Married with Zombies (Living with the Dead Series #1)

Fast, fun, and a nice change of pace for zombie fans

Sarah and David are a normal American couple on the verge of divorce, until something extraordinary happens to save their marriage--the zombie apocalypse. They're barely hanging onto their relationship by going to couples counseling sessions, but one morning they walk in to find their marriage counselor chowing down on some earlier clients. Suddenly, the little annoyances and petty squabbles don't matter so much to Sarah and David, not when they're faced with hordes of the ravenous undead.

This has got to be the cutest zombie book I've ever read. It's hard to stay sorrowful for too long when the protagonists are offing zombies in such funny ways; they attack their first zombie with a letter-opener, and dispatch it with a few well-aimed whacks of a high-heeled shoe, and another zombie is disabled by a Dr. Phil self-help book. And though I did get a little weepy toward the end of the book, the horror and gravitas of a zombie plague aren't emphasized too heavily. It's a romantic comedy, heavy on the comedy and light on the romance, with hilarious back-and-forth mood switches, where our heroes will kill a zombie or three, then argue about their musical preferences (she's a music snob, he still likes 80's rock) and bicker over whether their therapist' marriage advice is still relevant--Sarah maintains, "Just because she tried to eat us doesn't mean she was wrong" (pg 20).

The zombies are fairly traditional: Red-eyed, black bile spewing, physically strong but decomposing, closer to slow-zombies than fast-zombies because they're capable of both shambling and awkward running, can only be killed by head wounds, full zombification is complete about ten minutes after the first bite, and the virus originated in some university lab and spread like wildfire. Well-known territory, but in some ways it makes the story more enjoyable because you know the parameters you're dealing with.

For a long time, I sympathized with David much more than with Sarah, the POV character, because even though they're both unhappy and under a lot of stress early on, she tends to get more outright verbally aggressive, while David is low-key and honestly pretty cool. Every time Sarah had twinges of appreciation for him and began to fall back in love, I was terribly happy because he's a decent guy with no more than the usual amount of flaws. The two of them are outright awesome when they begin to really work together, dropping zombies by using available materials and combining their growing knowledge of what works and what doesn't work for survival.

Turns out, killing the undead is a great bonding activity, and apocalypses are good for strengthening relationships even as they unweave the fabric of society at large. Sarah and David need each other now, while before they were coexisting with no real goals and nothing worthy to pursue. I wish that I had a better sense of who they were and what their strengths, quirks, and dreams were before the zombie plague, but it's a very short novel with not a lot of time for really delving into emotional depths. I have big hopes that they'll get more fleshed-out in the second book, Flip This Zombie, since all the "how it all started" stuff will be set up already.

3 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

Fast paced and funny

This was a funny book to read with very descriptive scenes. Ms. Petersen is very witty in her snappy dialogue.....I especially loved that it takes place just up the road in Seattle.
Ms. Petersen's other two books in the Living With The Dead Series are just as funny and fast paced. I also recommend them as well!

1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Good, quick read

Jesse puts this book together in a fun way. There's so many zombie movies, books, graphic novels, etc. - this one takes it to a funny level at times. I had no idea what I was getting myself into when I purchased this, but I enjoyed it the whole way!

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Hey wheres the love?

This book is so damn funny and I am loving the whole idea of the husbandand wife zombie killing duo, so down to earth though they slaughter zombies together as if .its an everyday thing. I appreciate the freshnsess and creativity this author brings to the zombie genre and i think these books deserve a little.more.attention, one of the first books i bought on my nook and i enjoyed it ,and i know many others would enjoy

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

read this with that special someone and you both will be laughing!

I picked this funny tome up after reading the synopsis and reviews. I started reading and was laughing by the third page! Soon after my boyfriend started to inquire and it wasn't too long before we just started reading it together. We both love it! You need this laugh out loud, violently gory and twistedly funny tale.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Uh-mazing

My friends all know I have a very deep love for all things zombie. When I first saw the ad for Married with Zombies I think I freaked out a little; there might have been squealing. The premise for the book, a survival story not just of the people, but of their marriage was an instant attention grabber for me. I love zombie stories but putting the marriage on the line just upped the stakes. The book is at times light and funny, and then dark, gritty and gory. The characters are forced to make some tough decisions and it's their survival story and how they learn to put their marriage counseling into play during zombie attacks that keep you turning the pages. Not a read for younger readers, but totally something I would suggest if you're even mildly interested in zombie stories!!

