Bunnypocalypse

Dead Reckoning

By: Cain S. Latrani

Narrated by: Jennifer Pickens

Length: 7 hrs and 31 mins

Publisher's summary

Keep your head up, put one foot in front of the other, and never stop.

For Bunny Beckman, former cop-turned-stripper, that motto had always been enough to keep the gun out of her mouth. Now, her beliefs, and her life, will be challenged in a way she never even imagined as the dead rise with a hunger for the living.

To survive, she must face the monsters outside, and the demons within.

©2011, 2020 Patrick Holt (P)2021 Patrick Holt

Surprisingly Great Storyline

When I first received this audio, I wasn’t expecting to enjoy the story. However, I was very pleasantly surprised. There is a strong female lead, Bunny, who despite the odds, continues to overcome obstacles set before her.

Zombie apocalypse with a twist

~Disclaimer: I received a free audiobook copy of this book. ~

TW: rape and talk of suicide

Jennifer Pickens provides solid narration. No complaints there.

Bunny is a very likeable protagonist. Her reactions to situations are realistic. She is tough, but she isn’t an emotionless zombie killing machine either.

There is a pretty large cast to keep track of. Some of those introduced early on feel fairly fleshed out, but the ones introduced later are less so. I suspect some of them will play a larger role in later books.

A slightly unique take on zombies makes you want to know more too. Lots of mysteries to be resolved in this one (looks like there are two more books in this series and those books have higher page counts).

3.5 out of 5 stars.

Love the heroine!

The basis behind the walking dead is similar to most of these types of stories...a virus of some kind. But, the fact that there are 'levels' of dead is a semi new one for me. I felt the giants were a bit of a stretch, but...what do I know? lol
I really did enjoy the story and the heroine is a good one for sure. She is down to earth and relatable in the sense that she isn't perfect.
I look forward to book #2
I listened to the audiobook version of this book and this is the first I have listened to from Jennifer Pickens. She is fantastic. She tells the story without 'reading' it to the listener. She gives us some clues of what the characters are thinking and feeling by the nuances of her voice. I'm very impressed and will definitely listen to more of her work.

Fun Story, Great Character​s

Finished this exciting story in less than a day. Bunny is a character that I will never forget.

The narration was well done.

Yikes

I listened to the whole book and I’ve got to say Jennifer Pickens did a great job with what she was given. I would definitely listen to another book narrated by her.

The content of the book itself is… not great. I found myself cringing a few times per chapter. I knew nothing about the author going in, but just a few chapters of reading his fiction and you’ve got a great insight into his political ideology.

The main character “Bunny” is immensely difficult to relate to as her perspective and reactions to situations repetitively shattered my suspension of disbelief. She is an Ex-cop, queer, stripper, pro cop/conservative all in one package. And of course she’s got to reference her cop background at least 8 times each chapter. During these reflections she’s often in immediate danger while pondering the symbols of police and how they impacted society (which shouldn’t be relevant since everything is on fire).

Bunny frequently internally argues that her cop background (a career which seems to have lasted between 1-5 years?) makes her a super human and a supremely qualified leader in such a crisis. Her motivation as a protagonist bounces between saving everyone because she was once a cop and abandoning everyone except for her friends because… I guess she forgot she used to be a cop?

Dialogue between survivors also seemed robotic and unrealistic. I found myself having a difficult time paying attention when everyone was chatting and had to go back a few times to make certain I didn’t miss anything important. But since little dialogue actually moved the plot along missing huge chunks of conversation was not an issue.

We are introduced to a female support character with tattoos who is most frequently referred to as “former gang member” when the reader is given her name long before.

The female protagonist experiences assault and I can’t help but feel icky with how the author uses this to try to give the character depth. She’s two dimensional and this really didn’t help that plot or character development in any way.

The plot also ended rather abruptly as the author seemed not to have an idea how to wrap up the story. I’m not complaining, as I was glad to be finished with it.

But… maybe you’ll like it?