REVIEW: Alice in Zombieland (White Rabbit Chronicles #1) by Gena Showalter

 

Author: Gena Showalter

Series: White Rabbit Chronicles

Publisher: Harlequin Teen

Genre: Young Adult

Pages: 404

Pre-order Amazon: Alice in Zombieland

 Release Date: 25^th September 2012

Synopsis. (Goodreads)

She won’t rest until she’s sent every walking corpse back to its grave. Forever.

Had anyone told Alice Bell that her entire life would change course between one heartbeat and the next, she would have laughed. From blissful to tragic, innocent to ruined? Please. But that’s all it took. One heartbeat. A blink, a breath, a second, and everything she knew and loved was gone.

Her father was right. The monsters are real….

To avenge her family, Ali must learn to fight the undead. To survive, she must learn to trust the baddest of the bad boys, Cole Holland. But Cole has secrets of his own, and if Ali isn’t careful, those secrets might just prove to be more dangerous than the zombies….

I wish I could go back and do a thousand things differently.
I'd tell my sister no.
I'd never beg my mother to talk to my dad.
I'd zip my lips and swallow those hateful words.
Or, barring all of that, I'd hug my sister, my mom and my dad one last time.
I'd tell them I love them.
I wish... Yeah, I wish.

Review: 5 out of 5 stars

Alice in Zombieland by Gena Showalter is the first book in the White Rabbit Chronicles and was kindly provided to me by the publisher, Harlequin Teen Australia. It is a book which kept me riveted and wanting more from the very first page.

Alice ‘Ali’ Bell has led a sheltered life with her father believing there were monsters which rose at night, Alice thought he was crazy but she followed his rules, trained as he requested but resented not living as other teens did. On her sister Emma’s 8^th birthday, her only wish was to attend her dance concert and after much pleading to her parents they agreed to go but things went downhill as soon as darkness hit and Alice witnessed horrors beyond belief – she lost her parents and sister that night and began to believe her fathers ramblings.

We are taken on an entertaining journey throughout this book, I honestly felt for Alice and what she had lost but she had strong character and made it through. When she moves in with her grandparents, she starts a new school, makes some friends but has also attracted the attention of the bad boys, the leader in particular Cole Holland.

I thought gorgeous, violet-eyed Cole was wonderful despite his bad boy ways; he had the tough, mean reputation going on but was loyal to his friends and devoted to slaying. I was so curious about the visions which linked him to Ali and I was really surprised by how this came to be, I loved their connection.

I have to admit to not being a fan of zombie books what-so-ever but my opinion has certainly changed since reading this; the world Ms. Showalter has created was brilliant and kept me captivated and wanting to know more, not only about the zombies and slayers but also the cast of amazing characters, secondary included. The intricate plot flowed well and I enjoyed Ali’s plight to avenge her family and fight against evil.

Alice in Zombieland conveyed a lot of emotions, gave us some intense and creepy action scenes and a number of twists and turns to keep it really entertaining and a smexy yet sweet budding romance. I have loved everything I have read by Ms. Showalter, her wonderful writing allows me to become immersed in her storytelling.

Overall, Alice in Zombieland has everything I have come to love in a Young Adult Paranormal; a combination of kick-butt action, a heartfelt romance, perfect characterization and a solid plot which made for a thrilling story. I can’t wait to get hold of the next book in this series, Through the Zombie Glass which has an anticipated 2013 release date.

Thank-you kindly to Harlequin Teen Australia for my review copy of Alice in Zombieland.