I will freely admit that the cover of Bad Taste in Boys is what attracted me at first. It’s brilliant. It’s gorgeous, and it’s covering a really funny book. Zombies have been a thing for me since I saw a preview for The Walking Dead at ComicCon last year. I love them! I know some of you say you can’t read a “zombie book,” but you CAN read this one.
Someone’s been a very bad zombie.
Super-smartie Kate Grable gets to play doctor, helping out her high school football team. Not only will the experience look good on her college apps, she gets to be this close to her quarterback crush, Aaron. Then something disturbing happens. Kate finds out that the coach has given the team steroids. Except . . . the vials she finds don’t exactly contain steroids. Whatever’s in them is turning hot gridiron hunks into mindless, flesh-eating . . . zombies.
Unless she finds an antidote, no one is safe. Not Aaron, not Kate’s brother, not her best friend . . . not even Kate . . .
It’s scary. It’s twisted. It’s sick. It’s high school.
Carrie Harris’s debut novel is a winner, folks. Her heroine Kate is my new “herdhero.” She’s self-deprecatingly hilarious, not afraid to be smart, but she’s also a very vulnerable, has a little brother she’d like to strangle most of the time, best friends who know how awesome she is, even if she doesn’t believe them, and a crush on the quarterback–she’s a teenager, and a very bad-ass one at that. I can’t wait to read more about her, which is lucky for me (and you!) because Carrie is writing a second novel featuring Kate.
So, the zombies. I won’t lie to you, there are some gross parts. There are also some heart-poundingly frightening parts that had me gripping the book tightly, but all the parts are made of awesome! The dark humor weaved throughout the book was my favorite part though. Carrie Harris is someone I want to stalk, err, meet and have a coffee with. She’s a real geek with amazing talent and I’m ever so glad for it.
Bad Taste in Boys is a quick read, it comes in at 201 pages, and you will tear through it because it’s so well written and paced. The plot isn’t overly contrived and the scenes flow logically and seamlessly together. As the tension ratchets up you get to see Kate really come into her own. Kate has moved to the top of my Kick Ass Girl list. I mentioned above that Carrie is writing another book, but don’t worry about a cliffhanger, there is a solid resolution that you’ll be satisfied with.
So many YA books are being optioned as movies and I really hope this one gets picked up as well. It would make a fantastic movie! I wish I had more words to tell you how much I enjoyed this book other than ZOMGITSJUSTSOAWESOME!