I, Zombie is Part of Abaddon Books, Tomes of The Dead series, which aims to showcase some of the "very best eyeball popping, gut munching, zombie fiction around".
Written by Al Ewing author of "El Sombra" and a contributor to cult UK comic 2000AD (Most famous for fascist future cop Judge Dread). I, zombie follows the exploits of John Doe, a man desperate to just fit in with the rest of us. Only its not quite as easy as John would like, what with his deathly cold skin, lack of heartbeat and a rather disturbing hunger for ... brains.
At the start of the novel we find John working as a London based hit-man for hire. His past is hazy as he remembers nothing further back than 10 years. Things are going OK for him he has the trendy flat, alphabetically ordered DVD collection and a selection of the "right" books on his shelf. That is until he goes to meet an associate only to be confronted by something more deadly than himself. Nine foot of hair covered muscle in the form of a werewolf, and its hungry for icy cold flesh. After that things go from bad to worse for john who finds himself the prisoner of a mysterious ex-boxer and even more mysterious telepathic freak who inform him he is destined to end the world. From that point on things start to unravel for John and then finally everything goes berserk. The second half of the book pretty much turns I, Zombie into the novel of the greatest B movie never filmed.
Unashamedly modern pulp fiction I, Zombie is packed with pop culture references particularly those of a filmic nature. Al Ewing seems to really understand the way his probably sub 40 audience will take its imaginative cues from the films they have watched and he plays on this throughout the novel. Also he has a rather impressive talent for bait and switch when it comes to cliches which should keep the reader constantly surprised and entertained. This is the kind of fiction you would probably only find in a graphic novel, especially with the constant barrage of action. For this type of writing the authors experience of writing for a medium which demands interest levels be kept high at all times has really paid off. Though the obligatory Lovecraft references are there, this is pulp in far more in the vain of Robert E. Howard, rapid paced, visually descriptive and brutal.
If you fancy reading some apocalyptic zombie fiction (and if you don't whats wrong with you?) I, Zombie really is great fun.
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