjoyable to read 3 - 4 different adventures in one sitting. Great job!
May 19, 2012
Charming and frequently witty.
May 4, 2014
Great themed zombie anthology. Something in here for everyone.
September 14, 2013
Horror anthology books, like their screen cousins, can often be a bit hit and miss. For every gem out there, there's a swathe of utter drivel...
Holiday of the Dead is a 2011 horror anthology from Wild Wolf Publishing containing no less than THIRTY EIGHT short zombie tales revolving around various holiday themes.
To be absolutely honest, I wasn't expecting great things from this. However, there's a fairly talent heavy roster lined up to provide YOU with some seriously entertaining tales of the undead! There are tales here that you would not see in movies. The stories of those that didn't make it in the zombie apocalypse: some genuinely chilling tales nestled alongside action-horror stories; and those done with tongue firmly planted in cheek! Just for example, here are a few of my favourites:
One Dead Whore by Wayne Simmons: a zombie twist on the Jack the Ripper murders.
Home is the sailor, Home from the sea, a zombie yarn set in Scotland's very own seaside resort of Largs and brought to you by one of our favourite Scottish sons, William Meikle.
Seahouses Slaughterhouse by Rod Glenn, sees a Dexter-style serial killer who fires off pop culture references come into his own during a zombie apocalypse.
... and Jennifer by Iain McKinnon. A truly horrifying tale that genuinely took me by surprise.
There is effectively a story here to cater for all horror tastes and I am of the opinion that Holiday of the Dead would be perfect for the horror fan seeking to get back into reading; or perhaps for the reader who does not have the time or patience to settle into a full novel due to other commitments. I have found the stories contained within the book have been perfect fodder for my commutes to work and have made the journeys infintely quicker and more enjoyable.
On a critical note, there's no real character development due to the length of the tales but with short stories, I would suggest that the authors truly have to be masters at their craft in order to keep the reader entertained. Additionally, some of these stories feel a little pale in comparison to their meatier brethren they reside alongside.
If you're looking for a last minute present for a much-loved horror fiend, Holiday of the Dead represents great value for money and I guarantee that the recipient will not be left disappointed.
Holiday of the Dead is a 2011 horror anthology from Wild Wolf Publishing containing no less than THIRTY EIGHT short zombie tales revolving around various holiday themes.
To be absolutely honest, I wasn't expecting great things from this. However, there's a fairly talent heavy roster lined up to provide YOU with some seriously entertaining tales of the undead! There are tales here that you would not see in movies. The stories of those that didn't make it in the zombie apocalypse: some genuinely chilling tales nestled alongside action-horror stories; and those done with tongue firmly planted in cheek! Just for example, here are a few of my favourites:
One Dead Whore by Wayne Simmons: a zombie twist on the Jack the Ripper murders.
Home is the sailor, Home from the sea, a zombie yarn set in Scotland's very own seaside resort of Largs and brought to you by one of our favourite Scottish sons, William Meikle.
Seahouses Slaughterhouse by Rod Glenn, sees a Dexter-style serial killer who fires off pop culture references come into his own during a zombie apocalypse.
... and Jennifer by Iain McKinnon. A truly horrifying tale that genuinely took me by surprise.
There is effectively a story here to cater for all horror tastes and I am of the opinion that Holiday of the Dead would be perfect for the horror fan seeking to get back into reading; or perhaps for the reader who does not have the time or patience to settle into a full novel due to other commitments. I have found the stories contained within the book have been perfect fodder for my commutes to work and have made the journeys infintely quicker and more enjoyable.
On a critical note, there's no real character development due to the length of the tales but with short stories, I would suggest that the authors truly have to be masters at their craft in order to keep the reader entertained. Additionally, some of these stories feel a little pale in comparison to their meatier brethren they reside alongside.
If you're looking for a last minute present for a much-loved horror fiend, Holiday of the Dead represents great value for money and I guarantee that the recipient will not be left disappointed.
February 15, 2023
Yes, it is aptly named. It's a Zombie Anthology!!
What a magnificent collection of horror stories in Holiday of the Dead by Contributing Authors. The undead rise again with great terrifying and dark stories, each with a very zombie-uniqueness theme. The darkness within these great stories brings out something, something that feels almost forbidden, but also a guilty pleasure. I'm familiar with some of these author's works, and others are new to me, but not anymore. I enjoyed reading all of these stories, and now, if they write again, and offer me to read their work, I will. It’s definitely un-put-downable! Each story brings the reader on a superb journey. I hope to read more books by these authors. Holiday of the Dead is a definite recommendation by Amy's Bookshelf Reviews. I read this book to give my unbiased and honest review. Amy's Bookshelf Reviews recommends that anyone who reads this book, to also write a review.
What a magnificent collection of horror stories in Holiday of the Dead by Contributing Authors. The undead rise again with great terrifying and dark stories, each with a very zombie-uniqueness theme. The darkness within these great stories brings out something, something that feels almost forbidden, but also a guilty pleasure. I'm familiar with some of these author's works, and others are new to me, but not anymore. I enjoyed reading all of these stories, and now, if they write again, and offer me to read their work, I will. It’s definitely un-put-downable! Each story brings the reader on a superb journey. I hope to read more books by these authors. Holiday of the Dead is a definite recommendation by Amy's Bookshelf Reviews. I read this book to give my unbiased and honest review. Amy's Bookshelf Reviews recommends that anyone who reads this book, to also write a review.
