The First Days by Rhiannon Frater

Title: The First Days
Author: Rhiannon Frater
Series: As the World Dies #1
Published: July 5, 2011 by Doherty Tom Associates LLC
Rating: 

The morning that the world ends, Katie is getting ready for court and housewife Jenni is taking care of her family. Less than two hours later, they are fleeing for their lives from a zombie horde. 

Thrown together by circumstance, Jenni and Katie become a powerful zombie-killing partnership, mowing down zombies as they rescue Jenni's stepson, Jason, from an infected campground.

They find sanctuary in a tiny, roughly fortified Texas town.  There Jenni and Katie find they are both attracted to Travis, leader of the survivors; and the refugees must slaughter people they know, who  have returned in zombie form.

My Review

I'm the first person to admit that I'm a HUGE zombie fan. I have an eccentric fascination with the undead, which is unexpectedly strange because I'm such a girly girl. With that said, I LOVED this book! The first page starts of with zombie gore and goodness and it doesn't end. I love that in a horror book. Down time normally leads to boring and unnecessary details, with the zombies, just cut to the chaos!

In The First Days we are introduced to two main characters, Katie, a mistreated housewife, and Jenni, a strong woman with a take charge attitude. Their POVs interchange throughout the novel, showing the zombie apocalypse through two very different perspectives. While thrown together during the most dire circumstances, the two women become quick allies and fast friends ready to face the hoards of undead together. I love the relationship that develops between these women. There is a fierce bond and a complexity of emotions between Katie and Jenni that really brings a sense of realism to the book. It adds that humane edge to what is normally a 'kill or be killed' storyline. 

The storyline is extremely fast paced, as would be expected during a zombie apocalypse, with so many crazy situations that your heart will be continuously racing. There certainly isn't a lack of zombies! Frater also introduces us to a large number of secondary characters who she isn't afraid to sacrifice to the zombies- another fact that I actually enjoy. I hate when everyone survives (as awful as that sounds!) it just isn't possible with zombies. Someone has to be dinner! Of course there are other characters we are introduced to that you can't help falling in love with (i.e. Travis and Juan!) who you definitely don't want to become zombie bait which is another well written part of this book. 

What is so incredible about this book though is the world building, or in this case, destruction. Frater successfully conveys a world gone mad feeling in The First Days. With zombies running amok, there has to be a sense of desperation underlying every line in the book. You really feel that while reading, which makes the book so much more enjoyable. I highly recommend this book to any zombie lover or adrenaline junky who is looking for a fast paced, end-of-the-world book with a splash of romance!