This might be more like 2.75-3. It was good for a novella but sort of hard to follow. The use of description was really nice but was often a placeholder for more important development that was not as fleshed out

This was definitely a short read. I still have so many questions! I think I understand what happened but not completely sure. I will probably need to read it again! But I think it is about good and evil and trying to fight the demons in the world. This book had a spooky vibe for sure, zombies are scary! I found the writing to be really great! The descriptions of the environment and the characters was well done. I would have liked it to be a little longer to see where Maddie goes! I am giving it 4 stars because I was a bit confused and I wish it was longer. Overall, it was great!

Revenants
By Mel C Bell
Release Date: October 1, 2024
Format: Digital ARC
Overall Rating: 4.75

It’s been a long time since I read a book that actually surprised me. Not only did this story really catch me off guard, but it went way into left field. I really enjoyed it.

My major complaint is that it’s super short, even though this could easily be so much longer. Yes, it was well rounded and it must tell the story the author wanted to tell. But I’m now invested in these characters and I want to know what happens to them!

Thank you NetGalley for the arc of this upcoming title!

I’d like to keep this short and sweet, this was such a romp! I enjoyed it from beginning to end and even though its length was an overall strength, I kept hoping there was more.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC!

I can appreciate that this novella is not the finished product, however, I do think that this book would benefit from having only one installment. Unfortunately, this was just not quite enough for me- and I was left feeling a little left down by the lack of ability to really settle in with the story.

I will say I am not a fan of the romance side of things, but the style of writing was gorgeous enough for me to be able to manage it. I was impressed with the way that the narrative had the troughs and peaks, and it is very clear that the author knows how to write. With that said, I don't feel like I got enough of the characterisation of anyone in this story because of how short it was.

There's also a lot of stuff going on in the story, and perhaps too many things going on at once. I think it's a fabulous concept with a lot behind it, but I think there could have been some cuts and some additions, and this would have been an absolutely wonderful horror piece.

This short novel blends masterful contemporary Gothic prose and a strong female character who speaks with a distinct Southern twang. While I found this distinct divergence in style a bit jarring at first, I soon grew to love this unique form of storytelling. As one who tends to shy away from romance, I found this story to be very satisfying as a horror-lover, providing thoroughly unsettling descriptions of terrors. The main character, Maddie, is a down-to-earth spitfire personality reminiscent of Mia Goth's character in Pearl. The descriptions in the story are so vivid and well-written that I struggle to see this as a graphic novel. However, given the care and attention clearly put into this first novel, I have no doubt the rest of this story will be an expertly-crafted, wild and wonderful ride.

Thank you BDA Publishing for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

Short but impactful novella about a young woman up against something sinister, when a soldier comes to her rescue. I found the writing descriptive and well crafted, and enjoyed the bits of back story that were weaved in.

Revenants is a horror novella published by @bdapublishing. it's set in the old west and features zombies.

The book follows Maddie. She and her father have been surrounded by war. They witness soldiers set fire to a building across the bridge. Curiosity gets the better of her father and he decides to get closer and see what's happening. But as Maddie awaits for her father's return, she notices several people shambling out of the water. The closer they get, the more horrifying they look. These "people" lay siege on the house. Maddie starts to think her life is over, but it's only just beginning. Especially when a dreamy soldier helps her evade death.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. The writing is beautiful. It's a quick read at only 70 pages. My biggest complaint was that I wanted it to be longer. I wanted to get to know the characters more. Where it ended didn't feel like an ending, it felt like a beginning to an even greater story.

The zombies in this book were downright creepy and I was all here for it. Kid zombies are always scary and the ones in here were fantastic.

Read this if you're looking for

📖zombies
📖some romance
📖supernatural elements
📖western feel quick read

I gave this one 3.5 stars. I enjoyed it and loved the writing but just wish it was longer. Special thanks to NetGalley and bda Publishing for the advanced readers copy.

Did not finish, unfortunately. It wasn’t my cup of tea. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for gifting me this arc.

Revenants by Mel C. Bell was wonderful! I loooved the writing, the prose was absolutely beautiful. My only critique of this was this it was indeed to short. This would have been an amazing full length novel or novella. But everything else about the story itself was amazing. I will be looking out for more releases from this author in the future.

Thank you to BDA Publishing and NetGalley for an eARC copy of Revenants by Mel C Bell.

Okay, so I understand that this will become a graphic novel next year as stated by the publisher notes and that it will be fully completed as a graphic novel. So, it is a bit hard for me to rate it higher than a 3 as there seems to be a full story missing and even as a short story there is just too much riding on the entire graphic novel to come out for anything to make sense. Though, I am looking forward to see how everything turns out in the future.

Great writing, but I didn’t really enjoy the inner thoughts vs. the dialogue. I definitely think it should be longer.

