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    Dread Nation
    Dread Nation
    Dread Nation
    Audiobook11 hours

    Dread Nation

    Written by Justina Ireland

    Narrated by Bahni Turpin

    4.5/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    New York Times bestseller * Six starred reviews

    At once provocative, terrifying, and darkly subversive, Dread Nation is Justina Ireland's stunning vision of an America both foreign and familiar—a country on the brink, at the explosive crossroads where race, humanity, and survival meet.

    Jane McKeene was born two days before the dead began to walk the battlefields of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania—derailing the War Between the States and changing the nation forever.

    In this new America, safety for all depends on the work of a few, and laws like the Native and Negro Education Act require certain children attend combat schools to learn to put down the dead.

    But there are also opportunities—and Jane is studying to become an Attendant, trained in both weaponry and etiquette to protect the well-to-do. It's a chance for a better life for Negro girls like Jane. After all, not even being the daughter of a wealthy white Southern woman could save her from society’s expectations.

    But that’s not a life Jane wants. Almost finished with her education at Miss Preston's School of Combat in Baltimore, Jane is set on returning to her Kentucky home and doesn’t pay much mind to the politics of the eastern cities, with their talk of returning America to the glory of its days before the dead rose.

    But when families around Baltimore County begin to go missing, Jane is caught in the middle of a conspiracy, one that finds her in a desperate fight for her life against some powerful enemies. 

    And the restless dead, it would seem, are the least of her problems.

    ""Abundant action, thoughtful worldbuilding, and a brave, smart, and skillfully drawn cast entertain as Ireland illustrates the ignorance and immorality of racial discrimination and examines the relationship between equality and freedom."" (Publishers Weekly, ""An Anti-Racist Children's and YA Reading List"")

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHarperCollins
    Release dateApr 3, 2018
    ISBN9780062822956
    Dread Nation
    Author

    Justina Ireland

    Justina Ireland is the New York Times bestselling author of Dread Nation, Deathless Divide, Rust in the Root, and Ophie’s Ghosts as well as the Star Wars High Republic novels A Test of Courage, Out of the Shadows, and Mission to Disaster. She is also the cocreator of the middle grade horror series Tales from Cabin 23 and the author of the series’ first book, The Boo Hag Flex. She lives with her family in Maryland, where she enjoys dark chocolate and dark humor and is not too proud to admit that she’s still afraid of the dark. You can visit her online at justinaireland.com.

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    Reviews for Dread Nation

    4.5/5

    873 ratings65 reviews

    What our readers think

    Readers find this title to be a thrilling and character-driven zombie novel with an interesting plot. The author's portrayal of each character is highly entertaining and the southern setting adds a unique touch. Some readers had minor issues with the representation of certain characters, but overall, they enjoyed the book. The audiobook version is highly recommended for its beautiful narration. The humor throughout the book and the strong relationships between the characters were also praised. Although some found the pacing a bit slow, the plot and characters were still captivating. This underrated book is a refreshing and enjoyable read, combining elements of Buffy and The Walking Dead with a badass black main character.

