Desolation discussion

This is a buddy read discussion of Desolation, through part 1.

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This Buddy Read is sponsored by members of the Zombies! group. If you're interested in zombies, come join us there:

https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/909

This buddy read has been broken up into 3 parts:

Part one: Infernal (chapters 1-9, 58 pages).
Part two: Necrosis (chapters 10-19, 92 pages).
Part three: The Hiving of Refuge (chapters 20-31, 70 pages).

The reading schedule:

Part one: Read November 1st, discuss starting on November 2nd.
Part two: Read November 3rd, discuss starting on November 4th.
Part three: Read November 5th discuss starting on November 6th.

Links to discussion topics:

Through part one
Through part two
Through part three

OK, let me make sure that this is where we will be posting our comments/discussion point answers for the first assignment pages 1-58

Yup. All ready to go...

And, actually, I guess the discussion could start any time, because there would be no reason for anyone else to come to this topic unless they're already read part 1 of the book.

After all, it is a *spoiler* topic for part 1.

Got a quick question for anyone that may know the answer. I am up to chapter 3, and was wondering if A.) there was any mention to Asher's age (I know he can't be very old, seeing as how he was just getting ready to go off to college) and B.) whether there was mention as to how long Asher & Conner had been together. I was just wondering...if I missed either of those, would someone be kind enough to refer me to where in the text these answers are? Thanks, everybody!
~Teresa~

I started out with the assumption that the main character was female. :)

That changed quickly.

In any case, my comprehension doesn't have the answers you seek. I was even picturing Asher as a mid-to-late 20's (looking like Neil Patrick Harris), which is probably wrong if he was going off to college...

I'm up to chapter 5.

First impressions: action packed, first person narrative, which I like. The writing pulls you right into the story like quicksand. I'm also enjoying the different types of zombies, particularly the infernals - looking forward to reading more about them.

Our intrepid hero seems to make stupid mistakes from the get-go - a plot device, or an endearing character flaw?

Here's what Asher's logged so far for stupid moves:
1. Leaving Conner to change into a zombie, an infernal one at that.
2. Investigating that noise in Anderson's basement. Really? Hasn't this kid ever watched Jeepers Creepers or any horror movie, for that matter?

I feel ya, Netanella...I highlighted like 10 things that I was like WTF? He keeps his truck locked? DUH! And he just seems to keep making REALLY stupid decisions. I guess we will see, although I suspect he is just grieving so much, he doesn't really care anymore. Not quite sure...but I have finished the first chunk, at least! YAY!

Hmm I went off to game night with the girls and you all party here.

I'm not sure what I think of Asher yet but its early so that isn't uncommon for me.
I too am annoyed that he didn't kill the zombified Connor straight off.
...........

Investigating that noise in Anderson's basement. Really? Hasn't this kid ever watched Jeepers Creepers or any horror movie, for that matter?

I know that I would probably be zombie food early on but if I survived long enough to go explore a sound in the basement than I'd truly deserve to be eaten.
.........

B.) whether there was mention as to how long Asher & Conner had been together.
on page 11 "...I have lain with for three years...."


what do you make of Asher's confession of having feelings for Anderson page 51
and the kissing scene page 41
A little to soon? A little too Jenni?

Tammy K. wrote: "what do you make of Asher's confession of having feelings for Anderson page 51 and the kissing scene page 41"

I have to admit they threw me for a loop.

But the whole necromancer thing did too.

