Setting: a resort turned fat camp for wealthy teens. But is that all that’s going on there?
Characters: six, each fitting a horror role, like “The Jerk,” “The Outcast,” or “Hero(ine).” But are these permanent roles, or can the teens change and avoid a death horror fans will see coming?
Enemy: human-like figures with super strength, and they’re eating everything and everyone.
Okay, that was fun. Eat Your Heart Out by Kelly DeVos is an action-horror young adult novel that uses scientists trying to make teens slim up as the catalyst for an apocalypse that looks like zombies, but if you stop at that label, you’d be underestimating the enemy. The tropes horror fans want are all there: the character who’s pregnant and has to go into labor the minute things get real, the guy who thinks he’s better than all the losers around him, the computer hacker, the hero, and in this case, heroine.
Each chapter is narrated by one of the six teens, and the switch off is easy to follow. The teen’s name is at the top of the chapter, and because everyone has their own skill or problem, they’re easy to tell apart. This gives DeVos the chance to have the characters split into groups, so we see different aspects of the situation.
When the fat camp resort goes on lockdown because something is running around the woods, our six teens realize their the only ones not changing into “zombies.” Hence, they must escape the compound and get to a hospital so Pregnant Girl can deliver her baby. The result is the book reads like a movie or video game in which each situation has a problem that must be solved so the characters can move forward. For instance, “There’s too many of them!” or “We’re trapped!” I liked this aspect because sometimes horror novels rely too much on internal fear and forget to actually put something scary out in the open.
I had a hard time putting Eat Your Heart Out down because it was this excellent combo of horror and showing how fat people are disrespected by society. In fact, where most horror movies have a hero, DeVos chooses Vivian as the heroine. She’s a fat girl, yes, but she’s also the only one in the group involved in sports, so she’s got the strength and stamina others lack.
Perfect for the spooky season and a fun read.
Grab the Lapels 
I’m a fan of DeVos, if not a horror fan, so will probably pick this one up soon.
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It was the first DeVos I read, so I need to get going on her other books, especially the vampire book.
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Great review! This sounds awesome!! 😀
For some reason when we’d talked about this one previously the cover made me think it was a graphic novel. That cover art is so cool and vibrant so I had to look up the artist to see more of their work and realized it was an artist I’ve actually liked for quite a while that goes by UrsulaDecay on Deviantart. So cool to see their art on a book cover like this! 🙂 The way you said the chapters/horror tropes are set up sounds really fun. Looking forward to reading it some time.
– Sugar
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It absolutely looks like a graphic novel; I totally agree! At first, I thought it was, too. If I remember correctly, you’re more into YA, so you’ll like this one. I also recommend the YA horror novel Clown in a Cornfield, which definitely has some adult-y kills in it.
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Really enjoyed your review and if I liked to read horror I would definitely put this on my TBR, but horror and I, even something as mild as this sounds, do not mix (nightmares!). I really like the book cover though!
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Someone pointed out that the cover looks like a graphic novel, and I realized it totally does.
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Nooooo … I don’t want scary things out in the open! I don’t want scary things anywhere, though I suppose some of the realistic books I read can contain scary (or at least distressing) things.
Seriously though, Melanie, I really enjoyed your post for the insights it gave me into the genre and your thoughts about it and this book.
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Sue, I know what you mean. A lot of my blog friends review mysteries, which I don’t tend to read because I never catch on, so I feel a weird sense of being left out. However, I keep up with the genre vicariously.
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Blogs really are great for that aren’t they?
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This sounds quite fun actually. I like seeing zombie anything getting turned on its head. It has become quite predictable in a lot of ways. Probably due to the massive influx after Walking Dead became a hit.
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I don’t know ANYONE who actually finished The Walking Dead TV show. From the sounds of it, we all pretty much quit in the same place. For me, it was when I realized I couldn’t remember any characters outside the main cast. They just kept picking up new people to use up their resources and then die off. I think there is now going to be a spinoff for that hillbilly guy? What’s his name? Norman Reedus?
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I think I gave up at the point that they added a tiger to the mix. I haven’t looked back since. I think there are 4 spin offs in the works. :3
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Okay, why have I not heard about the tiger before. LOL.
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I don’t know. It was so ridiculous I felt like everyone was talking about it. 😛
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This book sounds like alot of fun. Also a stark reminder of the last time I ever saw a fat hero – never!!!! Especially not in a horror movie or book. Horror always seems to include skinny beautiful people, and the unattractive ones are always the monsters. Hate that!!!
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I’ve been watching a lot of low-budget indie horror movies lately, and I like how the script is clever and inventive, and the movies tend to star (and be directed by) the person who is also the leading actor, so I’m seeing less beautiful people in horror movies, which I appreciate. Of course, all the low budget stuff sticks out, but I can ignore it if the script is good.
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Oh I’m glad to hear that!!!
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[…] sure if I mentioned this before, but I thought it was interesting that I was both reading one book (Eat Your Heart Out by Kelly DeVos) and listening to another (The Drift by C.J. Tudor) that were a retreat + snow + zombies. Huh. […]
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I’m glad you liked it – I’ll tell my co-worker!
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This sounds like fun!
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[…] Eat Your Heart Out by Kelly deVos […]
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