Alice in Zombieland (White Rabbit Chronicles #1)
Release Date: 09/25/12
Hardcover/e-book
404 pages
Summary from Goodreads:
She won’t rest until she’s sent every walking corpse back to its grave. Forever.
Had anyone told Alice Bell that her entire life would change course between one heartbeat and the next, she would have laughed. From blissful to tragic, innocent to ruined? Please. But that’s all it took. One heartbeat. A blink, a breath, a second, and everything she knew and loved was gone.
Her father was right. The monsters are real….
To avenge her family, Ali must learn to fight the undead. To survive, she must learn to trust the baddest of the bad boys, Cole Holland. But Cole has secrets of his own, and if Ali isn’t careful, those secrets might just prove to be more dangerous than the zombies….
I wish I could go back and do a thousand things differently.
I'd tell my sister no.
I'd never beg my mother to talk to my dad.
I'd zip my lips and swallow those hateful words.
Or, barring all of that, I'd hug my sister, my mom and my dad one last time.
I'd tell them I love them.
I wish... Yeah, I wish.
Had anyone told Alice Bell that her entire life would change course between one heartbeat and the next, she would have laughed. From blissful to tragic, innocent to ruined? Please. But that’s all it took. One heartbeat. A blink, a breath, a second, and everything she knew and loved was gone.
Her father was right. The monsters are real….
To avenge her family, Ali must learn to fight the undead. To survive, she must learn to trust the baddest of the bad boys, Cole Holland. But Cole has secrets of his own, and if Ali isn’t careful, those secrets might just prove to be more dangerous than the zombies….
I wish I could go back and do a thousand things differently.
I'd tell my sister no.
I'd never beg my mother to talk to my dad.
I'd zip my lips and swallow those hateful words.
Or, barring all of that, I'd hug my sister, my mom and my dad one last time.
I'd tell them I love them.
I wish... Yeah, I wish.
***ARC received by Harlequin Teen for review***
“My name is Alice Bell, and on the night of my sixteenth birthday I lost the mother I loved, the sister I adored and the father I never understood until it was too late. Until that heartbeat when my entire world collapsed and a new one took shape around me.
My father was right. Monsters walk among us."
I'm not a big fan of zombies, but after read reading and loving other Dearly, Departed and This Is Not a Test, I got bit by the zombie fever and I wanted another taste! Plus, with an awesome name and beautiful cover as this, how could I NOT want to read it? Although I have never seen Alice in Wonderland (I tried to once when I was little and it was just to weird for me), I love the characters (and the inspired fashion) of the story and knew that this one was a must-read for me. I expecting zombies in the story, but other than that, everything else about this book was unexpected and I loved it! No, this is not a retelling of Alice in Wonderland with zombies (although it has a couple of vague references) and anyone expecting it to be that will probably be disappointed. Maybe it was the fact that I have never seen the movie, but whatever it was, I absolutely loved this book!
Alice Bell is not your average teenager. Her father is convinced that there are monsters after him and his family. Monsters that only come out at night. As a result, he has lived his life in constant fear and paranoia of these monsters and deals with them the only ways he knows how. By self medicating himself with alcohol, not letting his family out at night (EVER!), and teaching Alice basic fight skills against these monsters. Because of this, Alice has never been able to do normal like go out at night with friends or even date. She doesn't even bother with any of that stuff because she doesn't want to deal with trying to explain her crazy dad to them. But on the day of her 16th birthday, she convinces (guilt trips) them into going to her little sister's dance recital. At night. Everything is going great when all of a sudden, her dad freaks out on the way home and causes them to have an accident. One minute, Alice's life is perfect. The next, she wakes up to find her family dead and discovers that she can now see the monsters that her father has always warned her about. The ones that killed her family.
