My Life as a White Trash Zombie

By: Diana Rowland

Narrated by: Allison McLemore

Length: 9 hrs and 5 mins

Publisher's summary

Audie Award Nominee, Paranormal, 2013

Teenage delinquent Angel Crawford lives with her redneck father in the swamps of southern Louisiana. She's a high school dropout, addicted to drugs and alcohol, and has a police record a mile long. But when she's made into a zombie after a car crash, her addictions disappear, except for her all-consuming need to stay "alive".

©2011 Diana Rowland (P)2012 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Allison McLemore's delicate voice and Southern accent give Angel's first-person narration a humorous kick. McLemore excels at bringing Angel's self-deprecating and sarcastic comments to life. Her brisk pacing suits Angel's personality and draws listeners in from the first chapter, keeping them glued to their earphones as she plays up the book's 'gross factor' with drawling descriptions of gooey brains and crunchy skull cavities. She's also good at giving unique voices and mannerisms to secondary characters." ( AudioFile)

Fun without being a time-waster

This was a good, fun tale, reminiscent of the Sooky Stackhouse series.

I would recommend this if you're looking for something engaging, but not demanding. The story line moves at a good pace, keeping the reader interested without overkill or never-ending cliff hangers.

The concept of zombies in this book is a lot of fun, and presented in a way I hadn't seen before. The lore development was clever, and the characters were quite likable. The narrator did a wonderful job.

Overall, a great book for when you're in the mood for a book, but don't want to concentrate too hard.

Sooky Better Watch Out

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

This had me at the sample. Of course I've already recommended it, and it's not even finished yet. I've been through a number of zom and vamp stories, and this one is a good one. A great new perspective with an approachable heroine, or zomb-oine as it were.

Which character – as performed by Allison McLemore – was your favorite?

Angel Crawford, of course. Allison's hit the right mix of southern sound with smart aleck that works. Also, her dumbass cops are funny too.

Any additional comments?

This is just good fun. My only wish is it were longer.

Very entertaining and kept my interest.

What did you love best about My Life as a White Trash Zombie?

The characters seemed 'real'. I loved the main character's wittiness and internal struggle.

What did you like best about this story?

It caught my attention from the very first sentence and kept my attention throughout. It is always hard for me to listen to audio books because I am easily distracted, but not this time. The story kept moving and kept me wanting more till the very end.

Which scene was your favorite?

The very first scene is my favorite; the moment we meet the main character. from that moment on, I was invested in her.

Any additional comments?

The narrator was fantastic at capturing the voices of each personality. I could hear each character's personality in her voice. Bravo!

knew I liked it.

I already owned and read the physical copy. unfortunatly my job makes reading the book myself an issue, so I was excited to see it on here. it was well read with few issues, although im a bit sad its not more like a podcast with multiple voice actors and background sound, such as car screaches or gun shots. all in all good read.

book review

Loved it! it was so not what I expected. I started to buy it last month but didn't want to "waste" a credit on an author I didn't know. WELL sorry for that thought because I absolutely LOVED Angel and look forward to the next book

Excellent Mix

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes, if you like murder mystery, sarcasm and zombies, this is a winner.

Who was your favorite character and why?

I really liked the lead's personality.

Which character – as performed by Allison McLemore – was your favorite?

Same, the lead

Any additional comments?

I've read several zompoc books. This is different in my opinion. The lead has a cool sense of humor. She's easy to like. Also, she literally has to eat brains so it skirts the edge of gross sometimes, but that really adds to plot for me. It doesn't take things too far in the horror or gore direction, but it gives enough to make things interesting. There are people being killed, and she has no idea how she became a zombie. There's mystery, action, comedy and an engaging storyline.

The performance took this book to the top for me!

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

This book would have been good all by its self, but the reader made this my favorite book ever!!!!! She gave it personality & brought it to life like no other book I've listened to so far! It was awesome!

What about Allison McLemore’s performance did you like?

She made this book a 5 star!!!!! She gave it the personality it deserved & brought the story to life!!!!!!

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

This book has me really laughing in places!!!! It was a 100% pure fun!!!!

worth the chance I took

Not my normal genre and listened with trepidation. Turns out I enjoyed the story enough to recommended to others. will likely get the next in the series.

a 'zombies are humans too' type story

Any additional comments?

