Tuesday, September 25, 2012

Alice in Zombieland Tour Stop

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 Xpresso Reads à la zombie today! YEAH!! I’m stoked to have Gena over for the Alice in Zombieland tour. She gives us tips on how to survive the zombocalypse, and you can win your very own copy of this pretty! First, let’s have a look at my review!

Alice in Zombieland
Gena Showalter
Publication date: September 25th 2012
by Harlequin Teen

 

She won’t rest until she’s sent every walking corpse back to its grave. Forever.

Had anyone told Alice Bell that her entire life would change course between one heartbeat and the next, she would have laughed. From blissful to tragic, innocent to ruined? Please. But that’s all it took. One heartbeat. A blink, a breath, a second, and everything she knew and loved was gone.

Her father was right. The monsters are real….

To avenge her family, Ali must learn to fight the undead. To survive, she must learn to trust the baddest of the bad boys, Cole Holland. But Cole has secrets of his own, and if Ali isn’t careful, those secrets might just prove to be more dangerous than the zombies….

*A copy was provided by Harlequin Teen for review purposes*

OFF WITH HER HEAD!!

Alice in Wonderland with zombies? Not so much. Creative zombie ghosts lore (… you heard me. Zombie. Ghosts) with great humor and charming characters? Definitely!

Despite the title, Alice in Zombieland really has nothing much to do with Alice in Wonderland. There may be some scattered references, but it’s really a unique story all on its own. While some may be disappointed, I wasn’t terribly familiar with the specifics of the classic tale, so I found myself having a lot of fun with this non-retelling. Really, all I need are zombies. Wouldn’t every fairy tale be much more interesting with zombies? I think so! 😀

Charming, this book absolutely is! Which is funny to say for a zombie book. Alice leads this story with a tough, head held high attitude; she’s feisty with a great sense of humor that I got a kick out of. Then we have her friend Kat who really completes the show. Spunky, wild, and lots of fun, Kat is a fabulous girl who I came to adore. She has a very attractive confidence and qualities that everyone would want in a best friend. Plus, she has secrets of her own that add depth to the story. And of course, we have boys; most prominently – Cole. The leader of the bad boys, Cole is sexy and fierce with a mysterious agenda of his own, and Alice hopes she won’t regret putting her trust into him. His irksome attitude towards Ali motivates some pretty humoristic dialogue/banter between them; their opinions tend to clash more than harmonize. Let’s just say, the tension between them is just as adorable as it is frustrating. While the romance isn’t my favorite aspect of this novel–the constant back and forth between them can get a little exasperating–they do have great chemistry to work with.

Set at the perfect pace, the plot is centers around these zombies that are not your run of the mill zombies, these exist in the spirit world. While I love the traditional zombie, and at first I wasn’t sure how I would enjoy this bizarre re-imagining, it’s simply too creative to not have me fascinated by it all. I was a little confused with the specifics, however: Who can see them and who they can hurt exactly, is not made very clear. But we still have time to get into these details. Zombies: meet the Hazmats, a villainous company looking to experiment on your rotted ghost person! And their intentions? Duh duh duuuuuh! The Hazmats add a great mysterious edge to the plot which also opens up intriguing possibilities for its sequel. All of this adds up to a refreshingly unique little paranormal romance.

There is humor, there are zombies, there are witty characters, even the chapter titles are hilarious! What else do you need? Oh, and the sequel is called “Through the Zombie Glass”. Win? Yes! Yes it does!

4 Hot Espressos

Guest Post by Gena Showalter
How to survive the Zombie Apocalypse

Quick and easy bullet points: study, pray and fight!

Need more?

First, hook up with the right team.  Every warrior needs back up, someone to watch their blind spots. And make sure you’re both stocked with the ingredients for Bloodlines.  If you don’t know what to buy… ouch!  (it’s a top secret recipe, so getting a shopping list is gonna prove difficult.  So, really, this might be the prefect time to start studying.) Also, weapons are just as important. You’ll need daggers, crossbows, halogen lights, zombie toxin antidote, and courage.  <– yep, what you feel matters, since zombies have a taste for certain emotions.

On the nights you hunt, make sure to kill every zombie you see.  If you don’t, they’ll catch your scent and come after you. (This is definitely the perfect time to start praying.)  Remember that zombies feel no emotions or pain and they see you only as an all night dinner buffet. Fight with all your strength, trust your deepest instincts, and never back down.

If you do all of that, you’ll have this thing in the bag—along with a few zombie heads.

I’m all set, Gena! *sees zombie* … *screams and runs away hysterically* >.<
Thanks so much for having me on your tour, and most of all – HAPPY RELEASE DAY! *throws confetti*

Gena Showalter sold her first book at the age of 27 and now, four years later, is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of thirteen books, with eleven more on the way in a thrilling blend of genres: breathtaking paranormal and contemporary romances, cutting edge young adult novels, and stunning urban fantasy. Her novels have appeared in Cosmopolitan Magazine, MTV, Seventeen Magazine, and have been translated in French, Italian and Korean. The critics have called her books “sizzling page-turners” and “utterly spellbinding stories”, while Showalter herself has been called “a star on the rise”.

