Pariah by Bob Fingerman

Book Details
Pariah by Bob Fingerman
Paperback, 368 Pages
2010, Tor Books
ISBN: 0765326272

Synopsis
The world is in chaos. A zombie plague has devoured every nation on the planet. New York City is no exception. Imagine eight million zombies. Shoulder to shoulder. Walking the streets, looking for their next meal. The residents of one apartment building have bonded to keep themselves safe from the onslaught, but their inevitable demise lurks right outside their window, a constant reminder of the doom that awaits them. Forced to remain in the safety of the building, the tenants find themselves at each others' throats. When they spy a lone teenage girl who walks among the hordes, unattacked by the undead, their world opens up.

Review
Pariah is a book about zombies. I love zombies. Naturally, I expected to enjoy this book, but I was completely unprepared for how amazing Pariah was.

It's the zombie apocalypse and the government has boarded people up in their apartment buildings. As those few humans struggle to survive, they notice a girl who can walk among the zombies. Mona wanders unharmed through streets filled with shambling undead. The zombies see her, they just don't care. While the survivors try to unravel the mystery as to why Mona is immune, psychological aspects start coming into play. Trapped with neighbors for months, hiding from certain bloody death, has caused mental health to deteriorate. Mona's ability pushes some survivors a little closer to the edge.

The thing that made Pariah that much better than other zombie books was the humor. It was biting, very dark and mean at times. It fit with the situation the survivors found themselves in. People are on edge, at their very breaking point and the sarcasm laced dialogue is deep, funny and feels almost too real.

Pariah includes zombie portraits drawn by the author. These were both impressively done and helpful to understanding the state the zombies are in. Pariah is funny and disturbing with terror on many levels both fantastical and realistic. Definitely the cream of the zombie crop.

Rating

Links

Bob Fingerman's website