8 zombie books fans of The Walking Dead will love

Zombie books are not just for horror fans. Here’s a list of 8 zombie novels to satisfy a wide range of undead cravings.

While we love it when Rick whacks the dead with a flaming baseball bat, The Walking Dead is more about the relationships between the living rather than just the take down of dead creeps. Just as The Walking Dead plays on social divides and love triangles, other zombie tales explore a wide range of situations, emotions and characters. From takes of new love and dreams, to political conspiracies, to alternative history and futurist biotechnological possibilities — the zombie literary genre has it all. If you are seeking a few speculative books to add to your reading diet, then here are eight zombie books that are worth a walker nibble.

Patient Zero by by Jonathan Mayberry

Patient Zero is the first novel in the Joe Ledger series by Jonathan Mayberry, first published in 2009. Ledger is a Baltimore detective tasked by the Department of Military Sciences and the President to prevent a potential terrorist plot. Ledger and his team must hunt down the bad guy before the release of a lethal and reanimating pathogen. It is less zombie gore and more fast-paced action. So if you’d love to follow the adventures of a 24 Jack Bauer type hero as he takes down a terrorist — twice — then this is well worth a read.

Feed by Mira Grant

Feed is a 2010 novel by Mira Grant, the pen name of speculative writer Seanan McGuire. It is set 20 years after “the rising.” News blogger Georgia Mason and her brother Shaun have uncovered a lead regarding a political conspiracy linked to the outbreak. The clever title refers to both primal zombie urges and a play on news feeds in a dystopian world struggling to recover. The book was nominated for the 2011 Hugo Award for Best Novel. If you love the intrigue of The House of Cards as much as you love The Walking Dead, then this is a great read. Plus when you finish it, you can dive into the next story in the Newsflesh series.

The First Days by Rhiannon Frater

If you’re after a story about an ordinary person who wakes up to new world and finds themselves running from a zombie hoarde, then read The First Days by Rhiannon Frater. Frater’s 2008 novel is the first in her The World Dies trilogy. It features Katie and Jenni, two women in Texas who hit the road, slaughter zombies and find refuge in a fortified town. It is spirited read, packed with zombie tropes we love.

World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War by Max Brooks

You may have seen the Brad Pitt movie. However if you have not read the 2006 book its adapted from, then you are in for a treat. The narrative of World War Z is told as a collection of interviews conducted by an agent of the United Nations Postwar Commission following the outbreak of the zombie plague. It chronicles a decade of individual views on the outbreak from all corners of the globe. It is a serious and highly researched story, magnifying inept government, and the environmental and social costs of the outbreak. While you wait to see if a World War Z sequel film is happening, catch up on where it all began.

Warm Bodies by Isaac Marion

If you’d prefer to engage with a sympathetic zombie with a soul, then you will enjoy this paranormal zombie romance by Isaac Marion. Published in 2010, Warm Bodies is presented from a zombie’s perspective, as infected boy “R” forms an attachment to Julie, a human girl. Set in a weird world with various levels of zombie brain function, this tale is suited to those who love the romantic tragedies. The lead in the 2013 film version was played by Nicholas Hoult, known for his role as Hank The Beast in the X-Men Franchise.

Dead City by Sean Platt and Johnny B Truant

Dead City, the 2016 novel by Sean Platt and Johnny B Truant, takes place after a zombie outbreak. Millions of infected have had their symptoms paused thanks to the miracle drug “Necrophage,” produced by giant pharmaceutical company Hemisphere. Hemisphere executive, Ian Keys, uncovers company secrets which reveal that the wonder drug may not be the cure-all the company claims it to be. If you like biotech thrillers like those of Michael Crichton, then you will enjoy this race against the clock tale of scientific meddling and corporate espionage.

Boneshaker by Cherie Priest

Set in Seattle in the1880s, Cherie Priest’s 2009 science fiction novel Boneshaker merges the alternate history of steampunk with the zombie genre. A green zombifying gas called the “Blight” is released after a mishap when testing a titanic gold mining drill. Sixteen years later, Ezekiel, the son of the inventor of the drill, enters the toxic city. He battles “rotters,” air pirates and criminal elements as he seeks to clear his father’s name. This award winning novel is the first in The Clockwork Century series.

The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan

The Forest of Hands and Teeth is a NYT bestselling 2009 YA novel by Carrie Ryan, and soon to be a movie featuring Maisie Williams from Game of Thrones. It is a tale of a lonely girl called Mary who lives in a gated village surrounded by a forest filled with the infected. The cult-like town is governed by The Sisterhood and The Guardians, and claims to be the last bastion of humanity left on Earth. Mary has heard stories of the ocean and seeks to discover what lies beyond the walls of the secretive community. If you enjoyed the 2004 film The Village by M. Night Shyamalan, then this creepy book will suit.

Before reading, maybe close the blinds and lock your doors, just in case an actual zombie apocalypse happens while you’re chapters deep.

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