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Zombie horror meets high-school drama in this derivative comedy about a girl who yearns for a normal life even as she struggles to master her role as a Settler of the undead. Securing a date for the homecoming dance and a place on the pom squad are the major concerns for sophomore Megan Berry until she experiences a resurgence in her supernatural ability, dormant since she was attacked by reanimated zombies as a preteen. Woven throughout is a competitive relationship Megan has with a popular girl and a tension-filled one with an older boy. The latter may appeal to readers who enjoy their romances feather-light. However, the narrative is plagued by clumsy, unimaginative writing—as when Megan repetitively uses variations of the phrase “tidy sum” to describe payments made to Settlers, separated by barely a sentence. Further, the unabashed borrowing from other works—when in danger, the hero experiences a Harry Potter–esque burning sensation in her scar—force comparisons that this uninspired horror-comedy would do better to avoid. (Horror. 13 & up)
