Paul is Undead: The British Zombie Invasion by Alan Goldsher

LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, IT'S TIME TO REALLY MEET THE BEATLES.

For John Lennon, a young, idealistic zombie guitarist with dreams of global domination, Liverpool seems the ideal place to form a band that could take over the world. In an inspired act, Lennon kills and reanimates local rocker Paul McCartney, kicking off an unstoppable partnership. With the addition of newly zombified guitarist George Harrison and drummer/Seventh Level Ninja Lord Ringo Starr, the Beatles soon cut a swath of bloody good music and bloody violent mayhem across Europe, America, and the entire planet.

In this searing oral history, discover how the Fab Four climbed to the Toppermost of the Poppermost while stealing the hearts, ears, and brains of smitten teenage girls. Learn the tale behind a spiritual journey that resulted in the dismemberment of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. Marvel at the seemingly indestructible quartet’s survival of a fierce attack by Eighth Level Ninja Lord Yoko Ono. And find out how the boys escaped eternal death at the hands of England’s greatest zombie hunter, Mick Jagger.

Through all this, one mystery remains: Can the Beatles sublimate their hunger for gray matter, remain on top of the charts, and stay together for all eternity? After all, three of the Fab Four are zombies, and zombies live forever. . . .

When I saw this book reviewed on Becky's blog I was immediately intrigued. I love the Beatles, and even though I have been trying to stay away from the idea of sticking zombies into real situations or famous books, I decided that I had to see how he pulled it off. If anything it sounded like an entertaining book. I am not even sure if I knew entirely what to expect from it, but upon completion I both found it really fun and didn't really like it at all. The short answer is that the whole idea behind it was enjoyable, but I wasn't crazy about the authors writing style. It didn't flow for me and sometimes it was less funny because he used too many words. I think that is the best way to explain my issues with the book.

When I get down to it, though, I am glad that I gave the book a try. Taking the Beatles history and zombie-fying it was a great idea. Everyone always has wanted to see a Beatles reunion. This author just ran with the idea and came up with a way for that to be possible. He took mostly actual events and added zombie elements to them. I mean, he has Mick Jagger as a zombie hunter! The scenes with Mick Jagger were some of my absolute favourites. You could really picture him and it would just make you laugh. Then, Ringo and Yoko are cast as Ninjas. I thought that was funny, too. I also appreciated that the author didn't back away from all the drama that was caused by allowing Yoko to be around so much.

A lot of the book was reimagining what the Beatles would think about certain things and how they would act as zombies. This meant that the author really had to know each of their personalities. I actually think he did a good job of this. I never felt like there was any pushing. The characters acted like themselves in the interviews, but not entirely like themselves because they were zombies. You should read how Mick Jagger takes down zombies. I laughed for a while at that imagery! It was so Mick! Other British personalities make appearances including the Queen and the people that worked with and around the Beatles when they were in their prime.

Whether or not you will enjoy this book is all based on what you go in expecting. For me, it was not a book that could keep my interest long enough to read it in one sitting, but it was still good. The author obviously did his research to make everything believable... Even if it was a bit unbelievable! It was really being curious that made me read on. I wanted to know what happened next, but at the same time I didn't enjoy the writing... I don't know if you should read this or not. Make your own decisions... Becky didn't really like it either, but I still had to see.

Another read down for the R.I.P. challenge!