Am I the only person who read this book and thinks it was just awful?

[John]

I picked this book up because I loved "let the right one in" and everyone I talked to kept saying "oh its great, just as good or even better than his last book" But I thought this book was a huge let down. Anyone else agree?

[Tru]

I think it was an interesting new approach at the way people view zombies and zombie infestations.
It was refreshing to read a zombie novel about something other than gore and hard times when attempting to survive something few to no one can survive. (Not that I don't love gore and impossible situations, I do, very much.)

I enjoyed the fresh perspective.

[[deleted user]]

Well, that's interesting. I always thought, when you read one Ajvide Lindqvist, you will like him or hate him as an author and every following book would be either genius or you don't even touch it.

So to answer your question, I loved it. The idea ist just fantastic and all these details... Could you tell us, why you think it's awful? I'm wondering...

[Amos]

I loved this book and agree with Truly about it being a fresh perspective on zombies. I have since read 'The Harbour' and really enjoyed that too. There is something about Lindqvist's writing style that just draws me in. I know the books are translated and some people say that a certain essence is lost in translation. If that is the case, I am happy to say that it hasn't affected my enjoyment of his books.

[Siobhan]

I thought it was great, I don't think it was abut zombies really and people get dissapointed when that's what they want. It was a really different approach on zombies and more about death and how people deal with it. I think.
I agree with Amos, and when people say some essence is lost in the translation it only makes me slightly want to learn Swedish but I know I wont so I'll just love them the way they are for me which is more than enough. :)

[Scott]

I don't really care for zombies or find them particularly interesting. Lindqvist focused on what was interesting: how real people's lives would change in the wake of such an event.

I thought it was great.

[Tru]

I think the people who don't think this book was great were looking for something out of the book that just wasn't there. It wasn't a traditional gory thriller, interlaced with mad attempts at shock value, about how impossible it is to survive the zompocalypse. It was about death, dying, how humans deal with loss, and finding hope and closure.

[Siobhan]

The people have spoken! :p

[John]

Stormcrow wrote: "Well, that's interesting. I always thought, when you read one Ajvide Lindqvist, you will like him or hate him as an author and every following book would be either genius or you don't even touch it..."

The reason I didn't like this book is because it was boring. It had a few interesting parts but nothing to keep me interested as a whole. I get the fact that it's not a "traditional" zombie book and I understood it was about the way people deal with death I just didn't think it was an interesting read. I kept waiting and waiting for something really good to happen, then I got to the end of the book and realised "oh... I guess that was it."

[Sena]

I wouldn't say that it was awful, but you're right...it was a HUGE let down. I think that's due to our expectations being so high after reading Let the Right One In. The problem is that Let the Right One In has actually raised the bar so high that it's going to be hard for the author to surpass that now. Although I haven't had a chance to read it yet, I've heard that his new book Harbor is a great read. :-)

[Siobhan]

Hmm I actually read Handling the Undead first so that may have helped me to enjoy it more :)

[Steve]

You are not. Very disappointing.

[Verónica]

It's a different approach to zombie's universe, but a good one. It's different when you have to run away from your dead-loved-ones than to deal with your dead-nostalgic-loved-ones.

I read this book before "Let the right one in" and I have both.

[Ashlet]

i really thought that it was awfully boring.

[Justin]

I have yet to read "Let The Right One In", but have to say I absolutely loved "Harbour" and liked "Handling The Undead." The author really intrigues me and I do plan to read all of his books as for me his originality and ideas are second to none. But that's just what I think. The sequel to this book will be interesting.

[Christine]

Really? I thought it was quite interesting; different take... I wonder if maybe the translation didn't always work... This wasn't a favorite but I thought it unique... Dead of Night by Jonathan Maberry was much better....

GIRL Z: My Life as a Teenage Zombie, coming 2013
New blog: GirlZombieAuthors

[Alex]

I totally agree. The book was a waste of my time. The beginning was promising or even touching but the rest of the book was just awful. Did anyone get the idea? What did the author want to say exactly (if anything)?
I think the book is for those who like "zombie sort of things". This was actually the first zombie book I read and more likely the last one - definitely not my genre.

[Michael]

I'm a fan of dissenting opinions on things I like. I liked the book due to the unconventional take it had on the zombie genre. There was a slowly creeping unease about the nature of the animated dead in this which I found way more frightening than any other zombie book.
It's not a book about zombies, it's really a book about how we regard, mourn and eventually 'let go' of our dead and how much we want them back. It struck me almost as a philosophical novel novel, deep and low-key as it was. So a lot of people picked it up and got something other than they expected, and are upset by that.

[Mugette]

It was original and refreshing. Not your typical zombie book.

[Nikki]

Started out as a great read. When I got to the end, I was just like What??? The story didn't go anywhere at all. It's the first book I have read of his and makes me unsure if I want to read more. I don't like books that are a let down at the end.

[Michael]

Awful no, but it wasn't nearly as impressive as I'd expected. The general premise had such potential to be both horrifying AND moving and to add another layer to the Zombie canon, one that contended deeply with more human issues rather than the bloodthirsty ones we all occasionally like and take a nasty joy in. But it fizzled and became less than I'd hoped.

Then again, so did "Let The Right One In". Neither book was bad, and I'll read "Harbour" and "Little Star", but I'll have one eye on my expectations when I do.

[Shanna_redwind]

I didn't think it was awful, but it really wasn't what I was looking to read. I can see in it what other people who like it saw, it just wasn't for me.

[Rosana]

I am in the group of people who liked this book. I do understand the people who did not like it, though.

As others have stated in this thread, the book is more cerebral than the typical zombie stories. I don't mean to disparage other zombie books, I just mean that this book is more towards the introspective side of the spectrum.

Let the Right One In: A Novel was my first book by Lindqvist and Handling the Undead is only my second. I see similarities in both: multiple points of view, critique of society, and the complexity of human relationships.

Let the Old Dreams Die is a collection of short stories; two of the short stories continue both Let the Right One In: A Novel and Handling the Undead. I will read that collection at some point.

My next book by Linqvist will be Harbor. I read a sample and am already hooked. :)

[Justin]

Harbour is an amazing book. Truly stunning.

[Rosana]

Justin wrote: "Harbour is an amazing book. Truly stunning."

Awesome! I bet I will enjoy it. :)

[Martín]

I'm following the same chronological reading path (currently in the middle of Harbor and it's awesome so far).

I liked Handling the Undead, specially how Lindqvist presents the different "textures" of the characters and how he leverage over them to walk you through a variety of perspectives. I found the ending somewhat disappointing though, perhaps due to my own faith issues.

[Scott]

I just finished Harbor and didn't care for it, found it much too slow. But I still intend to continue reading his work based on the first two books.

[Derek]

I did enjoy the book, and thought it was an original take on the "zombie" idea, like most people say here. While "Let me In" and "Harbor" were entertaining, I definitely believe "Little Star" is his best work.

[Martín]

Martín wrote: " I found the ending somewhat disappointing though"

The epilogue in Let the old dreams die completes the story very beautifully.

[Themetalmallet]

Out of the Lindqvist books I've read, this one sits in the middle. Didn't enjoy Little Star all that much, really enjoyed Let The Right One In. This one kept me interested and made me want to pick up Let The Old Dreams Die. The conclusion for Handling within that book works nicely, though the "bad guy" sorta comes out of nowhere.

[Themetalmallet]

Sounds like I need to read Harbour at some point, though.

[Laurie]

I really liked the author's writing style but nothing ever happens in this story.I was sooooo bored.

[Linda]

I loved it. It haunts me yet, and I read it quite awhile ago.