With the recent THE UNDEAD and now BRAINCHILD, I think it’s safe to say we’re on the cusp of a renaissance in zombie fiction, and it’s being driven largely by the small press.

Part fiction anthology, part graphic novel, BRAINCHILD is positioned as a “collection of artifacts” containing first-person accounts and drawings left by the survivors of the zombie outbreak. All the stories are brief – this is a 64-pager, after all – yet pack a lot of horror into a few pages. David Wellington’s “Running” details a man’s attempted escape via automobile, and contains one of the better lines you’re ever apt to read concerning the walking dead: “I saw signs in windows saying ten per cent off, half off, everything must go seventy to ninety per cent off and I thought they were talking about the Mom, about how much of her had been eaten.” That mix of dark humor and dripping gore is representative of the rest of this unique project.

Meanwhile, Rebecca Brock contributes two tales, one of an office worker watching the carnage on the street below and one of a man holed up in a house; both offer chilling codas. Scott Lambrids’ “The Oldest Profession” details, in six paragraphs or less, what happens when a hooker becomes infected (with something other than an STD, mind you) and Charles Hogle’s “Book of Matches” follows a girl who’s been instructed to ignite her father in flames once he turns. All of these stories – plus the others, the lone poem and the essay on women in zombie cinema – do what they set out to do, and their love for the genre is – forgive me – infectious.

But it’s not just the stories that merit mention, as the art that fills these pages is nothing short of outstanding. Ranging from paintings to mixed media to a child’s authentic Crayola drawing, every piece of art is fitting and mood-appropriate. One page from Paul Kelly III looks like Nagel meets The Cramps meets George Romero, and all of David Senecal’s work is outstanding.

All in all, I was really impressed with BRAINCHILD. Often times, labors of love are well-intentioned but lacking in execution; BRAINCHILD not only meets but exceeds the standards. Don’t be put off by its limited print run; this is no chapbook run off at Kinko’s and tied together with yarn, but a professionally bound, well-designed, full-color glossy paperback. It’s hard to imagine horror fans not getting a rush from it, and I hope it’s the start of many more volumes to come.

My copy came with a certificate of authenticity, which probably will never come in handy, and with an “undead detector,” which I fear will. –Rod Lott

Buy it at Omnibucket.