Review : Dearly, Departed by Lia Habel

Summary (from Goodreads)

Love can never die.

Love conquers all, so they say. But can Cupid’s arrow pierce the hearts of the living and the dead—or rather, the undead? Can a proper young Victorian lady find true love in the arms of a dashing zombie?

The year is 2195. The place is New Victoria—a high-tech nation modeled on the manners, mores, and fashions of an antique era. A teenager in high society, Nora Dearly is far more interested in military history and her country’s political unrest than in tea parties and debutante balls. But after her beloved parents die, Nora is left at the mercy of her domineering aunt, a social-climbing spendthrift who has squandered the family fortune and now plans to marry her niece off for money. For Nora, no fate could be more horrible—until she’s nearly kidnapped by an army of walking corpses.

But fate is just getting started with Nora. Catapulted from her world of drawing-room civility, she’s suddenly gunning down ravenous zombies alongside mysterious black-clad commandos and confronting “The Laz,” a fatal virus that raises the dead—and hell along with them. Hardly ideal circumstances. Then Nora meets Bram Griswold, a young soldier who is brave, handsome, noble . . . and dead. But as is the case with the rest of his special undead unit, luck and modern science have enabled Bram to hold on to his mind, his manners, and his body parts. And when his bond of trust with Nora turns to tenderness, there’s no turning back. Eventually, they know, the disease will win, separating the star-crossed lovers forever. But until then, beating or not, their hearts will have what they desire.

Personal Thoughts

When I first saw the summary of this book, I was completely enthralled by the premise of the book. It sounded so intriguing and original and I couldn't wait to get my hands on a copy of this book.

The book introduces us to Nora, a young orphan, who is devastated by the loss of her father. A year after her father's death, she is attacked by a group of zombies,The Grays, at her home. However, she is soon rescued by Bram Griswold who is a different version of zombie. He doesn't consume human flesh and has the ability to recall his memories unlike the other flesh-eating ones.
Nora was an interesting main character. She was quite easy to like. She was brave, stood up for herself and very open-minded. I liked the fact that she actually freaks out upon learning that her dad and her saviors have returned from the dead as zombies. I loved how although she hated her father for all the secrets he kept, she still wanted to do anything she could to help save him. She was a very tough girl who didn't allow anyone to manipulate her and tell her what to do. She knew when to make her own decisions and stood up for herself whenever the opportunity came. She was also very much devoted to her friendship with Pamela and she was ready to risk a lot in order to save her life.

Bram Griswold was the perfect love interest. He was sweet, caring, respectful, charming, handsome and a very good listener.Plus he was a zombie. I loved how he started to care for Nora and was ready to do anything to protect her. I also loved how honest he was with her. There were certain things his boss, Wolfe, had forbidden him from telling Nora upon her capture, but knowing how wrong it was and how Nora deserved to know the truth, he tells her everything. I liked that about his character.

Although Bram and Nora are very different in personalities, I thought they were very good for each other. Their relationship starts out from friendship and I'm a huge fun of progressively growing romance. The most interesting part of their relationship, according to me, was seeing both characters beginning to slowly trust each other. There was no such thing as insta-love in this book and I appreciated that. As a couple, Nora and Bram were very realistic. I really liked the fact that the author decided to concentrate more on the plot but she didn't disregard the romance totally either.

The secondary characters in the book are also awesome according to me. The non-flesheating zombies were funny and very lovable. Nora's best friend, Pamela, was yet another very likable character. She was as loyal and as caring as Nora and the reader could easily see why the two were best friends.
Even the villains were pretty interesting characters.

The plot of the book was intriguing. The idea of New Victorians, the future and zombies was highly original and I praise Lia Habel for her vast imagination. The plot was action-packed and the world the author has built was exciting. The author did a pretty good job at developing the world and characters.

The book was well-written. However, I had a big problem with the way the story was told. The book is written in 5 different POVs. I didn't like that and I was having a hard time getting used to that. I think the 5 POVs might put some people off. This aspect of the plot is what prevented me from giving 5 stars to this story.

Overall, I enjoyed Dearly Departed a lot. Full of action, interesting characters and an exciting world with zombies, this book swept me away.

Rating

Cover : 5/5
Plot : 5/5

Characters : 4/5

Writing : 3/5