lavanille | Review: Warm Bodies

I got around to reading Warm Bodies last week. School is going to be intense this semester so I'm cramming in all my fun reading while I can. And this book is pretty fun.

I dislike romance for its inherent cheesiness. (I have a thing for unhealthy relationships in novels and the relationship in Warm Bodies is remarkably healthy and mature, so you wouldn't expect it to click with me would you?) But on the other hand it's an action-romance between a zombie and a strong female lead, so you really can't go wrong.

I'm very critical of how women are written sometimes, but I felt Julie had some extremely endearing moments. There were times it felt like she was becoming a vehicle for R's character arc, but her strong moments make it well worth it and she kicks ass in her own unique and genuine ways. More than once, this book surprised me and it was always because of Julie.

Marion has a really different take on the undead lifestyle, which is refreshing even for someone like me who loves zombie literature. You can make so many parallels to the modern condition with zombies, but most authors seem to get swept up in making it all about violence and isolation. Frankly, you can only read about so much fantastic doom-and-gloom before every story starts to feel the same. Kudos for breaking the mold, Isaac Marion.

I don't know if I'll bother seeing the film, but I do recommend the book if you're in the mood for a light-hearted weekend read.

8/10 severed thumbs up

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

You know, I didn't know the movie was based off of a book - though I suppose I should've guessed, huh.

...Warm Bodies is "healthy" and mature? Really. Huh.

Have you seen the film since this point? (And if so what did you think?)

Hm, I think I'll look into this book, after all.

Well, for a certain value of healthy. It's healthier than the supernatural romances I've read before (Vampire Diaries, Twilight, etc.)

I've never seen a completely healthy relationship, fictional or otherwise, which is what makes them interesting to me...as long as the unhealthy parts aren't glorified. I don't feel that Julie ever compromised herself for R, which I feel is a key part of a good relationship: that you're true to your best interests even as you look out for your partner. It's where boundaries are set; without boundaries you can't have respect for each other.

(Julie's and R's boundaries are flexible, which reflects their youth. But they're flexible people on their own, and not because they want to please the other person, which falls in line with them being true to themselves.)

And as for the maturity, although they're both young and naive about love, they handle conflict with each other and those around them remarkably well. They aren't so wrapped up in each other that they forget their friends, or themselves. They don't lose control over intense moments. I kind of wonder if the movie changed some of that... I think it would be really hard to translate the subtlety of it to the screen without boring the target audience.

I haven't seen the film, and I'm not sure I'm going to. Same question back at you! Have you, and what did you think of it?

Ah, right. Definitely when you compare like that, I get that. That? Yeah, by comparison makes sense.

Mhm. I understand what you mean, then. Okay, well yes, that's definitely a step-up from a lot of romances in most mediums. Mhm, I agree and good point.

I do like that...

It definitely makes me with confirmed interest, after all.

When I had first heard advertisements for the film, I had zero interest. But, then the commercials gave me some interest -- but your review (and added commentary here) gave me complete interest. I'll definitely be checking out the book ASAP.

And gosh, wow. That really does sound impressive in comparison, really.

Unfortunately, I've not seen the movie (yet) in order to say if there's any such things in it. So, I'm not sure.

And, ahh, I can understand that considering how much you enjoyed those aspects in the book which ... having those removed in film, would definitely take away from such enjoyment, I feel. and unfortunately I have not yet seen or read it! But, I am definitely going to read it - probably read it before I watch it, so I have a complete grasp on what you mentioned here and then can see for myself on if the movie adapts that well or at all.

(side note: I also hope you're doing well?)

Review: Warm Bodies

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