The Walking Dead: The Road to Woodbury, by Robert Kirkman, Jay Bonansinga | Zombies | SFReader.com Book Review

ublished in 2012, The Walking Dead: The Road to Woodbury, by Jay R. Bonansinga and Robert Kirkman, is a follow-up novel to The Walking Dead: Rise of the Governor. Like its predecessor, it follows a group of survivors trying to stay alive in the post-apocalyptic zombie world of The Walking Dead. 

The Walking Dead: The Road to Woodbury, is told from the point of view of Lilly Caul, a fearful and anxiety-ridden young woman who trembles in fear at the slightest sound. Her character is developed as someone who's spent her life running from everything -- relationships, responsibility, you name it -- before and now after the zombie apocalypse.  

Like Rise of the Governor, The Road to Woodbury is written in present tense that takes a little getting used to. One of my complaints is what seems to be the authors' preferences for telling instead of showing. We are constantly reminded that Lilly is a fearful neurotic, Josh is a gentle giant hero, Bob is a feckless yet kind-hearted drunk, Meagan is a camp whore and pot-head.... etc. 

The book starts with our group being part of a larger group currently occupying a tent city located somewhere in Georgia. A series of unfortunate events results in Lilly being kicked out of the group. When this happens, the rest decide to go with her. Based on the way the camp was being run, I don't blame them.

Read more at The Walking Dead: The Road to Woodbury, by Robert Kirkman, Jay Bonansinga | Zombies | SFReader.com Book Review

The Walking Dead: Rise of the Governor, by Robert Kirkman and Jay Bonansinga | Zombies | SFReader.com Book Review

Being a fan of The Walking Dead television show specifically, and apocalyptic fiction in general, I snagged a copy of The Walking Dead: Rise of the Governor, by Robert Kirkman and Jay Bonansinga. The novel was published in October, 2011 and is a spin-off of The Walking Dead comic book series. The book explores the background and origin of one of the series' most infamous villains, The Governor.

The novel begins not long after the start of the zombie apocalypse. TV stations, radio stations, and other services are going off the air one by one. The living are becoming scarcer, more desperate, and more dangerous. People are fleeing and hiding as the zombies begin to take over the countryside. We're introduced into this world through Philip Blake, his daughter Penny, his older brother Brian, and Phillip's friends Bobby and Nick, sharing their struggles to survive.

And that's mainly what this is -- a survival story. The course of the book follows the adventures (and misadventures) Phillip and his small group as they seek refuge and safety, and as they begin to fully understand just how messed up everything has gotten. Whenever they find a haven, it's not long before the rotten jaws of reality clamp down. It's an interesting examination on the nature of the survival instinct, and how different characters deal with hopelessness and fear. We see some rise to the occasion, while others collapse under its weight.

Read more at The Walking Dead: Rise of the Governor, by Robert Kirkman and Jay Bonansinga| Zombies | SFReader.com Book Review