Rating: 
Summary: You've never seen zombies like these!
Review: I won't say Brian Keene's novel "The Rising" is a perfect horror novel; it has its flaws, to be sure. However, rivetting until the end, it is definitely one of the best horror novels (and possibly the best zombie novel) I have read in a long time.The plot:
It's an accident, really. A device designed to create black holes opens up a portal to another reality--Hell, if you will. When we die, and our life forces depart our bodies, spirits from this other reality come back and inhabit them...intent on making corpses for more of their brethren to come through. "The Rising" follows four primary people: Jim Thurmond, who's searching for his son; the Reverend Martin, who hears of Jim's plight and dedicates himself to helping the man; Baker, a scientist who had a lot to do with the catastrophe that has happened, and who now wishes to survive long enough to make ammends; and Frankie, a former prostitute running not only from the zombies, but from her drug addiction as well... As their journeys intersect each other, these four individuals will have to face the bitter truth: though many people have survived the zombies so far, sometimes the walking dead aren't half as evil as the living... "The Rising" by Brian Keene is spectacular. Maybe it's ripping off "Day of the Dead;" personally, I don't care. All I care about is that these zombies are like none you've seen before, and Keene is one hell of a writer. Though he may not be the next Stephen King (he lacks King's commercial appeal), Keene is, like many authors published by Leisure Horror, a rare and dignified talent. Buy "The Rising," but on two conditions: 1, you have to be a true horror fan; and 2, you have to be willing to have your socks scared right off your feet!
Rating: 
Summary: Cheap, poorly written nonsense.
Review: Readers fresh from seeing the remake of DAWN OF THE DEAD, and looking for more zombie thrills, might be tempted to pick up Brian Keene's novel, THE RISING. The cover illustration and copy promises gory, Romero-esque chills within, but readers will be disappointed at what they find once they delve inside. Keene clearly wants to put his own stamp on the walking dead subgenre, but his work is too weak for him to do so. THE RISING's premise is familiar to anyone who's seen a zombie movie in the last thirty years: one day the dead just start rising. This is actually more than enough to set things in motion, but in Keene's novel there's more to it. In an attempt to make a wild situation seem more realistic, he's tacked on some pseudo-scientific elements involving quantum physics and then mixed in a heavy dose of good, old-fashioned demon possession. According to the exposition haphazardly crammed into the first fifty pages of THE RISING, a large-scale experiment designed to reproduce the conditions of the big bang have broken the seal on Hell. Demonic entities are now free to enter any dead thing and reanimate it. And we do mean ANY dead thing, which leads to unintentional hilarity as the protagonists of the book are menaced by flesh-eating squirrels and even, at one point, a tropical fish. Keene's walking dead aren't mindless flesh eaters. His zombies speak, often wisecracking like Freddy Krueger as they pursue their prey. They can drive vehicles, use guns, and generally behave like the cursed crew from THE PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN. The situation is so ridiculous that when Keene manages a few ham-handed homages to popular zombie films (usually dialogue reproduced word-for-word), the cheesiness seems right at home. At the heart of the story is the usual clichéd bunch of perfect strangers. One's a construction worker, another a prostitute with a drug problem, another a scientist, and so forth. Keene manages to get some drama out of the plight of Jim, the construction worker, who must brave a journey from West Virginia to New Jersey to rescue his nine year-old son, but the novel is so haphazardly put together that one stops caring well before the end. Leisure Books, the publisher of THE RISING, doesn't seem that concerned with quality, either. The pages in the book are laid out with acres of white space around the edges in order to fatten up the page count. No editor seems to have examined the manuscript, because grammatical and typographical errors abound. Continuity problems crop up here and there, never addressed. In short, the book looks good on the outside, but is a disaster on the inside. There are entertaining, even thoughtful, tales to be told about the walking dead. Filmmakers continue to revisit the themes first explored by George Romero's films, and find fresh things to say. Short story collections like THE BOOK OF THE DEAD have also been worthwhile. THE RISING, on the other hand, is shoddy on nearly every level. Only the most casual reader will find any reward in reading it.
Rating: 
Summary: Another Mediocre Zombie Novel!
Review: At no point while reading this book did I feel real empathy towards the main character, nor did I particularly care what happened to any of the main protaganists. Like Reign of the Dead, most of the characters were simply cardboard cut outs with bad dialogue. At just over 300 pages, I felt that Keene could have added a hundred more on character development alone. Stephen King takes his time to tell the story, his characters come alive. The Rising couldn't be farther removed from that. However, that being said, it is a quick read and recommended to those who are huge fans of the zombie sub-genre.
Rating: 
Summary: Solid work.
Review: "The dead scrabbled for an entrance to his grave." So begins THE RISING, Brian Keene's twisted tale of a world where zombies are swiftly becoming the dominant species on Earth, as hordes of the undead hunt the rapidly declining human population. Jim Thurmond, the man in the grave (actually a fall out shelter), is one of the last surviving humans in his small Virginia town. Already at the brink of madness, Jim is pushed closer to the edge when his young son Danny, who, since their divorce, lives with Jim's ex-wife in New Jersey, calls him on his nearly drained cell phone, pleading for help. Galvanized by his son's pleas, Jim vows to rescue him. The remainder of the novel deals with Jim's odyssey across a shattered northeastern landscape, as he struggles to avoid the growing zombie army and protect the people who join him along the way. It's a dangerous trek, full of unexpected threats and surprises. Bristling with menace, The Rising borrows liberally from books and stories such as Richard Matheson's I am Legend, Stephen King's The Stand and The Mist, James Dickey's Deliverance, Jack Finney's Invasion of the Body Snatchers, and movies such as George Romero's Dead trilogy and the classic B-movie Invaders from Mars. Although it wears its influences on its sleeve, The Rising also demonstrates a lot of creativity and energy, as in Keene's explanation for the zombies attack and existence. Although fantastic, it's easier to accept than other rationales that have been offered in the past. Besides coming up with his new rationale for the existence of the walking dead, Keene also manages to keep this warped road trip interesting, subjecting his sympathetic protagonists to a variety of dangers and perils. Despite its derivative elements, and a use of "inside" jokes and references (Keene conspicuously drops the names and personas of folks prominent in the horror field into the narrative) that borders on the excessive, THE RISING is an interesting, solidly written tale, filled with memorable incident and compelling characters who evolve and change. Does Jim Thurmond succeed in his quest? Is he ever reunited with Danny? Read THE RISING to find out.
