Zombies - How I Love Them - In fiction, That is

Zombies. How we love them, let us count the ways. That's as long as they're not actually running rampant through our world, country, state, city...or clawing at the door of our house.

Scabeater / Foter.com / CC BY-NC-ND

A few years ago, I wasn't a huge fan of zombie movies, TV shows or books. I love horror, but I got it in my brain that the zombie stuff was cheesy and lacked any real depth.

And then along came "The Walking Dead".

My opinion completely changed. Although, I'll admit that I did not watch the first season as it premiered new shows. I kept hearing others comment about how awesome it was and that the show was a huge hit. After the first season wrapped up, I was aggravated for not giving it a try.

A co-worker of my husband mentioned he bought the first season on DVD and asked if we'd like to borrow it to watch. But of course, silly, hand it over!

We absorbed every episode - amazed at how much quality and depth and character building and emotion and action the story consistently threw at us. The whole zombie apocalypse wrapped us around its bloody, gnarly little finger. We were hooked. And finished watching the entire first season in about a week. All perfectly timed for when Season 2 was prepping to begin. Yay!

And the thing was ... we cared.

We cared about the characters and worried how they would survive. Wondered what catastrophe they'd encounter next...maybe only minutes from someone dying. Which of course did happen. A lot. *sniff*

And to know that everyone is infected with whatever this virus thing is...you die in any way and you turn into a crazed zombie. Well, a good spike in the head seems to stop 'em in their tracks.

By the way, am I missing a critical point of the story? HOW did this initially start? WHAT caused this virus that turns people into zombies? Come on, someone, give me feedback.

Anyway...I think about how a person can keep going on. Day after day. All the struggles, the death, fear of being attacked, finding food and water, fighting against other humans for whatever reason to survive, the complete collapse of society and technology, and if a cure will be found or what the heck?!?! Eeek!

OK. *breathe in, breathe out* Back to reality.

I looked back at the past year and realized how much zombie entertainment I've watched or read. Even shows that aren't zombie-focused, have introduced these dead (or is the proper term UNdead?) into some episodes.

Here's my list of zombie entertainment I've enjoyed during the past year...whether it's full-on zombie mayhem or just a tamed version of zombie wonderment:

"The Walking Dead" - show
"Grimm" - show
"World War Z" - movie (LOVED!)
"Warm Bodies" - movie
"Bloodborne: The Forsaken" - book by C. David Conner
"The Riser" - book by Becca C. Smith
"ParaNorman" - movie
The Paranormal Series - books by J.L. Bryan

Hmmm...could've sworn there were more. Probably are. I think my brain has zombified for the night. Scary.

Comments, questions...concerns?! Let me hear from you!

"The Mortal Instruments" Fun Stuff I Found

I devoured Cassandra Clare's novel "The Mortal Instruments - City of Bones" recently. Superb. The characters sprung to life with distinct personalities and realistic language. I can't wait to watch the new movie. In the meantime, I discovered oodles of fun stuff related to the book and movie for devoted fans!

The Mortal Instruments movie poster promo

First, the short synopsis for those not familiar with the story: "When her mother disappears, Clary Fray learns that she descends from a line of warriors who protect our world from demons. She joins forces with others like her and heads into a dangerous alternate New York called Downworld."

At The Mortal Instruments movie site I tested my knowledge of the book by taking a trivia challenge. There are 10 questions to start with. After answering those, you can try another round of questions. Answers are immediate. I did pretty good...

At this site you can watch trailers, play interactive games, take other quizzes, read the first 100 pages of the book, learn about the characters, and more.

Another site called Shadowhunters has a FAQ about the Shadowhunter novels. I love FAQ! There is a Videos link with trailers, interviews and events. The Extras link has wallpapers, screen savers, avatars, fan art.

If you're into reading tons of articles go to the Examiner page for The Mortal Instruments. (be prepared for pop-up ads there, grrr...)

Another fun thing is Madame Dorothea's Tarot Reading. You select 3 cards and are presented with your past, present and future...Pretty cool.

Funny memes and quotes with photos are here. And it allows you to create your own.

I've learned there are now 6 books in the series, with the last due to be released in May 2014. Well, I'll eventually get through them all...just toss 'em on my Kindle Wish List :)

Have you watched the movie or read the book(s)? Please comment! I'm always curious as to how much the movie makers change the movie from the book. I've read reviews and there are some differences. I understand that movies cannot possibly include everything written in the books or the movies would be hours and hours and HOURS long. But I really hate when radical changes are made and so I'm hoping the main plot and characters are kept as accurate as possible. And since I rarely ever go to theaters, I'll be clawing at the walls waiting for it to come out on DVD. *sigh*

Happy reading everyone! Or, happy movie watching!! That is all,

Gina