Teaser Tuesdays #3

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly meme hosted by MizB of Should be Reading

I know it's late but here it is....

Virtue
by Amanda Hocking
30th May 2011
CreateSpace

"I'm going to take the gag from your mouth," Ira said bending down in front of her. "But if you scream, even once, I will knock all the teeth out of your face. Do you understand me?"



"What?" Lily asked, glaring up at him. "You expect me to thank you? I will spit on your grave before I thank you, and then and only then will I thank you for doing the world the service of leaving it."

- Stephanie

Hollowmen - Amanda Hocking

Hollowmen (The Hollows #2)

by Amanda Hocking
8th November 2011
Fraggin Aardvark

After six months in the quarantine, Remy finds out things are much worse than she feared. Her plans to escape come with a heavy cost, and she realizes that zombies aren't the worst of her problems

I was slightly disappointed by this book because although it picked up where the first one ended and the story never faltered it was almost an exact replica of the first book, in the sense that it was about Remy’s journey to find her brother again and then it swiftly turns into a journey across country to head to somewhere that isn’t overrun with flesh eating zombies.

The one aspect of this book that really frustrated me was that I was hoping to find out more about the original characters in the first book but Hocking killed them off early on and introduced a whole new group to travel with Remy and although I developed connections with the new group of people it was hard not to think about Harlow, Blue and Lazlo.

I missed Lazlo in this book, I missed his charm and carefree attitude and I was extremely disappointed that he was only present for a couple of pages because I was really hoping that Hocking would explore his and Remy’s relationship further instead of creating a Boden as a new love interest for Remy without a conflicting one.

Again it was filled with brilliantly described action scenes and plenty of gore and there’s no doubt that Hocking is a beautiful storyteller but at the rate the characters are killed off I couldn’t help but feel that they were put in the story simply to fill up the pages. I enjoyed the book because I enjoy Remy’s world but I felt that the story had major holes in it and was again frustrated that there was no search for a cure to the Lyssavirus and the characters seemed to give up and just accept the world they are living in.

The ending was sweet and I felt that the story came to it naturally but I was hoping for something that would provide some answers about the zombies and how exactly they came into the world but my questions remain unanswered. I can’t believe that someone with Remy’s nature would simply stop fighting and decide to settle down as a family, especially since from the beginning the story led us to believe that Remy and her brother were the only people that could save the world.

I was hoping for another book but after reading Hocking’s blog can see that it’s unlikely there will be another one in the near future however if her plans change I will be looking forward to seeing what’s in store for Remy and her new family (also I hope Lazlo is thrown back into the story).

Check out Amanda Hocking’s blog here

Rating *  *  *

- Stephanie

Hollowland - Amanda Hocking

Hollowland (The Hollows #1)

by Amanda Hocking
5th October 2010
Createspace


"This is the way the world ends - not with a bang or a whimper, but with zombies breaking down the back door."

Nineteen-year-old Remy King is on a mission to get across the wasteland left of America, and nothing will stand in her way - not violent marauders, a spoiled rock star, or an army of flesh-eating zombies.


This book shows an apocalyptic world full of zombies and one girl’s struggle to find the brother she was separated from. I was drawn into Remy’s world from the very first page and enjoyed the exploration of human nature when faced with only one choice. To survive.

I enjoyed that this book focused around a strong female lead and it reminds me very much of Alice and the Resident Evil series, considering that humans are turned into zombies by a virus; the Lyssavirus. Remy is tough, brutal and incredibly strong in every sense of the word. She has one focus; her brother, and refuses to let anything stand in her way. She is a born leader and fiercely protects her pack of sidekicks; Harlow, a 13 year old girl with an attitude; Lazlo Durante, a spoiled rock star who has survived purely by luck and Blue Adams; a medical student with a soft nature but this doesn’t stop her considering branching out alone, she isn’t afraid of what’s waiting for her but only of what’s happened to her brother.

This is an action packed story from start to finish and Hocking’s action scenes are so well written you can picture every punch (which isn’t an easy thing to do). She never misses a chance to throw in some gore which is perfect for this genre although not great if you have a weak stomach and the best part of the story hands down is Remy’s ‘pet’. Along the way she finds a lion which she quickly names Ripley (anyone else thinking of Alien?) that seems to have an affinity with Remy; she recognises the heart of another lioness.

The end is somewhat anti-climactic and predictable but raises questions that I hope will be answered in the sequel, this book honestly blew me away and exceeded my expectations because Hocking has written a book based on the end of the world but manages to sneak in romance and love although Remy would never admit to those feelings.

I can’t wait to see what’s in store for the sequel and hope Hocking throws in a search for a cure to the Lyssavirus because so far there has been no mention of it and this detracts from an otherwise brilliant story.

Check out Amanda Hocking’s blog here

Rating *  *  *  *  *

- Stephanie