fantasy book reviews science fiction book reviewsDeath Warmed Over by Kevin J. AndersonDeath Warmed Over by Kevin J. Anderson

Dan Chambeaux, a private investigator, and his girlfriend Sheyenne, a med student, recently died. But thanks to a weird event now called “The Big Uneasy” which happened a decade ago, dead no longer means dead. A certain percentage of folks (usually homicides and suicides) return from the grave as some sort of “Unnatural.” That’s what happened to Dan and Sheyenne. Now he’s a zombie and she’s a ghost. That’s not stopping them from living life, but it is stopping them from touching each other.

Dan has returned to his job and he’s working on several cases involving Unnaturals (divorce, stolen painting, missing persons, etc.). In his spare time he tries to figure out who killed him and Sheyenne. His investigations bring him into contact with werewolves, wizards, witches, necromancers, ghouls, vampires, mummies, goblins, trolls, and various other weirdos.

The publisher’s blurb for Death Warmed Over promises something “fresh” and “funny” but the book doesn’t deliver. Fresh? Anderson’s world is too familiar and there are few surprises. It’s the typical cast of magical and mythical characters behaving the way we expect them to behave with just a couple of upsets to the usual balance (e.g., the wimpy vampire interior decorator). Characterization is dreadfully thin and I’m not even sure why Dan has to be dead — he doesn’t seem dead and Anderson doesn’t use his zombie status for much more than an opportunity to tell zombie jokes. Nearly every element of Death Warmed Over is something I’ve seen done better elsewhere. Death Warmed Over is not fresh. As its name implies, it feels more like microwaved leftovers.

Funny? A couple of the plotlines were slightly amusing — one involving a mummy who is trying to get himself emancipated from the museum who owns him and one about a couple of witches who are suing a publishing company for a mistake in a spellbook — but I laughed out loud only once (at a joke about interns). Most of the humor was trite and obvious — the kind that makes you roll your eyes and say “har har.” For example, on the first page of the book Dan Chambeaux (whose name has been morphed to “Shamble,” har har) tells us that now he’s a zombie, but he doesn’t want to leave his partner in the lurch. LURCH! Get it??? Nudge nudge wink wink. LURCH! Har har!

Phil Gigante narrates the audio version of Death Warmed Over. Sometimes Gigante goes over the top with his affected voices and that’s the case here. Gigante seems to be trying to help the book be funnier and it only makes it worse. His personality intrudes, meaning that I never forgot that he was part of this production.

Brilliance Audio sent me a copy of Death Warmed Over and the next two books in the series, Unnatural Acts and Hair Raising. I can’t recommend Death Warmed Over and I’m not sure if I’ll read the sequels.

Shamble & Die Investigations — (2012-2015) Publisher: Ever since the Big Uneasy unleashed vampires, werewolves, and other undead denizens on the world, it’s been hell being a detective — especially for zombie P.I. Dan Chambeaux. Taking on the creepiest of cases in the Unnatural Quarter with a human lawyer for a partner and a ghost for a girlfriend, Chambeaux redefines “dead on arrival.” But just because he was murdered doesn’t mean he’d leave his clients in the lurch. Besides, zombies are so good at lurching. Now he’s back from the dead and back in business — with a caseload that’s downright unnatural. A resurrected mummy is suing the museum that put him on display. Two witches, victims of a curse gone terribly wrong, seek restitution from a publisher for not using “spell check” on its magical tomes. And he’s got to figure out a very personal question — Who killed him? For Dan Chambeaux, it’s all in a day’s work. (Still, does everybody have to call him “Shamble”?) Funny, fresh, and irresistible, this cadaverous caper puts the P.I. in R.I.P…. with a vengeance.

Kevin J. Anderson Shamble & Die Investigations 1. Death Warmed over (2012) 2. Unnatural Acts (2013) 3. Hair Raising (2013)Kevin J. Anderson Shamble & Die Investigations 1. Death Warmed over (2012) 2. Unnatural Acts (2013) 3. Hair Raising (2013)Kevin J. Anderson Shamble & Die Investigations 1. Death Warmed over (2012) 2. Unnatural Acts (2013) 3. Hair Raising (2013)fantasy book reviews science fiction book reviewsfantasy book reviews science fiction book reviewsfantasy book reviews science fiction book reviewsfantasy book reviews science fiction book reviewsfantasy book reviews science fiction book reviews

Author

  • Kat Hooper

    KAT HOOPER, who started this site in June 2007, earned a Ph.D. in neuroscience and psychology at Indiana University (Bloomington) and now teaches and conducts brain research at the University of North Florida. When she reads fiction, she wants to encounter new ideas and lots of imagination. She wants to view the world in a different way. She wants to have her mind blown. She loves beautiful language and has no patience for dull prose, vapid romance, or cheesy dialogue. She prefers complex characterization, intriguing plots, and plenty of action. Favorite authors are Jack Vance, Robin Hobb, Kage Baker, William Gibson, Gene Wolfe, Richard Matheson, and C.S. Lewis.