*pulls on zombie-proof vest* Yeah. I’m a little nervous to post this one...

Dearly, Departed sounded like exactly my kind of story. Genre-bending fun is usually my cup of tea, so a story that combines my favorite genres – dystopia and steampunk – and spices that up with a zombie romance? Sign me up and hand me the t-shirt!
And yet, and yet, and yet…

BEYOND HERE, THERE BE SPOILERS (little ones)- YOU DONE BEEN WARNED. ;)

You’d think with a cast of characters this extensive, I’d find somebody to connect with, a reason to *care* about the story…but I didn’t. Bram was fantastic – how could a Bing-Crosby-crooning gentleman of a zombie NOT be fantastic – but I spent the book waiting for him to start sparkling, if you know what I mean. He was just a smidgen too perfect.

As for Nora, well, let’s be clear about one thing: she might have been the main female character, but she was NOT the protagonist of this story. Instead, she was always on the verge of doing something interesting, but never actually doing it: she learns some fighting skills, but doesn’t use them. She is apparently a wonderful shot, but when the big battle arrives, she doesn’t use a gun. Even now, I couldn’t tell you Nora’s motivation or driving need, because frankly, she didn’t have one. She did not change, evolve, or do much of anything as a character other than fall in love with a cute dead guy. Oh, and taste yummy, naturally. *deja vu*

As for the other characters, well, Pamela morphed from being a worrywart of a perfectly proper young lady into a zombie-slaying warrior princess, only to drop off the radar just as I was starting to like her. The other characters with their own POV scenes, Wolfe and Victor, didn’t need them and I found being in their heads annoying. Call me crazy, but I think when a story requires scenes from the viewpoint of minor characters just to move the plot along, it’s a good sign that the main characters aren’t worthy of their roles.

The plot was interesting, but frustratingly episodic, a trait emphasized by the POV switching. I repeatedly found myself thinking, “Okay, interesting worldbuilding/cool tech/that’s an unusual take on zombies…but what’s the point of this scene?” It worked in a more or less logical way, but lacked overall focus. In other words, A led to B led to C, but A and C didn’t always connect to one another.

One thing I did like, however, was the concept of a story built on mortality rather than immortality. In a YA market saturated with “forever (and ever and ever and ever and ever and ever) love” this romance stood out because of the inherent limits: Bram is a zombie, and they don’t last long. Nora is human. They do NOT have a “forever” and I actually found that really refreshing.

Overall, this was a G-rated YA romance with PG violence, blood, and zombie guts. I mostly enjoyed reading it, but I won’t be re-reading it, and the jury’s still out on whether I continue with the series. Good for those who like a low level of sensuality in their romance, and an imaginative (if not especially believable) steampunk world, but probably not for those who prefer complex, complicated characters.