Review: One of the best 'new-to-me' reads in a long time
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 04 17, 2014
It's so easy to do a poor job of the 'personal journal' format to tell a story. Write it too 'tight' and it feels impersonal, almost academic. Write it too far in the other direction and you've got a rambling mess that loses readers quickly. Write it just right, and you've got...this.It begins at the end, really, and it's an homage to the author that she spins a story that sucks you in and keeps you in, even though you know how it ends up. I didn't keep reading because I wanted to see how it turned out, I read on to see how they got there, exactly.This quick read takes you through the outbreak of the zombie infection as experienced by Jillian, who is tucked away at home with her husband. The entire neighborhood is basically in lock down, thanks to the appearance of soldiers on the street corners. Some people are allies, and some harbor secrets darker than what you already guessed as a reader. The foreshadowing is extremely well done in this one- sure, you can guess at a few things, and you think it's obvious...but then, not everything turns out quite as you expected. There are some unseen twists even with the foreshadowing.I'm not easily shocked or grossed out by zombie books anymore, as I've read so many at this point. Even so, there are some shockers in this one! I'm not even talking about the gore, exactly, but situations instead. There is gore, but it's not overdone or used as crutch to prop up a flailing storyline. The shockers in here include a big YUCK factor, but go far beyond more than just the ewww factor.Eveyone's moving beyond the shambling, slow, stupid zombies this day, and 'The Last Day in the Life of Jillian' is no exception. 'Halfers' are infected who still have their human intelligence, memories and emotions intact, yet it is still not enough to subdue the infection within. They add a deeper level of horror to the story, as well as tougher challenges for the main character.One of my favorite things in this story is the very horrifying, very realistic emotions of the main character. While everything is a struggle during the apocalypse, some things like deciding NOT to play the hero in order to save your own hides, or choosing when to pull that trigger, are even harder than facing the hungry hordes. The physical danger the characters face and the emotional tolls the situation causes are well done throughout.The biggest flaw in this one is some continuing minor editing issues. There are a bunch of wrong words in some places, like a 'they' instead of 'then', that kind of thing. It's not rampant, and not a major distraction, but still present. I can overlook the structural writing issues (not always changing paragraphs with a new speaker, what would usually be 2 paragraphs lumped into 1) due to the format used. If it's supposed to be someone's personal diary, I'm okay with it not looking like it's hot off the Random House Press. I did not find it to be a big deal, but pickier readers might.One of the best reads from an 'unknown' I've picked up in a while, and well worth the admission price. If you're a fan of the genre, don't skip it. While it was a complete, satisfying story in and of itself, I wish it had been longer!