It’s 2018, and zombies are taking over Australia. Sunny, Toby, and baby Veronica are on the run, trying desperately to survive. Or, at least, that’s the case for Toby and Veronica. Sunny’s already dead, but, somehow, she’s still clinging on.
Nearly two decades later, Vee lives and works in an underground facility, wiping out the few remaining zombies and just trying to get by. But when one of her clean-up crew kills another human, and their boss seems all too happy to cover it up, Vee begins to question the safety of the compound, and of the decisions made within its walls. What actually happened all those years ago? And who is truly responsible for the outbreak?
In the corner of the lab, in the back of one of the zombie holding cells, Vee might be able to find some answers. One of the zombies – impossibly – can speak. And she’s ready to talk to Vee.
If I had a nickel for every distinctly Aussie flavoured YA zombie apocalypse novel I’d read, I’d have two nickels, which isn’t a lot, but it’s absolutely delightful that it’s happened twice. But where Alison Evans‘ 2019 offering Highway Bodies focuses on Victoria, Steph Bowe‘s posthumous release Sunny at the End of the World instead brings the zombie apocalypse to Sydney and the Gold Coast.
Bowe passed away in January of 2020, from a rare form of non-Hodgkins lymphoma, and Sunny marks the final release for the popular author, discovered on her computer by her mother and sister. It is, naturally, a bittersweet thing to read an author’s final work, especially one who died so young. But, Bowe has left us with a wonderfully fun slice of Aussie YA in Sunny, giving us one last glimpse into her brilliance.
Split between three narratives – recently turned zombie Sunny in 2018, Toby’s later letters to baby Veronica, and unlikely rebel Vee in 2034 – Sunny explores a world in the midst of an apparent apocalypse and what remains in the aftermath. And zombies are just the beginning, with secret underground bunkers, cyborgs, and rebel groups all part of this curious new world order.
Everything is infused with Bowe’s trademark humour, bringing levity to even the darkest of moments. Sunny is, rather aptly, the source of much of this light, clinging to her sense of humour even as the world (and her own body) collapses around her. She’s the perfect foil to Vee, and the nudge she needs for the frightened teen to find her inner rebel and break out of the (relative) safety of the underground compound.
There’s twists and turns galore in this pacey novel, packed with exciting settings and endearing characters. You likely won’t see the finale coming, and, indeed, it feels a little rushed, but given the circumstances of Sunny‘s publication, that can easily be forgiven. And when the end result is this much fun, you’ll hardly mind anyway.
THREE AND A HALF STARS (OUT OF FIVE)
Steph Bowe’s Sunny at the End of the World is out now through Text Publishing. You can read an excerpt from it HERE. Grab yourself a copy from your local bookstore HERE.
