Dust & Decay (Rot & Ruin)

Amazing second book! The whole plot was intense through ever y chapter and kept me clinging to every word. The imagery is breath taking (as always) and- SPOILERS -Tom' s death nearly ripped up my heart! Long live Tom Imura! <3

I really loved the short story, "Family Business", that introduced us to Benny & Tom (and introduced me to Jonathan Maberry) and "Rot & Ruin" remains my favorite Maberry book by a wide margin, so I was very much looking forward to "Dust & Decay". While it's a good read, it lacked the emotion and drive of its predecessor.

A giant step back from my first Maberry read. This one tries to get into family dynamics and some type of moral guidance. It is supposed to be a Zom novel- a nice exciting break from our day to day grind but it is missing on most points. It is readable but not by much. Wooden swords and respect for Zoms???? What's next Zombie Lib!! Way too much attempt to humanize a ficticious thing that has a huge following for just the opposite reason. Missed the mark on this one Maberry!!!!

Back in November 2010, I had the privilege of reading Rot & Ruin by Jonathan Maberry and since that day I longed to get back to the rot & ruin with my friends Benny, Nix and Tom. Finally, I was able to return and the wait, while I still hate waiting, was ENTIRELY worth it! Dust & Decay is AWESOME! I continue to love the world that Mr Maberry has created with his characters.

The setting in the world of Dust & Decay is wonderful and very believable, but for this reader...it's the characters. Jonathan Maberry has created characters that you TRULY care about. The compassion, love and loathing that each person in the rot & ruin feel for each other is nearly tangible. Nix is a strong female character who has her moments of vulnerability, but does not let her grief take her down. Benny is a typical teenage boy with all the typical insecurities and the added stress of dealing with zoms and trained to quiet them and survive the other threats that lurk within the rot & ruin. Tom, Benny's older brother, is a force to be reckoned with and man to be admired. He has made quite a name for himself and is very much respected by the friendly bounty hunters in the area and, while they would never admit it, he is feared by those who are not

Speaking of the more cordial bounty hunters...while I am not going to go into each new character we meet in Dust & Decay, I do have to profess my love and undying affection for Dr Skillz and J-Dog! You have not lived until you've read a scene where two seriously righteous surfer dudes are whaling some serious carnage on zoms! It's totally awesome, bra! PLEASE do not let them die, Jonathan, but if they must I know you will make it be a most excellent death.

Yes, I could go into further detail about the story, but there are reviews out there already who have praised the merits of Dust & Decay and I back those reviews 100%. Suffice it to say that Dust & Decay is yet another reason Jonathan Maberry is a best selling author. The man knows how to tell a story, he knows how to make his readers care or loath a character and his stories have heart, which is something that is not often found in this genre.

A DEFINITE MUST READ for any reader, zombie fan or not. Dust & Decay is simply a wonderful book.

Dust & Decay is probably my favorite book in the Rot & Ruin series (they are all so amazing that it’s hard to pick a favorite). This book is intense! There’s non-stop action, suspense, and an emotionally gripping storyline. This is everything a good book should be.

Jonathan Maberry is powerful writer who knows exactly how to deliver a YA horror book. The monsters in Dust & Decay aren’t zombies at all…no, the monsters are a terrible side of humanity. Humans can be monsters too, and Jonathan Maberry doesn’t shy away from this ugly, scary, and heart-racing plot.

I was hooked from the beginning and read this book in one sitting. He’s crafted a world in which you are instantly pulled into. The characters are real, the struggles are real, and the suspense is never-ending. This doesn’t just deal with the destroyed world beyond the safe town of Mountainside. It deals with corruption, conflict, and emotional turmoil that these characters experience.

One of the things I love about this book is not just the nonstop action, but how realistically these teenagers are portrayed. These characters are so real that they could be my friends! They have real problems, real conversations, and real conflicts. They way they interact is perfect!

This is a gripping book that I highly recommend to any and all!

My Rating: 5 Stars

Avg. Good Reads Rating: 4.35

Series: Benny Imura #2

Genre: YA Post-Apocalyptic/Horror

Publisher: Simon and Schuster

Pages: 519

Best for: 16+

Good Reads Summary:

Six months have passed since the terrifying battle with Charlie Pink-eye and the Motor City Hammer in the zombie-infested mountains of the Rot and Ruin. It’s also been six months since Benny Imura and Nix Riley saw something in the air that changed their lives. Now, after months of rigorous training with Benny’s zombie-hunter brother Tom, Benny and Nix are ready to leave their home forever and search for a better future. Lilah the Lost Girl and Benny’s best friend Lou Chong are going with them.

