The Laughing Listener
Format: EBook
I was graciously given an early copy of this in exchange for an honest review
Story Rating: 5 Stars

*Sighs* This book was just... UGH, it was so good! Before I started reading this, I thought I was just getting a fun story about zombies. And even though that is what I got, it ended up being so much more! This book has LAYERS.





First of all, let's give it up for amazing book rep! Mila is Mexican, she's not a skinny minny, and she's a Wiccan. It was AWESOME. As a white person, I can't effectively speak on the racial representation of this book (something I, personally, thought was great). But I AM on the curvier side of the scale and I LOVED LOVED LOVED that Mila was plus size. Ugh, it was SO FREAKING NICE to read about a character I could relate to in that way. She's just so cool and I love her?? I want to be Mila when I grow up and I'm almost 30. She just had the best spunk, a big heart, and the greatest sarcastic sense of humor.

This book also has a lot of emotional depth that I wasn't expecting and it was so relatable. Mila loses her best friend, which is hard enough. AND she's certain it was a murder. AND it's happening to other kids at her school. Sadness, despair, anger, fear, friendship, love, hope—it was all there. It gave this book a level of realness that I could really connect with, despite being about zombies. It was creeptacular AND emotional, which was just the best combination ever.

And just a side note, this book IS HILARIOUS. I haven't laughed at a book like this (LITERALLY out loud) in a long time. Very strong Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Charmed vibes that I LOVED.

FINAL WORD

This book was amazing! Not only is it a great zombie mystery, but it's just a great story with amazing characters. READ IT.