Bizarre but enjoyable!

"Wow. I really don't think I came into this story prepared. This caught me completely off-guard, but not in a bad way. It was so bizarre yet so entertaining that I was drawn in right away, especially after I realized that the initial scene was only a fantasy. This story was a little too graphic for me, so I decided to stop after chapter one, but I really enjoyed what I read. I thought your characters were hilarious...well-described and two-dimensional...but they also had their dark sides. The plot line with the Youtubers and the recent zombie apocalypse was definitely not what I expected, but I kind of loved it. This piece of writing doesn't take itself too seriously, and that's great! I want to know what happens next. Your dialogue was very natural. I had to skip over the part where they were beating the zombie to death because it was written rather graphically; you did an excellent job of painting those characters as complete sickos. The writing itself was clean and, at times, comical. I was confused in a few parts because of wording issues, but the rest of it was great! This story is very unique and has a great draw. I hope that it does well in the contest!"

Unique, hilarious, nerdy, and kind of scary

"I love this story! The way the author writes is what really hooked me; it's very candid and brutally honest, not tip-toeing around the way things are. Being a bit of a nerd myself, I love all the nerdy references and catch myself giggling at times. I am not a fan of zombie stuff, honestly; I find it stupid because it's just physically impossible for something that is dead to have hunger (as it is dead and therefore has no metabolism), but I digress, I love this story. It has a Sean of the Dead/ Zombieland feel to it, and I can't stop reading it."

"null"

Just started reading

"I saw on profile you're South African born British... I'm South African as well (praat jy dalk Afrikaans?) Anyways, just started reading at so far it seems interesting enough, I will definitely read on further and update review as I continue to read. I like your style of writing and so far can't find anything wrong, except that I love Japanese themed stories/characters and that was what caught my attention first! For now my rating are very generous, but will change as I read, maybe not at all... All I can say for now is hope the rest of the chapters are as 'locking' as the first was!"

Pretty Unique Story!

"Green Sunday is a very unique story about zombies. I really enjoyed the author's take of a post-zombie apocalyptic world and he uses humor and his characters to lighten the mood of the reader. He uses great imagery in his story and you are clearly able to grasp exactly what he is trying to say. The story overall was very unique and the title intrigues readers. His use of humor is also genius as well. If I were to say anything, I would say that possibly with the gore and some of the language that it should be rated for 16+. I'm mainly saying that because even with the humor tied into the storyline, some younger readers might possibly still find it pretty dark. Also, there were a couple of grammar errors here and there, but it was overall pretty clean and you can tell all of the work that was put into writing the story. This is a great story overall though! It definitely is a new and original edition to the horror genre."

Very well put together!

"After reading through this story, I certainly appreciate the plot and the way it was written. You've got a gritty, real-world feel going on throughout the whole thing, and it's definitely a believable concept, with the way things are going right now in the real world. I enjoyed reading this, but (not meaning to be rude) there were a few instances within involving your technical writing skills that bugged me - mostly it was an unnecessary comma here and there that can otherwise be ignored. Altogether, this is very well put together and deserves more attention than it appears to be getting."

Something Special

"I recently finished reading the first eight chapters of Ryk Brink’s Green Sunday, and one of the first of many things to hook me hard was his writing style. It’s metaphoric and pointed laser focus deeply analyses the story’s subject matter, and its razor-edge imagery is hauntingly precise – in other words, the unique way in which he describes the story as he tells it leaves you unable to unsee it that exact way, and you can’t help but agree with his word choice and direction. And I think that is the impression I came away with the most – Ryk is a director, but of words rather than movies, and while every directorial style isn’t to everyone’s taste, his just happens to be one I favour. I think this style is deliciously juxtaposed with the irreverent, open wound that is Ryk’s sense of humour and is what gives this particular zom-pocalyse novel such a refreshing feel. From the mean-spirited manner in which it depicts our proxy, TJ Kincaid, to the lovesick relationship it clearly has with nonchalant but gratuitous violence, it is apparent that this work is not for the overly-sensitive reader. That said, if you have the balls to stomach it, it is a story that has many elements anyone with an open mind for a different kind of story can appreciate, including some very real human moments, as dark and serious and quiet as they are by turn light-hearted, playful and a little silly. My favourite aspect of this novel, and it would seem that I am not alone in this, is the relationship between TJ and Sunday. There is something so appealing about the ebb and flow between her hardness and his innocence, and the nuances of the role reversal featuring her as the protector with him as the virgin sacrifice or the atypical dude-in-distress. The space between them is filled with the overtone of the entire work, the loud cheesy camaraderie with death TJ has in his imagination versus the one that permeates the very bleak, sordid reality that Sunday herself occupies. All in all, there is so much to enjoy here – the style, the voice, the themes and how they all work to tell a story about characters you can really care about. You know the elements that comprise a work are promising when you find yourself reading ahead simply because you cannot take the tension of what you are presently reading in the moment any longer. I found myself doing this consistently throughout my read, which tells me everything I need to know. That no matter how, gruesome, silly and depraved it may seem on the surface, there is definitely something special about Green Sunday."