But before they even leave there is a shocking zombie attack in town, and as soon as they step into the Rot and Ruin they are pursued by the living dead, wild animals, insane murderers, and the horrors of Gameland, where teenagers are forced to fight for their lives in the zombie pits. Worst of all, could the evil Charlie Pink-eye still be alive?

In the great Rot and Ruin, everything wants to kill you. And not everyone in Benny’s small band of travelers will survive.

My Quick Recap:

After spending months training and preparing to go after the jet they saw heading east, Benny, Nix, Tom, and Lilah head out into the Rot and Ruin, with Benny’s friend Chong in tow to see them off. Things go bad from the start. Wild animals are acting strangely, the dead are moving in ways Tom’s never witnessed, and there are rumors of a new Gameland spreading. A new Gameland under new management. Tom wants to leave it all behind, but when Chong splits from the group in a moment of stupidity, the forces of evil in the Ruin (not including the zoms) start moving in. In an insane two days, Benny’s life goes from hopeful to horrifying, especially when he discovers the real enemy is not the zoms.

Holy crap this series is AMAZING. If you haven’t read Rot and Ruin, you need to push that to the top of your to-read list (you can find my review HERE) and start reading it NOW. This is one of the best series I’ve read in a long time.

If I could move like this champ, that’s what I would have done at the end of this book. This book covers about two days, and SO MUCH happens in that 48 hours. More action is packed into the last 100 pages than is in the entirety of many other books.

I love the characters in this series. I think they are all interesting, and each responds to situations differently; each has to rise to the occasion (which doesn’t always happen). Each one of them fails from time to time, but they pick themselves up and dust themselves off without too much unnecessary drama. Post-apocalyptic books are all about survival, so there’s very little room for superfluous drama.

I want to start a Tom Imura fan-club. I’m sure there’s one out there. He’s awesome. And I LOVE that you see a scary side of him in this book. I knew it was there, but you never really saw it in the first book. He gets pushed over the edge and the result is terrifying. He’s like an angel of death. I kept picturing River from Serenity, mowing down the Reavers. Except Tom was taking out EVERYONE. Zoms and humans.

Yeah, this book gets INTENSE.

Benny and Nix grow up a lot this book. They spend some time on their own, and you see them working through how they relate to each other. It’s a nice little journey and even though they are only 15, they have very complicated feelings. They’ve been through more already than most adults will ever go through, which brings a certain level of maturity. I really like them as the central figures of this story. They both make a lot more mistakes than right decisions, and watching them try to clean up their messes is rather interesting.

The two that grow the most, though, are Chong and Lilah. Chong wasn’t even a major player in the first book, but he steps into the spotlight here with a really rough story. He makes one very idiotic decision that leads to his captivity for a big portion of the book. Lilah has to figure out how she relates to other humans since she’s been on her own in the Ruin for so long. I really enjoyed getting to see these two grow. That’s one of the best part of this series is that the characters are truly dynamic.

So, the writing is amazing, the characters are interesting and dynamic, the romance is sweet, the action is RIDICULOUSLY INTENSE, and the end is this:

It's a bumpy ride.

Similar reads: Blood Red Road by Moira Young

"Courage is tricky, oily. Easy to drop, easy to misplace."
"I thought that if you had courage you always had it.". . .
"Lilah, nothing is always there. Not courage, not joy, not hate or hope or anything else. We find courage, lose it, sometimes misplace it for years, and sometimes live in its grace for a while."

That seems to be the theme of this book. At some point and time everyone is human, loses their resolve and needs a little help to find the courage to move forward and to fight.

Dust and Decay starts seven months after the end of the Rot and Ruin. Benny and Nix have been training with Tom to be ready after the winter to start the trek east to find the plane. Chong has been training to but that is more about Lilah then anything else. Lilah has been living with the Chong family and well, Chong is smitten but she is totally oblivious to his feelings and will be leaving with Tom, Benny and Nix. But after they leave town things go horribly wrong.

Chong has tagged along for the first day for some real Rot and Ruin experience and to spend some last moments with Lilah but before they know it they run into unexpected dangers and while Chong is book smart he is Ruin stupid and makes all the wrong choices.

This book was some non-stop adventure and action once our group leaves for the Rot and Ruin. With Tom leaving the area someone is trying to take up all the territory and make a name for themselves. Lawlessness abounds and the Zoms are starting to do strange things, they are congregating and moving in large packs at faster speeds. There are rumors of a new Gameland and even worse villains than Charley Piny-Eye. With everything trying to kill them there is no way there won't be any casualties.

Nix, I love her she is so strong and determined even though she is terrified and dealing with all the loses she undertook in the first book. She is still haunted by the pain of Charlie Pink-Eye and the death of her mother. I love her and Benny's fierce devotion to protecting each other. It is not a touchy, feely, squishy kind of love but it is obvious that it is love none the less.

