Review: Cowboy Zombie Stories
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 08 4, 2013
Having posted in a Goodreads' Review Initiative thread that I was willing to review works, the authors requested my review of two short stories, including this one, THE LOST PARTY. I was provided a copy of the work in exchange for my fair and honest review. I thank the authors for this opportunity.I rate THE LOST PARTY 3 stars based on:  (1) My overall enjoyment; (2) Creativity/Originality--(which, in large part, accounts for my 3-stars because--really--who ever heard of cowboy zombie stories??); and (3) Voice/Ease of Reading.I generally begin my reviews with a comment on how "readable" I found the work at issue to be, in light of possible grammar and editing issues. They happen--and often, they can be disregarded. Unfortunately, in the case of THE LOST PARTY, there are a number of these issues that make the reading a bit difficult. Thus, this review does take these issues into account. (Having said that, I understand that the authors are working to resolve these issues.)THE LOST PARTY is the story of Masterson's efforts to save a caravan that, while moving west, was overtaken by zombies. The authors did a good job of setting the stage. I could feel the cold wind; I could sense Masterson's fear of failure; I could--and did--shudder at what the traveler's believed themselves forced to do in light of their growing hunger. . . . Unfortunately, the "tense" in which the story is told, is not constant. Thus, I found it necessary to re-read portions, fairly frequently, in order to sort out what was happening.Overall, while zombie stories are not my preferred genre--by any stretch--I was intrigued by the concept of using the wild west as a setting for this work. It is hard to imagine such a sub-sub-genre in fiction as that of a crossover between a western and a zombie story. Still, I expect there is a fan-base for these and those fans are likely to enjoy this story