What can I say?
In this short story there are too many things, and none of them is well developed.
We have The Walking Dead in a post Civil War setting, with a little bit of romance (sort of). There are so many questions and no answers. Probably the author thought that it would have make it more enigmatic, but it’s just confusing.

𝕣ꫀꪜꫀꪀꪖꪀ𝕥ડ - Mel C Bell - ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

From my understanding, this will be a fully fleshed out graphic novel when complete. These quick to digest 70 pages are merely an in-depth premise for what promises to be a knockout horror/romantasy featuring zombies, war, the wild west, and...vampires (I think)?

✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧ My Review ✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧

I wish this was longer!
Right away, the writing style is descriptive, prosaic, and rich. There are some genuinely creepy and unsettling moments right out of the gate that kept me enthralled. I found myself highlighting many savory lines to reread later.

Comparatively, it's rare to read a story written with such a good grasp of diction, and here, it lends a layer of depth to what would otherwise be just another creature story.

For such a short read, I found myself invested in Maddie's experience, hoping beyond hope that she'd persevere.
Her inner dialogue was captivating and eerie, but left me with questions that I wished there were answers to...is she clairvoyant? Was she predisposed to her fate? Why was she singled out among others?

Where can I get more of Maddie and Mal?!

4 stars for me.

Looking forward to the first installment!

🩸Will Revenants make an appearance on your TBR?🩸

First, thank you so much to Mel C Bell, BDA Publishing, and NetGalley for the ARC and opportunity to review this book.
I was torn between 3 and 4 stars, but rounded up because I truly adore the content and I love where this book is going.
That being said, my primary criticisms are:
A) it’s too short. There is far too much going on (undead, war, supernatural, romance-ish) to be fleshed out in this size of book. I LOVE the content and these storylines, but it needs more story building to fully flesh out what it presents. Around the 85-90% mark I felt like it sped up to the point where it was hard to follow, sprinting to the final scene (which was a great cliffhanger).
B) while I greatly appreciate the level of writing and complexity of the prose, there are points where it “flourishes” itself to death. It’s beautifully written and described but it can get a little in the weeds when trying to keep up with the very fast moving story.

I would love to read more from the author and will be suggesting it to my friends/followers.

Revenants has the basis for what could be a great story.

Positives:
The description of characters, gore, thoughts, feelings and emotions was clear, imaginative and integrated well.
The internal monologue of the character was clear.

To work on:
The dialogue between characters. Personally as a reader it is frustrating to have an internal monologue that is legible and then an outward dialogue that is very accent heavy. Stick with one or the other.
The plot had huge gaps. The book reads clunky, crammed and scrambled.
Add another 150 pages to give your readers greater background on Maddie, on Pa, on Ma.
Provide greater context to what is going on and how it came to be.
Limit the chaos. With so much going on, try to simplify the plot or the sub plots - or expand and develop them in a way that does not read as thrown together.

2.5 stars because I see the potential for this book!

I was so engrossed in this premise. I need to find more books like this while I wait for the second to come out. If you’re a zombie person and love Romantasy this is a must read.

Thank you so much to the publisher and NetGalley for sending me an ARC to review!

3 stars!

Okay I needed this to be longer and more fleshed out to get more invested into the charadters and the story but damn did I like this and the idea behind it. The 3 stars is mainly because I just wanted more so the story itself would be longer so it could all be paced in a way so I could get deeper within the story and that so much wasn't going on in such a short amount of time.

thank you to the publisher and the author for providing me this ARC via NetGalley in exchange of an honest review

This is very tough to review because this was only 70 pages and from what I can understand, is not the finished product. I wish it did not feel like an unfinished product, maybe this should have stayed in the drafts for a little longer...

I don't think this is bad by any means, but my main complaints about this novella tie in to the fact that this is not long enough and does not really have a begining and an end. The author tried to do way too much for the too few pages that she had in my opinion. I did not have time to connect with the characters at all, can barely remember what happened just a few days after reading this!

The description was so appealing though! A zombie romance during a war of some kind sounds very interesting indeed, but to build something so unique and intricate you really do need more time. Some stories are better told in a short form but this was not the case at all, and ultimately my main problem with Revenants is that it feels rushed and unfinished, it tries to do way too much for a book of this length...

Now about the writing; I really loved the prose in this, this author is clearly talented and deserves to be published. Even though it was too flowery for its own good sometimes, the writing style is something that I really liked personally and one of the most memorable thing about Revenants, and this is also why I feel like I'm being too mean in this review...

I cannot wait to read more from this new author, something more accomplished and developed though. Overall I'd give Revenants a 2.5/5 rating because I can definitely see the potential in this overly-ambitious debut novella.

Revenants" is a captivating mix of zombie horror, romance, and the Wild West. With lyrical prose and vivid descriptions, Bell creates a tense and immersive atmosphere. The story features a sassy female lead and a charming male counterpart, blending gore, self-discovery, and romance seamlessly.