"The Secret Dead" by S.W. Fairbrother is technically a pretty good book. The grammar, spelling, and punctuation not only show Fairbrother cares about the writing, but also shows attention to detail in editing. Not that the book was entirely error free, but errors were so minimal there was no distraction. The use of UK words versus those specific to the US were easily understandable - 'lift' for 'elevator', 'boot' for (automotive) 'trunk', 'trainers' for 'tennis shoes', etc. This reader found most of the storyline to be quite surreal in the telling. As a lover of paranormal stories, that isn't truly a problem for this reader, although some of the scenes were so bizarre to this reader, it did toss her out of the story for a bit; in other words, it took this reader longer to read this story than it should have, and the longer reading did not intensify enjoyment, rather increased the feeling of - when will this end? Adding to that, almost every main character either started off dead and came back to life, or died by stories end. Some of this reader's observed tru-isms for Fairbrother's created world, seemed inconsistant. A zombie is a re-annimated body (which is no biggie), that tends to decompose the longer it lasts. Okay, that's acceptable and believable. But then why do the hag's, or death witches, decompose in the death state when their bodies are genetically meant to die repeatedly? The one rule of the created world seems to counter the other, to this reader. The story itself is part mystery or detective novel, part magic realism, part dystopian zombie apopcalypse, and part thriller. Some of the many secondary characters were confusing, leaving this reader a tad confused about who did what and when. While the stylistic tone of voice and creativity of Fairbrother intrigues this reader, at the same time, something about that aforesaid stylistic voice and the overall perceived surrealism of the story was off-putting to this reader. It is likely this reader will not continue reading the series, although likewise this reader will not 'not' recommend the writer. ** Review originally posted to Amazon reviews on February 5, 2017. **