Chong, well he makes plenty of mistakes...so so many mistakes. Chong, through it all searches for some redemption and a way to make up for the mistakes he has made. I admire the devotion of everyone in the group to each other. They are all willing to stand up to any obstacle and protect one another out of love and not fear or hate.

Lilah has been alone for so long with no one and nothing to care for or about. What happens to our fearless lost Girl when she is given friends and a make shift family. It was a very good portrayal of the conflict and new emotions that someone might have to go through when they begin to be a part of a social group after so long in isolation.

.......And Tom. I don't know where to start on this, my feeling for him are everywhere after reading this. Tom is my favorite character of the book. He is the ultimate hero, who doesn't know he is a hero. He is ever leading by example and asks nothing for himself. He is a good brother, a great friend and all his actions are rule by a love of those around him.
"Generosity could be as contagious as the zombie plague as long as enough people were willing to be carriers."

It seems like there is still a lot in store for all the characters as they finally push farther east to find what became of the rest of civilization. I can't wait to see where the next installment of the series goes.

I absolutely loved Rot & Ruin. It was an astounding zombie YA series starter, with just the right mix of the horrors that men can do verses the zombie carnage. There was a thought-provoking focus on the fact that zombies used to be people, and therefore they should be respected for what they were as well as feared for what they now are - something a lot of zombie stories fail to take into account.

Dust & Decay keeps the theme in the same general vein, but having already established that zombies deserve respect, spends more time on thrilling action and the atrocities humans subject each other too. After month of training, Tom, Benny, Nix and Lilah are finally heading out to search for the plane they saw in Rot & Ruin. Having trouble saying goodbye, Chong heads out with them for the first leg of the journey, only to prove that he may be smart, but really isn't the outdoorsy type.

Problems abound. Life and death situations are faced. Evil men prove more dangerous than herds of zombies. Love of all kinds is found, tested, strengthened and cherished many times over.

While Dust & Decay is horrific and terrifying, thrilling and action-packed, what the reader will be surprised to find is how emotional the book - and the entire series - is. The book sucks you in, the characters get under your skin, and you won't be able to pull yourself away from the page. Dust & Decay is an emotional thrill-ride that will leave you shaken for a long time to come. Zombie perfection.

Forget the walking dead, this is where first class zombie action is at! My heart was pounding through the whole book! I usually prefer a single, first person narrative as opposed to several third person narratives(especially in YA novels) but Jonathan Maberry's writing won me over.

It reminded me of an awesome action/ adventure TV show where the movement from one scene to another is flawless. The pacing was great and I was eagerly awaiting the continuation of each characters story, even from characters that weren't exactly high on my list of favourites *cough* Chong *cough*

In this sequel I found myself disagreeing a bit more with the moral voice of the story i.e. Tom. While I do agree that you should have respect for the dead I do not think that you should put them above the living. I feel like Tom is doing that to an extent when he only kills for closure jobs and self defense. Sure you don't have to kill that zombie, but by letting it live you are essentially putting other people's lives in danger. People that maybe are not "warrior smart" enough to handle an attack. Zombies that you spare endanger the living. It's as simple as that.

Despite some internal disagreements I had with some of the characters, I still really enjoyed this novel. It was amazing. The subject matter is pretty dark though, I might have to take a breather between the next books in the series ... Oh who am I kidding, bring on book number three!

As per usual the cover art was great.

Dust & Decay by Jonathan Maberry is probably one of the most action packed and thrilling books I've read ever. I know I say this a lot, but I would LOVE to see it as a movie. Even knowing what's supposed to happen I would probably be close to falling off the edge of my seat for the ENTIRE movie.

Benny and Co. have been training for months with Tom. Training to become "Warrior Smart" as they call it. To learn how to fight and how to survive. Because soon Tom, Nix, Benny, and Lilah are going to be leaving Mountainside in search of the jet they'd seen pass overhead months and months ago. Even Chong is going to accompany them for part of the way. Until everything goes wrong. Everyone gets separated from everyone else and it would take a miracle for them all to end up back together in one piece.

There were some new characters introduced in this installment of the Benny Imura series. We meet Preacher Jack who seems a little creepy and too much like he's hiding something, Sally Two-Knives who is a fearsome bounty hunter who lost both of her children on first knight, and J-Dog and Dr. Skillz who try to keep the beach in their bounty hunting. We also stumble briefly across the Greenman who some believe is just a figment of their imagination.

I loved the new bounty hunters. The ones that were friends with Tom. Fiercely loyal to him the play an integral role in the quest to bring down an empire that has taken over the Ruin for far too long. Tom is still, by far, my favorite character. I hated Preacher Jack. Hated him. Him and White Bear and everyone associated with him. Horrible people, all of them. Proof that the most terrifying thing after a zombie apocalypse may not, in fact, be the zombies.