My sentiments are about the same as you guys' so far. I thought it VERY odd that a man that keeps his zombified wife in the basement would kiss another man within a week of knowing him. I guess you WOULD be hungry for ALIVE companionship, but not in a sexual way, at least not me.
Here's a few more total bozo moves Asher makes: WHY didn't he get more than 5 gallons of gas???? Its NOT stealing when its the zompocalypse!!! Then, he decides not to get food because he'll 'arrive to safety soon.' NEVER ASSUME ANYTHING!!! Stock up as if you will never see gas OR food again!!!
When he realizes his truck is locked and therefore he can't make a quick exit (dumb-dumb move in the first place), he says he thinks about smashing his window to get in, but 'then the truck wouldn't be as safe as I'd like.' REALLY??? GET THE HELL OUT!!! YOU ARE GOING TO DIE!!! WHO CARES ABOUT THE TRUCK...AS LONG AS IT'LL GET YOU OUT, GO...GO, GO, GO!!!!
Then, he gets a chance to kill Conner for real, but 'his heart wasn't in it.' Okay, I can cut him a break for that, but STILL- do what you gotta do!
I have highlighted at least 35 things just in the first section. I am soon worried this is going to turn into a 'Jenni' type situation. He was in love with Conner, then makes out with Anderson, then says 'Cleave's touch sends little jolts of electricity humming through my body.' Yeah, that last one could just be due to relief of not being zom-food.
And WHAT is a 'witch train'????
Necromancers, Infernals, Witch Trains, zombies that talk and think, radio broadcasts that people call into (where are the phones???), all this seems like A LOT to keep straight. Still, its paced just right, and its got an even amount of 'edge-of-your-seat' action and thoughtful reflection of better times, as well as a journey will we get to witness. I think that, if well executed, this book has GREAT potential. However, and this is VERY early to be saying this, this could end up becoming very convoluted, confusing, cheesy, and whatever other 'c' word you want to use. I'm hoping it'll turn out to be awesome! Good night, 'buddies' I have work again tomorrow, so I need to go to sleepy-town now. More in the A.M. ;-)

Good morning, Viet Nam!

I gotta admit, our boy Asher's got moves, and I'm not referencing his wandering eye towards romance in a dead town, I'm talking about his zombie-fu. Asher's a veritable Chuck Norris in several of the scenes - taking down a dozen zombies by the truck, the spaghettification of Anderson's wife in the basement, going head-to-head with Conner in a couple of passages.

None of this is impacting my enjoyment of the book - I love the pace of the book, and the story itself. I agree with Teresa - there are a lot of crazy elements thrown into this book. Almost like a circus-arena: "look, look at that shiny object over there, over there, and over there!" But again, hey, it's zombie fiction, it's supposed to be over-the-top.

Cheers. I need more coffee.

I read the first 3-1/2 chapters in the Amazon sample and thought this was going to be a really good read. It started out amazing, grabbed me and dragged me right into Asher's world with some nice descriptions of the initial characters to immediately make me care about them. I connected with Asher's loss of his love, Connor, and though Asher was doing some really stupid things, I was willing to chalk it up to the pain of his loss, so I bought the full book. Unfortunately, its quickly spiraling down into a shallow mess. Anderson shows up, we aren't given much information about him, except that he is a Necromancer and seems to be able to control zombies to some degree, he was married, now seems to be horny for anything still warm, Asher also seems to be almost ready to jump his bones after being with him a week, and then before you know it, Anderson is gone. I hope the rest of the story doesn't skim over characters and move on like this part did. It left me feeling like "Who was that masked man...and WTH?" It all kind of went by in a blur.

Two other things that had me scratching my head. A pump was usually left on at gas stations so that people could get gas? So they still have electricity? And then the whole radio show thing with people calling in is almost asking for more suspension of disbelief than I'm willing to give, even for a novel about zombies and necromancers.

Lana, I kind of like the radio call-in host and show. It adds to the circus-like element. :)

Maybe its that I've never been a fan of circuses...oh please god don't let a clown show up!!!! :D

You know, Asher talks about the dream he used to have about a scary old man in the basement who would stand in the corner and creep him out, then grab for his ankle as he raced up the stairs.

I used to have recurring nightmares of a scary clown in the basement who used to skate around with balloons tied to the bottom of his feet. Creeped me out. Clowns are NOT my friend!

I agree here, Lana. This one DOES seem to be just kinda skimming over characters. I forgot about Mary- I guess there's just 'something about Mary,' because remember how he referenced her several times in his comparison to how much he trusted Anderson, and then at the very end of our reading assignment, he says he feels almost as trusting of them as he did Mary. My problem is...well...he only talked to Mary for half-hour, tops. Your statement about 'suspension of disbelief' is what I feel I'm going to have the most trouble doing. We'll see; we ARE only 50-some pages in, but I do hope its a good one!!! It seems to have quite a bit of potential...

