Review: Tweets to die for: When hashtags fight back
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 03 17, 2014
Designed to turn viewers catatonic and follow a subliminal command allowing hacker, Ven, to access their personal data brings about an unexpected side effect. '#zombie' is trending, and those unlucky enough to be accessing the internet and other visual media become mindless, ravenous zombies. Those affected go into a food coma much like after a big Thanksgiving dinner; satiated and content, with their distended abdomens bulging to max capacity.As described in '#zombie', the internet is a frightening beast. Add zombie kids snapping selfies, ordinary people feasting on the flesh of anyone in sight, and the world becomes an odd and scary place to survive.Ven and twenty-one year old Kyle are an unlikely pair to survive the ordeal, but survive they do. With Ven's infant Tomas and cheese-loving Labrador Boscoe in tow, a plan is hatched to traverse the unruly U.K. Streets with the only logical destination in mind. Ven's sister, Cassie, having elected to forego societal luxuries resides in a Wales commune, yurt style. If Ven's group can make it to Cassie, they just may make it through...well, that's the plan anyway.'#zombie' is an original take on the zombie genre. Set in the United Kingdom, American readers aren't hit in the face by a barrage of British terms. Unfamiliar lexicons are an easy way to pull a reader right out of the story, and let's face it, no one wants to stop and Google in the middle of a book. The author appears to be keen on that fact and it allows '#zombie' to appeal to a broader audience.For a gruesome topic, the book remains a light and easy read. It's short length allows it to be read in a single sitting and ends in one heck of a cliffhanger with promises of a sequel. While the ingenuity of it's plot is worthy of a five star rating, the characterization lacks some depth and development. Emotions feel unrealistic at times, and while the two main characters are likable, they aren't always believable. There are some minor editing issues that could use another pass through editing, but overall the writing is solid and the story very entertaining.