Just finished HtU (spoilers)

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varamiglite
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Just finished HtU (spoilers)

Post by varamiglite » Sun Jan 22, 2012 9:20 pm

So as the title says... I just finished Handling the Undead and I thought I'd give my thoughts about it...

For starters it's an excellent premise but it just seems to fall short of what I was hoping for. I guess I kind of wanted Eva to come home so I could see how David and Magnus would try to cope with having someone who is only a little like the wife and mother they once knew. With the reliving locked away in a ghetto the whole thing just seemed too contained, too "safe."

The story involving Mahler, Anna, and Elias was much closer to the story I was looking for. They threw themselves into dealing with Elias' resurrection. There was heartbreak when their efforts failed, and joy when they finally started to succeed. The restored bond between mother and son was beautiful and bittersweet. I loved how down to Earth she remained throughout most of it. She knew he was gone forever and anything that was restored wouldn't last. It was heartbreaking, but somehow realistic. Dead is dead. As for Mahler, he was sad because he was expecting that everything could return to normal someday. His existence became even sadder when it became clear that his presence wasn't necessary to Anna or Elias anymore. To me it seems like he no longer had any place in the story. His death really had no effect on me.

Flora and Elvy's part was very confusing. The only thing I really got from it, and I may be wrong, is that at some point they kind of flipped roles. Elvy began to doubt and Flora began to understand. The rest was just kind of a flash different scenarios. I only knew just a tiny bit about how bad Flora's home life was and never really got to know why it was so bad. I never understood why Flora was how she was, just seemed like cliche teenage angst. I still liked her but I just didn't get her. I really liked how connected she seemed to be with everything and just how scary the whole concept was.

All in all I still enjoyed the story. It was definitely a new spin on the classic "zombie" story. I love the idea of how different people deal with their loved ones suddenly returning to life. The ending was beautiful, no better way to say it! It was just a few of the other parts fell flat. The ending will stay in my brain for a long time to come, but some of the other parts will fade out pretty quickly.
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Re: Just finished HtU (spoilers)

Post by varamiglite » Mon Jan 23, 2012 1:31 am

Now I understand the picture on the cover... and it makes me sad. Every time I see the cover I'll remember how it all ended.
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Re: Just finished HtU (spoilers)

Post by ofelia » Mon Jan 23, 2012 3:54 pm

What's on your cover? Mine just has a closeup of an eye (American cover).

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Re: Just finished HtU (spoilers)

Post by EEA » Mon Jan 23, 2012 6:34 pm

To me the story of Malher and Anna was the one that I liked the most too. They go and do everything to help Elias.
With the story of Eva I just could not connect. The same with Flora. I liked her character but that was it.

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Re: Just finished HtU (spoilers)

Post by varamiglite » Mon Jan 23, 2012 11:33 pm

ofelia wrote:What's on your cover? Mine just has a closeup of an eye (American cover).
I have the American paperback cover. It features a shadowy image of a boy underwater just a short distance from an island. Didn't make any sense until I finished the book. Now I kind of wish it still didn't make any sense :(
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Re: Just finished HtU (spoilers)

Post by Nightrider » Mon Jan 23, 2012 11:43 pm

Image

This one...
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Re: Just finished HtU (spoilers)

Post by varamiglite » Tue Jan 24, 2012 12:17 am

That be the one, Nightrider. I wanted the Hardcover but I was too eager to read it to hunt one down! Choices are slim when you have to drive almost an hour just to go to a bookstore, and I didn't want to wait for amazon to ship one out. Beggars can't be choosers. Living under a rock in Midwestern USA definitely has its disadvantages :lol: !
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Re: Just finished HtU (spoilers)

Post by ofelia » Tue Jan 24, 2012 9:13 pm

Ah. Yeah, I don't really like that cover, but I don't like the hardcover one either. It has a generic horror feel and I think people who pick it up not knowing the author might be disappointed (or pleasantly surprised, but that's not as likely with this one as LTROI).
And I hate covers that give things away :x

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Re: Just finished HtU (spoilers)

Post by Zeb » Thu Feb 09, 2012 5:17 pm

I finished reading this a little while ago and although i did enjoy it-i did feel this (unique) storyline would be best suited as a movie rather than a book.I found some of the characters seemed to drag on a little more than was really necessary and the ending was a bit of an anti-climax.
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Re: Just finished HtU (spoilers)

Post by Nightrider » Thu Feb 09, 2012 6:50 pm

Zeb wrote:....i did feel this (unique) storyline would be best suited as a movie rather than a book.[/spoiler]
That's why there's a good chance HTU will be the next book to be turned into a film.
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