Synopsis:
When a disease runs rampant, turning people into cannibalistic horrors, society comes to a halt. Kate manages to escape the sadistic captivity she has endured and collides with Nick, a Marine haunted by the scars of war.
They join forces to navigate a treacherous landscape, battling the undead and hostile survivors. But what happens when the monsters outside are the least of their worries?
Nick’s shame is crushing, and Kate’s distrust is swallowing her whole. Will they overcome the darkness that threatens to consume them from within? And what will become of a world overrun with creatures that cannot seem to stop…laughing?
Review:
Who would’ve thought I needed a book where the entire premise behind the zombie apocalypse is wiping the traumatized slates clean for two broken individuals in the direst need of a fresh start, but also learning to trust and love again? I sure didn’t, and that’s exactly where Dark Bloom took me. Zombance, new genre created!
Zombies, yup, zombies and romance, that’s your plot. Kind of…ish… There’s your typical apocalypse where the dead are back for flesh and staying unzombified is very difficult, especially against other living people. Kate and Nick are our two survivors who cross paths when something bad is about to happen to Kate (trigger warning insert). They distrust each other as they stick together, but slowly those walls break down, and the pair learn they need each other, not just for their own physical survival, but their mental/emotional survivals as well.
Soooo, zombies, yeah, they are here. But Macabre does add some interesting layers to these zombies. One is their maniacal laughter as they seek out the living. It’s chilling and creepy as sin, obliterating the tried and true methods of silent walking dead or the spoofy ‘braaaaaains’ zombies. Then on top of that, some zombies can actually scheme or set traps, especially the children. Oh yeah, Macabre throws in zombie kiddos and these kids are terrifying (trust me as a dad of a fournado goblin when I say toddler zombies who can connive would be my worst nightmare…).
But what makes the zombie apocalypse true horror has always been the concept of humans being the literal worst P.O.S.s in existence. Human beings are shitty by nature and Macabre really leans into this when Kate/Nick meet a couple of different groups of people. You can really see the gamut of humanity here, some are really kind while others are just the worst of the worst, even if they are trying to do the right thing like the scientists at the hospital our heroes run into. I won’t spoil what happens in the ending, but I enjoyed seeing Macabre go down this path.
Ultimately, this story is about Kate and Nick surviving not just zombies but their own traumatized pasts. I won’t lie, this book is brutal and very hard to read at times because Macabre does not hold back. There is a dual timeline style in Dark Bloom and we jump from the present of the zombies and then back to the very traumatizing scenes both characters endured. I won’t go into details, but Kate’s backstory is horrific (again, trigger warning insert) and Macabre gives us all the harrowing details as Kate’s story unfolds and why she’s so distrustful upon meeting Nick. It is heartbreaking and uncomfortable, but Macabre handles it all with precision. And Nick’s backstory, while not as terrible by comparison, is equally heartbreaking because it is all too real. So while this book is about zombies and surviving the day, this story is carried by the heaviness in these characters’ past.
The prose is quite strong and the pacing is excellent, even with all the timeline jumping. Macabre is a master at short chapters, some only two or three pages. My only quibble is the third person omniscient narrator was a little too head-hoppy at times and I had to reread a few times just to make sure I was with the right person.
In case you didn’t glean that I liked this book a lot, let me add that I read this in one 3.5hr sitting. That’s how glued to this book I was! Dark Bloom may be a zombie book, but this is more about the traumatic pasts of the main characters. It’s about how the end of the world might be a new beginning for people. It’s something special, that’s for damn sure!
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