Seen at City of Books 
 After reading countless YA paranormal books, I thought the genre had nothing new to offer. Something Strange and Deadly really caught me off guard with it's fantastic combination of Steampunk and Zombies. From the first page I knew I would love reading Something Strange and Deadly and now I can't get over the fact that I have to wait till July for the next book. Even though the wait will probably kill me, I am so glad I read this book. 
 Eleanor's life isn't working out too well. A necromancer is on loose and has reanimated all the dead bodies in her local cemetery. In addition Eleanor's brother has been kidnapped by the necromancer and to make matters worse, her family is in financial ruin. Her mother only seems to care about social status and reputation so she wants Eleanor to marry Clarence, a rich eligible bachelor. Eleanor tries to enlist the help of Spirit Hunters to save her brother. 
 I'm not gonna lie Something Strange and Deadly has a lot going but Dennard managed to execute everything wonderfully. Usually in books with a bunch of plot lines everything gets too entangled and the pacing suffers. This was not the case with Something Strange and Deadly at all because the plot moved at a brisk pace. I really liked how balanced everything in Something Strange and Deadly is; there is the perfect amount of action, romance, and zombies. The zombies in this book were not your average brain-munching walking dead which I enjoyed. The best part about Something Strange and Deadly is not the awesome intriguing plot but the extremely well done characters. 
 Eleanor is everything a female protagonist should be. A lot of books that I have read usually suffer from female protagonists that are annoying to the point where I felt like throwing the book at a wall or giving up. Eleanor is smart, witty, and fun protagonist that I really enjoyed reading about. I loved how strong and dedicated she was in her search for her brother. Eleanor really reminded me of one of my favorite characters, Mary from The Forest Of Hands And Teeth. (By the way if you haven't read Carrie Ryan's zombie trilogy, you're really missing out on an awesome trilogy.) Eleanor had that strong will and kick-ass personality that I really loved about Mary. Eleanor is more awesome because honestly I love her witty nature and parasol abilities. 
 Parasols are practically the holy grail in Something Strange and Deadly. Who knew that a parasol to the knees of a zombie would be so effective? I will never be able to look at an umbrella the same ever again thanks to Susan Dennard. If there is ever a zombie apocalypse, screw guns because my weapon of choice will be a parasol. Even Kirby and Princess Peach are embracing the parasol way of life. 
 [image error] 
 Disclaimer: Scott Reads It and Susan Dennard are not responsible if a parasol isn't an effective weapon during the zombie apocalypse. Use a parasol at your own risk. 
 Something Strange and Deadly has romance yet it was a smallish part of the book. For once in a Young Adult novel there is no love triangle of some sort. Eleanor's love interest Daniel was an interesting character and the reader first gets the impression that he's sort of a grouchy person. On the inside I think that Daniel was just a sensitive character who was just being protective of Eleanor. He really reminded me of Will, one of the protagonists and love interests in Cassie Clare's Infernal Devices. Both characters had similar personalities. The other characters in the book were well-developed and unique in their own ways. I really would like to get to know the other Spirit Hunter, Joseph better because I really would like to know more about his connection to Daniel. Jie is one of the most awesome and kick-ass female characters and I hope she makes an appearance in book 2. 
 Something Strange And Deadly was a nice respite from generic dystopian books. I loved the humor and wit that Dennard wrote because it provided some nice comic relief. The way that Dennard combined two of my favorite genres (Steampunk & Zombies) was pretty spectacular. Kudos to whoever designs these covers because they are stunning. I would love to see more parasol-bashing zombie action in A Darkness Strange And Lovely and I'm really glad there was no cliffhanger in this book. If there was a cliff hanger the wait for A Darkness Strange And Lovely would be even more excruciating. Something Strange And Deadly is a solid and fun debut and is one of the best zombie books i have ever read.