In all honesty, I almost could not force myself to put the book down. If I could have read it in my sleep with my eyes closed I would have. And I can count on one hand the number of books that have made me cry. This is one of them. And I don't just mean little tears here and there. I had to put the book down and take my glasses off for a minute before I could continue reading. And I cheated and read the description of the next book so I even KNEW what was going to happen. I still bawled like a baby. I'm not ashamed to admit it.

If you have read Rot & Ruin you HAVE to read Dust & Decay. If you haven't read book one, do it and then read book two. This is an absolute must read recommendation to EVERYONE.

Dust & Decay by Jonathan Maberry is probably one of the most action packed and thrilling books I've read ever. I know I say this a lot, but I would LOVE to see it as a movie. Even knowing what's supposed to happen I would probably be close to falling off the edge of my seat for the ENTIRE movie.

Benny and Co. have been training for months with Tom. Training to become "Warrior Smart" as they call it. To learn how to fight and how to survive. Because soon Tom, Nix, Benny, and Lilah are going to be leaving Mountainside in search of the jet they'd seen pass overhead months and months ago. Even Chong is going to accompany them for part of the way. Until everything goes wrong. Everyone gets separated from everyone else and it would take a miracle for them all to end up back together in one piece.

There were some new characters introduced in this installment of the Benny Imura series. We meet Preacher Jack who seems a little creepy and too much like he's hiding something, Sally Two-Knives who is a fearsome bounty hunter who lost both of her children on first knight, and J-Dog and Dr. Skillz who try to keep the beach in their bounty hunting. We also stumble briefly across the Greenman who some believe is just a figment of their imagination.

I loved the new bounty hunters. The ones that were friends with Tom. Fiercely loyal to him the play an integral role in the quest to bring down an empire that has taken over the Ruin for far too long. Tom is still, by far, my favorite character. I hated Preacher Jack. Hated him. Him and White Bear and everyone associated with him. Horrible people, all of them. Proof that the most terrifying thing after a zombie apocalypse may not, in fact, be the zombies.

In all honesty, I almost could not force myself to put the book down. If I could have read it in my sleep with my eyes closed I would have. And I can count on one hand the number of books that have made me cry. This is one of them. And I don't just mean little tears here and there. I had to put the book down and take my glasses off for a minute before I could continue reading. And I cheated and read the description of the next book so I even KNEW what was going to happen. I still bawled like a baby. I'm not ashamed to admit it.

If you have read Rot & Ruin you HAVE to read Dust & Decay. If you haven't read book one, do it and then read book two. This is an absolute must read recommendation to EVERYONE.

This is the second book in the Benny Imura series. Honestly I didn’t like this book nearly as much as the first. There are two more books in this series “Flesh and Bone” and “Fire and Ash”.

I listened to this on audiobook and the audiobook was really well done. It has the same narrator as the first book and I really enjoyed listening to it. The narrator does an excellent job with character voices and an excellent job conveying emotion.

Everyone is recovering from the events with Charlie Pink-Eye in the first book. Benny, Nix, and Tom are ready to leave Mountainside and track down the plane they saw in the first book. However Mountainside doesn’t want to Tom to leave, they are worried about other evil bounty hunters moving in to take his place. One bounty hunter, named White Bear, is causing a lot of trouble. Now there is a bounty on Tom’s head and it seems like Gameland is more prosperous than ever.

This was still a good book but I didn't like it nearly as much as the first one. I was disappointed that this book was about similar issues as the first book. I was all excited to read about Benny, Tom, Lila, and Nix's journey across the Rot and Ruin, instead what I got was more of the same as the last book.

Pretty much as soon as the group leaves Mountainside things start going wrong. We end up reading about territory wars with “evil” bounty hunters and trouble with Gameland. I find the whole Gameland idea to be a bit silly and was disappointed that so much of this book focused on that. I was hoping to read more about the Rot and Ruin as a whole, and gain better understanding of this world and why the zombies happened.

Benny has definitely grown as a character since the first book. Nix is harboring a lot of rage for what happened to her mother in the last book, we watch as she struggles through this anger.

Lila is in the story a lot, which is awesome. She too is struggling with issues of fitting in. She is so used to surviving alone, that it is tough to watch her as she struggles to become part of society.

We meet a lot of awesome new “good” bounty hunters. It was super fun to meet some of the bounty hunters we’ve heard so much about from the Zombie cards. We also meet a lot of completely evil baddies. There was a lot more action in this book as welll we get to see Tom kick some serious butt. As I mentioned above we also get very up and personal with Gameland.

