Blog tour: Zombie Apocalypse Running Club by Carrie Mac

When twins Eira and Soren escape from their survivalist home into a world overcome by zombies, there's only one way to stay alive - run!

Eira and Soren are queer twins living with their survivalist parents when a plague starts spreading that turns people into zombie-like monsters. They disagree with their parents about a lot, but they can't deny that their way of life keeps them safe while much of the world perishes--for now. 

When it becomes clear that their safety won't last, the twins decide to strike out on their own.They don't get far before encountering the one remaining person in the closest town - the librarian, Racer, a gold medal-winning Special Olympics champion. Racer is appalled at the twins’ slow speed and tells them that their survivalist skills aren't worth anything if they can't outrun the monsters. He sets them on a training regimen that comes in handy when they embark on the bigger journey ahead of them.

On their trek they find friends, enemies, and even love. But with zombies on their heels at every turn, will they ever be able to slow down?

Content warning; ableism, bullying, blood

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Introduction

I didn't think there was much new that could be done with zombies, but this is a new set of traits! These zombies have excellent hearing - a gunshot will bring every one within a mile towards you - and they can run quickly. However, they're extremely dumb; if they lose sight of you, they'll forget they were chasing you, and they can't figure out doors, gates or fences. That makes running the best defence - you need to stay ahead of them long enough to get out of sight. And that leads straight to our plot.

Plot Summary

Eiren and Soren's father is a cross between the worst kind of fundamentalist and the worst kind of prepper. Although their distant home and survivalist training keeps them alive through the start of the zombie apocalypse - here an infection that's present in many Americans asymptomatically before suddenly exploding, driving the infected to infect others at all costs. Their father insists that they'll be safe on their remote homestead, but the twins know that it can't last forever.

Writing Style

There's a brief flashforward at the beginning, just to remind us that we're in a zombie movie. Then it's back to business as normal, with just enough time to get to know people - and hear, through news reports and whispers, how quickly the infection is moving - before the inevitable happens. The following time on the homestead I thought dragged a little, but once they move on things move very quickly.

Personal Connection

I really enjoyed reading this. It's not as heavy and serious as some zombie stories, but there's still plenty of peril and danger to keep things moving. I don't want to spoiler, but a particular societal response to everything I found really interesting and it wasn't something I'd seen before.

Conclusion

Highly recommend. It's aimed at teens but I think adults who like this style would enjoy it as well.

Author Information
Carrie Mac writes stories that she wants to read. She has also authored contemporary novels for teens, speculative YA, literary short fiction, and creative non-fiction. Her accolades include a BC Book Prize, Arthur Ellis Award, and CBC Non Fiction Prize. She has mentored privately, at SFU’s Writer’s Studio, and also at UBC’s School of Creative Writing, from which she holds an MFA. Queer and widowed, she lives with her two homeschooled kids in East Vancouver, on the stolen lands of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh Nations.

Author Links:

Website: https://www.carriemac.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carriemacwrites/ Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/360816

https://tbrandbeyondtours.com/2024/07/15/tour-schedule-zombie-apocalypse-running-club-by-carrie-mac/