Rating: 4.999999

Ya know what? I had to read this for class. I didn't have high hopes, because I adore good and well written vampires. I was expecting a bloodbath and the zombie-esque ghouls in the movie with Will Smith. 

So, reluctantly, I bought it and settled in for a not good read.

I was so so so wrong. 

Neville is not the grade-A kicking butt navy SEAL that's in the movie. He's an ordinary guy trying to live in a zombie apocalypse, struggling with very real struggles that anyone would face but that are hardly addressed in many post-apocalyptic novels. Loneliness, need for companions, desperation (real REAL desperation from the last man alive). I was shocked to learn how long ago the book was published so long ago! 1954, wow. It felt relatable and not super duper dated. It's stood its test of time and certianly entertained me.

From the first page, I was hooked. I was on the edge of my seat, gasping and terrified for Neville. The explanations for the zombie/vampire plague outbreak (zom-pire? Vombie?) were simple enough to where I, the person with the least medical expertise in the world, could understand and say that it sounded reasonable. I was crying at parts (full on crying, my boyfriend got me frozen custard because he UNDERSTANDS MY OBSESSIONS), I was geeking out at how real and somewhat human the vampires could be (cough cough, later in the book, no spoilers, cough), and how Neville was so real. 

I read the entire thing in one day. I picked it up with doubts, but set it down with a want to reread. This book terrified me, it enlightened me, and most of all, I genuinely adored it.

(I took off .000001 for the ending. Not cool, Richard! Got me crying over here...)