New Juicy Review: Deadtown by Nancy Holzner

Book:          Deadtown

Author:       Nancy Holzner

ISBN:         0441018130

Publisher:   Ace Books

Rating:         Four Stars

If you are intrigued by a new paranormal world where zombies (oops Recently Deceased Humans) just want to be loved and treated equally, then you’ll love Deadtown. Brilliantly funny and believable zombies, werewolves, vamps and other dark creatures of the night exist side by side in a sort of refugee camp outside of Boston separated by the New Combat Zone, a buffer between the norms and the paranormals (PR). A This class schism erupts after a plague breaks out in Boston and other cities and its citizens either die or are reanimated providing a whole new problem for the city government to deal with. In the wake of the plague, other paranormal residents who hid under cover of darkness come out to help with the cleanup. In Revealing themselves Holzner not only pens a great world but highlights supernatural class issues: zombies and other paranormals fighting for their civil rights in a world dominated by norms.

The plucky heroine of the story is Victory Vaughn, a Cerddorion, a race of shapeshifters who can pretty much shift into anything. With a legacy stretching back to ancient Wales, Victory Vaughn's destiny is to eradicate demons despite being marked by one, while dating a werewolf PA (Paranormal American) rights lawyer and fighting her attraction to a golden haired cop. Now if she could only get her sword back from her zombie sidekick, then she could do some damage!

Deadtown was a refreshing read, with plenty of laughs and animated secondary characters. I absolutely loved the "Monsterchusetts" concept. A pleasure to read and I look forward to seeing more of Holzner in the future.

A Fiendishly Bookish Review