The Undead: Part 2

By: R. R. Haywood

Narrated by: Dan Morgan

Length: 12 hrs and 14 mins

Publisher's Summary

A deadly infection spreads across Europe. The Undead series: a terrifying account of one man desperately struggling to survive this harrowing event day by day.

Part two - days four to six. With a plan to rescue Howie's sister from London, Howie and Dave travel to Salisbury army training barracks to find an armoured personnel carrier that will see them safely through the densely populated and infected towns that lead into the capital.

Howie takes charge of a group of young army recruits they find at the barracks and leads them into battle, killing swathes of the undead. They meet Big Chris, an enigmatic former soldier who is leading a hastily erected commune in London. Joining forces they agree to help each other, going first for valuable medical equipment.

But the cost of rescuing Sarah may be too much. One of their own, Darren, has been turned...it may be the end of everything for which the group has fought.

©2012 R. R. Haywood (P)2015 Audible, Ltd

You have got to be kidding me.

What did you like best about The Undead: Part 2? What did you like least?

Spoiler alert. The group goes out and fights hundreds of zombies at a time with hand weapons. They get totally drenched in blood every time. Yet a single microscopic drop of spittle from a zombie infects one of them. I know, its a zombie book, go with the flow.

Would you ever listen to anything by R. R. Haywood again?

Possible. Not sure.

10 of 12 people found this review helpful

EXPLODING COW

TOM, DICK AND ZOMBIE
The book has three story lines. Howie, his sister and THE INFECTION. IT WATCHES AND IT LEARNS. I like the fact that Howie is a grocery store manager (Just like the characters in Once Bitten, by Christopher Moore) Dave was hilarious in Part one, but it is already getting old. I like that the characters admit they like killing. I did get tired of the constant shoot-em ups with very little new or different. The sister was okay, but nothing spectacular. What kept me listening was THE INFECTION. It develops a personality and has a mind of it's own. The last chapter was real, real good. It is a shame we could have not had more of that in the whole story. Koontz, King, Battles and others can give you surprise after surprise. Haywood was only good for one and that was his cliff hanger.

Zombie Lite
This could also be considered Young Adult. The young British keep a stiff upper lip and don't seem to get too emotional, when they do it seems put on. Your eight year old can read this and not get nightmares. All the characters are likeable. This is not for the series hard core Zombie fan.

My Campaign
This has nothing to do with the review. I am starting a campaign to get Horror as a major category. Almost everyday a new Zombie book comes out and their are many of us that love Zombies. They might be under Fiction/Horror or Sci-Fi/Contemporary or Mystery Thriller/Suspense. I would like to be able to browse Horror/Apocalyptic and Zombie to find all these books. When I want extreme gory, bloody, horror, I want to be able to go to Horror/Extreme. When I want a short story or anthology of horror, I should be able to go to Horror/Short Story and Anthology. Other subs could be classic, paranormal, etc... If you agree would you please e-mail audible. Would you also put out a request at the end of your reviews? Thank you. Spread the Word.

22 of 29 people found this review helpful

OK, but gets a little juvenile

Any additional comments?

Howie is the typical entry level food store manager who turns into a super zombie fighter overnight. We all like the underdog who finds a hidden strength in himself. The first two books kept my attention. Interesting how the British never have the guns American zombie fighters always seem to have in abundance. But I have tired of the juvenile gay and fart jokes, the clearly ridiculous fights and situations he gets involved in. So it is two books and our for me.

3 of 4 people found this review helpful

Couldn't Finish

This book wasn’t for you, but who do you think might enjoy it more?

While the writing quality was fair and narration quite good, the story itself devolved apparently as fast as the 'infection' evolved.

Would you ever listen to anything by R. R. Haywood again?

Loved the first book in this series, and the second started out fine, but just became a mess of silly situations and unnecessary risks.

What about Dan Morgan’s performance did you like?

Great voice - great clarity. Thoroughly enjoyable, and will look for books narrated by Dan Morgan.

If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from The Undead: Part 2?

Too many to list, but here are a few:

***spoiler**

Suspension of disbelief is one thing, but the hive mind/ collective intelligence of the 'infection' combined with its ability to evolve and adapt, jumping from species to species, is just too much. As well, Mr. Howie and the crew choosing to engage manually - ending each melee covered in blood, viscera, and brain matter - without any consequence, yet a single bit of spittle that lands on the lips of one of the young soldiers was farcical.

Too much head-hopping; while this can provide perspective, in this case it was just a jumbled mess.

Any additional comments?

It's a pity - the first in the series was quite good.

7 of 10 people found this review helpful

I ship it.

I'm it a deep love affair with this series. Sure, there are inconsistencies that I question, but the characters are believable and fleshing out beautifully. I love the hive mind of the infection. I love that the technical weapon descriptions don't get out of hand like a lot of zombie books like to do. I most deeply love Dave and the endearing bromance between him and Howie. I ship it hard.

3 of 4 people found this review helpful

Even better

Book 2 is a great adventure. Great story line complete with moral dilemmas, best friends betrayed, and zombies. Can't put it down.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Long slog gets too unbelievable

Spoiler alert:
Others have mentioned the virus becomes sentient,. That was far fetched but tolerable. I quit listening when the soldier got infected by a tiny drop of saliva. The characters get covered in gore fight after fight. Darrens infection was just too far fetched to keep me interested.

