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The Mavis Saga #1

Zombie Diaries: Homecoming, Junior Year

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Bestselling author and master of horror, RWK Clark, unleashed a teenage outcast with revenge against her classmates. A fun timeless coming-of-age fantasy as only he could envision it.

While most high school juniors are worried about acne, grades, and dating, Mavis Harvey has a host of issues to deal with, like her appetite for human flesh. Don’t worry, the bullies won't get far. Crunch!

Revel in a new phase of RWK Clark’s writing career that is yielding his most imaginative, and bestselling work yet, a must-read epic saga.

Author Commentary
‘Zombie Diaries’ is a series I have written about the funny, off-beat story of Mavis Harvey, Girl Zombie. As the introductory novel to the series, readers will get to know Mavis a bit, and they will get a strong sense of the personality of this girl who is slowly turning into a flesh-eating monster.
This is not a horror novel in the traditional sense, and I never intended it to be. What I wanted to do with Mavis and her life was, have fun by asking, ‘What would it be like if a normal, everyday girl were to experience this type of change alone, out of the blue? What if she retained her intelligence and logic, realizing something was happening, but not sure what? How would she deal with it?’ I wanted the book to be light, with a tad of humor, and I wanted it to contain a story that was acceptable for reading for an audience of almost any age.
I didn’t intend for ZD1 to be bloody or scary. What my vision for Mavis consisted of was something laid-back and fun to read, something that takes an already insane idea (zombies) and turns it into a story that takes away the sting of the same old approach. With that in mind, readers of any age will enjoy the story of Mavis, and they will want to stick this crazy experience out with her until the bitter end.
Unfortunately, as we all are aware, zombies need living flesh to survive, and Mavis will learn that the hard way, with a hard lesson coming at the end of this book. In conclusion, I hope my readers are happy with me breaking through my typical thriller mindset. I have lightened up a bit, so to speak, and I contribute this piece that is appropriate for all teens. It is with great pleasure that I encourage you to enjoy ‘Zombie Diaries’ and continue to follow this tongue-in-cheek heroine as she slowly, but inevitably, comes to terms with what is happening to her, and what is yet to come. Nothing can prepare my readers for the crazy fun, and chaos, this girl lives through on her quest for answers.

259 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 2, 2017

146 people are currently reading
417 people want to read

About the author

R.W.K. Clark

29 books170 followers
Bestselling author R.W.K Clark published his first sci-fi thriller in 2015. Thanks to his stockpile of short stories written throughout his lifetime. Since then, he has published over thirty-eight novels, including psychological horror and supernatural thrillers. He is published in twenty-four countries and two languages. He is an author of thrillers for both adults and teens, including Retribution, a psychological thriller, and Zombie Diaries, a Y.A. supernatural. He was born in Albuquerque, and he loves traveling the world.

Clark has been an I.T. Director and photographer. As an I.T. professional by day, novelist by night, he made his way back to his first love, creative writing. He has dived in the Caribbean, Gulf, and North Atlantic. Diving has allowed him to see many shipwrecks and swim with numerous sharks. He loves photography, sailing, and beaches. Currently, he resides in the tropics, most likely multitasking and occasionally wearing pants. With the belief that writing can change the world, he uses it to inspire people to create. You can catch him writing from the comfort of his southern porch with a glass of ice tea.

Feel free to chat with Clark on Twitter or Instagram at @rwkclark or visit him at rwkclark.com

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5 stars
40 (33%)
4 stars
29 (24%)
3 stars
31 (26%)
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14 (11%)
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
Profile Image for Amber J (Thereadingwitch).
1,176 reviews86 followers
August 8, 2019

Mavies is just your average sophomore, and she finally has her first boyfriend, a super cute and popular football player, Jeff. After the first date goes well he asks her to homecoming. It seems everything is going great for Mavis, except the fact that after drinking some questionable water, she now craves raw meat, and she has gone deathly pale, and she can't stop eating. Now other people are starting to smell like meat too, and Jeff smells almost to good not to feast on.


An interesting twist on zombies. It kinda made me think of the tv show IZOMBIE, but not enough to give the impression it was copied, maybe just a bit inspired by. I can see myself continuing this series sometime in the future. It was certainly entertaining and was a pretty quick read.


Profile Image for N.N. Heaven.
Author 6 books2,133 followers
May 16, 2019
This is my first time reading RWK Clark and I have to say, it's very well done. I know a thing or two about zombie fiction and even though this was YA, it kept my interest. Can't wait to read more in this series. Highly recommend!

My Rating: 5 stars

Reviewed by: Mr. N
Profile Image for Anniek.
436 reviews258 followers
January 29, 2018
Mavis is a young girl, just starting her teenage life at high school. Her best and only friend is Kim. They share everything with each other. Mavis has a secret crush on Jeff and she's stunned when he asks her out on a date. Mavis slowly starts to change. She has an insatiable appetite and craves raw meat. Her mother is worried about her and takes her to a doctor. He does blood tests and they show that Mavis has a severe case of anemia. Mavis eats everything she can get her hands on and has a secret stash of raw meat in her bedroom. What's the real reason Mavis is changing? And why does everybody smell like meat?

