Zombies II
Eric S. Brown

By Alyce Wilson

As the title implies, Zombies II is a short collection of flash fiction pieces featuring zombies. This 36-page e-book collects several stories, all less than a few pages in length.

For this collection, author Eric S. Brown combined two of his favorite genres: zombies and superheroes. This manifests in various ways, from the person who has developed superhuman speed and strength, to telepaths and others. Some of them use their abilities against the zombies, with varied effects.

Not surprisingly, the collection will appeal primarily to fans of the zombie genre, especially to those looking for a different take on the subject. Most of the stories stick to typical zombie conventions, such as being relentless, immune to every wound except a blow the head, and transmitting their infection via bites.

He gets more creative, though, with the protagonists, although many of them meet bitter ends, which is again typical of the genre. One of the more interesting stories is "Inhuman," which is likes Fantastic Four meets a zombie tale. And "Deadtown" takes some elements from the western genre. He also includes a couple tales that feature ghosts.

The main fault with the collection is some of the stories could have benefited from some copy editing, as they include spelling and grammatical errors that can be distracting.

For the zombie fans amongst us, the book is worth reading.

Rating: *** (Good)

Naked Snake Press, 2007