2 of 3 people found this review helpful

At times, painful to listen to

Is there anything you would change about this book?

The infection, describing it as human. It was so bad. And that cat, I was so grateful when that cat died!!! I know you have to suspend your disbelief to a certain extent to listen to zombie books, but there are parts of this book where you have to plug your ears and sing "La-la-la"!

What do you think your next listen will be?

This book left a sour taste, so I think I will avoid zombie books for a bit.

What does Dan Morgan bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

He is amazing. If it weren't for this narrator, I believe I would have put this audiobook down mid-way and never picked it up again. He gives Howie and Dave life. I hope he narrates more books soon!

Was The Undead: Part 2 worth the listening time?

There were parts that were really, really good and there were parts that were so bad they were unbearable. I don't feel like I wasted time listening to it, but I can't imagine listening the Part 3. I fully expect that in the Part 3 the "infection" will begin writing his memoirs. Honestly, it's ludicrous.

2 of 3 people found this review helpful

Some good parts

It is ok, but the inconsistencies drive me crazy. One drop of saliva tuns Darren into a Zombie, but the others never get infected after extended battles. It is just a bit goofy with a declining story line.

2 of 3 people found this review helpful

Bloody Good Zombies!

Pardon the pun, but I'm really enjoying this zombie series. I know there are lots of scenes that jump the shark, but this exciting series definitely keeps you on the edge of your seat.
Love, love the bromance between Mister Howie and Dave!
And I even enjoy the intense camaraderie amongst the group. For the most part, I like (if that's the right word!) all the exploding zombie heads and body parts, but that just adds to the visual film quality of the book.
Not sure how I feel about the anthropomorphized Infection. It gets pretty weird unless I think of it as maybe an alien entity or something.
And not crazy about the entire raison d'etre for Howie et al to go save his sister. But it certainly pushed the plot forward. I'm hoping at least for some romance between the sister and one of the men. We'll see, after all this is written by a guy. Sorry.
And still, the one thing I like least about this series, that I haven't seen anyone else review, is the cost of these audiobooks. Even Stephen King novels which are many hours long, don't cost as much as these do. Do they?
Dan Morgan's narration is terrific.

2 of 3 people found this review helpful

The Undead: More bloodbaths

Any additional comments?

This book reads like a video game, with the reader being shunted from one shallow victory to another, yet bizarrely it can be compelling stuff. Haywood takes us from one testosterone fuelled zombie encounter to another, with a boss level appearing at regular intervals. I listen on the way home from work when I want to put my brain on ice and give me something vicious to take on the other loonie commuters. The writing can get repetitious, with some gags that are unworthy of one outing, receiving several. How many times will the hero forget the acronym for APC? Repeat until funny? No. Repeat until the wordcount ticks over to justify releasing another instalment. As as for the 'banter' between the raw squaddies? That just takes Haywood's juvenilia to a new level.

On the other hand, Haywood's initiative in describing how the virus’ metamorphoses into a sentient, human baiting infection is original and clever. I've been switching between this, Fleming's Casino Royale and Dante's Divine Comedy which has made for some suitably odd drives recently. I have gone through the Undead Book 1 and am near the end of book 2. Will there be book 3? I don't know. Largely because I'm not sure how many more times I can listen to another visceral description of the hero cleaving another zombie through the head with his B and Q axe.

That said, my commute is pretty arduous and I can see me needing another instalment of 'Tesco Guy & Mute’ fairly soon.

I fear I am slightly addicted.

4 of 4 people found this review helpful

fantastic zombie apocalypse

thought it was a fantastic zombie apocalypse sTory and the narrator put some much passion into the reading

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

the undead part 2

excellent cannot wait for book 3 good story with lots of detail and holds interest

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Good all round book to continue on from Part 1

What made the experience of listening to The Undead: Part 2 the most enjoyable?

Enjoyable listen while I go out jogging. Doesn't make too much sense from the perspective of an intelligent thinking virus that works as some sort of "hive mind" controlling all the zombies at the same time (human and animal alike) but a fun idea! Does get a bit carried away with the fighting scenes and not much in the way of the hiding / suspense from Part 1 but still good nonetheless.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Brilliant.

This is such a great story and it's surprisingly well written. It's a bit laddish, so beware the gay jokes and casual sexism. I found myself rolling my eyes. But it's worth putting up with because the story is so good. Onto book 3!

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Brilliant again!!!

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

Yes and I already have!!

What other book might you compare The Undead to, and why?

Dan Brown - WWZ - Very realistic to characters decisions.

Which character – as performed by Dan Morgan – was your favourite?

Dave

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes, as i listened to the book wherever I drove!

Any additional comments?

Next one please??

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Interesting Developments

I loved the first book and really enjoyed this second instalment. Part two goes a long way to developing characters and has really interesting way of telling the narrative through multiple points of view.

However, there seemed to be some odd pacing issues with this one, which included a lot of repeating and recapping previous events.

Hands down though, still very entertaining!

well read great stpry

This is a great story and very well read. Very gripping story, once started very hard to put down.

another fantastic instalment

this part of the series definitely doesn't disappoint. It's well written and delivered very well. keep them coming Mr Haywood.

Good series so far

I keep coming back for more parts.....
Must be good, those other items on my wish list are going to have to wait a bit longer