JO by Leah Rhyne Review
Published: September 1st 2014
Jolene Hall is dead – sort of. She can walk, think and talk, but her heart doesn’t beat and her lungs stopped breathing ages ago. Her body’s a mosaic of jagged wounds and stapled flesh.
Jolene Hall has a choice: turn herself in to the authorities, led by a suspiciously handsome police officer, or team up with her roommate Lucy and her boyfriend Eli to find a way to save herself. To Jo, the choice is clear. She’d like to know who turned her into a monster, and she’d like to live to see another sunrise.
But that choice has drastic repercussions.
On a trip deep into the snowy White Mountains, to a hidden laboratory filled with danger and cadavers, Jo and Lucy find more reanimated girls. Part body, part machine, run by batteries and electricity, these girls are killers, created by a shadowy Order with a penchant for chaos…and murder.
To make matters worse, a photo on a wall of victims reveals Lucy is next in line to be “recruited” into this army of beautiful, walking corpses.
When Jo’s physical condition takes a turn for the irreparable, and the Order kidnaps those she loves most, she must sacrifice herself to save them all.
For those that haven’t experienced the glory of Leah Rhyne’s storytelling, I insist you read her first novel, Zombie Days, Campfire Nights. I am not a fan of the zombie genre, at all, and Rhyne’s Undead America series actually had me LOVING a zombie story. Go forth my readers, indulge in the magic that is Leah Rhyne.
Now, onto her recent masterpiece, JO. First off, what an absolute creepy cover! I can just imagine her jumping off the page and coming to life!
I love horror, and spooky stories. Many other authors have crafted stories of an undead girl coming back to life, but never has the undead been a protagonist. Rhyne has created a refreshing spin on an age-old-idea of the undead not wanting to leave the world of the living.
Rhyne knows exactly how to give her readers the creeps! As the story progresses and JO’s condition worsens, the description of her state are bang-on! You can perfectly see her in your mind and it gives you absolute chills.
I finished this book in one night because I simply had to know how the story ended. Jolene and her best friend Lucy are characters the reader grows to truly care about. I had to know how the story ended for them!
I look forward to re-reading this story closer to Halloween! Brilliant, brilliant ending! I hope to see another story based in this world.
Connect with Leah: http://www.leahrhyne.com
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