Audio:
The narrator, Allison McLemore, is a narrating genius. She perfected the lazy Southern trashy drawl and masterfully created a multitude of characters. I've noticed that I say fuck a lot slower since listening to it. It's more like fuuuuck, now. Love the lazy Southern trashy drawl.


Story:
Angel Crawford wakes up in the hospital after an apparent overdose. She remembers popping some pills but also vaguely remembers being in a car accident. Though she doesn't have a scratch on her. Upon discharge she is given a note and gift left by a mysterious stranger. The gift is some odd looking bottled drinks and the note states she has a job waiting for her at the Coroner's office. Don't accept the job and the mysterious stranger will fill Angel's parole officer in on her recent drug mishap.


What the fuuuuck?


Left with no other options, she reluctantly takes the job as "body snatcher", picking up dead bodies and bringing them into the morgue. She is surprised by her sudden iron stomach and her sudden craving of brains. Yes, brains. She smells them, and they smell like chocolate.


What the fuuuuck?


““The smell was like chocolate and cookies and biscuits and gravy and everything else that was delicious. It damn near drove me crazy every time I had to touch one. I’d been fighting the cravings the way I’d never fought the urge to take drugs or get drunk.”



As if her life taking a huge turn to the strange and macabre is not enough, it seems she is now a zombie and someone around town is hunting her kind. While learning to survive without her body literally rotting (she starts to smell like a decomposing corpse after just a few days of no brains...yuck), dealing with her drunkard dad, trying to piece together how she turned, now she has to try and keep hidden from a serial killer. Could life (or death) get any worse?


Angel is hilarious. She's not stupid though she's taken for a dummy, a lot. She's spunky and a fighter. I don't think I could love this character more. She's had a rough life and it's not any easier now, but she's been given a second chance at life and she's determined to figure it out. Her fumbling through it is equally endearing and entertaining. She's so far from your typical protagonist and I love her more for it.


This is a 'zombies are humans too' type story. If you are looking for a shambling mindless gorey zombie tale, you won't find it here. This is a story of second chances, survival and life...even for the dead.

You'll feel differently about zombies after this

As much as I enjoy watching zombies on TV, they’ve never managed to work their way into my reading rotation until now. Previously, the very idea of a protagonist eating brains freaked me out but the way that Diana Rowland developed Angel’s character has me singing a different tune. I enjoyed the author’s snarky sense of humor and her unique spin on the standard murder mystery story line. Allison McLemore’s narration also helped make this audiobook an especially enjoyable listen thanks to her authentic southern drawl and the ease with which she donned the heroine’s shoes.

I liked the way the author gradually introduced both her readers and Angel to life as a zombie. Crawford has no idea that her world has been forever changed when she wakes-up in the ER after an apparent drug overdose until she receives the first of several notes from her anonymous savior. Slowly uncovering the mysteries surrounding her new condition made the reality much easier to swallow and I always enjoy reading about the growing pains that new supes experience regardless of whether they turn furry once a month or, in this case, eat brains.

Angel is far from being your typical go-getter Urban Fantasy protagonist; she’s a convicted, drug addicted, high school drop-out who lives with her alcoholic father, in short, she’s trailer trash. And, oddly enough, one of the best things that’s ever happened to her is her new walking dead status. Becoming a zombie forces her to grow up and take control of her life because now she has to make sure she eats right, keeps her job and avoids detection otherwise the consequences could be fatal.

The unconventional murder mystery angle was an unexpected surprise; rather than experiencing this book’s plot line from a cop or P.I.’s perspective, Angel has a unique view of the crime scenes because of her job and heightened senses. I enjoyed watching her interactions with the various law enforcement types and how they slowly welcome her into their club even with her checkered background. The twist at the end caught me off guard but I’m happy that it led to a little showdown which had Angel downing brains like Popeye eats spinach.

One of my favorite accents to listen to is the southern twang and Allison McLemore does a fab job of it thanks to her roots. I don’t mean this as an insult but she makes excellent trailer trash! MY LIFE AS A WHITE TRASH ZOMBIE is a fun listen that’ll make you feel differently about eating brains.