This book is still well written and I love that there is a lot of philosophical introspection as well as zombie fights. There is brief mention about zombies starting to Swarm and some curious stuff going on where zombies are acting different than they have in the past. I just wish we had got to hear more about that and less about Gameland.

Overall a decent continuation of this series. These books are well written and I love that there is time spent on philisophy, as well as fighting zombies. I was disappointed that this book was more about Gameland and evil bounty hunters. I was hoping to read about Nix, Benny, and Tom journeying across the Rot and Ruin. We do get to meet a lot of new bounty hunters that are awesome and there are some spectacular fight scenes in here. Recommended to those who enjoy post-apocalyptic zombie novels.

This second installment of the series was even better than the first. Dust & Decay is packed with action, almost from the very beginning. It's hard to believe that everything that happens fits into just one book. Every chapter was a new opportunity to bite my nails off for a different character. I really enjoy how Jonathan Maberry took me down a winding path throughout this book -- from one characters predicament to another with each turn of the page. I literally could not put this book down. I read over 500 pages in a matter of 48 hours. That's not always an easy feat with young children running around my house.

Dust & Decay begins with hope. Hope for an exciting adventure and a new life for Benny, Tom, and their friends. But it doesn't take long for everything to go south once their journey begins.

In the months since the events of Rot & Ruin, Tom has been training Benny and his friends to be "warrior smart." Preparing them, physically and mentally, for what lies beyond the ruin they already know. Before they even leave Mountainside there are unexpected events they must deal with. Once they decide to head out, the action never stops. Not only are they being chased by zombies, but they have Preacher Jack and White Bear (new characters in this series) to contend with. They also have to deal with the infamous and horrific place called Gameland - where children are taken to fight in zombie pits.

Dust & Decay completely blew me away. I could easily see myself reading it again.. just to make sure I didn't miss anything. This is at the top of list of favorite books.

Geesh. What an intense ride. I award the second book in the Rot and Ruin trilogy 4.5 stars.

Dust and Decay by Jonathan Maberry is the next installment in the trilogy and it doesn't disappoint. We rejoin Benny and the crew 6 months after the end of the last book. He and his friends have been training with his brother, Tom, who is the hero of the Rot and Ruin and almost a sheriff that brings a sense of law to the wilderness. Benny and friends believe it's time to find the plane they saw at the end of the book, and they head back out into the Ruin. Unsurprisingly, they immediately find trouble. What happens next almost feels like a combination of the old Westerns and the Avengers. We meet some of the Bounty Hunters from the Zombie Cards, which was probably one of the most fun parts. It takes skill to make me starstruck when it's a made up world.

I wasn't sure at first about this book, I'll be honest. It started slow and built up steadily. We revisit a lot of the first book in the first 20%, and we don't necessarily reach new ground truly until after that. Second books can be extremely difficult to write-- the novelty of the Rot and Ruin is gone, so Mayberry has to bring something new to the table-- and he does. The beginning was lighthearted, a lot like the first book. I think this is Mayberry's way of having us as readers remember some of the good times before times got hard and to give us a stark antithesis of what their life used to be. But Mayberry has a talent at getting at the heart of an issue and making us feel so intimate even though he expands the character pool by at least double. That is a very difficult task. Something awful happens in this book, which to me, was almost predictable and necessary, but still emotionally packed. And it was done in the only way it could have been done.

Overall, a roller coaster ride, and an impressive follow up to Rot and Ruin. After I take some time to get over the emotional events of this book, I'll pick up the third.

Twisty, turny Dust & Decay. Oh how you entertained me and surprised me again and again. You may not think a book can keep your attention for a little over 500 pages, but this one kept mine. Just when I thought that nothing was around the next corner, Maberry would throw a grenade in the story.

Dust & Decay is fast paced and easy to read. The writing is lovely yet brutal when the circumstances call for it. The world itself is still pretty. Trees, flowers, bees...and Mayberry does not forget to show us that. But events have made humans and humanity ugly and that is shown as well. The contrast is interesting.

A great plot device is Nix's journal entries. She asks questions that the reader may ask and also gives important workings of the world in Dust & Decay, including zombies. I would bet that a lot of the scientific details in Nix's journals is accurate since I know that Maberry is very conscious about research. I also really appreciate how the events of the first book Rot & Ruin are peppered throughout the book, not recapped all in one place and only important pertinent information is given. And the humor! Let's not forget the humor throughout. It gives a refreshing break from the stressful plot.

The zombie mythology and the slang that comes out of this world is pretty cool. "If you look into a zombie's eyes you will see how you look as a zombie." Chilling isn't it? How some people feel that the zoms are the meek that are inheriting the earth. The questions and theories are laid out for the reader by the characters. The slang is also a lot of fun that the Bounty Hunters use. The world building is subtle, yet thorough and organic.

