A book that will stick with you long after you finish reading, Eat Your Heart Out is a satirical YA spin on the horror movie tropes but set at a fat camp. There are some triggering moments in the book, but the author approaches them with care and thought. Well worth a read and it's great to see fat characters in action hero roles.

Read my full review for The Mary Sue here: https://www.themarysue.com/eat-your-heart-out-zombie-satire/

Read my interview with the author for Culturess here: https://culturess.com/2021/06/25/interview-kelly-devos-eat-your-heart-out/

A group of teens, a fat camp and a new diet bar that had bizarre side effects- what do the three have in common? They are part of Kelly deVos’s story Eat Your Heart Out. Part action – Part horror satire, Vivian, Allison and the rest of the crew take on a camp zombie apocalypse. I enjoyed every moment of the story, including the very campy vibes it gave off.

Before I dive in, remember when there were fat camp shows on TV that were just -ughhh? Well, Eat Your Heart Out created a setting that was not the focus of the story, which I welcomed wholeheartedly. Yes, there are a bunch of teens and young adults at a fat camp and yes they are considered fat, but that wasn’t all there was to the story. The story focused more on the zombie defeating action, the witty ways the characters worked together mixed with a ode to slasher movie stereotypical characters. It talked about fatphobia but also showed that being fat wouldn’t stop these teens from kicking zombie butt and figuring out how that nasty diet bar is related to the new zombies. In short, Eat You Heart Out portrays the message of how harmful society can be towards people they consider fat and the toxicity of diet culture. It was done well and while important did not take shine from the focal point of the story.

One thing I loved most about this story and am a general fan of is the use of multiple point of views. It was great to hear form many characters and always have a fresh look into what was happening next. I tihnk Kelly did well in making sure that although there were multiple point of views, the plot did not get away from that. When thinking of characters, I can’t say I have favorite because I enjoyed each character I was able to read about and how their part in the story complimented the protagonist[s]. What I did enjoy most about the characters were their sense of humor in an otherwise pretty dreadful situation.

Overall, Eat Your Heart Out was a campy horror story that I didn’t know I wanted and needed. I would definitely recommend it to anyone who may want to venture out of their comfort genres like myself [I am a huge fantasy girl] and to anyone who wouldn’t mind escaping to become a part of a team of zombie fighters.

Wow, this book! I’m not even sure I have the right words to describe how much of a fun read this was. If you, like me, appreciate horror movie tropes but need to be invested in the characters? You’re going to absolutely love this book.

Kelly deVos has taken the standard horror movie characters and turned them into people that the reader can completely understand. Each one of them is a vividly written person, who has their own stake in the madness that is happening at Camp Featherlight. I was truly impressed with their ingenuity and teamwork, but most of all I was blown away how each person in this book fits absolutely perfectly where they are. I would be lying if I said I didn’t tear up a few times.

Oh, and the pacing in this book is absolutely on point. There’s a mystery, with a nefarious plot of course. There are terrifying moments, and sweet ones. Best of all, the climax of this book is absolutely perfect. You might not love the ending, but I promise you that you won’t be able to deny that it fits excellently with this story. This was honestly one of the most satisfying things I’ve read in a long time.

In short? Pick this up! Kelly deVos has written a gem, and it is well worth your attention!

This was definitely a gut-punch of a book! I'm not much for horror movies, but I was able to follow along with all the usual tropes. A fun read!

I am not really a zombie fan, but Eat Your Heart Out is an amazing horror story with zombie where most of the main characters are fat. The cover with its colors is definitely a win! It made me wanna read it and it gave me high expectations.

Also I am not a fan of multiple POVs and in this story are six narrators. But it wasn’t a disadvantage because I had the chance to know and understand every character. For me it was an easy fun reading with interesting characters and dark secrets.

Thank you TBR and Beyond and Kelly deVos for the opportunity to read Eat Your Heart Out in exchange for an honest review.

An absolutely wonderful book! I was part of the TBR and Beyond Blog Tour for Eat Your Heart Out and I just loved making my reading journal. Thank you so much for this chance to read and promote this story!