Guys and gals I gotta work for 3 more hours I have read your comments while I came home for lunch but my times up so I'll reply to you all when I get back home :-)

Exactly Teresa. Mary was there and then gone without her character being allowed to make any impression on us, yet she seemed to have left an impression on Asher. I was left wanting so much more from that scene, and felt like the author really missed an great opportunity there in his hurry to move on. I'm hoping that if we keep reading we'll see something to justify the haste.

Netanella, I agree with you. Clowns have NEVER been my friends. They have always freaked me out as far back as I can remember. I think its something about not really knowing what is hiding behind that painted on face.

Except I've got to ask Teresa to ask her boyfriend if after Katrina everyone was busy hooking up?
The closest thing to a zombie apocalypse I've experienced was when mount saint Helen blew up in my state in 1980 I was 12 years old at the time. I do not recall everyone hooking up. Might just be my age at the time?

ROFL...you made me spit my coffee with that Tammy! I admit, while reading this morning it crossed my mind that maybe this overwhelming drive to hook up was some kind of by-product of the zombie virus but it merits investigation to see if it happens in other disaster situations so we can be prepared if it does!

Tammy K. wrote: "B.) whether there was mention as to how long Asher & Conner had been together.
on page 11 "...I have lain with for three years...."

Thank you...I KNEW it was in there somewhere, but when I skimmed back over, I couldn't find it. This opens up a couple questions for me. Asher says that this was supposed to be their summer before going off to college. This makes me assume that he is just graduating high school (it also appeared he still lived in his parents' home as per his 'flashback' of his family's deaths- he was at least IN the family home when the outbreak really hit his area). So, he MUST be 18, tops. That seems VERY young to have such a strong relationship, but still possible. I just feel like his *presumed* youth just may affect his weird decisions. With age comes wisdom; perhaps that's why he seems to be doing foolish things...

Tammy K. wrote: "what do you make of Asher's confession of having feelings for Anderson page 51
and the kissing scene page 41
A little to soon? A little too Jenni? ..."

Definitely too soon for my comfort, and yes, very reminiscent of Jenni...However, I am going to start calculating his youth into my reading of this book. This makes more sense coming from someone of an 'immature' age...

Netanella wrote: "I gotta admit, our boy Asher's got moves, and I'm not referencing his wandering eye towards romance in a dead town, I'm talking about his zombie-fu. Asher's a veritable Chuck Norris in several of the scenes - taking down a dozen zombies by the truck, the spaghettification of Anderson's wife in the basement, going head-to-head with Conner in a couple of passages..."

You are correct here, my dear!!! He is a kung-fu wizard!!! He seems like such a great fighter to keep giving up so easily. We've already saw him give up twice now, three times if you count him asking Mary to just shoot him... Maybe he has survivor's guilt; not really sure. I'm sure we WILL find out more, though!

Lana wrote: ""Who was that masked man...and WTH?"..."

Wait...wait. Was there actually a masked man??? LOL...I don't recall a masked man, but, as you astutely pointed out, things are speeding along as fast as Connor in kill mode!!! :-P

Netanella wrote: "I used to have recurring nightmares of a scary clown in the basement who used to skate around with balloons tied to the bottom of his feet. Creeped me out. Clowns are NOT my friend! ..."

EEK!!! VERY creepy (and oddly coincidental lol)!!! Clowns have never bothered me, but if I had had recurring nightmares like that, I'm sure they would!!! I sure hope you don't have 'em anymore!

Lana wrote: "I was left wanting so much more from that scene, and felt like the author really missed an great opportunity there in his hurry to move on. I'm hoping that if we keep reading we'll see something to justify the haste..."

DITTO!!! I really hope we do figure out a reason as to why the story is moving along at such a hasty clip. If its a good reason, and all this makes sense, then this book will probably turn out to be a really good read. As I've said, it has TONS of potential. I hope it meets my expectations!!

Tammy K. wrote: "Except I've got to ask Teresa to ask her boyfriend if after Katrina everyone was busy hooking up?
The closest thing to a zombie apocalypse I've experienced was when mount saint Helen blew up in my ..."