Rating:
Summary: Good Story But Very Weak Finish
Review: Something has gone wrong with the world and the dear are rising. But they are not just reanimated corpses. No, they are inhabited by ancient being that were consigned to the Void eons ago. We follow three main characters as they try to survive in this new world. The first is Jim, a divorced father who is convinced his son is alive and needs to be rescued. Next we have Dr. Baker who worked at a government facility that may be responsible for the influx of creatures from the Void. Finally we have Frankie, a street-smart, heroin-addicted prostitute. She is tough and the new world order has forced her to kick her habit. These three characters fight for survival in a dangerous world. Not only dead humans are walking. Rats, birds, dogs, and other animals are also revived and their controlling spirits are intelligent and can work together. Eventually the three meet as their paths cross and Jim continues his quest to find his son. A very fast-paced tale. The new type of zombies are quite interesting. The perils are very deadly. But I felt the ending was very weak. It was almost like there should have been another thirty pages or so. It was unfortunate. I really expected more from the ending. Well, maybe there will be a sequel.
Rating: 
Summary: Dawn of the Gore
Review: Actually I am one of Brian Keene's devoted fans since I have read his excellent Short Stories collection (No Rest for The Wicked) and especially his marvelous novella (EarthWorm Gods) ,The mentioned novella was one of the most atmospheric horror stories I have ever read(And probably not only in the horror genre) ,It captured along with the rest of the stories and I kept waiting for the things to come ,When I begun reading (The Rising) I had very high anticipations due to the fact that the events are taking place within an apocalyptic world which in my opinion was a chance for Keene to prove himself more after the success of (EarthWorm Gods) which is located in similar era ,But Unfortunately I was very disappointed this time. The Story focuses on a Journey supposedly taken by four of the survivors of a deadly plague that turns humans into Zombies ,the main Character (Jim Thurmond) who is trapped in a secret hideout inside his own house ,His wife is dead along with his unborn child ,And to add more misery to his situation his wife returns from the grave to roam around his place along with hordes of zombies ,By some kind of a miracle he received a call from his own son who lives in New Jersey on his Cell phone ,And he decides to make a trip accross the country to save his son ,And he encounters other Survivors along the way. at the beguining of my reading I was totally captivated by the atmosphere and the dread of isolation ,It reminded me with the legendary novel (I Am Legend) ,But soon after that the story turns into some kind of gory feast ,With characters you feel very hard to sympathy with except for Jim ,Unlike the short stories I have read for Keene before the gory details are even overwhelming the characters and situation building ,With some old themes like the General who gone blood thirsty and whoring and normal people turning into cannibals ...etc ,All of that have been explored before in other writers works like Tim Lebbon and Simon Clarck and even in the recent movie (28 Days Later) ,Only some nice touches gave the story a little bit of value like the scientific explaination for the crisis which in itself came foggy and unconvincing. I Think that Brian Keene has to re consider his steps and return to the land of (EarthWorm Gods) which was more merciful than those stupid zombies.
Rating:
Summary: If you like zombies and Horror...BUY THIS BOOK!!
Review: I have always had a hard time reading a book, I find myself losing focus or the author takes so much time building characters I get bored before the book gets going. I pick this book up and I couldn't put it down. I wanted to call in sick so I could finish it. If you like Horror, especially that created by Zombies. BUY THIS BOOK - it is a fun, fast read. The author may not follow all the rules set down in the past, but the story moves, good characters and lots of gore. Thank you Brian for the nightmare, I loved it.
Rating:
Summary: Good Book , Bad Ending
Review: The book was very good. The ending was a let down.
Rating:
Summary: Predictable and possibly the worst ending out there
Review: I don't know if Brian Keene is planning a second book but if he is I won't be reading it.
You can read the description of the book above so I won't repeat it here.
What I can say is the Brain keene did manage to come up w/ a great idea on why bodies are returning from the dead. Sadly thats where any originality ends. While the premise was good Brian Keene takes things a bit to far and as a result you lose all hope for the survival of the main characters.
I don't want to spoil the book for anyone so I won't go into details. Just know that this book is far better off if checked out from a library as it really isn't even worth the $7 cover price.
Rating:
Summary: Wow ! What a pleasant surprise!
Review: I was killing time one day in a store and saw this book. Since Dawn of the Dead was one of my favorite horror movies I bought this book for a goof. After reading it I can honestly say this is one of the best horror novels I've read in a long, long time. I could not put it down. It has great zombie action, fast pacing, horrifying vision, and interesting characters. It is a great read that leaves you wanting more at the end (I hear there is a sequel coming out in the fall...I will buy it immediately). If Brian Keene's other books are half as good as this one then they will be very enjoyable. Recommended !
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