Graveminder, the next book to be reviewed for zombies month, turns out to not actually have zombies in it. Or maybe it does. I’m a little unclear on that. See, the risen of this world are not referred to as zombies but as the Hungry Dead. The Hungry Dead feast on the flesh and the blood of the living but unlike typical zombies, a bite will not infect the living. It just really friggin hurts. (Which totally makes sense since having parts of your flesh torn out is supposed to hurt.) The more the Hungry Dead eat of the living, the more they come back to themselves – remembering who they were, where they are and how they came to be dead. These are zombies who, when not dealing with their hunger, are able to think beyond "Brains! Must eat brains!" and have complex thoughts. So are they actually zombies? The one time the subject comes up, the reader is told the Hungry Dead are not zombies, just “dead folk who crawl out of the graves.” I’m not sure why this doesn’t make them zombies, especially since once out of the grave, these zombies want to snack on delicious, delicious humans. They sure sound like zombies.
Anyway, centuries ago, a gate between the living and the land of the dead was opened in the town of Claysville. In order to stop the newly dead from returning, a bargain was struck between Mr. D, the ruler of the shadowy realm, and the town. Two residents would work in tandem to keep the newly dead from returning. The Graveminder tends to the dead providing food, drink and nourishment in order to keep them safely in the ground. The Undertaker protects the Graveminder and opens the way to the land of the dead. When the Hungry Dead return, it is up to the Undertaker to open the path so the Graveminder can escort the dead to their proper place. The Graveminder has always been a Barrow woman, just as the role of the Undertaker has always been filled by one of the Montgomery men. When Maylene Barrow, the current Graveminder, is murdered, Bek, her heir and granddaughter, must return to Claysville and assume the mantle. Too bad no one has ever explained to Bek the town’s unique history or the role she is meant to assume. Also kept in the dark is the future Undertaker, Byron Montgomery. Together these two will have to figure out their new jobs, return the Hungry Dead to the shadowy realm, solve the mystery of Maylene’s death and work out their own troubled relationship.