Even though I knew the answer to this, when I just asked, he looked at me like I was a mad-woman and said something akin to "F*&k NO!!!! We were trying to survive!!! NO HOOKING UP!!!" He's telling me now that they were holed up in his tattoo shop on the third floor, and people were swimming to the balcony trying to get in, and his and his buddies had to stand guard at the window with guns to let the looters know "You ain't welcome to anything here." They went on 'supply runs,' and used the third floor roof hatch to access the roof to pee and defecate over the edge of the roof right into the water (EWWW!!!!). Finally, the levees broke, and it was man for man...he ended up on his own, losing his dog when he couldn't carry her any longer...he said the guards 'protecting' the pharmacies stood sentry only by the prescription meds, but would let you take basic first aid supplies and, if you asked the guard, you could get some antibiotics. He ended up on a helicopter, getting lifted to a FEMA station where he was handed a ticket to Mobile, Alabama. His words "No one was trying to hook up with ANYONE!!! You just wanted to survive! We were all disgusting, filthy, muddy and wet. When I finally got to the FEMA station, all I cared about were dry socks, shoes, and boxers. And once I put those brand new socks and boxers on, that feeling...THAT feeling was BETTER than sex! I've seen the apocalypse. It WASN'T pretty..." He still thrashes around with nightmares every time it rains :'(

Lana wrote: "ROFL...you made me spit my coffee with that Tammy! I admit, while reading this morning it crossed my mind that maybe this overwhelming drive to hook up was some kind of by-product of the zombie vi..."

Maybe it IS a zombie thing lol...both instances where we have first hand survivors of really apocalyptic disasters say "NO...No hooking up!!!" so it must be zombies. They must put off 'horny' pheromones :-) Or maybe its a natural reaction to severely deflated human populations that drive people into an almost instinctual drive to reproduce. BUT Katie & Jenni COULDN'T reproduce, nor could Anderson & Asher. Hmmm...verdict's still out on that one! ;-)

Oh, one more thing...I MAY post on the second thread later tonite, but I'm trying really hard to stay on schedule. I'm knees deep in books, though, and I think its easier for me to just read through in one sitting and be done rather than reading a few chapters here, a few there, etc. But, in full disclosure mode, I, as of 3:44 pm EST, have not read one word past our assignment yet.

P.S.: Anyone participating in Undead L.A.'s BOTM? There isn't a schedule up yet or anything, and I was just curious...

No hooking up?

When we have areas where the electricity is out overnight or for a few days, 9 months later there's an increase in the number of births.

I think it depends on the severity of the catastrophe, and how safe or bored people feel.

Most definitely, Randy...plain old 'lights out' for a night or two is nothing compared to a volcano or a hurricane lol. But I DO remember reading a study about power outages resulting in a high birth rate 9 months later. It happened even during the blackouts in NYC during I believe the early 70s. But, in THAT situation, there was a heat wave too, and people went CRAZY and went looting and killing because it was such an urban population. Guess it depends on a lot of things....

Sorry guys the internet has been down for the last two+ hours .

I agree that these 50+ pages have been full of lots of action.
A quick pace is good in some ways but as others have stated already there has been a large amount of skimmed over sections.
Too much jammed together impedes my understanding of the characters emotional state and the motivation for their action.
If I'm going to bond to Asher or Anderson (yes he is dead now) I need to experience (read about) the little things like:

Like why Anderson kept his wife as a zombie pet will remain unknown.
Who shot Anderson's daughter and then boarded her up in her closet?
Why and where Asher developed feelings for Anderson.
How Anderson saved Asher.
And so on.

I like the zombie chases and combat, but without proper character development it is too easy to get lost with who is who, and what just happened and why it happened.