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 4/5
      A world that highlights how everyday racism can be more horrific than zombies.
    • 5/5
      I love Zombie books! This book has a new twist. Very creative writer and wonderful narrator. Entertaining from beginning to end.
    • 5/5
      This is a very character-driven zombie novel. Fantastic novel, interesting zombie lore, and a plot that could easily have been plucked from history books. I could not put it down!
    • 5/5
      I thoroughly enjoyed this book. So much so, that after I finished the sequel, I started this book again. I really like Jane McKeene and how she views her world. I also enjoyed seeing her relationship develop with Katherine Deveraux.
    • 3/5
      I would give this one a 3.5. Great plot, characters and such but a bit slow moving.
    • 3/5
      I loved the humor throughout this book! I was kept giggling on account of Jane’s narration. I adore her
    • 5/5
      Great story. Lots of suspense, but not too much gore. I like how the main character doesn't let her romantic intrest take advantage of her.
    • 5/5
      Absolutely loved not only this book but Bahni Turpin is such an astounding narrator. I was sucked in from the beginning to the end!
    • 5/5
      Since its been 2 years since I read the first book, wanted to refresh my memory before I dive into the sequel. And I enjoyed just as much as I did the second time around. Seriously, this book is so underrated. It's like Buffy meets the Walking Dead with a badass black main character
    • 4/5
      Reading stories that are filled with oppression, especially of the racial variety, is always very tough for me. I usually end up getting so very angry at the oppressors that I just can’t finish the book. I knew that going in, Dread Nation was going to be one of those stories that could be hit or miss for me. Turns out it was an absolute hit, but it was in no way an easy read. There is plenty of action, an element of mystery, and humor but what there was an apparent absence of is fairness. Nothing is fair in this story. Do not expect for there to be any sunshine and rainbows or HEA’s. This story is about survival and survival is not always pretty.Jane McKeene, a Negro, was born shortly before the dead rose up to walk the world. She has known nothing beyond what the world became after the zombies destroyed everything. Slavery had been abolished but shortly after Congress had funded the Negro and Native Reeducation Act to have schools started like Miss Preston’s School of Combat for Negro Girls. It was determined that Negros and Native Americans were “resistant” to the bite of shamblers (zombies) and therefore should be taught how to become attendants to protect the white people from falling prey.Jane and her classmates at Miss Preston’s School of Combat for Negro Girls were taught how to kill shamblers in the most efficient manner possible. Jane may have been the top of her class in many ways but she definitely did not fit the mold that the instructors were trying to force her in. She was extremely intelligent and was very aware of societies perceptions of her abilities. Everything changed for Jane when someone she was close to asked for her help in finding a sibling. While trying to discover what may have happened to the missing family Jane stumbled upon a conspiracy that had dire consequences.Jane is truly a unique character in that she is aware of the unfairness equated to her and those of Negro and Native American race but her knowledge does not stop her from rising above it and doing what is right. Not to say that Jane is “good” per se because she was no stranger to letting others take the fall for her actions or bending the rules and laws when it suited her but she does whatever she can to protect those around her whether they deserve it or not. I loved this about her character! She was sweet, saucy, and fierce!The writing was thought provoking, painted a clear picture of the events between characters, and was paced very well. What I wanted more of was world development. I have an understanding of history and can imagine what the country would have looked like but with the story being told from Jane’s perspective it was based upon only what she saw or interacted with. So, in my mind’s eye if I was to imagine what was beyond a wall I was left to my own imagination. That might not matter to some but it matters to me in story that is set in an alternate world. Overall though, Dread Nation is an amazing read, and even better, is part of a series! I am eagerly awaiting the sequel and am dying to see where the story goes!This review is based on a complimentary book I received from Edelweiss+. It is an honest and voluntary review. The complimentary receipt of it in no way affected my review or rating.
    • 5/5
      This book is just stunning. I tore through it in half a day, the way a shambler might tear through a living man's throat. Jane is just a stunning protagonist, so smart and competent and with her secrets we visit and revisit over the course of the book. She's amazing. She made some rash decisions, but I never felt like the author had shoved the idiot ball in her hands. Jane is everything I love in a character.Kate is the opposite of that, but it's a testament to the author that I grew to like Kate at the same time Jane did. Red Jack, Jane's friend and ex, tends to go off half-cocked. Kate can be a bit too cautious. Jane is the balance that makes it work, because she's pragmatic and brilliant.I'm looking forward to a sequel because I want to see more of not just the characters but the world. There's a hint of magic, a lot of worldbuilding underneath the prairie, and I want to see what else is going on here.
    • 5/5
      Great read!! I definitely recommend this book to read for something new.
    • 5/5
      It's been such a long time since I've truly enjoyed a book. Yeah I've had some good 5 star reads but it's been forever since I've been so enamored with a story and its characters. Can't wait for book 2 to drop!
    • 5/5
      I highly recommend listening over reading this story. The narrator did a beautiful job. Loved this audiobook.
    • 5/5
      A different kind of read for a zombie book. Enjoyed very much the southern n see
    • 5/5
      A witty, brave heroine in the midst of a war with the undead ... couldn't wait to see her get into more trouble and maneuver her way out of it!
    • 4/5
      This was a thrilling ride! I can tell the author put her heart into this tale and I appreciate that. The narrators complex portrayal of each character was highly entertaining and noteworthy. My only gripe was that every person that was considered by the main heroine attractive was fair skinned and light-eyed. Also all the lighter skin characters were given more depth of character while the darker ones were merely phantoms put in place to move to push and pull the main lead. Other than that I enjoyed it.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 5/5
      I loved this book. Loved it.
    • 2/5
      When I read that this was going to be a historical YA-novel with zombies I was all for it. I don't read much of this genre but this was very appealing. But boy was I disappointed.
      First of all, where are the zombies? I mean, they are there but strangely they aren't the focus of the book.
      And I'd like to explain something about the plot, but I can't. I don't know what the plot is. That's how I felt during the whole experience. Like I was adrift, not knowing where things were headed. I don't think Jane knew either.
      And when you feel like there's no plot you turn to the characters. But they were very lacking. They really fell flat for me and felt like there wasn't any real relationship between them.
      So with all that I was very uninterested, bored and lost. Won't be reading the next books. Might read reviews with spoilers if I'm curious enough.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 4/5
      This has been on my TBR for a long time and I was finally able to borrow it from the public library. I didn't love it but it was readable enough for me to read the follow up novel eventually.
    • 4/5
      I wanted to love this book. I think if I'd read it at the peak of teen zombie apocalypse books, I would have loved this book. Certainly, I admire and enjoy spitfire Jane and her uncompromising courage. I also think that while the book moves along quickly, is packed with adventure and not a little commentary on race relations, I also found the absolute bleakness of the white supremacy too much, and a lot of the plot lines that stem from that bleak place were harder for me to swallow. I recognize that is a statement of privilege, so take it with a grain of salt. I also think that part of my dismay is that the evil overlords are stupid -- their plans don't really make all that much sense, or have a sustainable conclusion, and that makes me think that it's a very simplistic portrayal of the nature of evil and oppression. Sadly, I think things are much more complex and more insidious than this book really addresses, and that's a weakness in the overall believability.
    • 4/5
      A relatively fun quick read. Who doesn't like the idea of zombies in the Reconstruction era? Except there is no reconstruction to be had in this story, since the zombies rose after Gettysburg and the hostilities ceased to deal with that threat. Decades later, it's still not over but now the US is divided between Egalitarians and Survivalists. The main protagonists are two black girls sent to combat schools since the role of blacks is to now protect whites from the zombies.
      As I said, a fun read but man, I wished more contemporary expressions had been fixed at editing. It's a pet peeve of mine. If you're going to write about a given historical period, clean up the language.
    • 5/5
      teen fiction (alternate history-post civil war with zombies; action/adventure with race issues and potential romance)