November 24, 2016
Holiday of the Dead is an anthology of zombie short stories that centers on a general holiday theme. By general I mean that while some of the stories occur on calendar holidays, others are about vacations, etc. Given the dialect and spelling throughout the book, my guess is these are mostly written by English authors, most of whom I was unfamiliar with, though some of them are familiar Permuted Press authors.
Like most anthologies of this type, Holiday of the Dead is a mixed bag. There are one or two great stories, as well as a few bad ones, but most of these are totally enjoyable (and often unconventional) zombie tales. It wasn't a collection I felt compelled to read in one sitting, but I kept coming back to it between other novels I was reading at the time. It may not be anything groundbreaking, but Holiday of the Dead is worth the price of admission if you've got a taste for zombies.
Like most anthologies of this type, Holiday of the Dead is a mixed bag. There are one or two great stories, as well as a few bad ones, but most of these are totally enjoyable (and often unconventional) zombie tales. It wasn't a collection I felt compelled to read in one sitting, but I kept coming back to it between other novels I was reading at the time. It may not be anything groundbreaking, but Holiday of the Dead is worth the price of admission if you've got a taste for zombies.
December 29, 2012
De uma forma geral foi uma boa aquisição ainda que, mais ou menos, a meio se torne chato continuar a ler sobre a mesma temática. Por essa razão a leitura prolongou-se por algumas semanas e vários livros pelo meio.
De todos os que se destacaram foram Dig, Oatmeal cookies, Zombie world, Undead side of the moon. Estes foram os mais originais de toda a antologia. O Oatmeal Cookies adopta a visão de uma criança num apocalipse zombie contando as últimas horas antes de se deixar seduzir pelas bolachinhas da sua "falecida" avó que mesmo meio morta ainda sabia cozinhar.
Quem gosta da temática vai gostar deste livro ainda que seja muito grande e a partir do momento em que se chega a meio se torna cansativo ler mais so mesmo tema e ainda por cima com o grau de originalidade a cair de conto para conto...
in: http://livrosportodolado.blogs.sapo.p...
De todos os que se destacaram foram Dig, Oatmeal cookies, Zombie world, Undead side of the moon. Estes foram os mais originais de toda a antologia. O Oatmeal Cookies adopta a visão de uma criança num apocalipse zombie contando as últimas horas antes de se deixar seduzir pelas bolachinhas da sua "falecida" avó que mesmo meio morta ainda sabia cozinhar.
Quem gosta da temática vai gostar deste livro ainda que seja muito grande e a partir do momento em que se chega a meio se torna cansativo ler mais so mesmo tema e ainda por cima com o grau de originalidade a cair de conto para conto...
in: http://livrosportodolado.blogs.sapo.p...
May 28, 2014
ok, done with this book. I am not a huge fan of Anthologies, and for the very reasons are;
Some stories can be soooooo good that you want to keep reading more and so when you flip the page... you find out that there is no more.
Or
The storyline is that bad that you say thankGod it was short story or maybe that the author just couldnt move forward with it and so turned it INTO a short story.
First Story was good by: Shaun Jeffery " Dark Inside" as was Second short story by: Remy Porter
" Squawk" but really... did the crows have to yell "squawk" ?! LOL, why not caw caw ?? lol :-)
R
Some stories can be soooooo good that you want to keep reading more and so when you flip the page... you find out that there is no more.
Or
The storyline is that bad that you say thankGod it was short story or maybe that the author just couldnt move forward with it and so turned it INTO a short story.
First Story was good by: Shaun Jeffery " Dark Inside" as was Second short story by: Remy Porter
" Squawk" but really... did the crows have to yell "squawk" ?! LOL, why not caw caw ?? lol :-)
R
February 7, 2014
This book was nice to read in between books. Some of the stories, I enjoyed and others........
Not so much.
This book, is rated fair. I didn't love it and I didn't hate it.
I was never a fan of short stories, although there are a few (short story compilations) I have been proved wrong.
However, this particular compilation wasn't my favorite amongst them.
Not so much.
This book, is rated fair. I didn't love it and I didn't hate it.
I was never a fan of short stories, although there are a few (short story compilations) I have been proved wrong.
However, this particular compilation wasn't my favorite amongst them.
January 10, 2017
A good read!
I really enjoyed reading this book, its a lot bigger than you would expect from a short story collection. There are some boring ones in there but not enough to put you off. The book is very well put together and has some very good spins on the genre. Highly recommended if you want some zombie tales without a long commitment.
I really enjoyed reading this book, its a lot bigger than you would expect from a short story collection. There are some boring ones in there but not enough to put you off. The book is very well put together and has some very good spins on the genre. Highly recommended if you want some zombie tales without a long commitment.
October 15, 2011
This really isn't very holiday themed at all, but it was a good read. Some of the stories are much better written than others- some have a surprising number of grammatical mistakes- and some are wildly more interesting, but it was fun.
January 25, 2013
Like most short story collections, there are some good and some bad. Mostly it is that every author has their own take of what a zombie is and some of those I didn't enjoy. But, all in all, a net positive read.
August 15, 2014
Nice anthology, and has more British stories for a change. British zombies deserve their stardom, too! Quality of stories fluctuates, but the book is definitely worth reading & the connecting theme is interesting.
January 17, 2013
I feel like I just watched The Walking Dead over and over and over...
February 16, 2015
I'm just tired of zombies. Oatmeal Cookies was really good though.
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews