[The Cases of Dan Shamble, Zombie P.I.] Ever since the Big Uneasy unleashed vampires, werewolves, and other undead denizens on the world, it...
Taking on the creepiest of cases in the Unnatural Quarter with a human lawyer for a partner and a ghost for a girlfriend, Chambeaux redefines “dead on arrival.” But just because he was murdered doesn’t mean he’d leave his clients in the lurch. Besides, zombies are so good at lurching.
Now he’s back from the dead and back in business—with a caseload that’s downright unnatural. A resurrected mummy is suing the museum that put him on display. Two witches, victims of a curse gone terribly wrong, seek restitution from a publisher for not using “spell check” on its magical tomes. And he’s got to figure out a very personal question: who killed him?
For Dan Chambeaux, it’s all in a day’s work. (Still, does everybody have to call him “Shamble?”) Funny, fresh, and irresistible, this cadaverous caper puts the PI in RIP … with a vengeance.
$6.99 at the time of posting
Published by: WordFire Press
Publication Date: August 28, 2012
Book Length: 316 Pages
Paranormal |Urban Fantasy | Mystery
The Review
★★Honestly, I was disappointed in Death Warmed Over by Kevin Anderson. I was familiar with Mr. Anderson's writing through the Dune series of books he's written with Frank Herbert's son, Brian Herbert. I love those books, so I was certain I'd enjoy the tale of Dan Shamble, Zombie P.I. But, unfortunately, no joy . . .The story starts out slow, with a lot of repetitious information, back stories and descriptions followed by obvious puns and flat jokes about being a zombie. There was also a lot of cliché P.I. phrasing and corny Humphrey Bogart dialog.The main character, Dan Chambeaux, is recently deceased and risen as a Zombie, while his girlfriend, Sheyenne, is recently deceased and reappears as a ghost, so there's a lot (and I mean A LOT) of agonized longing, because they can't touch each other. Sheyenne can, weirdly, "poltergeist" objects and works as Dan and his human attorney-partner's executive assistant. She makes coffee, types, files, answers the phones and she can knock other ghosts on their asses, but she can't touch Dan - Go figure. However, I soldiered on.Finally, just after the halfway mark in the book, the story picked up a little. By that time, there'd been a couple of amusing characters introduced and a surprise situation or two, so it did become slightly more entertaining. These did not, regrettably, save the story.The ending, of course, was predictable. You could see how it was going to shake out a mile away. I'll confess - I struggled to finish this book, and I did finish it, albeit with a sense of relief. I won't be reading any of the other books in this series, and I can't recommend it as a "read-worth" story.
About Kevin J. Anderson
Kevin J. Anderson has published more than 175 books, 58 of which have been national or international bestsellers. He has written numerous novels in the Star Wars, X-Files, and Dune universes, as well as a unique steampunk fantasy trilogy beginning with Clockwork Angels, written with legendary rock drummer Neil Peart. His original works include the Saga of Seven Suns series, the Wake the Dragon and Terra Incognita fantasy trilogies, the Saga of Shadows trilogy, and his humorous horror series featuring Dan Shamble, Zombie P.I. He has edited numerous anthologies, written comics and games, and the lyrics to two rock CDs. Anderson is the director of the graduate program in Publishing at Western Colorado University. Anderson and his wife Rebecca Moesta are the publishers of WordFire Press. His most recent novels are Clockwork Destiny, Gods and Dragons, Dune: The Lady of Caladan (with Brian Herbert), and Slushpile Memories: How NOT to Get Rejected.
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