My Loaded Gun, My Lonely Heart

Hard-boiled mayhem and government conspiracies drive Rose’s noir-infused sequel to Bring Me Flesh, I’ll Bring Hell. Former pre-deceased (aka zombie) Vitus Adamson, now wearing the body of his nephew, has just been sprung from jail after serving only six months for the murder of his brother, Jamie, the man who made him a zombie. His rescuer is Lionel Valens, who has ties to Vitus’s father. Lionel wants Vitus to clean up some of Jamie’s loose ends and track a killer who may be using dreams for his deadly work. However, Vitus is battling an addiction to atroxipine, the drug that kept him from going feral in his zombie days, and he doesn’t know whom to trust, especially with mute, creepy Elvedina assigned by Lionel to look over his shoulder. Vitus’s tragic past and newfound humanity make him a compelling figure, and his wry narration, given to moments of self-loathing and snark, at times reads like a fever dream shot through with startling moments of sanity. This emotionally charged genre-buster serves up more than a few good punches and won’t disappoint fans of dark fantasy laced with pitch-black humor. (Nov.)