This post is a part of:
(Click on banner for full tour schedule)
Giveaway 1
Thanks to Harlequin Teen and Kismet Book Touring, there is one one Hardcover copy of Alice in Zombieland up for grabs
 
Open to US & Canadian addresses
Giveaway ends October 9th, 2012
Use the Rafflecopter below to enter
Giveaway 2 – Grand Prize
The blog tour grand prize includes:

– One brand new Kindle Paperwhite with the gorgeous Alice in Zombieland Cover Art signed and personalized to the winner by Gena Showalter!

– One personalized signed copy of Alice in Zombieland!

Look for the White Rabbit Contest
Each Day, the white Rabbit will appear on one blog and stay there for 48hrs. Once you have found the Rabbit, click on it and you will be directed to a Rafflecopter entry form for the Grand Prize Giveaway! To enter, you must answer the daily question found at the Tour Stop!

Where could the Rabbit appear? On all Tour Hosts and, The White Rabbit Chronicles Website, Gena Showalter’s Facebook, and HarlequinTEEN Facebook! 

Xpresso Reads’ “Look for the White Rabbit” Question:
If you could only pick ONE item from the Zombie survival kit, what would be your MUST HAVE?

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Giselle

Canadian blogger, wife, mother, coffee lover, and sarcastic at heart! She has had a love for all things bookish since before Amazon and eReaders existed *le gasp*. You can also find her organizing tours and other fun things at Xpresso Book Tours.

Latest posts by Giselle (see all)

122 Responses to “Alice in Zombieland Tour Stop”

  1. Rebecca

    Yay, so glad you loved it! I enjoyed it but since reading it, I’ve started to reconsider my rating. Despite that, I’m still looking forward to the sequel.

    Despite the title, Alice in Zombieland really has nothing much to do with Alice in Wonderland. – Yes! Talk about misleading! I still liked it, even if I do feel that they tried to pass this off as something it wasn’t – An Alice in Zombieland retelling with zombies! Yeah, not so much.. – I let that slide as I was having too much fun to notice.

    As always, awesomesauce review! ♥

  3. Elodie

    Thanks for the awesome review Giselle : I’m now officialy dying to read this book because I’ve only read very positive reviews on it so far !!
    I’ve never read a zombie book and Alice in Zombieland sounds like a great one to start with :). I wish I could enter these giveaways because they are awesome : but thanks anyway for the oppotunity !! 😉

  4. Amy

    This book sounds really awesome!! Definitely one I am going to have to get. Besides the fact that it has zombies, I love the cover. And Dude zombie ghosts?!! Total win! Fab review chicky!

  7. Mel - Thedailyprophecy.

    Every story can use some zombies indeed, haha. I love fairytales, so everything that has to do with it – even if it’s just a tiny tiny bit – is great to me! 😀 I love the sound of the characters; feisty, spunky and great sense of humor; I like it.

    Haha, the zombie guide was fun. Being international sucks.

  9. Rose

    This blog tour has been so much fun!! I have loved every single day of it!! I can’t wait to read this book! I think its going to be awesome!!!

  16. Jac (For Love and Books)

    I am ABSOLUTELY dying to read this!! I am a lifelong Alice Fan – Anything Alice I devour!! And even though it really has nothing to do with the Alice story? (Which GRR! That sucks!) I’m still super exited for this!

    As always – fabulous review!

  24. Candace

    I wasn’t sure about the zombie aspect but I got someone to describe it better and now I’m really wanting to read it. Especially since the characters sound awesome!

  25. Silverlight

    How to survive a zombie apocolypse!

    “You’ll need
    daggers-*check-have aton *evil laugh*!!,
    crossbows-*illegal in my state boo- will have to break the law for this one
    halogen lights- *as in flashlights? dude, I’m gonna need batteries, too!
    zombie toxin antidote-*need recipe-need recipe *screams* !!!
    courage -Yes, have a ton! Bring those suckers on!!!

    Love it! Can’t wait to read this!!
    Great review and guest post!!!!

  26. Heather

    This sounds absolutely awesome! I love the idea of re-imagined zombies in the spirit sense. The title had me intrigued, the description even more so!

  27. Bonnie R

    That cover is beyond gorgeous! I’ve been real up in the air about picking this up or not though.. It’s received oddly mixed reviews but yours makes me really want to pick it up but what’s this about not having much to do with Wonderland? That’s a tad bit disappointing, but I suppose if I know that going in I’m less likely to be disappointed. 🙂

  28. fredamans

    Looks like a great read!
    I’m gonna answer the question even though I haven’t seen the white rabbit… I just think it’s a cool question…
    I would take a baseball bat. You may not kill a zombie with it, but you will stun them long enough to run like hell!

  31. Smash Attack!

    I am really disappointed it isn’t very related to Alice and that the zombies aren’t your typical kind, but I do hope to enjoy it anyway. I love Gena’s work, so here’s hoping! Thanks for the giveaway!