      I love the diversity (POC on the cover!)--Jane's friend Katherine may be asexual (making her role as man-bait even more interesting and probably extra odious for her); several characters "pass" for white and frequently deal with complications thereof; a potential love interest/backstabber/friend character is of Native heritage (forced into an American re-education camp as a child which the author includes a brief note about at the end). The world-building (technology/lack of technology; factions of thought amongst the whites; strange evolution of zombie behavior, etc.) is also pretty top-notch.

      Can't wait for the next one.
    • 5/5
      Interesting mix of slavery and zombies, with a dash of the impact of the Indian residential school system that is a very contemporary topic. Somewhat YA, but very readable overall. Looking forward to the second book.
    • 5/5
      Dread Nation by Justina Ireland is alternate post Civil War history with the United States full of zombies!
      Main characters Jane and Kate, two students at Miss Preston's School of Combat, are full of surprises and are just too cool!
      I listened to the audiobook narrated by the always fabulous Bahni Turpin.
      The writing is very vivid: I could picture this as a movie.
      I can't wait to read its sequel, Deathless Divide.
    • 4/5
      I usually have a hard time enjoying zombie apocalypse books because the scale of cultural, technological, scientific, and historical loss tends to really bother me above and beyond what the story addresses. That was not an issue in Dread Nation, because we are shown the true underbelly of American white supremacy and it's very obvious how little is actually worth saving. I loved that aspect of this book. It's subversive and implicit, but I was ready to burn it all down alongside Jane.
    • 4/5
      During the Civil War, the un-dead rise and the (white) people in power conscript Negroes and Native Americans to fight the zombie horde. We follow Jane McKeene, a young black girl in combat school. She is a smart, talented fighter but also a rule breaker (she can read!) with sass that frequently gets her into trouble. This was an exciting and engaging survival story with a surprising amount of nuance for a historical zombie apocalypse setting. The author touches on the horrors of slavery, "civilizing" boarding schools for Native Americans, the role of religion in the subjugation of black people, and the difficulties and dangers of "passing" as white. The ending was left open enough for a sequel and I'm looking forward to it.
    • 4/5
      An interesting alternative history in a post-Reconstruction era in which the Civil War was disrupted by the rise of the undead. Jane is a compelling protagonist, and the world is well built. The story gets a little grim at times, but there is plenty of both zombie action and Black history.
    • 5/5
      Fast-paced, thought-provoking, enraging, and even funny. This mashup of alternate history, zombie apocalypse and social commentary has believable and likable main characters and villains with some dimension. A smattering of anachronistic dialogue can be overlooked. Inventive and creative and a joy to read.
    • 5/5
      I listened to the audiobook version and it was very well performed. The turns and twists to this story were very well done, and the characters have some depth to them. The story about passing during a time period so racially charged is something that not so many people discuss outside of history classes, and even then it might only be a footnote unless you are taking history at the college level. Sexuality is another topic explored with some nuance in this story, and I was very happy with how it was dealt with. Jane is a strong female character who tells people when they're stupid. If you like characters like that and seeing how people negotiate some heavy topics with a side of zombies, then give this a try. I'll be coming back for the next book myself.