I also really like how the romance is played out between Benny and Nix. They truly love each other, but both question the reality of being "in" love. Is it only because they've known each other for so long? Or because of what they went through together? Either way they have a bond which grows stronger as events unfold.

Many of the characters go through transformations. Harsh words, contemplation and regret lead to change between many, but I feel most dramatically with Lilah. She realizes that people she has been avoiding all her life, may actually care for her. It was interesting to watch her deal with the implications of that.

Two of my other favorite characters are Dr. Skillz and J-Dog. I love their surfer slang and attitude. Surfers can be so zen and they show it with humor and class in the midst of defending themselves and their friends. Sally Two Knives is also a great character, a tough woman who always does the right thing and I loved the Greenman, with his gentle ways and contemplative words. I think he is the Yoda of the land.

Someone stated to me that they felt the dialogue is a bit preachy at times. I can understand this opinion, but it didn't bother me. Sometimes people need things spelled out for them to roll around in their mind. Benny and Nix's adventures are always going to be lessons and Tom has to try to be the teacher so that they can survive. However, for the most part, the story lets the characters learn without someone having to point out the right and wrong of it.

At first I didn't like the alternate point of views, but it was used sparingly until the end when it was needed most. I liked how I saw the different "scenes" of the book simultaneously and got to know different characters a bit better.

This is a first rate book that everyone should read. Adults, kids, reading groups, zombie lovers. I definitely see it becoming an important piece of fiction and it has very teachable moments.

Wow. Just wow. The second book in the Benny Imura Series, Dust & Decay is even more fantastic than Rot & Ruin!

I read a lot of reviews criticizing this series because it is not just a slash 'em up, head chopping zombie story. In addition, some readers think Maberry is preaching with all his 'zombies are people too' speeches. I actually found that to be a nice change of pace. The Benny Imura series imagines a wide spectrum of issues that may result from this unfortunate situation, which are typically ignored by other books in this sub-genre. Remember, this series doesn't take place at the moment of the apocalypse; it takes place many years later as society is trying to find its way back. People are just trying to live their lives as normally as possible under extraordinary circumstances.

Relationships continue. Benny and Nix' relationship progresses. Lilah tries to adjust to living with others again. And everyone has to find a way to live with the scars of past experiences.

Tom continues his role as the conscience of the new world. He is without a doubt, the hero of Dust & Decay just as he was in Rot & Ruin. He performs his job out of necessity, with precision and respect.

There are a lot of close calls. For example, somehow escaping when surrounded by hundreds of zombies. Killing off all the main characters would end the series pretty quickly. However, Maberry doesn't insult the reader by resorting to unbelievable circumstances. The zombies don't attack one at a time and the author doesn't make things convenient for the main characters. When they are out in the Ruin, they run into bad guys and zombies. They get cut. They get burned. They get the snot beat out of them. All this is not a matter of 'if,' it's a matter of 'when.'

Along the same lines, even though Dust & Decay takes place six months after the events in Rot & Ruin, Benny and his friends are not miraculously masters as is Tom. They still use the wooden sword or bokken. I would think the temptation to cheat and turn the characters into butt kicking samurais would be great, but the author refrains from such tactics. Yes it is more exciting to be shooting guns and chopping heads with actual swords, but it would indeed be cheating.

I am also impressed with how consistent the characters and storyline remain. Cadaverine is still commonly used to distract zombies. Lilah still booby traps her surroundings to announce any visitors. Nix still struggles with the loss of her mother. And Morgie still hurts from the fact that his feelings for Nix are not returned. Although the characters' personalities pretty much remain the same, they do mature. Maberry manages to keep this level of consistency without sacrificing character maturity.

One of my favorite things about this series is the warped religious fanaticism to which some resort-

"Only the Children of Lazarus are pure of heart and immaculate of soul... They are the meek raised up from death to inherit this new Garden of Eden." [Preacher Jack] opened his arms wide to include the green and overgrown expanse of the Rot and Ruin. "They have been reborn in the blood of the old world, washed clean of their sins, and they now walk in the light of redemption. It is only us, the dwindling few, who cling to old ways of sin and heresy and godlessness." Creepy... I love creepy.

And the writing is phenomenal. Maberry can set a scene (A TEENY SPOILER)-

"Then he kissed her. First, very lightly on the line of stitches that crossed her brow, and then more firmly on the lips.
She kissed him back, and it wasn't merely reflex. She kissed him like she meant it. Then she stepped back and looked at him with green eyes that were filled with a thousand mysteries. For once Benny felt like he understood some of them.
He smiled and held out his hand, and Nix took it. Together they turned away from the charred graveyard of the dead and headed east. The road before them was tangled in weeds, but the sun glimmered like a promise on every blade of grass."

