Review: Warm Bodies by Isaac Marion

Date Read: January 13^th, 2013

Date Published: October 28^th, 2010

Publishers: Vintage

Format: Paperback

Pages: 240

Blurb: A zombie who yearns for a better life ends up falling in love—with a human—in this astonishingly original debut novel.

R is a zombie. He has no memories, no identity, and no pulse, but he has dreams. He doesn’t enjoy killing people; he enjoys riding escalators and listening to Frank Sinatra. He is a little different from his fellow Dead.

Not just another zombie novel, Warm Bodies is funny, scary, and deeply moving.

Review:

This book is probably one of the best I have ever read, well, it’s definitely in a group with others, but it makes the cut. No it wasn’t the longest book I’ve ever read, yes it is about Zombies but it has one of the sweetest, powerful love stories I have ever read. It’s a beautiful read.

R is a zombie. He doesn’t know how long he’s been a zombie but he thinks he’s looking good, considering everything. He’s getting on with his afterlife, feeding when he needs to and then suddenly everything changes. He meets Julie, a human, but not in the way you might expect. He eats her boyfriend’s brain and begins to have feeling for her through his memories. He saves her and they begin a journey. One that will change everything.

R...I have never felt so strongly for a character before. He’s so sweet, kind, funny, relatable and he’s a conflicted zombie. His voice is refreshing because it isn’t like other books. He tells us everything he thinks, hears, sees and feels. I don’t think I’ve ever laughed so much and that was just the first few pages. It’s his humour that makes him real to me. I mean, the guy can’t even remember his name. So at times I feel sorry for him. But when he meets Julie a lot changes for him. He start changing and I think that is what makes this novel different. That the zombies aren’t mindless eating machines that only want brains. He’s just a sweet heart! And it was nice to see him with the other zombies, interacting and living. It’s different from our own but similar is certain ways.

Julie was an awesome character. Sure she can be a bit snappy but who wouldn’t if you were taken by a Zombie. But as the story goes on she notices R isn’t like the others and that is the thing that makes this love story amazing. They connect on different levels and they find things in common. She can talk to him and he can’t judge, he just listens and watches. 

There are some other characters worth mentioning as well. Perry, the boy who was once with Julie, plays a massive part in this novel and they way he was woven into the plot was amazing and unique. M, R’s best friend, is very different from R. Even though he’s a tall, big zombie, he shows that he cares about R in so many different ways. The Boneys creeped me out. They’re just...there are no words. So evil and scary and when I imagined them I was sure I would have nightmares.

I wanted to read this book for a long time but when I saw the trailer for the film I knew I had to get the book. It makes me even more excited to see how they’ll translate this beautiful story onto the big screen and from what I’ve seen they’re sticking to the book. Even the first four minutes they released nearly follows the first chapter exactly. 

Overall it was an amazing read and I think that Isaac Marion is a genius!