Review: Restless In Peaceville by Pippa Jay

Zombies are fun. I like zombies. One of the best thing about them is that so much can be done with them, everything from "Night of the Living Dead" to "Warm Bodies." They've become a part of our very culture. So, when Pippa said she was being attacked by zombie plot bunnies and after I got the image of half-decayed brain-eating rabbits out of my head, or maybe because I had that image in my head, I was intrigued. When Pippa said she wanted to place her story in the Deep South, I perked up. When Pippa said she wanted to make her zombies Cajun, I was in! Cajun zombies. No one has ever done that before to my knowledge. And the possibilities are endless!

There was a slight potential problem with this idea: Pippa is British. When she asked her Southern US friends for guidance on things Southern and Cajun, I was more than happy to dive right in, being Southern and all. She sent the first chapter and I knew right then that she had something pretty awesome. That demon administrator is such writing gold that I was grinning from ear to ear, such great imagination and imagery. If I wasn't already sold on the story after reading the descriptions of him, I was fully invested by the chapter ending scream. Brilliant!

British or not, Pippa was clearly onto something with this Cajun zombie thing. Writing what you don't know, and doing it so well, is the mark of a truly great author. Her research payed off and being available to answer all her questions was a lot of fun. Any Cajun-specific questions she had, I referred her to a relative of mine, who happens to be Cajun. When she got the book deal, I was very excited for her, but not surprised. I knew the story was unique from the get go and would have been surprised if she didn't get a book deal.

So, here we are on the book tour, something I wouldn't miss out on for the world! I knew immediately that I wanted to review this thing and I could talk on and on about it forever. I'll try to keep it somewhat short...ish...without giving anything away.

First of all, wow, a book dedication. I've never had a book dedicated to me and when I read that dedication, I was positively floored. Thank you, Pippa!

The descriptions of what it feels like to be a zombie are excellent. I never really thought of all that before. As I read through the second chapter, I found that I had no idea how Luke and Annabelle were going to end up. Luke briefly wonders if people will be trying to blow his head off and if eating brains is compulsory. I was just so curious to see how this ends that I couldn't stop reading. And the humor! It was pretty funny that Annabelle is so nimble while Luke can't even tie his shoes with his 'zombie fingers.' I loved that level of detail.

In fact, the level of detail throughout the story is excellent and really pulled me in.

"Frogs and the haunting cry of barred owls call to us as we walk, the underlying buzz of insects never falling silent. The odd splash of something slipping into the water."

That's an amazing description, so spot on that I felt like I was at home.

"I'm just thankful no one is using Route 31 tonight, or I'll be flat as the couple of roadkill snakes I see along the way."

Seriously, how has this author never been to this part of the world? Such detail like this can only come from someone who's lived there, right? Wow!

All the questions Luke and Annabelle have are questions I was having too. What IS going to become of them? What ARE they going to do? What DO zombies do for entertainment? Well, I know that entertainment for me was two zombies, living in a house with a vampire, going to see a voodoo queen. Loved it!

As I read this book, there were a lot of things coming up about zombies that I never thought of before. What would happen if a vampire bit a zombie? What if a zombie had been cremated? What happens if bugs get under a zombie's dead skin? Would a zombie win the best zombie contest at Halloween? What would happen if a zombie and an alligator, a creature who loves rotten flesh, crossed paths? #CajunZombieProblems

There was so much thought put into this book and I love that it made me look at zombies in a whole new way.

The romance between the two main characters is very sweet. There is nothing explicit at all, just two teenagers trying to figure out what love could be after death.

I think teenagers would really love this story. The main character, Luke, confronts his bully. The first encounter I loved, but I wasn't quite sure what to think about the second encounter. There seemed to be something missing to provoke that sequence of events, just a small detail. But, I imagine any teenager who's been bullied would be satisfied with that outcome.

I loved how many times this book made me laugh. For how grim the situation was, there was a lot of great humor. I got a kick out of Luke's encounter with curious kids. I loved that he laughed too. It was pretty funny.

Having strong feelings regarding suicide, I wasn't sure how I was going to handle that particular aspect of the story. There is a reason it had to be that way, which made the story all the more poignant, but I was relieved that Luke regretted killing himself. Thinking of the glow, the bright spark of the living and how he had that and threw it away was a good lesson.

"Restless In Peaceville" definitely gets 5 stars from me. I had such a great time reading this story, I can't wait to read more by Pippa Jay!


Here are all the places where the book is available:
Lycaon Press – http://www.lycaonpress.com/index.php?main_page=product_free_shipping_info&cPath=1&products_id=41 

Bookstrand – http://www.bookstrand.com/restless-in-peaceville

Omnilit – https://www.omnilit.com/product-restlessinpeaceville-1602009-0.html?oid=1

Amazon US – http://www.amazon.com/Restless-Peaceville-Pippa-Jay-ebook/dp/B00MW8IQFO/

Amazon UK – http://www.amazon.co.uk/Restless-Peaceville-Pippa-Jay-ebook/dp/B00MW8IQFO/

Add it to your Goodreads TBR here – https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22062985-restless-in-peaceville

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If you've read down this far, surprise! A Giveaway! It's a cute little brain heart necklace. I wish I could have it. :) So fun!

 

Code for the rafflecopter giveaway (open 1st September to the 1st October, international) – a Rafflecopter giveaway