There's nothing else quite like this!

"First of all, sorry this review took so long: I've had science mocks recently and then when I came to read this, I made notes to put in the review like I usually do... but then I deleted them. Well done me. As a result, this review is a bit more general than most reviews I write, but hey ho, let's get on with it! The combination of horror and humour is going to be a good one, in my opinion. The contrast between the first scene where TJ was pretending to be Musashi (your writing in that scene was excellent, by the way!) and then the scene in his back garden was great - not to mention hilarious! I don't know if you've given your story a bit of an edit since I read it, but the humour itself seems to have a lot more polish than it did, as I thought some of it was a bit crude. Finally, your writing style was masterful throughout, especially in the more horror-ish bits. I would've given a bit more constructive criticism if I could.... but I kind of can't. So well done on getting that reaction out of me, and keep writing! :) - Em"

A review for a fellow Viking

"I don't want to put too many spoilers in this but here it goes. I love the story so far. You have done an excellent job at building tension and mystery pertaining to what is going on in the story. True its a zombie story but its light years beyond an average one. Its obvious that something dark and sinister is taking place behind the scenes that seems far worse than your average toxic chemical spill or passing meteor. Its so nice to get a refreshing taste of the zombie genre. The relationship between Tj and Sunday is perfectly written so far. Him with that bumbling never touched a woman quality, and her with a brooding level of confidence that would shake the most steady of men. You have been able to convey the tough girl in a believe none heartless @#&% sort of way as we where speaking about earlier, so no worries there. I also like how you where able to capture the essence of the pseudo-zombie apocalypse experts in Zed and his gang. I loved that to my very core. I have to agree with you that we do write very similar to one another. I admire it when someone does what I do and throws their passions into their writing despite who might find it offensive, But I also have a feeling that we could have quite a long rant together about things that piss us off in the world. Now I guess I will tell you what you already know, as you are working on getting your chapters professionally edited, the later chapters are simply longer than the should be by an editors standards. Let me be clear I still love them... They are great... But often times editors often strip things down quite a bit. Good writing and please keep it up I can't wait to read the rest."

Different.

"I read this opening chapter twice so as to appreciate your writing style. I enjoyed it more the second time of reading. It needs another edit to clean up the minor errors here and there. I suggest you work on the opening five plus lines. Often when I pick up a book I plan to skim the pages - but if the opening lines hook me I'll read to the end. The goal is to make the reader curious about your characters, fill their heads with questions that must be answered, not fill them in on exactly where, when, who and how. I wish you the best of luck with this."

Up to Chapter 2

"The story so far is really fantastic, the descriptions are stunning. I rated the plot a three as I am still setting up this world in my mind and I'm putting the pieces together. Zombies earn my approval and the grater? That sent chills up and down my spine, it was psychotically disturbing and beautiful. (Yes, I am odd... ) I don't think that I saw any issues with the grammer and puncatiation that shouldn't be there, I'm referring to the guys who sound like racist rednecks. I will be looking forward to reading more."

