This is the first book by Michele Miller that I have read, and it was excellent. It starts as a hard-core zombie story set in NYC, with a great cast of characters. There are all of the requisite guts, gore, and brains splattering…. It is not my usual genre, but it is brilliantly done. The recovery aspect of the story is barely mentioned in the first few chapters. It comes on slowly and naturally. Eventually, the cast figures out that alcoholics and addicts are “immune” from the zombie disease (the Walking Dead can’t smell them), so they are ultimately the only ones who survive the apocalypse. I love this concept because I have often thought that my alcoholism is what saved me. Sure, it was awful at the bottom, but without it, I would not have the life I love today.
Their group grows as they move across the city and then across the country. They are the quintessential AA group in so many ways. They’re a random collection of people who otherwise would not be friends. Their need for survival connects them. Furthermore, they need each other for survival…they can’t do it on their own.
There are representatives of many of the “types” we know in recovery. Bill is solid and runs a good program. Jared is in denial of his disease. Addict’s parents raised Courtney, and she has deep resentment: Shane, a college grad with high potential, turned into a drug dealer. Patty is an aging socialite with deep insights and long-term sobriety. They are all knowable, relatable, and empathetically drawn by Miller. For example, I loved the way she described Courtney’s father “turning” into an alcoholic. Once he turned, he wrecked everything in their lives… very zombie-like.
Mid-way through their journey, the group moves in with a colony of recovering alcoholics that escaped an AA convention in Memphis on “Z-Day.” They are led by an egomaniac “circuit speaker,” who I recognized immediately. No talking about drugs is allowed in the meetings. No talking about zombies, either. No dating unless approved by your sponsor. Dozens of oppressive rules were in place to keep him feeling secure and important.
After running the gauntlet for months and surviving countless zombies, nuclear radiation, the dregs of humanity, natural disasters, death, and sickness within the group, plus each of their inner demons… I won’t spoil the ending because it’s cool and surprising, but I will say they are transformed once they have completed their 13th Step.
I listened to the audiobook, which Gabriel de Cuir narrates. It is uncommonly well done. The performance is flawless and engaging – one of the best I have ever heard.
If you’re interested in the addiction fiction genre, I would put this book at the top of your reading list.
The Sobees Addiction Fiction by Will Thatcher Score: 5 out of 5
The Sobees Addiction Fiction Score: 4 out of 5
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