NO! NOT just your views, Tammy! We've discussed this a little, and I second your call of bulls*%t on the BOTMs. They are dying QUICKLY because no one wants to mod, and members of our group that haven't been active in MONTHS swoop in for each poll and then leave us active members like 'Um...WTH just happened???' It IS total BS. I LOVE the structure this group offers, and I'm always game to read almost ANYTHING new, that's why I'm trying to do them all. But I DO NOT want to get stuck modding every time. Like you, I believe that if you nominate the book and it gets chosen, you are mod. PERIOD. Bottom line, end of story. Something needs to change, and fast, or our BOTMs will die. And I DON'T want that to happen. Oh well...I won't say anything more about it here, as this isn't REALLY the place (although I know I brought it up lol). I'll give it another 2 days or so, then I'll volunteer to mod AGAIN for a book that I neither voted for OR nominated. I'm gonna petition Liz (i.e., whine and cry) to help save our BOTMs. The way I see it, those of us right here, on this buddy thread, are the only active BOTMers. I LOVED your suggestion of having 3 per month, and the voting should be limited to those of us who have actively participated in at least one BOTM. If you have to read a book you aren't thrilled about to meet that criteria, so be it. You gotta earn your stripes somehow. And at least that would give these 'phantom voters' a taste of what its like to read a book you didn't nominate OR vote for so they can understand that not only do we put forth our time to keep the BOTMS alive, but also our hard earned cash. I've spent at least $25 on books I'd never have bought otherwise. Oh well though; I enjoy the comeraderie [sic] of it all. Its became a lot less pleasurable lately, though, and is more like a burden. Mikie keeps telling me 'Your book reads are supposed to be fun and stress relieving, and all they do is get you wound up and even MORE stressed." And he's right. I'm going to give up soon if something doesn't change, and we'll just stick to our buddy reads. WHEW! *end rant*
~Teresa~

Somebody get an axe. Teresa is foaming at the mouth. I think she's been infected with the deadly BOTM virus, mod 2.

I AM foaming!!! LOL...no...more like FUMING!!! I bought this book on October 30th, the day it was announced it was the winner (AND I bought The Savage Dead the same day). I'm just irked that people keep swaying the votes, and NEVER show up! But Netanella and I are gonna plug along with it, even if it will be lonely with just the 2 of us. But to all those that voted for this one...just be glad I can't reach through the computer and smack you silly, 'cause that's EXACTLY what I'd do!!! ;-)

Tammy K. wrote: "Instead of "watching" from the side lines so they could "borrow" from our thoughts for their blog reviews.
*Drops mic, and steps down from her podium..."

Oh, you crack me up!!! I'm gonna end up getting myself banned, but I posted ANOTHER rant on the Undead L.A. thread. I'm henceforth going to refer to those 'ghost voters' as the 'dirty dozen.' Never once did it cross my mind that they may be stealing our commentary for blog reviews, etc. If so, they are probably being sent hard copies, signed and all, for their 'reviews.' If that's going on, I WILL be foaming at the mouth!!! You may be right, though...as much as I HATE to see the BOTM die off, boycotting them may be the only way to get the skewed system fixed. The way I see it, we could be reading 100 Days of Deadland as the second BOTM for November, and coulda had Desolation as the first. But NOOOO...the dirty dozen forces us out of our own group to come to a whole different page to stick together with a read that we all agreed upon. Its becoming ridiculous. I can only hope that December is better, but somehow, I doubt it is...

Well then I got sour apples, too! But it DOES look like my 'public shaming' attempt worked good enough to make a few crawl out of the woodwork. THAT'S good, I guess...but still no mod, & if we don't get one, I'll end up doing it because a group read would SUCK without a mod. *SIGH*

Back to the book, though. I WOULD like to point out that I enjoy the teeny little blurb that says something like 'Once the zombies become rotten enough, they rejoin the earth.' I like my zombie books realistic, ya know? It only makes sense that a body WOULD fully decompose in time. I like it when my zombies rot to nothing. It only makes sense, right? UNLESS it is explained in the story why the zombies DON'T decompose. I like the zombies so far in this one...

Teresa wrote: "It only makes sense that a body WOULD fully decompose in time."

If there's a power that can reanimate the brain to make them rise from the dead, would lack of decomposition really be that much of a stretch?

Now, there's a story for ya -- the longer the zombie goes without being killed, the more he "recomposes".

=============== A Joke ===============

When Beethoven passed away, he was buried in a churchyard. A couple days later, the town drunk was walking through the cemetery and heard some strange noise coming from the area where Beethoven was buried. Terrified, the drunk ran and got the priest to come and listen to it. The priest bent close to the grave and heard some faint, unrecognizable music coming from the grave. Frightened, the priest ran and got the town magistrate.