To understand how amazing this scene is, try to visualize it. They are having an intensely intimate moment right in the middle of hundreds of charred zombie bodies and body parts. The sharp contrast is mind-boggling. This could be a classroom assignment- read this excerpt and write a paper about the symbolism of the scene and the contrast between what is happening and the backdrop. Can you imagine this book as assigned reading? That teacher would be AWESOME!

It continues-

"As they walked away they did not see the figure that stepped from behind a stand of fire-blackened pines. It was a tall man. Thin as a scarecrow in a black coat, with white hair that fluttered in the hot wind. He watched the two teenagers as they walked along the road.
The man moved as silently as a shadow as he crossed the field to the way station. He stopped and those cold eyes read the message written in the soot. His lips moved as he read the words, and then he chuckled softly to himself.
He stood for a long time with his lips pursed, considering the words. Then he used the hard, flat palm of his hand to wipe them out. All that remained was a smear of soot. The figure turned and looked at the road. Nix and Benny were tiny dots now, and as he watched they vanished into the far woods.
The man smiled and, quiet as death, followed."

Again, just visualize that. Can you see Sam Elliot? I so want them to make these into movies and I want Preacher Jack to be Sam Elliot! This is some good writing.(END OF TEENY SPOILER)

I believe there will be four books in this series. One of my concerns is that Maberry will not be able to continue this level of writing through to the end. I was skeptical that Dust & Decay could be as good as Rot & Ruin and it turned out to be better. I am afraid that after being blown away by Dust & Decay, I am doomed to disappointment. Here's to hoping I'm wrong...

What I Liked: 1) Benny and Tom. Their relationship has changed so much since we first met them, and I really enjoyed seeing them interact as siblings. There is a big age difference between them, but they've forged a tenuous relationship now that Benny has learned more about what happened on First Night and why they left their parents. What I think is so awesome is the similarities between the two. It's little things that I'm not sure they would notice, but as an observer, I saw them. It was awesome that Mr. Maberry was able to bring those familial similarities to life through his words. 2) Benny and Nix. Sometimes, when I read books that are set in a world so completely different than my own (like for example, zombies have taken over the planet, and there are more zombies than people) I have a hard time remembering that there are normal things that still exist. For example, Benny and Nix are developing this relationship, and it's awkward, and they don't really know what to do. It's sweet, and familiar. Like, no matter what happens in the world, zombies or now, teenage love doesn't change. I'm giggling just thinking about it. 3) The Rot and Ruin. We first went into the Rot and Ruin in the first book, but this time the characters, and the readers are more prepared. We explored a different area this time, and learned more about how to survive out there where zombies and bounty hunters rule. It was a very exciting place to get lost. Or, scary. 4) The new bounty hunters. We got to know the bad guys in Rot and Ruin, but now we got to meet some more people who were like Tom. It gave me a lot more insight into how the world of zoms works. There is a hierarchy, or an order to how things are run in the Rot and Ruin. It's kind of like, making sense of chaos, but it definitely works. 5) The ending. So much emotion. I had tears.

What I Didn't Like: Loved it!

Overall Thoughts: Once again, Jonathon Maberry does not disappoint. He's brought all of his incredible characters back in a big way and introduced many more who add a new dimension to this world that's overrun with zombies. Whether you love Zombie fic, or haven't read it because they freak you out (which was where I started!) I highly recommend you check out this series. The third book, Flesh and Bone recently hit shelves, and it's definitely on my list!

This book picks up several months after the destruction of Gameland and the death of Charlie Pink-eye. After seeing the jet, Nix is determined to find out where it came from. Since the death of her mother, she feels no connection to their small town. Even though Benny seemed happy to go, the closer it gets to their deadline, he secretly wonders if he really wants to go on their adventure.

Even though he is not following them, Tom arranges to take Chong with them into the Rot and Ruin for a one or two day camping trip. Chong has been training with Benny, Nix, and Morgie. Tom feels that it is important for Chong to know what the Rot and Ruin really held. However, even though Tom intentionally took paths that were mostly untraveled, their trip went from bad to worse. And, in the midst of it all, Benny thinks he has seen Charlie Pink-eye!

It is hard to say too much about this book without giving the whole story away. I will say, however, I love the characters Maberry introduced in the book! The bounty hunters were not the main characters in the book, but it honestly could not have stood without them. Further, Maberry did a wonderful job keeping the reader in the dark about the current status of Charlie Pink-eye.

The book had great pacing and didn't lack in the plot department. The scenery was just as rich and well thought out as the first book. Honestly, the author did a wonderful job keeping the continuity through both books. Even though there were some things that really distressed me in the book, I am very curious to see how the series plays out.

