TITLE: O.A.Z.
AUTHOR: Mathew Bellingham
PRICE: Free
GENRE: Horror
ISBN: N/A
PUBLISHER: Lulu
POINT OF SALE: http://www.lulu.com/content/847080
First off, the story could have been presented better. A free story to show off one’s work to the public as a teaser should be as polished as anything offered for sale – more so actually, as this might be the only piece a new reader is willing to take a chance on. Just because it’s free doesn’t mean it can be slap-dash. Which in this case, it is: no pleasing formatting, the punctuation and grammar are atrocious, and again, it is all tell and no show. Shorts need to pack a punch when it comes to imagery; this one, while it was a rather comical take on the traditional and overly cliché zombie theme, left me flat and unaffected. I also noted way too many elements borrowed from classic zombie stories like Night of the Living Dead – minus the mood, that is. Too much wisecracking dialog and not enough dramatic scene setting. Not that I don’t like humorous horror; Shaun of the Dead was absolutely fantastic. This is not that good; it could be, but it’s not.
But all is not lost; with a good deal more editing, an overhaul of the dialog, and a bit of added depth when it comes to the imagery, this author could have something really good. Zombified grannies. I loved the theme, and the end was spot on…just a shame it had no bite to it.
4/10
reviewed by Cheryl Ann Gardner
Cheryl Anne Gardner, author of four novellas, is an Executive Assistant by day, an avid reader, and an independent reviewer with Podpeople.blogspot and Amazon where she blogs regularly on AmazonConnect. She is an advocate for independent film, music, and books, and when at all possible, prefers to read and review out of the mainstream Indie published works, foreign translations, and a bit of philosophy. She lives with her husband and two ferrets on the East Coast, USA.
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