When the magistrate arrived, he bent his ear to the grave, listened for a moment, and said, "Ah, yes, that's Beethoven's Ninth Symphony, being played backwards."

He listened a while longer, and said, "There's the Eighth Symphony, and it's backwards, too. Most puzzling." So the magistrate kept listening; "There's the Seventh... the Sixth... the Fifth..."

Suddenly the realization of what was happening dawned on the magistrate; he stood up and announced to the crowd that had gathered in the cemetery, "My fellow citizens, there's nothing to worry about. It's just Beethoven decomposing."

Oh lord, Randy!!! THAT'S a good one!!! Hehe!
But I guess you ARE right about non-decomposing zoms not really being a stretch of the imagination. I guess we all kinda have our favorite zombie 'type.' Me personally? I like my zombies decomposing , raggedy, slow and shambling, with the contagion being of the virus persuasion. I DON'T like zoms that can infect with anything other than a scratch or bite, but it does make more sense for the virus to ve transmitted via bodily fluids, too. Have you ever read The Zombie Autopsies: Secret Notebooks from the Apocalypse? It is really good, and pinpoints the contagion as a messed up prion, similar to mad cow disease (or 'the laughing sickness' in people). Its actually scarily possible!!!

For me, something like 28 Days Later... seems possible.

It provides for more moral issues as well -- maybe easier to kill, but maybe they can be cured? Are you murdering someone if you kill them as an infected?

Randy wrote: "For me, something like 28 Days Later... seems possible.

It provides for more moral issues as well -- maybe easier to kill, but maybe they can be cured? Are you murdering someone if you kill them a..."

Hey that was what I was gonna bring up in the second reading section.
*rolls eyes*

Let's pretend Randy did ask that here so when I ask about Asher saving vs killing than it looks insightful, OK ladies?

Tammy K. wrote: "Hey that was what I was gonna bring up in the second reading section.
*rolls eyes* "

Hey. I'm behind and not there yet. Other topic.

Ok I will zip it.

You two! Good lord...I feel like I am LOSING it with all the drama today! If it weren't for this thread and the hehes and hahas I get from it, I woulda already pulled my hair out!!!

Teresa wrote: "You two! Good lord...I feel like I am LOSING it with all the drama today! If it weren't for this thread and the hehes and hahas I get from it, I woulda already pulled my hair out!!!"

Now you know why I won't let Randy un-friend me. He cheers me up and brings me back to reality time and time again.

SO what was the most memorable moment of these 56 pages?

I think Connors death at the beginning was a solid hook.
Ashers tearful flight was eventful.
Him waking up to Anderson was a bit confusing.
The Basement scene got my heart racing.
But if I had to choose a favorite scene finding the daughter in the closet stands out the most. Because it freaked me out big time. I found myself wondering what happened.

Hey Tammy! That's free on Amazon right now:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004TINAME

Tammy K. wrote: "SO what was the most memorable moment of these 56 pages?"

The kiss between Anderson and Asher was probably the most memorable, just because it was a very strange scene.

The first necromancer he sees.

The radio show.

Finding out Connor is an infernal. But I'm not happy with how he goes from homicidal super-zombie to a moment of possible recognition just at the crucial moment. It reminds me of the SNL skit where all the villains are talking about James Bond and giving advice to new start-up villains:

"If you get him, just kill him. Don't tell him your plans. Don't come up with some outlandish way to kill him. Just kill him!"

Randy wrote: "Hey Tammy! That's free on Amazon right now:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004TINAME"

Grabbed it. Great review by David Johnson. Otherwise I'd have zero idea what it was about.

"If you get him, just kill him. Don't tell him your plans. Don't come up with some outlandish way to kill him. Just kill him!"
Love that advice! Asher could use it in the next chapter. :-)

How is everyone getting along on this one? Its discussion day...anything you have to say about it?

Part 3 discussion is in the other topic...

I know, but no one is discussing and I thought maybe if they hadn't commented on it yet, they weren't getting updated. I? figured I'd put a post here where people would see it! LOL ;-)