After a very emotional and thrilling ride with Benny Imura in Rot & Ruin, Jonathan Maberry has left me almost speechless by Dust & Decay. (I wouldn't be me if I didn't always have something to say!) If you haven't read Rot & Ruin... Oh my God. PLEASE, GO get it and Dust & Decay because it comes out today!

Dust & Decay picks up just a few months after we left Benny and his friends in the last book. They are preparing for their trip across the great Rot & Ruin in hopes of finding the origin of the JET they had seen while rescuing Nix from Charlie and Hammer in last book.

An unexpected zombie outbreak IN TOWN causes Tom to drastically move up the date of their departure. He invites Morgie and Chong to go with them on an 'over-night' camping trip as a farewell. Chong is less than thrilled, and Morgie completely refuses to go. Morgie is still harboring some WICKED hard feelings over Benny and Nix being together and the last words he says to Benny are,

"I hope you die out there Benny. I hope you all die." ~Morgie

From the MOMENT their camping trip begins... YOU will NOT be able to put this book down. Danger, adventure and carnage ensue in one heart-stopping/breathe-catching moment after another.

Chong disappears into the forest, Charlie 'Pink-Eye' may still be alive and there are rumors that Gameland is back up and running. White Bear is scarier than ANY zombie, and has every bounty hunter in the Ruin looking to bring in the famous Tom Imura, Benny, Lilah and Nix... dead or alive...

Dust & Decay is FIERCE, fast-paced, gut-wrenching- and BEAUTIFULLY written. With each chapter the intensity increases, grabs a hold of you and doesn't release you until the very last page...

Jonathan Maberry weaves together witty humor, sob inducing emotion and the horror of unabashed reality in a story about family, friendship, love, loss, life... death... and of course ZoMbIeS.

Gold Star Award Winner!

Benny made it back from the Rot & Ruin only to start training with his brother, Tom, to leave again. After seeing the airplane fly over, Benny, Nix, Lilah, and Tom have been anxious to find out where it was going. Could there be civilization beyond the Rot & Ruin?

Every day, Tom trains Benny, Nix, Lilah, and Chong. He prepares them to fight the Zoms they are sure to encounter on their long trek across the dangerous country.

Everyone has different feelings about leaving home. Benny isn't sure he wants to leave FOREVER, but is willing to in order to be with Nix. Nix, who has nothing left, is desperate to leave behind all the bad memories. Lilah just wants to feel freedom and live outside the fences again. Tom decides he has to leave, since his countless pleas to the town leader's to build up defenses have fallen on deaf ears. Chong, without the permission of his parents, will be staying behind.

Tom plans an overnight trip to help the kids practice living beyond the fences. Chong is given permission to accompany his friends for this short adventure, which gives him more time to spend with Lilah.

The overnight outing doesn't go as planned though, and the kids are separated from each other and Tom. Evidence points to the possibility that Gameland is up and running again and, even worse, could Charlie Pink Eye still be alive?

DUST & DECAY is filled with danger and excitement, love and hatred. It keeps the reader engaged from the first page to the last. The horrors the characters live through are heartbreaking. This is a zombie book that will bring you to tears.

Reviewed by: Karin Librarian

If "Rot & Ruin" brought me into Benny Imura's world, "Dust & Decay" hung a SOLD sign on a piece of property and ensured I'd stay. The characterization is beautiful. Tom Imura is a hero in every sense of the word, and he does him best to instil morality and a sense of justice in Benny and his friends. It's not always easy, and even the most well meaning people make mistakes. But when faced with real evil, Benny and his friends must stand together to do what's right, even if it means a bigger sacrifice than they experienced before.

There's so much action in this story. Once it picks up, it doesn't really stop. The story is also told from several points of view, although Benny's is still the strongest and most frequent. We see more zombies, greater zombie variation, and a fully rebuilt Gameland. I can't say more without giving something away, and it's a climax that has to be experienced, not spoiled.

Yep, I ended up crying by the end. Ugly crying. And losing an entire day to reading. Totally worth it. Fantastic story. Looking forward to the next.

This is probably one of my favorite new series, and definitely one of my top two favorite zombie series. I love these characters. I love how sarcastic they are, but at the same time how very young and scared they can be. This book was great because we are introduced to more great characters.

Our heroes leave town and go out into the great Rot & Ruin. A great adventure starts, but immediately things go wrong. There are many surprises and terrors in store for Benny and the gang. This book is so wrought with tension, I almost needed a drink to read it. (Okay, so I did need extra Dr. Pepper, but...that's not bad, right??)

I have the third one sitting on my shelf right now, calling out to me. But, I'm trying to pace myself.