Married with Zombies

By: Jesse Petersen

Narrated by: Cassandra Campbell

Length: 6 hrs and 39 mins

Publisher's summary

A heartwarming tale of terror in the middle of the zombie apocalypse. Meet Sarah and David. Once upon a time, they met and fell in love. But now they’re on the verge of divorce and going to couples’ counseling.

On a routine trip to their counselor, they notice a few odd things: the lack of cars on the highway, the missing security guard, and the fact that their counselor, Dr. Kelly, is ripping out her previous client’s throat. Meet the zombies.

Now Sarah and David are fighting for survival in the middle of the zombie apocalypse. But just because there are zombies, doesn’t mean your other problems go away. If the zombies don’t eat their brains, they might just kill each other.

©2010 Jesse Petersen (P)2010 Dreamscape Media, LLC

Critic reviews

"Funny." ( Washington Post)

EMT Sense of Humour Required

Entertaining was Sarah's warped commentary on the guts and gore spewed over her once (somewhat) normal life as she turns zombie killer in order to survive the Apocalypse with her deadbeat, divorce candidate hubby. If the zombies don't get them, they may kill each other..

Reader was too whiny to properly portray Sarah's biting character.

If sarcasm, bickering and a warped sense of humour are not your thing, try Mayberry's YA story, "Rot and Ruin" for a novel-study worthy zombie tale.

Not as corny as it seems & worth the credit

I kind of steered away from this one for awhile but it's a zombie apocalypse so I didn't stay away too long. It's not quite as corny as I thought. I've read the entire series now. This one starts off with a marriage on the rocks. Close to divorce actually and ironically enough they discover the world as they know it is coming to an end when folks at their marriage counselors office are not there for "therapy" but a buffet instead. The story follows Sara and her couch potato dead beat hubby David, who spends his entire day playing video games instead of looking for work. Along the way they learn to survive, lose people they know to the "virus" and basically run for their lives. The characters weren't very developed and the story had holes in it but for the most part it was entertaining and I enjoyed it. It was certainly worth the credit.

zombie fun

its a marriage on the rocks but the end of the world and zombies fix it

Love it!!!

I loved this book. I think it helped me more than my marriage counselor. Great humor!

Was great to Listen to start to finish

I was really hoping for a part two! Love the Chapter titles and how the lovers evolved through the story.

Entertaining

This is a good book, but not a great book. It's easy to sit through and follow. The narrator isn't horrible. And if you are a fan of zombies, then this is an interesting story that sets the stage for the other two hopefully to finish off. I did research on the book and discovered its first in a trilogy, so don't expect to have all your questions answered right off the bat. It can get pretty cheesy at times, but you can tell it's on purpose and meant to lighten the mood. I found myself saying "Did she really just write that?!" a few times during some of the dialog or zombie executions. The couple is believable to an extent, but for the parts that aren't you just don't care because its just a fun little read. So, all my complaints that I could have about it considered, I just don't care. I enjoyed myself, and I think you will too. Just don't expect it to be the most profound writing ever. It's very lighthearted for most of it, to counterbalance some of the deep depressing sections that you have to have in order for there to be any drama in a zombie apocalypse. I recommend this because of it's entertainment value. It's not as depressing as some things (except a few pretty sad moments), but you still get your fill of zombie fun.

Entertaining short listen

Another pretty stereotypical zombie read. The difference and theme the author presents with this one is a couple having serious marital issues and how their personal conflicts come out during a zombie infection. I found a lot of the dialogue to be rather uninteresting. It was nice to see the characters resolve their issues and come together, but the common martial bickering got somewhat annoying. The zombie theme is definitely reaching it's all time high in popularity and several books have really shined. After reading Patient Zero and World War Z, it's very difficult for me to enjoy books in the genre with little to offer. The zombie portions of the story felt copied from so many already out there that I had a hard time enjoying it. Maybe if I had listened to this a couple of years ago I may have enjoyed it more but it takes a bit more to keep me interested in this genre these days. Another thing worth noting is that the male characters all felt intentionally removed of most intelligence. This may make sense due to the fact that the entire story is told from the female characters perspective. I can often hear my own girlfriend's thoughts in her narrative, but it might bother some male readers. It wasn't over the top male bashing, but it's worth mentioning. I'm giving it three stars for some entertaining zombie action and making a good attempt at joining a martial help book with the zombie apocalypse. I might read/listen to the second book, it depends on how well it's reviewed and what she does to make it shine in a genre overflowing with options.
The narrator is female, which makes sense, and did a good job with most of the characters in the book. Unfortunately the one I really felt she missed was David. The narrator really did a great job with the other characters, but unfortunately I can only give her 3 stars since I felt she missed on one of the main characters in the book. The rest of her voices are great, too bad it had to be a main character.

Best Zombie Book Ever. A Chick-lit Zombie Book!

What made the experience of listening to Married with Zombies the most enjoyable?

I read this in print form several years ago. I absolutely loved it. While I love to read, who has the time? Audio-books are always better because you can do stuff while listening. This is a brilliant book and Cassandra Campbell gave an excellent performance. What could be better than being productive while being entertained by a phenomenal story?

What was one of the most memorable moments of Married with Zombies?

This book is filled with memorable moments. Pick almost any action scene. David and Sarah killing their marriage counselor was funny and suspenseful. The couple having to shoot the cheerleader was horrible and well-written. Meeting the cult group in the casino certainly left an indelible impression. I could go on and on. The whole book is just really good.

What about Cassandra Campbell’s performance did you like?

I was amazed at how versatile her voice was. She got every character dead on. She totally captured the main character, Sarah and seamlessly switched to a perfect David. As a female narrator, she does the best male voices I've ever heard.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Zombie Apocalypse--A Marriage Building Exercise.

Any additional comments?

This book is unique. It is a girl version of a zombie book. It spoofs marriage counseling while accurately capturing the struggles of a mostly happy marriage. It is witty, sarcastic, funny, entertaining, suspenseful and generally just awesome. I purchased the next book on audibles. Love this book! (Adult language and slaughter.)

Campy, scary, fun book!

This is a great story -- kind of in the same genre as Buffy the Vampire Slayer, except with a couple as the central character and zombies instead of vampires. Jesse Petersen captures the complete confusion that occurs when Sarah and David, a modern couple living in Seattle, dealing with their crumbling marriage, stumble upon their marriage counselor attacking the couple who had the appointment before them, EATING THEM! It soon becomes clear that the zombie apocalypse is upon them and the battle to survive has begun. Fun, exciting story with just the right amount of campy humor. Can't wait to hear what happens next!

Too much swearing.

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

Decent story. Could have been so much better without the profanity.

How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?

Clean up the language.

What about Cassandra Campbell’s performance did you like?

Good reader.

Was Married with Zombies worth the listening time?

Uncertain.

Any additional comments?

The story was well written. If the language was a lot cleaner, I would buy the next book in the series. I can't, in good conscience, listen to another story in this series with the amount of "F Bombs" dropped in this book.