I really enjoyed this one. It was quick paced and an easy read. I really enjoyed how strong willed and sure of her self the MC was. It was well written, I enjoyed the world building, and the characters felt fleshed out and I felt connected to them. Would recommend.

I really appreciated the author's note at the beginning of this one, but I wasn't totally into this one. Very interesting premise, though!

First love the cover!
Such a fun and awesome read. A read you can fly through. Who knew that a book with a zombie apocalypse would be fun, right? Definitely recommend.

Thank you PenguinTeen and Netgalley

Fat girl main character and zombies? I'm there. This book was a lot of fun and the fact that the majority of the characters were fat and still fully capable and awesome made it even better. This book doesn't reinvent the wheel or anything, but it's a good binge book for a weekend read.

Everything about Eat Your Heart Out is fantastic! As someone who struggles with body image and fatphobia, I was really looking forward to this read. Vivian is a popular high school soccer player who knows there is nothing wrong with her body size, yet her mom still sends her off to a super expensive “fat camp” run by a big pharma company. What Vee doesn’t know is that her mom also paid for her ex-best friend Allie to go too. But things start to go wrong the moment they arrive in Flagstaff.

Eat Your Heart Out is told fantastically from multiple points of view. You get to know each character and their own agenda, as well as secrets, as they experience the chaos that unfolds at Featherlite. And man these “zombies” are athletic, fit, and super strong!

This story is action-packed, fast-paced, intense, and gory in all the best ways. I recommend this to anyone who enjoys YA, but also some horror elements.

Character development is fantastic as I found myself loving characters I didn’t care for at the beginning of the story. And Eat Your Heart Out was just a great read for me all around!

Vivian Ellenshaw is fat, but she knows she doesn’t need to lose weight, so she’s none too happy to find herself forced into a weight-loss camp’s van with her ex-best friend, Allie, a meathead jock who can barely drive, and the camp owner’s snobby son. They arrive at Camp Featherlite at the start of the worst blizzard in the history of Flagstaff, Arizona, and it’s clear that something isn’t right here. A camper has gone missing and to make matters worse Vee has spotted something horrifying lurking outside in the snow. Something is very wrong and it’s not long before Camp Featherlite’s luxurious bungalows are totally overrun with zombies. What starts out as a mission to unravel the camp’s sketchy “miracle cure” turns into a desperate fight for survival.

EAT YOUR HEART OUT is an entertaining and satirical take on a modern zombie story taking place at a weight-loss camp for children of the ultra-rich. deVos smartly uses all of the zombie tropes to her favor, as she pokes fun at the sub-genre, while succeeding in creating her own version of undead fun. From the moment I picked this one up, I loved all of the characters and was fully invested in the chaos breaking out around them.

Told through alternating narratives of each member of our newly formed group of survivalists, EAT YOUR HEART OUT plays out through the eyes of everyone. While a zombie story is always going to be steeped in horror and creep factor, deVos wisely drops in humor and witty commentary from each narrator to keep the story light. EAT YOUR HEART OUT has been compared to Shaun of the Dead, which just happens to be an all-time favorite movie of mine, and I would have to say that the comparison is quite accurate for the vibe of this book. For those looking for a fun and wild zombie story, make sure you give this one a shot!

I knew as soon as I saw the cover I needed to read this. Devos writes in the beginning that things in the book are purposefully and satirically extreme, and I think that’s a fair assessment. Because what reader wouldn’t cringe that fat camps are still a thing? Wow, it made me hate Coach even more.

The introduction of the characters was a tad tricky at first, but once you know who’s who, you quickly catch on that we have a fairly diverse cast of characters. Eat Your Heart Out is told in alternating viewpoints, so you get to see the situation unfold from varying narratives. If there was anything I didn’t love reading this, it’s that the ending felt rushed. I realized I was at 99%, feeling like there was still a bit to address, but then that was it. But the ride to get there was super fun.

