When I first opened this book and started reading, my first overwhelming thought was simply this, "Olivia Dade, how I've missed you!"
Seriously, the banter, the quips, the overall feeling just left me smiling because I've read a lot of books by Olivia Dade, so by now when I get to read her books, I know what I'm going to find. It's the reason I keep going back and reading more books by Olivia Dade. These books end up almost comfort reads, the kind of books that I randomly think, yes, I'm going to read that again RIGHT NOW, because it fits the mood I'm in. I've been looking forward to Zomromcom since the book was announced and for me, it did not disappoint.
Zomromcom is about Edie Brandstrup, who lives in the Containment Zone, which means she lives near a compound that keeps a horde of zombies from attacking the general public. These zombies were created by the government, and there are a lot of protocols in place to keep the people safe from another breach. The book opens when Edie is just returning home for the day to find a zombie on its way to attacking her neighbor. She runs to intervene and is surprised when the man she thought was a little dim not only manages to save them both, but also turns out to be a vampire. Max wants to keep Evie safe in the shelter he's created in his home but Edie is the type of person to go out of her way to save other people, which means diving headfirst into danger to warn their neighbors before it's too late and the zombies destroy everything that gets in their way.
The plot is straightforward, what is given in the synopsis is exactly what we get. I respect that because nothing bugs me more than starting a book based on a synopsis that turns out completely different than what I wanted to find. Edie has a goal, save as many people as possible. Max's goal is to keep Edie safe. The government created zombies to be weapons, but they carried their development too far and lost control of their creations which resulted in a massacre when the zombies got loose twenty years before the start of this book. When the zombies needed to be contained, supernatural creatures came out of hiding to help drive back the horde and save the world. Which is how vampires, witches, telepaths, fae, trolls and other manner of creatures are now a part of the makeup of this world.
And this world is interesting. It goes without saying that zombies are a large part of practically everything nowadays. There are movies, shows and books dedicated to zombies and the people who have to deal with a world in which zombies exist. As a result, for a new "zombie" book to stand out, it needs to do enough to stand apart from what has come before and Dade's book manages to make enough tweaks that made me invested in the story but also left me with so many questions, questions I hope will be answered in sequels to this book (yes, sequels, plural, because I think there is enough here to at least be a trilogy, if things can work out that way). The motivations behind the creation of zombies and the reasonings behind their apparent escape are the points that drive this book, and for me there was not a dull moment in this story. It moves fast because Edie and Max have a countdown, they have to stop the zombies and warn the world in a matter of days. Even when the characters had to take some time to rest and heal, it did not feel like a slog to get through the book. In fact, by the time the ending hit, I knew it was going to leave me wishing for more pages. The book just worked for me in keeping my attention, making me smile and laugh at Edie and Max bickering, and making me care for every character that they meet along the way.
The best way in my mind to describe this is that trope, how does it go? The grumpy/sunshine trope. Edie and Max fit that perfectly, so if you're familiar with romance novels, that is what you can expect. The characters are introduced with ease, allowing readers to learn a lot about Edie and Max with just a few pages of their being in the same vicinity as each other. What I enjoy about Dade's books is the quick wit shown in the dialogue. The pace of the book goes quick, mainly thanks to the rapid back and forth between Edie and Max. Even the side characters are given enough development that I hope we get to see more of them in the next installment. Nothing felt superfluous, or out of place. Dade even adds in a fun tidbit, which is that Max's first name is Gaston, which automatically makes Edie think of the Disney villain and the song that goes with that character. And because Edie is that type of person, she makes up so many iterations of that song to bug the heck out of Max that it is a beauty to behold, laughing the whole time while managing to sing along with her because come on, almost everyone knows that song.
Honestly, I want to go back and read this again. I want to talk about this book with people who like zombie movies and romances. I respect the fact that Dade took a chance and tried something new with a supernatural romance. If there are more books by Dade like this one, I need to find them asap.
Rating: 9.5 Stars on my ratings scale. Why not 10? Because it just ended and I want more already. And I have no idea when I'll be able to hear Edie sing another "Gaston" song to Max, which is a travesty, if I do say so myself. Olivia Dade, I salute your "Gaston" songs by the way. If there was ever the perfect villain song to incorporate into your work, you chose the best one by far.
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