Katanas and Cheese Graters

"Let's be honest, whether we like it or not, the Zombie Apocalypse has been done to death. From films like the legendary 'RomeroTrilogy' and TV-shows like 'The Walking Dead' to books like 'World War Z' and video games franchises like 'Dead Rising', there have been so many incarnations, they could fill the coffers of any zombiephile to last them several lifetimes. Let me take you aside for a second, and let's look at the bigger picture: a fresh take is needed. Yes, we've had self aware zombie comedies in forms of our 'Shaun of the Deads' and 'Zombielands', and not to forget a hammy teeny love-story/comedy called 'Warm Bodies', but none have been particularly daring, at least for modern standards, when it comes to the setting or story department. The gist always is: 'Zombies happen (for whatever reason), modern society as we know it crumbles and someone (or many) must step up to do stuff, or just survive, or keep their humanity intact, or all things at once..' Sound familiar? No? Well, then you've probably never seen 'Dawn of the Dead', or the remake. 'Green Sunday' is not only a fresh take on the whole Zombie Apocalypse shebang, it also dares to abandon the gritty seriousness of more recent incarnations for a return to Romero-style satire and humour. Now I know you probably think this is going to be about the Zombie Apocalypse, but to be precise, the Apocalypse has happened, and passed. Turns out our shambling friends were no match for the Military leaving a lot of disappointed teenagers and zombie themed web-shows in the wake of the disaster. TJ, our protagonist, is one of those disappointed teens, a tubby neckbeard with an affinity for cutting up plastic water bottles in his Mom's backyard with a mall katana. His loud mouthed neighbour, Zed, runs one of the aforementioned web-shows and brings his audience (and us as the readers) up to speed on how things are now, of course hinting (or rather hoping) the Apocalypse will return so he can finally show off his automated killer cheese graters some more (yes, you read correctly, cheese graters) instead of having them tested on toothless zombie 'stumps' in his backyard. TJ, meanwhile seems content swinging about his swords and imagining himself as a samurai in feudal Japan. So, why is he our main character again? Well, who doesn't like a lovable loser and underdog? I sure do. Right from the title of the chapter you will notice that 'Green Sunday' relies on its humour, and it's far from toothless packing a real bite (obvious pun intended). I must honestly confess however that the humour may not be for everyone, since it does not shirk away from being vulgar and upfront. Don't get me wrong, it's funny, and I Iaughed and smiled all the way through. Besides its off-beat humour, its writing is visual, the opening being a prime example for this. I'm a huge fan of visual and descriptive writing and found it to be one of the things that lifted it up from seeming like your run-of-the-mill piece of fiction published on the web. There was one point when the tense seemed to change abruptly but that is easily forgiven since the story flows off the page like a zombie oozes pus. Overall, I found it to be an entertaining and not to forget refreshing read. To some TJ may seem a bit passive as a main character, but we're so spoiled nowadays by our quirky hyperactive and not to mention whiny emotional main characters that we have expected these to be the norm making it no surprise whatsoever when the protagonist does something badass or brave. Needless to say, the story shows off its potential right off the bat and the author definitely knows what he is doing and how to tinge his universe in satirical comedy. To quote John Hurt here: "We can expect great things from you.""

A game of life and death with a twist.

"That summary makes it look like some kind of manic pixie dream girl story but instead it turns into so much more. Lots of imagery again, but for the opening part it works very well. Gives a feel of a epic fantasy story. Be a bit more careful when you transition back to the real world though. Every now and then is fine, but doing two in a row in the same paragraph can end up being more distracting rather than adding to the setting. You’re good at them though, so removing a few wouldn’t be a problem in my opinion. You don't want to create an overload with the similes and metaphors. In chapter one I honestly got a bit confused after the line “he just took it.” Suddenly we have Zed speaking when before we only had TJ and the neighbor. I’m not sure if I am just misreading it, if a line is missing, or it’s supposed to be a scene change? Be away of how many times you say “As if” Everyone has a phrase they overuse and that might just be yours. As I read through this, am I right to assume this is somewhat of a parody. Or at least an extreme self-aware exaggeration? What with the amount of violence and the reactions of the characters. To be a bit of a nerd, it actually gives me somewhat of a ‘highschool of the dead’ vibe. Also with this amount of gore you might want to consider changing the rating to 18+. Oh, and the pop culture references might be a problem in the future. Currently they work, because they are relevant, but as time passes they might not all age well. It adds a sense of realism to the character dialogue, but just something to consider."