Dearly, Beloved by Lia Habel
Review by Kelsey O.
It’s 2196, and the city of New London is now markedly changed. Political and social tensions are building around the advent of the “civilized” undead, and there’s violence in the streets. When that violence hits close to home, Nora Dearly and Bram Griswold are once again forced to take control of their own destinies. As old friends become foes and chaos reigns all around them, Nora and Bram must find strength in each other-no matter the cost.
Lia Habel is a genius. In her first book she made zombies loveable and she did not let us down with her second installment, Dearly, Beloved. I loved returning to New London and seeing how life is now that the general population knows about the dead. Of course there are different types of zombies. There are the civilized ones that just want to go about their lives now that there are ways of retaining their memories and then there are those that have succumbed to the virus and are just mindless biting machines.
Nora is still our headstrong heroine and now that they are back in New London, it is required of her to learn how to be a lady. After everything that Nora has been through, this is a little tough. She wants to be on the front lines fighting for the zombies rights. She and Bram are still going strong but they have to be careful and keep their relationship on the down low for now. Bram is still the valiant knight to Nora and will always do whatever it takes to keep her safe.
The plot this time is that the Lazarus strain has mutated and the vaccine they designed isn’t made to deal with this strain. They do not want another Siege so they try to covertly move the zombie (Patient One) infected with this strain away from anyone that could use him for a weapon. There are several groups that know about Patient One and they all want him.
The main reason that I find this series fascinating is that the story is told from multiple points of views. The reader is not restricted in knowing only what the main characters know. We are lucky enough to know everything that is going on and it keeps the pace of the book moving. The non-stop action will keep the reader invested in the lives of these characters. If you are looking for a unique series to read, this is the one for you. Due to the high complexity of Lia’s world, I recommend reading the series in order.
Book 1
