Review: Dearly, Departed by Lia Habel

Name of book: Dearly, Departed (Gone With The Respiration #1)

Author: Lia Habel

Publication: October 18th, 2011 by Del Rey

Genre: YA Paranormal

Source: Borrowed

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.

In Dearly, Departed, romance meets walking-dead thriller, spawning a madly imaginative novel of rip-roaring adventure, spine-tingling suspense, and macabre comedy that forever redefines the concept of undying love.

-- My Rating --

-- My Thoughts --

     I had been accepted to read and review "Dearly, Beloved", the second book in this series. That's why I had to read the first book too, the concept is very lovely and imaginative, loved it!

     Nora Dearly,  teenager in the New Victoria, is left in the care of her aunt, when her father suddenly dies. Her life was close to normal, until she opened her curtains one night, and a herd of lifeless zombies started chasing after her.

     Nora is saved by a bunch of "good guys", the group of zombies who supposedly don't consume human flesh, and don't eat brains! They take her to their compound, where she struggles to cope with the fact that she is surrounded by hundreds of people who might want to eat her flesh. And then, there is the dark, enchanting and dead Bram. But whatever she has been through, will not prepare her for the news she is about to get or the fight she might face.

     What has happened to the New Victoria? What will happen to Nora and her friends? Is there a chance that she might be falling for a zombie? Find out much more when you read this breathtaking and exhilarating novel, Dearly, Departed...

     I loved, loved this book! Every aspect was professionally crafted. There are many zombie novels out there, so the storyline is not very unique. But the author has been able to create a magical world in the 2100s, a world that is based on the Victorian Age. It is beautiful, how the people dress in gowns and boys should not publicly touch girls. But there is still technology, like digital diaries that people write their notes in. The world building is a unique concept, indeed.

     I loved the characters! Nora is a straight-forward, head-strong young lady whom I adored and respected. Her best friend, Pamela is lovely and vulnerable, I loved her sincerity! Bram is so protective, touchy, lovely, adorable! That's the thing with the author, Lia Habel. Zombies are supposed to be scary flesh-eaters who tear their victims apart, but Lia Habel has strangely made zombies adorable, magical, funny and sarcastic! I loved all of the "good" zombies, Chas, Tom, Sam, Ren, etc...

     The characters develop throughout the book, Nora changes from an insecure, scared young girl to a head-strong, stubborn lady. I think Pamela has done the most development, she gets all so courageous at the end, I loved her character! The romance between Nora and Bram is not insta-love but not a love-triangle either. It is slow-moving connection between them, to watch their love blossom is indeed something beautiful to read!

     I will definitely be reading the second book in the series as soon as I can. I can't wait to know what will happen to Nora and Bram, will there love succeed?  I just can't wait If you want an enjoyable, intriguing , light read then Dearly, Departed is the one for you!