  32. Ella

    Love love the zombie survival guide! Although Gena should have mentioned to have a hot zombie slaying guy who works out to be on your team (Cole ;)) Hehe :3 <3 I can't wait to get my copy and read!! <3

  33. Ashelynn Hetland

    I love your review, and it’s one of the first reviews I’ve read that really makes me want to read this one despite not really wanting to. I’m glad it’s not like Alice in Wonderland, as that’s one of my favorite stories (and I do love some of the retellings of it.)

    Great review, Giselle! I may have to pick up a copy of this one. ^____^

  36. Jenni @ Alluring Reads

    I’m not sure I would be a big fan of this one. I mean why name it Alice In Zombieland and have a girl on the cover who looks like Alice.. who looks like maybe she is in a rabbit hole.. and then fill it with a story that really has nothing to do with the title. Very deceiving! Happy you enjoyed it so much!

  37. Annwitch

    I would choose courage from the Zombie survival kit, that would be the ultimate survival tool. Although a crossbow would be cool. Who cares about the title it’s a Gena Showalter book!

  39. Kelly @ Dandelion Dreams

    I forgot my White Rabbit answer! Oh no!

    While I’d like to say that I would choose courage as my one item from the survival kit, I’m just not sure I would have it in me. I mean, if I see a zombie I’m probably going to freak out so I’m going to go with a crossbow. I think it would come in rather handy when the time came. haha

  43. Alyssa Susanna

    Yay yay yay! So excited to read this book! Happy release day! I’ve heard it’s not based off of Alice in Wonderland despite the title… ah well. Thanks for the post and giveaway!

  45. Sam

    Yay! I’m glad you liked it too, Giselle! Even though it barely had anything to do with Alice in Wonderland, I ended up enjoying this a lot. If nothing else, it was fun and light. 🙂 Brilliant review girlie!

  59. Megan K.

    Great review, Giselle! I’m so glad you enjoyed it. Yes, zombie ghosts are definitely original! I saw some mixed reviews, though, so I was pretty hesitant if I should buy this once it’s out, but thanks for giving me more to think about. 🙂

  63. Jess (The Cozy Reader)

    I’m going with weapons such as the crossbow and maybe some throwing knives. I’m all about keeping the distance. I might even make myself a Mac Halo like Mac did in KMM Fever series. How cool would that be?

  66. pam perkins

    If I could pick only one, I believe courage would be the one. With it comes strength, and the willpower to survive. Along the way, I can pick up anything I can use to aide me in killing the zombies.

  68. Lindy Gomez

    I cannot wait to read this paranormal retelling of Alice in wonderland with Alice as a Zombie Hunter. This book sounds fun, unique, and entertaining! Thanks for the awesome giveaway!!!

  69. Nancy

    It feels like I’ve been waiting forever to read this book! I love Zombies and I love Gena’s work. I’m glad to be hearing lots of great things about it!!

    Love the review, awesome giveaway!!

  75. Alexa

    This book sounds like it’s so much fun! I really thought it was a zombie retelling of Alice in Wonderland, but to hear that it’s not actually intrigues me more! I don’t read very many zombie books, but I really do like the ones that I have. I think I should check this out!

  76. Emily @ Falling For YA

    I am so very very excited for this book, before the tour I was only mildly excited and now I am in got to have this book mode!

    White Rabbit Question Answer: If I could only have 1 item in my zombie survival kit it would be a gun. Preferably one with a never ending amount of bullets.

  79. Eileen

    OMG GISELLE I HAVEN’T TALKED TO YOU IN FOREVER! *stares down pile of homework* But awesome review as always! It’s really interesting that this isn’t based off the fairytale, but knowing you, zombies are definitely something that will turn up a book! 😀 And that spin on zombies also sounds really confusing but at the same time creative, like you said 🙂 Glad you liked this!

  80. Lacey T

    I want to read this so badly! Huge fan of Gena’s, and that cover is gorgeous! So glad you liked the book 🙂

  84. Grace Lo

    I love zombie-related stories c:
    One item for a Zombie survival kit? Does it have to be real? If not, a time-traveling device, so I can go back in time and grab whatever I need (food, ammunition etc.) before popping back and fighting off the undead.

  88. The Bumble Girl

    I really enjoyed AoZ too! There were quite a few references to ‘Wonderland’ but they were really hard to pick up while reading.
    Great review, I can’t wait to get a beautiful finished copy for my shelf 🙂

  98. SacredmOOn

    Wonderful post! hahaha Gena’s How to survive the Zombie Apocalypse reminds me of her Dating The Undead book! Epic! This book sounds like such a fun and amazing read! Thank you for the chance to win it! 😀
    DeAnna Schultz

  99. Addie R.

    This sounds so friggen awesome! xD Although I am disappointed this isn’t a gory Alice in Wonderland retelling with zombies. Great post Giselle! ^__^

  107. Raphael Temple

    Thanks for hosting this giveaway! Yes, the title is totally misleading but it looks like fun and if there’s a little bit of zombies in the story, I’ll be happy. =)

  110. Sarah O

    Can’t wait to read this one. I love the cover and it’s a different take on the zombie genre than what I’ve previously read.

  111. Sarah M

    Can’t wait to read this one. LOVE twists on classic stories. Plus this has a *gorgeous* cover 🙂