Rating: 3 stars
As we open Dawn of the Dreadfuls, the Bennett family is quietly attending the funeral of poor Martin Ford who was unceremoniously mowed down by the lecherous Lord Lumpley; whose attention was on a smiling milkmaid. Mr. Ford would’ve escaped with minor abrasions had Lord Lumpley not return to see what he had hit—taking yet another glimpse at the milkmaid—and thus striking Mr. Ford yet again, sealing his fate.
The service was progressing smartly, save for Lydia and Kitty’s constant maniacal giggling and Mr. Ford’s sudden upright posture. Mrs. Ford, believing her darling Martin had returned to her, was quickly sobered when Mr. Bennett ordered Mary out to the gardening shed for large hedge clippers. Upon her return Mr. Bennett ordered Elizabeth to chop off the dreadful’s head; when she declined, he did it himself. Now that the dreadful have returned, Mr. Bennett had no choice but to turn his daughters into killing machines.
Upon their return home, Mr. Bennett quickly reclaimed his dojo—which Mrs. Bennett had been using as her greenhouse—and began training his reluctant daughters in the way of zombie killing; at least until young Master Hawksworth, sent by “The Order”, showed up and took over. While teaching the girls to be killers, Master Hawksworth struggled to keep the charms of Elizabeth from rendering him to a lump of mush. However, Master Hawksworth was not the only one entranced by Elizabeth’s charms, the young and geeky Dr. Keckilpenny managed to bumble his way into her good graces as well.
With months of intensive training behind them, having pouring their blood, sweat and tears into the cause and lost the respect of their community in the process, will the Bennett sisters persevere and go on to zombie-killing greatness? Of course they will; this is a prequel after all.
A very entertaining and fun read, Hockensmith did a fantastic job weaving this prequel tale. The rendering of the tone and characters were done perfectly and the introduction of new characters was so seamless, it felt like they’d always been there.
Dawn of the Dreadfuls is another great addition to a fantastic series.
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Paperback: 320 pages
Publisher: Quirk Books; Original edition (March 24, 2010)
ISBN-13: 978-1594744549