This book is so much more than a group of teens battling zombies. Because there are significant core issues discussed. Vivian has some good insight about people, and I highlighted a lot of her text. When things begin unfolding, it feels like non-stop action because these zombies do not quit. They all work together well, and they are creative in the ways they fight to stay alive. Overall, this is a well-written, enjoyable read from start to finish.

I unfortunately couldn't finish this book. There was something about the characters...they were just really unlikable for me. The plot took forever to get moving! They kept dancing around the main element of the story...

A great book about the struggles of how you see yourself versus how others see you and voice their opinions.
The main lead isn’t afraid to show off who she is, and can be an inspiration to many!
Such a great fast-and-funny read to get roped into!

Thank you @tbrbeyondtours & the author for sending me this ebook in exchange for an honest review!

This was a delight to read. This book is pitched as Shaun of the Dead meets Dumplin’ and it delivers! The premise is that our rag-tag crew of characters are all shipped off to Featherlite Weight loss camp, but what unfolds when they get there is something none of them expected (aka zombies!). Trapped at the camp without power after an unprecedented snowstorm rolls in, this story is told from multiple POVs (including most of the familiar characters above) where each character will have a part to play in how this story unfolds. Who will survive? Who will get eaten? And who cares about losing weight when you’re running for your life?

This story is full of action, body positivity, and humor. If you love a good zombie action flick then I highly recommend you check this out! Some of the choices made by the characters felt a little unrealistic to me, and at a few points I felt pulled out of the story (the characters knew things that I thought no high schooler would know lol) but overall I enjoyed this!

Review to come July 16th on blog/goodreads, etc.

I received this book from the publisher/blog tour in exchange of an honest review.

I have been trying to write a review for DAYS now. It is now the 9th and I finished this book on the 4th. So I am just going to make a good/not so good review, though for most it will just be good. Because I really LOVED this book and that is why I just don't know words any more. Haha.

GOOD

: How it combines something serious like fatphobia and dieting along with flesh-eating monsters (I wouldn't call them zombies). Even later in the book we read about bodies, health, being bigger, and more.
: Love that we get a POV from all the characters. Of course, Vee was my favourite, good lord that girl kicks some serious butt! She was already pretty tough, but with the monsters around she just levelled up some more, just like a super saiyan. The characters were so great and I frankly don't have anyone that I wasn't a fan of. In fact, I was just rooting for all of them and looked forward to each of the POVs. I wanted to know if all of them would survive.
: Which brings me to this, don't get attached. The author isn't shy to kill off people and while I am sad, I am also happy with that because it would just be unrealistic if this group of teens would all magically survive. I don't consider it a spoiler. Hello???? Monster apocalypse??? Dangerous flesh eating monsters that happily throw couches at you??? People are bound to die. However, I was so attached that I forgot that people could die. Yes, I am still sad.
: I love the tropes that get attached to the characters by Allison. From the basketcase to the nerd to the action girl, each one of the characters had something stuck on them and it was interesting to see things change. Because sometimes you change from one trope to another, but do you want that?
: Loved seeing everyone's motives for being at fatcamp. Not everyone is there to lose weight, oh no.
: This is a camp, but it isn't a summer one! I have read many books about camp but almost all took place during summer, maybe spring. I haven't read a book featuring a camp in the winter. So that was exciting, especially with the whole blizzard.
: The bars that changed people. Well, boy, I wouldn't have touched those at all. One, because I got a crap-ton of allergies and I need to know specifically what is in there. But also, hello, the way those bars were described made me go NOPE. I am glad that our group was smart. Was happy our group first wanted answers.
: The zombies, um, sorry, flesh-eating monsters. I was first a bit hesitant to read this book given we are in a pandemic and I am not that much into zombies for some magical reason. So I am happy when they turned out not to be truly zombies. I don't really see it as a spoiler given that this is pretty much shown quite early on. There were just too many hints that these monsters were not zombies. As soon as I knew that I relaxed. Well, as much as one can relax with scary monsters lurking around.
: There was so much action. And I love it! The characters are very creative with dispatching the monsters.
: What we learn about the monsters! That was so interesting and I am happy the author gave us plenty of information, introduced us to what makes the monsters tick, and more!
: It was at times soooo scary and that was great. I was definitely terrified at times.
: The cover! It is so Vee!
: How this book made me scream in fear, cry, cheer, root, and all the others. It was definitely a book that made me feel all the things.

