come back, alfonso! 
 okay, another quickie mini-review for another mini-book i free-read on the work-nook last week. 
 no more dashes in the entire review, i promise. 
 this little novella chronicles the events leading up to feed and deadline (oh, and blackout which i want to come out now please). and once again, mira grant has rocked my world. it is a split-viewpoint (damn you, dash!) story, where the perspectives of scientists, eco-terrorists, the first victim, a dog, doctors, reporters, and citizens are given in a way that completely fleshes out the origins of the virus. 
 again, ms. grant has blinded me with science, in the best possible way. i have no idea if what she is saying makes biological sense, but that fact that it is so detailed, and seems to make sense is enough for me. in attempting to cure the common cold, something goes awry, and the virus is unleashed upon the population prematurely by some stoner asshole college kids who think they are going to save the world. and they do, if what was wrong with the world before was that there just weren't enough zombies. kudos, potheads... 
 our beloved heroes from the "regular" books are not present, but it doesn't even matter, because she is so good at writing characters, we begin to feel for the scientists, even though we know it is a bad move, and they are going to come to a bad end, despite all their good intentions. 
 it feels so convincing. it makes me want to look out my window and make sure this isn't happening on my streets. mira grant is one of the best in this genre; not just zombie-lore, but in all post-apoc lit. (those dashes are illusions, look away). her world-building is top-notch, she doesn't get sentimental, she covers all sides of a situation with equal weight - she makes tiny stars appear in my eyes. 
 and even though this is "just" a novella, it carries a lot of weight. so, as an introduction to the series, or to tide you over while you wait for that third part, it is definitely worth a read. 
 dash-dash-dash