ZOMROMCOM
by Olivia Dade
Teaming up with your neighbor during a zombie outbreak is a no-brainer, but if it turns out he’s a vampire . . . the stakes couldn’t be higher, in this infectious new paranormal romance from the USA Today bestselling author of Spoiler Alert
Finally a Rom-com that has as much comedy as romance. From the first line in this zombie spoof, the author had me laughing. When a novel begins with the line “Armed with a burrito, Evie rounded her car and sprinted to intercept the zombie,” the reader can tell that she is in for a rollicking ride. The female main character is fat, feisty, funny and a hell of a fighter. Living next to the zombie containment zone, she needs to be a fighter. When she attempts to save her clueless sexy neighbor and in turn he saves her, she soon finds that he is not what he seems. Not even his name was real. The novel is filled with witty banter that made me giggle. But the best part of the novel is the song! When Edie finds out her companion’s real first name, she can’t help riff on the popular song about a character with that name. The lyrics in this running joke are hysterical and had me laughing my head off.
I received an electronic advanced copy of this novel from Berkley as part of their underrepresented voices influencer program. Most romance books revolve around young skinny women, but Olivia Dade novels have plus sized protagonists. Many books with Fat Representation revolve around the character’s problems with her weight. Some of them embrace Body Positivity with a message of “Yes, I am overweight, but I accept the way I am and I am beautiful anyway.” In this novel, the character happens to be overweight. It is mentioned in her description and depicted on the cover illustration. But her weight is not a part of the plot. Once she is described, her size is barely mentioned at all. Even when she is bare. And there are plenty of spicy scenes in this insta-love romance. Her sexy neighbor finds her beautiful and not a shred of self doubt crosses her mind. This book may be a sexy silly spoof, but it also sends a great message to the average woman. Beauty is not a dress size.