Not so good:

: The ending felt really rushed and I have so many questions still. I would have loved an epilogue. Would love to see some more happening. Now it just felt incomplete and I want more.
: The constant self-blaming. I get that one will have guilty feelings. Given their reasons to be at the camp and how that affects people. But after like many pages of it I was done with it. Stop your self-wallowing and get back to things. Again, I don't mind a few pages, but this was a constant thing. OH no, if I hadn't done x, that person would be alive. Oh no, if I did y, then this may not have happened and so on.

As you can see mostly positive! I had tons and tons of fun reading this book and I flew through it. I just had to know what would happen next! I would highly recommend this one to all!

My rating: 2.5/5 stars

This was unlike any book I have ever read. I strongly considered dnfing this multiple times but ultimately I stuck with it because the plot was so compelling. But the characters, man, the characters. I understand the need for well-rounded, imperfect characters. But these 6? They annoyed the ever living hell out of me with every turn. Even the ones I was supposed to like. As a very character driven reader this was really hard to deal with.

Each of them had a separate complicated backstory, which is great, but when there is 6 characters and a zombie apocalypse to keep up with, it can be a lot. Our cast includes such amazing players as Vivian “I don’t follow the rules” Ellenshaw, Sheldon “computer nerd’ Smentkowski, Steve “I have four sisters” Miller, Allison “has a film star sister” DuMonde. The only character I sort of liked was Rachel, and by the end she was seriously annoying me too.

We got six glorious different points of view and all of them were told from first person, which was as confusing as you can imagine. Only a page or two into the chapter I would forget who was narrating and have to go back and see. Maybe this was because I was reading on my kindle, because the chapter breaks were not formatted great, but it was incredibly confusing.

This also made the romance incredibly uncompelling. Because we have so many characters to keep up with, we can only spend so much time in each. Which was why, for me, the romance seemed to come out of absolutely nowhere. It was cute, and I can say I ship the characters at least a bit, but there was absolutely zero build up at all.

Alright, let’s talk about some things I liked. The imagery was so vivid I felt like I was at Camp Featherlite, facing down zombies. The scientific aspect behind the zombifying of the characters was also super cool, and I loved the way the campers discover it piece by piece and put it together. I’ve never read a zombie book before, but after this I can say I would read one again.

The social commentary about fatphobia was definitely present and absolutely amazing. This book made so many points I had never thought about before, and it definitely was very important to read them.

The plot was entertaining, and the action was almost nonstop, which definitely saved me from dnfing it. All in all, it was okay, but not great.

I will always gravitate towards books with fat MC’s, because I feel a kinship to them. Any book that has a body positive message will be to the forefront of my TBR.

I love books full of action and Eat Your Heart Out gives you just that. The pacing kept me focused solely on the story and I was completely invested. Was it perfect? No! I’d definitely need more time with the characters for me to really fall in love with them.

Eat Your Heart Out is about a group of teenagers who are sent to fat camp during a blizzard in Arizona. However, when they arrive something is off, and soon there are strange zombie like creatures terrorizing the camp. In order to survive, they have to put aside their differences and work together.
-
This book was a super fun, campy, and mildly gory read! I found this book super fast paced and I was able to fly through it when I actually took the time to read it (I have been in such a huge slump lately). I'm also someone who is highly driven by romance in books that I read and there wasn't a whole lot of romance in this particular book. I will say that the voice this book had reminded me a lot of Faith: Taking Flight by Julie Murphy, which I had loved. So if you enjoyed Faith, you might like this one or vice versa!
-
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐.5
(Rounded up)

[Disclamer: I recieved an eARC from Penguin Random House via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!]