Twice Shy

by Patrick Freivald

Ohneka Falls is a small, western New York town where everyone knows everyone and nothing of note happens. Ani Romero is a sixteen-year-old girl who wants to play sports, hang out and kiss Mike, her middle-school crush. A childhood carrier of the zombie virus, she died at fourteen but didn't become a mindless, brain-eating monster. Her controlling mother forces her to join the emo crowd to hide her condition behind a wall of black clothes and makeup, and her friends abandon her. When creeper Dylan learns her secret, he falls into obsession, with Ani and with death. She bites him in self-defense. Persecuted by the jocks and ignored by Mike, Ani struggles through the motions of life hoping her mother's research unveils a cure, or Dylan dooms them all to a hungry, walking death. As her emo facade crumbles in the face of jealousy and obsession, Ani knows that the worst thing she can do is be true to herself.

• ISBN10: 1936564505
• ISBN13: 9781936564507
• Publish Date: 26 October 2012
• Publish Status: Unknown
• Imprint: JournalStone
• Format: Paperback (US Trade)
• Pages: 240
• Language: English

Reviews

[elvinagb]

Twice Shy by Patrick Freivald, October 26, 2012 by JournalStone, paperback
My first thoughts on this novel were “oh no, not another teen zombie, he’s so hot, etc story”. Ok, there was a bit of that but most of the plot revolved around 16 year old Ani’s relationship with her mother and their search for a cure for the ZV (zombie virus) that has killed Ani.
Ani goes to school, has friends and a part time job and is falling in love with her childhood friend while trying to appear alive and normal. She suddenly became emo and her former friends cannot figure out what has happened to her. She must alter her appearance to hide her condition. If anyone finds out what she has become, her life would be over in the blink of an eye.
Her life becomes ever more dangerous when another student discovers her secret and she is forced to defend herself and bites him. Her mother is doing her best to keep Ani intact until she can discover a cure for the virus and bring Ani back to life.
The plot of this book kept me reading until the last page and was I taken by surprise. I had some difficulty with Ani’s mom’s new relationship with a boyfriend. She is very strict with Ani and how she spends her free time to keep her safe and yet going out with her new boyfriend leaving Ani at home alone when someone is intent on breaking into their house to obtain drugs to keep the virus symptoms at bay.
The book also managed to tie in the usual teen angst: friendships and all their complications, crushes on boys who already have girlfriends, bad marks and keeping up with school work. Not to mention keeping your skin from falling off and fighting the desire to eat your friends brains. A great read for all the zombie lovers out there.