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Grey Dogs Zombie Survival Ian DG Sandusky 9780980799644 Books

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Grey Dogs Zombie Survival Ian DG Sandusky 9780980799644 Books

I'm torn over this review. I think, given that this is a first novel, it's a good effort but falls short. I like zombie stories, but there are so many that are rehashes of the same old story that it's hard to identify the gems with the huge volume of slush. This isn't slush, but I wouldn't call it a gem either. There are some sparkles -- enough that I would pick up a sequel if one comes out -- but I found the story lacking in too many ways to be a true gem.

I've read through the reviews here that point out the fresh take, and the surprising twists. I really did find that, for the most part, the plot is very predictable. Maybe it's because I read a lot of horror, and a fair amount of zombie material, but I did not find a lot of surprises here. There was one nice, tiny twist at the end that I enjoyed. I say nice, because I wasn't expecting it and it was well timed. I say tiny because there was opportunity for so much more, and the way it played out I don't know why it made such a huge difference in the story. I can't say any more than that without giving it away.

I thought it took too long to get rolling. It's a short book, and I was halfway through before we got to the meaty action (there were appetizers before that point, but I had to wait too long for the meal!). There was plenty of tension early, and it built up throughout the story, but it seemed to take forever to get to the "good stuff." Early on, I kept going, "Ah-hah! Here we go!" only to feel like the author was jamming on the breaks a page or two later.

Above I said I'd buy a sequel, given my criticisms so far that may be tough to buy, but here's why. For one thing, the ending just sets itself up for a sequel. It's not a cliff hanger ending that left me feeling cheated by any means. I felt satisfied with the ending ,however, I did want more. The final 50-60 pages or so, the story moves along at a great pace and the tension builds up to what I thought was a solid ending. The writing was solid (not juvenile in the least). However, the main reason I'd look this author up again is that I felt like I was seeing him develop and grow as I turned from page to page. That may sound weird, but you know how when you read an author's earlier works you see the weaknesses that they've addressed, how they've developed from one novel to the next, and how they've grown and honed their craft? I saw this writer grow as the book progressed. The writing tightened up, the descriptions were more consistant, the story was better paced (and I don't mean it was non-stop action; there was tension build up, let off, varied pace, etc.), and I felt more in touch with the characters. Sandusky really hit his stride in those last 60 or so pages, and I find myself looking forward to his next release -- I'm hoping and expecting, if he starts where he left off, it will be a gem.

Last note -- I like the cover :) Its creepy, B-horror style makes me both smile and shiver at the same time.


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Grey Dogs Zombie Survival Ian DG Sandusky 9780980799644 Books Reviews

Firstly I will say that grey dogs isn't end to end action with a desk jocky turned marine with a huge arsenal of weapons destroying all zombies that cross his path. What you do have is an inteligent story about an average everyday guy (Corey) doing his best to survive and reach his loved ones after the dead start to rise. I look forward to the next book in the series.
An interesting and unique addition to my zombie library! The author obviously put a lot of thought into the story and spent time letting the readers get to know the characters. Sometimes this worked well and helped build tension. There were one or two occasions where characters were introduced at smack in the middle of some great action sequences and I felt learning their background at that point slowed the pace a bit. But never did I feel any of them were there as Red Shirt cannon fodder, so when some of them DO die, you're invested enough to care.

My only other quibble with the writing is the authors tendency to use similes and metaphors in place of more plain descriptions. Don't get me wrong, he has some absolutely lyrical turns of phrases that made me wish I'd come up with them. I wish I had the book in front of me 'cause I'd share one with you. Now and again, however, I'd get jarred out of the story trying to figure out if he meant what I think he meant with some of the more unique descriptions, which was a bit frustrating -- especially since the action at the time was excellent. For instance, LOVED the main character's journey on the road/bridge trying to reach his family, especially one particular zombie bit that got a laugh and a EUUWWWWW!!! out of me at the same time. Let me just say 'lemmings.' Brilliant.
I don't know why I keep buying zombie novels. It seems that no matter how many positive reviews some of these books have, they just suck. It's like I have to wade through like twenty or so bad zombie books before I find one good zombie book. The reviews for this book made it sound like it was awesome, so I put it on my wishlist a few months ago and then finally picked it up.

I know I say this a lot in my reviews, but I have to say it again here. These characters just aren't that interesting to read about and I really don't care about what happens to them. I have no investment in them and I really don't care if they live or die.

