Tag Archives: Robert DeCoteau

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Don of the Living Dead

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don of the living deadDon of the Living Dead
by Robert DeCoteau

 

This was supposed to be an extension or so I thought of the Primrose Apt novellas that came before. They made one reference to the fact that he lived at those apartments and moved on quickly, I had thought they were going to play a part in this novel, not. I would have given this 5 stars but it didn’t hit all the marks for me when it comes to my zombies, but it came pretty darn close. I would have liked to have gotten more with some of the characters since they were there and gone so quickly they did not have a chance to fully register before they were zombie chow. I liked the idea behind how these zombies came into existence but it would have been nice to give a little more information since it was mentioned. Our main character was written with great detail and definitely elicited a number of reactions both good and bad.

Don is a guy who does his job well but is not going to go out of his way for it or anything or anyone else, or so he tells himself. On this day, which starts out like any other, Don has had to track down the sandwich girl and now he is going for his after lunch dump on company time when things get strange. While not the best way to get caught when the dead start to walk at least he has a door between him and them. It takes some time for Don to figure it out but he realizes he is trapped in the bathroom with zombies and has to get out in order to try and get his son and ex-wife away from the madness. What happens next is complete craziness with some heroics by a guy you would not expect it from.

I was totally ready to hate Don because he seemed like a sexist, racist, annoying, full of himself jerk. He hooks up with people who are also survivors and at first seems not to like them and in a blink he is professing to think of them as friends. Long story short Don turns out to be a good guy and even though a lot of the people he started out with do not survive he manages to keep it together even though he may not make it. Nice ride with a few laughs and some serious gross out moments. Good zombie fun!

 

 

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

 

 

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Zombie Tales

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zombie tales 205Zombie Tales: Primrose Court Apt. 205
by Robert DeCoteau

This is one of three short stories set in the Primrose Court apartment complex. The story centers on a man with agoraphobia who has not left his apartment for ten year. We get his full background and the story of why he ended up there, and how he feels about his neighbors. What you do not have is any amount of zombies here really. Only on the last few pages do you get even a glimpse of zombie action.

If you want a tale of zombies running around eating people, do not read this. On the other hand if you like a narrative with limited carnage you may enjoy it.

All the books have a few chapters from the book “Don of the Living Dead” which is set in the same locale. They can be seen as a lead in to the major story. These books can be read in any order but I would say start here because it introduces you to the next characters you will meet.

 

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

 

 

zombie tales 305Zombie Tales: Primrose Court Apt. 305
by Robert DeCoteau

 

Ok, this time I knew what was coming. The story here centers around a couple, their marital problems and how they play out. You have the same lack of zombies until the end of the story but a nice bit of karmic justice. There is not a lot to say about this since it has no major scenes of carnage or zombie rampage.

The story is good for what it is.

 

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

 

 

zombie tales 502Zombie Tales: Primrose Court Apt. 502
by Robert DeCoteau

I liked this story more than the others because Tommy seemed so sympathetic. This placed you more directly into the world of the novel and gave a view of the start of the zombie onslaught from above. I say enjoy the short and go for the main event. I think it may be interesting to read the full length book.

 

My rating: 4 of 5 stars