Feed - Mira Grant, plus some more horror stuff

Feed by Mira Grant is a fabulous zombie book.  Think of a modern, socially relevant novel that features blogging as part of how the story is told, while all around the storytellers are zombies, and zombie attacks.  Think of a political event, an election, and trying to run an election while avoiding large crowds because they attract zombies.And then think of that hidden fear we all carry around, you know, that fear that the government is NOT telling us what we need to know to survive, and indeed, in this novel, discover that the government might be working for maintaining the fear instead of solving it. Relevant  to today's world? Oh yes. And then throw in two of the cleverest, questioning-everything twenty-something main characters, and you have Feed.  It's about media too,which the word 'feed' plays into - how news is reported, and how to find who to trust to tell the news.  Who do you trust now?  Who would you trust in the event of a world calamity?

In Feed, we learn how the world has changed 20 years after a virus has been released that changes its victims into zombies.   It is riveting reading, full of surprises, including one at the end that found me crying while I was standing in line waiting for a bus.  That's how good Feed is.  Even if zombies scare the dickens out of you like they do me, get this book.  It's really good.  If the tv show The Walking Dead is about how the world ends now with zombies, Feed is about how we have survived the collapse of the world.  It's a  very good horror novel, and one that even those who don't read alot of horror can read, I think.  The gory parts aren't as bad as the tension of waiting for the attacks, because just knowing zombies are lurking everywhere creates its own tension.

As I said, zombies are my 'thing' that I am terrifically horrified by.  I can't even get through 'Night of the Living Dead', which I've tried to.  I can watch 'Sean of the Dead' because of the humour, but not 'Night of the Living Dead'.  I mention this because 'Night of the Living Dead' is referred to in Feed, as is George Romero, the director of this movie and most of it's sequels.  Oh, I have seen 'Dawn of the Dead', barely - stuck in a shopping mall with the undead is kind of like how I feel on most shopping days.  Most of the time, the lurching mindless bodies of the brain-dead fill me with a suffocating panic.  I dream of fighting off zombies, when I do dream of them.  Not werewolves, not vampires - interesting that two of my children have dreamt about vampires, but not zombies, I think.  It's my fear, and that's what I think fear is - intensely personal, a visceral reaction to something that comes deep from my gut, an instinctual 'run away' as fast as I can. So I know there's an important truth there for me too.

What do you think?  Do you have a personal horror or nightmare figure that seizes you when you come across it?  Do you avoid certain types of books or movies because of this type of figure?   have you ever wondered why you are afraid of something?  I have! and now you know - zombies are my thing.  And I still think Feed is an excellent horror novel, despite the eating of flesh.  I'm currently looking for Deadline, the second one in the series.

Look! I bought another book for RIP!!
I read this for Carl's RIP VI challenge.  I am having so much fun with this challenge.  I also bought a new Hallowe'en short story collection that is just out:

Hallowe'en, edited by Paula Gunn.  I found a link to it, here, on Amazon.com, although they are saying that it's only available as an e-book for Kindle.  Since I'm holding a real book in my hands, they're wrong! lol it's a collection of hallowe'en short stories, featuring all the wonderful scary authors you would hope for: Ray Bradbury's October Game, Peter Straub, Charles de Lint, E. Nesbitt, Nina Kiriki Hoffman, Sir Walter Scott, Norman Partridge, Caitlin Kiernan, Edgar Allen Poe, and many more - a wide range of authors from several centuries, all featuring hallowe'en in the story.  I've already read the first story, and plan  to indulge to read more to get ready for Hallowe'en in two - 2! - weeks.  Since I'm currently in a mini-slump of reading, despite being so close to my goal of 100 books read this year, I'm hoping this will charge me up for the final run. 

Scary images to get into the mood for Hallowe'en:
Over at Book Chick City, Carolyn and Laura (the Book Chicks)  are featuring a lovely scary collection of scary art to chill you.  I also love how they managed to decorate their header with hallowe'en items!  I want them too! The very first image featured in the photos is one that we also have in front of our National Art Gallery here in Ottawa, and I hate walking underneath it.  The scary art also features the previously-mentioned zombies.  They really are everywhere!  Is there anything  featured in this collection of art that scares you?  Let them know! and me.  I want to know I'm not the only one scared of spiders and creaky noises in the night and the shambling, walking dead.