After moving in with her grandparents (Who are adorable by the way! They try to learn slang to "connect" with her which results in some hilarious conversations). Ali meets Kat who is one the awesomest best friends I have read about. Ali is attracted to Cole, who is basically the most dangerous guy in school and the perfect bad boy. You know, the kind that can be a jerk one minute but super sweet and sexy the next? And you don't know whether you want to punch him or kiss him, or maybe punch him AND kiss him? Basically, my dream book guy. Sigh...uh, where was I? Anyway, Alice is the perfect match for him because she isn't afraid to stand up to Cole and she isn't afraid of him and he can be more of himself around her The relationship between Ali and Cole is my favorite kind. Although they are immediately attracted to each other, its not instalove. They have butt heads a lot and have some seriously hot chemistry between them but they take things slow. In fact, sometimes it was a little frustrating just how slow things were going, but I loved the pacing anyway. I want more of Cole!
Now on to the zombies. These are not your average zombies. Gena Showalter has blended them with another mythological aspect, one that I was worried wouldn't work at first but actually did. For me, this story had it all: strong female MC, hot and smexy jerkish guy, a great cast of supporting characters, humor, plot twists and ZOMBIES! Im already dying for book two and looking forward to more of Cole, Alice, Kat and the rest of the gang. Alice In Zombieland is not another book with just a pretty cover. But, it's better if you go into it with an open mind and don't expect it to be anything other than the great story it is.
4.5 out of 5 sparkly stars!
Some of my favorite non spoiler quotes from Alice In Zombieland:
-His sorta smile stretched wider. "Have you ever been in a fight?" With his free hand, he pinched a lock of my hair and rubbed the strands together. "Because you look something out of a fairytale."
"The wicked witch?" I couldn't help but ask.
"Please. The princess."
-Cole cupped my cheeks and brought my gaze back to his. "Why wouldn't I dance."
Uh, maybe because at first glance he looked like he ate puppies and kittens for lunch? As for what he enjoyed having for dinner-that couldn't be discussed in polite public.
-I almost felt sorry for the zombies. Almost. Id never been more determined in my life. They wouldn't stand a chance.
-"You're smart, pretty, and you aren't a douche purse."
If id had food in my mouth I would have spewed it. Douche purse? She must mean douche bag. But okay, I could roll. I was getting used to her filthy, funny mouth.
-He had me backed against the bedroom wall, his body supporting mine. My legs were wrapped around his waist. His hands were flattened beside my temples; mine were in his hair. He'd imprisoned me with his strength to kiss the breath right out of me.
-His sorta smile stretched wider. "Have you ever been in a fight?" With his free hand, he pinched a lock of my hair and rubbed the strands together. "Because you look something out of a fairytale."
"The wicked witch?" I couldn't help but ask.
"Please. The princess."
-Cole cupped my cheeks and brought my gaze back to his. "Why wouldn't I dance."
Uh, maybe because at first glance he looked like he ate puppies and kittens for lunch? As for what he enjoyed having for dinner-that couldn't be discussed in polite public.
-I almost felt sorry for the zombies. Almost. Id never been more determined in my life. They wouldn't stand a chance.
-"You're smart, pretty, and you aren't a douche purse."
If id had food in my mouth I would have spewed it. Douche purse? She must mean douche bag. But okay, I could roll. I was getting used to her filthy, funny mouth.
-He had me backed against the bedroom wall, his body supporting mine. My legs were wrapped around his waist. His hands were flattened beside my temples; mine were in his hair. He'd imprisoned me with his strength to kiss the breath right out of me.
About the Author
Gena Showalter is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of over thirty books in paranormal and contemporary romances, as well as young adult novels. Her series include White Rabbit Chronicles, Angels of the Dark, Otherworld Assassins, Lords of the Underworld, Alien Huntress and Intertwined.
Her novels have appeared in Cosmopolitan Magazine, and Seventeen Magazine, and have been translated in all over the world. The critics have called her books "sizzling page-turners" and "utterly spellbinding stories", while Showalter herself has been called “a star on the rise”.
Her novels have appeared in Cosmopolitan Magazine, and Seventeen Magazine, and have been translated in all over the world. The critics have called her books "sizzling page-turners" and "utterly spellbinding stories", while Showalter herself has been called “a star on the rise”.
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Check out the website for The White Rabbit Chronicles for more character information, extras, merchandise and other Alice related awesomeness!