Mavis is shy and always stays out of trouble, but now that she's changing she's getting braver by the day. She's even taking on bullies and is feeling great about it afterwards. She tries to ignore that her skin is getting paler and paler. Mavis can't wear anything too revealing anymore, because she has to hide her almost black veins which are now visible everywhere. As the days go by Mavis starts to realize that her hospital diagnosis can't be right, but she still doesn't understand what's happening to her. Besides the fact that she has visions of eating people...

Zombie Diaries Homecoming Junior Year is a story about a girl who slowly changes into a zombie. Mavis is a sweet girl and I loved how she has such a strong bond with her parents and her best friend. She's anything but a classic zombie and that made this story incredibly interesting and even fun to read. I loved how R.W.K. Clark writes about a teenage girl zombie who's still living her everyday life. I'm a big fan of stories about zombies and this book is definitely a good one. Even though it doesn't have the action you'd expect from a zombie story it did grab me from the very beginning. I can't wait to read more about Mavis and how she's handling being her new self in the second book of The Mavis Saga, Zombie Diaries Winter Formal Junior Year.
Profile Image for Ciayrra The Scorpion Flower.
318 reviews4 followers
July 31, 2019
A unique read.

I don’t usually like many zombie stories, but this One has a unique take that I have never read before. It is both humorous and sad at the same time.
Profile Image for Kim Carroll.
145 reviews16 followers
December 17, 2019
This book was ridiculous and stupid, and I loved it! It was a really fun read! Looking forward to the next one.
Profile Image for Catalina Fugariu.
131 reviews
January 23, 2020
The story started out so good and intriguing but buy the middle of it I almost gave up. There is too much unnecessary "fluff" packed in the middle that just drags the story on and almost makes you want to give up. I also didn't like the inconsistency of who was narrating the story. Was it first person or third person. Was the main character telling the story or was it being narrated. It kind of reminded me of iZombie a little bit. It was a different take on the zombie story but nothing that really grabbed at me.
Profile Image for Jolien Myers.
10 reviews
February 18, 2020
Was hooked from the beginning till the end. Considering I'm really picky about zombie books/tv/movies. Looking forward to eventually get and finish series to see what happens
27 reviews
December 16, 2019
Thoroughly enjoyed this book!

This was recommended by a readers group and I took the plunge despite it not being my regular genre. Let me tell you I'm glad I did! I can't wait to see how the story continues and the development of Mavis.
Profile Image for Marcus.
764 reviews4 followers
November 20, 2018
New Outlook

This is the beginning of a series emphasizing zombies from a very unique viewpoint. This starts out , so to say, with a very ordinary teenager who is infected by drinking regular water, but she doesn't go full raging zombie all at once. It is a gradual change and one that the teenager doesn't fully understand. The story itself is filled with ironic humor, desperation, bravery, self realization, and a love story. This is a very very good start to what appears to be a superior series.
Profile Image for Marcus.
764 reviews4 followers
November 20, 2018
This is the start of a new series involving zombies, but told from a very different perspective. It involves a teenager who gets infected by drinking a glass of water. The change isn't a full blown instantaneous one, but a gradual one involving all the characters in the book. It is a story that contains all of these elements, murder, love, mystery, humor, and self realization. The writer combines all of these into a very coherent and logical explanation of the birth of a zombie. A very very good beginning to what appears to be an interesting series
Profile Image for April Rose.
62 reviews
December 15, 2018
Good read

Puberty is bad enough I couldn't imagine going day by day with a zombie virus. I really enjoyed reading this book. I don't know about the other books but it's hard to connect with Mav. She doesn't seem to have much of a personality that grabs your attention.
99 reviews1 follower
March 18, 2018
Interesting and fun new zombie take. I love Mavis and how she tried to deal with her life and changes. I can't wait to get the next book and see what happens.
Profile Image for Anne.
29 reviews
December 10, 2018
Fun easy read.
I'm looking forward to the next book.
1 review
Read
September 8, 2019
Very good book

I like it keeps you wondering what going to happen next it's never a dull moment throughout the whole book
Profile Image for Paige Lynn.
Author 14 books3 followers
April 18, 2020
This book was just not for me. Halfway through it, I kind've wished that it had been Carrie, but with Zombies. Instead, I got a teen dealing with her pending Zombie-ism as if it were no more than a quirk and she just got a period for the first time. I think teens will love it. Adults should avoid it.

As an adult, I found myself rolling my eyes at the number of things she was allowed to hide from her parents. If you and everyone you knew had parents that would never allow you to lock your door. Don't read. On the flip side, the same things I hated. I also loved. Her relationship with her mother, in particular, was beautiful to read. But I was done when she

I found myself wanting justice because Mavis should receive some punishment. I guess that means that I never really bonded with the character. Again, leave this one to your teenage kid or niece and nephew.
Profile Image for Sofia.
860 reviews23 followers
September 1, 2021
i got this book for free on amazon, and it really took a while before i read it, i just stumbled upon it recently, this book, its about mavis, a young lady that never had a boyfriend and what happens with her while she changes in something she cant put her finger on... she is hungry all the time, and its not for all kind of food, she wants meat... people often smells of beef and bacon and stuff like that, and she can only imagine taking a bite... well it sure its a diferent take in zombies a bit like warm bodies, but diferent, not bad really
84 reviews4 followers
October 22, 2021
I Was A High School Zombie??!!

I have to say that this didn't go the way I thought it would! It was different, and I loved it! Take a chance on this book if you like zombie stories, but are tired of the same old, same old. I think you will be surprised and enjoy it!
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews

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