***SPOILERS*** ***SPOILERS*** ***SPOILERS***

The main character Carey, is just boring. He's a 22 yr old bouncer who also has the weight of the world on his shoulders because he's a college student. And as we all know from our time in college that THAT part of life is the most difficult time you will ever experience and that no one else will ever understand the pain and suffering we feel at that point in our lives. In other words Carey is whiny, boring, self-loathing, and sees alcohol as the only escape to his Earth-shattering problems. Most of those problems consist of the fact that he has a bad relationship with his parents and his girlfriend dumped him. Also what's annoying is that he is ALWAYS talking about alcohol, or comparing things to alcohol, making jokes about alcohol, etc. Not to mention he seems to be constantly spouting catchphrases that are modified just enough so the author can't be sued for using them.

The only really interesting character in the book is the father of the fraternal twins. He had an actual backstory, actual motivation, actual goals, and I grew to like and care about him. But then he's put in a dangerous situation and we cut away, never really sure if he died or made it out or what happened.

There's really no plot to this book other than, "Hey look, there's zombies, RUN!!!" And that's it. It's just these guys running away from zombies. There's no character development, there's no growth, nothing, just a lot of driving and running away from zombies.

Just a few more specific complaints and then I'll wrap this up.

All the men in Carey's family seem to hear the voices of dead people in their heads for some reason. On top of that, this book is 202 pages long, yet we don't actually get actual zombies until around page 80 or so.

On page 55, a cop shoots a C9 machine gun and Carey states that it shoots out a gout of flame twelve feet long from the barrel. Ummm, that's a machine gun, not a flamethrower! If anything you'd have a tiny flash at the end of the barrel of the gun. Plus they're in Canada, shouldn't he be measuring stuff in meters and not feet?

On page 116 Carey states that after this is all done, he is going to buy a grey dog. Ummm... okay, why? That's like saying that when I'm done writing this review I am going to buy a green inner tube. What the hell does one have to do with the other and why would you want it?

***END SPOILERS*** ***END SPOILERS*** ***END SPOILERS***

I really hate to be that guy who just seems to give negative reviews, but this book was really just bad and it was a chore to get through it. I was tempted a few times to put it down and never pick it up again, but I forced myself to continue, hoping that it would get better, but it never did.

Give this one a pass.
I'm torn over this review. I think, given that this is a first novel, it's a good effort but falls short. I like zombie stories, but there are so many that are rehashes of the same old story that it's hard to identify the gems with the huge volume of slush. This isn't slush, but I wouldn't call it a gem either. There are some sparkles -- enough that I would pick up a sequel if one comes out -- but I found the story lacking in too many ways to be a true gem.

I've read through the reviews here that point out the fresh take, and the surprising twists. I really did find that, for the most part, the plot is very predictable. Maybe it's because I read a lot of horror, and a fair amount of zombie material, but I did not find a lot of surprises here. There was one nice, tiny twist at the end that I enjoyed. I say nice, because I wasn't expecting it and it was well timed. I say tiny because there was opportunity for so much more, and the way it played out I don't know why it made such a huge difference in the story. I can't say any more than that without giving it away.

I thought it took too long to get rolling. It's a short book, and I was halfway through before we got to the meaty action (there were appetizers before that point, but I had to wait too long for the meal!). There was plenty of tension early, and it built up throughout the story, but it seemed to take forever to get to the "good stuff." Early on, I kept going, "Ah-hah! Here we go!" only to feel like the author was jamming on the breaks a page or two later.

Above I said I'd buy a sequel, given my criticisms so far that may be tough to buy, but here's why. For one thing, the ending just sets itself up for a sequel. It's not a cliff hanger ending that left me feeling cheated by any means. I felt satisfied with the ending ,however, I did want more. The final 50-60 pages or so, the story moves along at a great pace and the tension builds up to what I thought was a solid ending. The writing was solid (not juvenile in the least). However, the main reason I'd look this author up again is that I felt like I was seeing him develop and grow as I turned from page to page. That may sound weird, but you know how when you read an author's earlier works you see the weaknesses that they've addressed, how they've developed from one novel to the next, and how they've grown and honed their craft? I saw this writer grow as the book progressed. The writing tightened up, the descriptions were more consistant, the story was better paced (and I don't mean it was non-stop action; there was tension build up, let off, varied pace, etc.), and I felt more in touch with the characters. Sandusky really hit his stride in those last 60 or so pages, and I find myself looking forward to his next release -- I'm hoping and expecting, if he starts where he left off, it will be a gem.

Last note -- I like the cover ) Its creepy, B-horror style makes me both smile and shiver at the same time.