Thursday 18 December 2014

Zombie RiZing Book 1 - Scared to Beath by Matt Pike and Steve Grice (Amazon Digital Services)


Zombie RiZing Book 1 - Scared to Beath

Written by Matt Pike

Illustrated by Steve Grice

Published by Amazon Digital Services

We're always on the look out for books that include mighty girl characters, but with an original twist. We're also huge champions of books that are thoroughly inclusive and a rip-roaring interesting read as well! So when Matt Pike contacted us out of the blue about "Zombie RiZing Book 1 - Scared to Beath" we were drawn in by the cool zombie-vibe story and importantly the characters too.

Meet the kick-ass zombie-slaying gang!

The story starts off fairly simply with just another ordinary day at school for Beth and her friends but lessons are about to take a darker turn as a Zombie plague swiftly consumes the planet, and leaves Beth and the gang trapped at school with only their wits and the contents of the stationery cupboard to defend themselves with.

Beth's no ordinary hero though, Beth is a cricket-bat-wielding mighty girl, and she rallies her crew to fight the Zombie menace and save the day. Along with Beth you'll also find Sonny Winterbottom - might be lacking in street smarts but powerful enough to turn a zombie into goo , Zhang Jing - smart and intelligent with a killer violin bow, Ms Simmons - the cool and intelligent science teacher,  Vihaan Pawar - Uber-geek but handy with a cricket bat and sling-short (ish) and Abby Carter - wheelchair bound but as sharp as a tack, Beth's best friend and solid supporter.

Awesome Abby - Smart and funny and the solid foundation for the zombie slaying gang!

Matt cast his own daughter Abby as a character in the book which is really awesome. Abby has Rett's Syndrome - a neurological condition that I hadn't known about until Matt got in touch.

Matt donates part of the proceeds from each book sale to http://telethonkids.org.au/our-people/staff-student-index/l/helen-leonard/ and it's also worth looking at some of the other Rett Syndrome research and charities for more information:

http://www.rsrt.org

http://www.rettsyndrome.org

We really enjoyed this mighty girl take on the Zombie genre. Illustrated with brilliant artwork by Steve Grice, this is the sort of book Charlotte seizes on, with an absolute metric ton of fast paced action and punchy dialogue (and a few gross-out giggles too!) She absolutely can't wait for Book 2, which should be coming along in 2015 with further stories in the saga planned for future release. 

Loving some of the neat little touches in the book too, like the token collecting 'mini game' peppered throughout volume one. You can also find a ton more information about the book and the characters over at Matt's website: http://www.zombierizing.com/ (where you can also sign up for a mailing list to keep up with the gang's adventures!)

If you're looking for a really cool (and kid friendly) horror story with tons of originality and a brilliant character cast, definitely check out "Zombie RiZing Book 1 - Scared to Beath".


About the author, Matt Pike: 



Like the legendary R M Williams, Matt was born in Jamestown in rural South Australia. But that’s where the remarkable similarities between these two end. While Reginald went from bushman to world renowned millionaire outback clothing designer, Matt is a complete dag who was lured by the city lights of Adelaide. Kindergarten in the big smoke was a culture shock, but it is here he first discovered his love of storytelling.

In high school that love found an outlet in a series of completely unflattering cartoons about fellow students and teachers alike. He survived long enough to further his art into a successful career in multimedia design but, like a zombified leech, the lure of the written word gnawed at him, forcing him to pen his first novel, the award-winning sci-fi comedy epic, Kings of the World. It was followed the next year by Amazon Australia dystopian sci-fi best-seller Apocalypse: Diary of a Survivor.

Matt donates part-proceeds of each book sold to find a cure for Rett Syndrome, a neurological condition the youngest of his three children, Abby, has. As a gorgeous Rett angel, Abby cannot walk, talk or use her hands in a meaningful way. So, not only is each of your book purchases a ticket to fantastically rounded, character driven, hilarious and poignant sci-fi awesomeness, it wraps you in a warm feeling that you’ve made a difference to people who deserve your help the most. Like the zombified leech it’s a no-brainer.

"Zombie RiZing Book 1 - Scared to Beath" is out today, Thursday 18th December, available from Amazon.

Charlotte's best bit: She is just completely in love with Beth and wants to be as kick-ass as her

Daddy's Favourite bit: A rip-roaring action packed zombie-laced adventure for mighty girls and boys everywhere, we love it and can't wait for Book 2

(Kindly sent to us for review in PDF Form by Matt Pike)