This is one of the most uniquely creative books I've read in quite a while. It's geared for young adults, I think, but it's pretty universally appealing! Count me in for any book described as a yarn about an orphan teenage gravedigger who fights medieval zombies!
Ryn is an orphan living with her two siblings, a younger brother and sister, although occasionally with their ne'er-do-well uncle, a drunk with gambling debts, which puts their homestead in danger, impelling Ryn to undertake some drastic action to put things right. The children's mother has died a few years back, and her father, a sometimes-woodsman gravedigger in his own right, disappeared on an expedition to scout out a collapsed mine, which was formerly the source of the town's relative wealth.
But all is not as it first appears: you see, the woods are full of... well, zombies, to put it bluntly. Then appears a mysterious stranger, whom Ryn first encounters (and saves) in the woods, a "mapmaker," who seemingly comes at the worst possible time, for a medieval zombie apocalypse is just about to descend, especially when the town's head official decides to sell off the village's fence for scrap, which is seemingly the only thing which has kept the zombies from attacking the impoverished townspeople.
In some ways, these are traditional zombies, herein termed "bone houses," which is kind of an odd moniker, but in other ways, they're somewhat different. They don't seem entirely mindless, and aren't trying to eat people, per se. They can seemingly choose to engage and disengage, and don't mindlessly pursue at all costs... which makes them all the more terrifying. They have long kept strictly to the woods, but are now seemingly increasing in number, and are starting to venture out into the open: first the fields, and then in to the actual village itself. They also seemingly don't "infect" anyone, with a virus or the like, which is the usual zombie trope in modern stories. The cause for their reanimation in this medieval world is strictly magical. A long time ago, someone brewed up a potion in a magic cauldron, which was inadvertently stolen by people who ostensibly wanted to raise an undead army... but the concoction was accidentally spilled into a lake, which spread the magic throughout the entire watershed, so any time the water comes into contact with a corpse, the body is reanimated. The villagers have seemingly learned to live with these undead walkers, until the present time, but now, they are venturing into populated areas, spurring the village into action.
I don't want to give too many spoilers beyond that, but this highly readable and engaging novel is comprised of a hodgepodge of genres and influences, including both traditional and more modern fairy tale elements. The back story is right out of Disney's "The Black Cauldron," as to why concoctions brewed in the vessel somehow reanimate the dead. I've also seen several reviewers mentioning elements of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," too, a nod to the ax-wielding, teenage-girl zombie slayer! And maybe some "Resident Evil," whereby apparently animals can become undead, too... here, in the form of a zombie... GOAT?! Bring it.
The tale is also replete with connections to Welsh mythology, which gives it an interesting spin as well. On account of my own ignorance of Welsh mythology, I did have to look up quite a few of the terms, such as the pwca ("pooka," I believe, is how it's pronounced, at least in the Irish case), which are shapeshifting spirits - because I was unfamiliar with them, but knowing a bit of background about Welsh tradition and fairy tale elements makes the novel all the more readable. The characters are far more rich and developed than many other novels of this type I have read, and you really find yourself rooting for them in the wake of this zombie yarn from medieval times. I think this is a singular work, but I would definitely read any potential sequels. Enjoy!
Ryn is an orphan living with her two siblings, a younger brother and sister, although occasionally with their ne'er-do-well uncle, a drunk with gambling debts, which puts their homestead in danger, impelling Ryn to undertake some drastic action to put things right. The children's mother has died a few years back, and her father, a sometimes-woodsman gravedigger in his own right, disappeared on an expedition to scout out a collapsed mine, which was formerly the source of the town's relative wealth.
But all is not as it first appears: you see, the woods are full of... well, zombies, to put it bluntly. Then appears a mysterious stranger, whom Ryn first encounters (and saves) in the woods, a "mapmaker," who seemingly comes at the worst possible time, for a medieval zombie apocalypse is just about to descend, especially when the town's head official decides to sell off the village's fence for scrap, which is seemingly the only thing which has kept the zombies from attacking the impoverished townspeople.
In some ways, these are traditional zombies, herein termed "bone houses," which is kind of an odd moniker, but in other ways, they're somewhat different. They don't seem entirely mindless, and aren't trying to eat people, per se. They can seemingly choose to engage and disengage, and don't mindlessly pursue at all costs... which makes them all the more terrifying. They have long kept strictly to the woods, but are now seemingly increasing in number, and are starting to venture out into the open: first the fields, and then in to the actual village itself. They also seemingly don't "infect" anyone, with a virus or the like, which is the usual zombie trope in modern stories. The cause for their reanimation in this medieval world is strictly magical. A long time ago, someone brewed up a potion in a magic cauldron, which was inadvertently stolen by people who ostensibly wanted to raise an undead army... but the concoction was accidentally spilled into a lake, which spread the magic throughout the entire watershed, so any time the water comes into contact with a corpse, the body is reanimated. The villagers have seemingly learned to live with these undead walkers, until the present time, but now, they are venturing into populated areas, spurring the village into action.
I don't want to give too many spoilers beyond that, but this highly readable and engaging novel is comprised of a hodgepodge of genres and influences, including both traditional and more modern fairy tale elements. The back story is right out of Disney's "The Black Cauldron," as to why concoctions brewed in the vessel somehow reanimate the dead. I've also seen several reviewers mentioning elements of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," too, a nod to the ax-wielding, teenage-girl zombie slayer! And maybe some "Resident Evil," whereby apparently animals can become undead, too... here, in the form of a zombie... GOAT?! Bring it.
The tale is also replete with connections to Welsh mythology, which gives it an interesting spin as well. On account of my own ignorance of Welsh mythology, I did have to look up quite a few of the terms, such as the pwca ("pooka," I believe, is how it's pronounced, at least in the Irish case), which are shapeshifting spirits - because I was unfamiliar with them, but knowing a bit of background about Welsh tradition and fairy tale elements makes the novel all the more readable. The characters are far more rich and developed than many other novels of this type I have read, and you really find yourself rooting for them in the wake of this zombie yarn from medieval times. I think this is a singular work, but I would definitely read any potential sequels. Enjoy!
