Review: Something Strange and Deadly by Susan Dennard (Something Strange and Deadly #1)

Welcome to Philadelphia. Eleanor Fitt is in trouble. Her family is experiencing a economic crisis, and her mother is determined to marry her daughter into money. Her brother is missing, and now the dead corpses of the city's graveyards are being reanimated by someone - or something. In order to get answers about her brother, Eleanor enlists the spirit hunter, a trio of zombie-fighting (and moraly questionable) people who she believes can help her put together her damaged family. But she's getting more than she bargined for when she encounters a inventor, murderer, and a fighting boy who isn't exactly well, a boy.

Eleanor is spunky and intelligent, and she'll do anything for her family. Daniel's slightly darker side and the fact that he's a little rough around the edges helps the reader like him while still being a little wary about him. Jie is fierce and a totally badass fighter that is a perfect example of girl power and feminism in this time period. Eleanor's mother's determination to marry her daughter off to save their family from being totally ruined make her less likable and even someone to frown upon in the book.

Does anyone else see the connections to Clockwork Angel here? The setting, the characters - it's clearer once you read it, but there were so many connections to be made that I lost count at one point. The characters are likable and intersting, there are clever plot twists, and I like the idea. But it seemed slightly anticlimatic and a tad rushed. 3.8/5 stars.

#zombies #supernatural #seriesstartandstandalones