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Love!

I so enjoyed this book! I didn't think I would at first, and piicked it up only because I found it for free and thought, "Why not?" But I quickly fell in love with the characters and plotline, moving through the pages wwith wreckless abandon.

Highly recommended!

Couldn't put this book down!

This book was a complete riot. I am more a fan of the vampire genre than zombies, but I could not put this book down. Sarah and David appear to be your normal everyday average married couple struggling to keep their marriage alive with divorce looming on the horizon. As with a lot of couples working on their relationship, they are in counseling. The book begins with Sarah and David on their way to a counseling appointment and arguing. From there, the book ceases to be normal on any level and instead takes the reader into an all-out zombie infestation…starting with their annoying, prissy therapist.

Sarah and David have to keep their wits together and learn how to fight the zombies instead of each other if they have any hope of staying alive. One of the things I loved best about this story is that no matter how unrealistic the chances of a zombie apocalypse happening are, the author does a fantastic job of portraying Sarah and David as very realistic. Do they fall into each other’s arms, profess their undying love and apologies for hurting each other at the end of the book? No way…but they do realize what is important and it’s the promise of tomorrow and working together today to get there.

Sadly, a lot of people in the book die, mostly zombies and interestingly, taking out zombies seem to come quite naturally to Sarah and David. They quickly realize that in order to survive, they need to get out of Seattle where they are living and find David’s sister and eventually Sarah’s father. Along the way, they meet some interesting and strange characters and I laughed myself silly at the image of 90+ year old female zombies sitting at slot machines in one casino they stop at.

This is the first book in the author’s Living with the Dead series and is followed by Flip This Zombie. I am not sure if I will like the rest of the series as much as I love this book, but I’m hoping so and looking forward to what Sarah and David face next.

Loved this book!

This book is hilarious! I actually laughed out loud within the first few chapters. The plot is obviously surviving a zombie apocalypse. The subplot is how the zombie apocalypse saved a marriage. Or reverse that. The two are so intertwined. The chapters begin with marital advise. I love the witty remarks, the competition to see who kills more zombies, the silly bickering... whatever it takes to keep your sanity. I would have loved to own these in hardback.

Must read for zombie fans!!

I loved this book! A really good zombie read. I fell in love with the characters. It had plenty of laughs and just the right amount of gore. I could not wait to read the next book.

LOVED IT!!!!!

Have you every picked up a book and with in the first few pages you just knew this book was written with you in mind? This book is it. From the first zombie kill I was hooked. FANTASTIC!!!

Very funny for a dystopian novel. The 1st of a trilogy.

Zombie Killing has never been this fun!

I liked the title so I bought it, I just finished it! I was not expecting this book grab me by the throat & not let go! Just the right amount of... well everything! Going to download the next book right now!

Really enjoyed this zombie novel

It started off with action and my kind of demented humor. I recommed this book to any one who loves zombie fiction and is married. At certain points of the book I laughted and sadly agreed with decisions & comments made by the characters. A must read. I just finished this book and I am about to download the second one!

Interstingly Good...

A quick,fun read about zombies.. I always love a good zombie book so overall, it was pretty exciting.

Super

This book was worth every penny. You can really relate to the two main charcter in it. It has its funny moments threw out the book. A zombie must have!

Quite enjoyable

I was pleasantly surprised to enjoy this book, though at the end I was disappointed. It could have ended less abruptly, but overall a fun read.

Loved it!

Easy fun read. Kept me laughing out loud. Will be picking up book two right away.

Fun read -- from a Zombie newby

Never have been a Zombie fan - so I thought I would give this a try..... It was fun. I thought the ending was a little bit of a let down but I will read the next one, too. I enjoyed the realistic interaction between the couple.

Funny keep you on the edge

Only zombies can bring a marriage back together. Anyone who like a zombie book should read this the witty humor in a time of a zombie attack makes you smile and keep on reading. Jesse Petersen really knows how to keep her readers interested. Couldn't put it down.