The Z Word

A May 2024 Indie Next List Pick A Polygon Must-Read Book of Spring 2024 A Vulture Best Horror Book of 2024 (So Far) One of Parade’s Best Horror Books of 2024 . . . So Far One of Booklist’s Top 10 Sci-Fi/Fantasy and Horror Debuts of 2024 One of The Mary Sue’s 10 Best Beach Reads of 2024 One of Lit Hub’s Most Anticipated Books of 2024 One of Book Riot’s Most Anticipated Books of 2024  One of Book Riot’s Best LGBTQ Beach Reads of 2024 One of Autostraddle’s Most Anticipated Queer Books of Spring 2024 “This cinematic romp has something for nearly every reader; humor, gore, heat, action, and mystery all swirl in the San Lazaro desert.”—Booklist, starred review “Sexy, thoughtful, and fast-paced . . . King-Miller’s fiction debut expertly balances social commentary with fun in a novel that will have readers cheering for her queer heroes and questioning their own brand loyalties.”—Library Journal “With an endearingly messy protagonist and wonderfully complicated relationship dynamics among the entirely queer cast, King-Miller skillfully explores real issues facing the LGBTQ+ community while cleverly pairing the beats of a romance novel with the visceral gut punches of survival horror.”—Publishers Weekly “Lindsay King-Miller’s debut promises to be the queer zombie apocalypse novel everyone will be talking about this spring.”—Polygon “It’s thrilling to see the zombie subgenre reanimated with a fresh new premise”—Natalie Zutter, Lit Hub “A fundamentally queer and anti-corporate blast of unsettling entertainment.”—Maura Krause, Reactor “Sexy, scathing, delightful, and intimately devastating.”—Gretchen Felker-Martin, author of Manhunt and Cuckoo “Sharply written and filled with richly drawn, complex characters that I genuinely cared about, The Z Word is one of the most innovative and deeply affecting novels I’ve read in a while. Playful, acerbic, and utterly engrossing, it’s astonishing to realize that this is Lindsay King-Miller’s debut. I’m ravenous for more!”—Eric LaRocca, author of Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke And Other Misfortunes  “This book’s coming in hot! King-Miller brings a delightful appetite for rollicking weirdness, queerness, sexiness, and chainsaw prowess. An absolute blast.”—Hailey Piper, Bram Stoker Award–winning author of Queen of Teeth and A Light Most Hateful “Queer, quirky, and a rollicking good time, The Z Word is the perfect zombie novel you didn’t know you needed in your life. Come for the chaotic bisexuality; stay for the humorous, heartfelt tale about found family in a world filled with monsters.”—Gwendolyn Kiste, author of Reluctant Immortals and The Rust Maidens and winner of the Lambda Literary Award and the Bram Stoker Award “Good zombie stories peel their own skin back to expose the fragility and the humanity of the characters within, and Lindsay King-Miller’s The Z Word pulls it off with the best of them. Packed to the brim with drag queens, complicated relationships, and buckets of blood, The Z Word is scary, funny, gross as hell, and ultimately deeply touching. The zombie apocalypse has never been queerer—or more fun.”—Matthew Lyons, author of A Black and Endless Sky and The Night Will Find Us “Comic and gruesome in turn, The Z Word is that rare can’t-put-it-down, miss-your-stop-on-the-subway kind of read. (Ask me how I know.)”—Calvin Kasulke, author of Several People Are Typing “A gripping read about actual community and the dangers of corporate Pride that bites down on you like a wild animal and doesn’t let go.”—Mattie Lubchansky, author of Boys Weekend