Dearly, Departed (Gone with the Respiration #1) by Lia Habel

This lovely book has it all: beautiful cover, Steampunky themes, a dashing man in uniform with only the best of intentions, oh, and zombies.  Seriously.  Here's the Goodreads blurb:

Love can never die.

Love conquers all, so they say. But can Cupid’s arrow pierce the hearts of the living and the dead—or rather, the undead? Can a proper young Victorian lady find true love in the arms of a dashing zombie?

The year is 2195. The place is New Victoria—a high-tech nation modeled on the manners, mores, and fashions of an antique era. A teenager in high society, Nora Dearly is far more interested in military history and her country’s political unrest than in tea parties and debutante balls. But after her beloved parents die, Nora is left at the mercy of her domineering aunt, a social-climbing spendthrift who has squandered the family fortune and now plans to marry her niece off for money. For Nora, no fate could be more horrible—until she’s nearly kidnapped by an army of walking corpses.

But fate is just getting started with Nora. Catapulted from her world of drawing-room civility, she’s suddenly gunning down ravenous zombies alongside mysterious black-clad commandos and confronting “The Laz,” a fatal virus that raises the dead—and hell along with them. Hardly ideal circumstances. Then Nora meets Bram Griswold, a young soldier who is brave, handsome, noble . . . and dead. But as is the case with the rest of his special undead unit, luck and modern science have enabled Bram to hold on to his mind, his manners, and his body parts. And when his bond of trust with Nora turns to tenderness, there’s no turning back. Eventually, they know, the disease will win, separating the star-crossed lovers forever. But until then, beating or not, their hearts will have what they desire.

In Dearly, Departed, romance meets walking-dead thriller, spawning a madly imaginative novel of rip-roaring adventure, spine-tingling suspense, and macabre comedy that forever redefines the concept of undying love.

I loved every moment of this book.  EVERY MOMENT.  I have to say that even given my issues with zombies- I LOVE this zombie book.  Lia Habel is a genius who deserves to be immortalized in bronze for this epic story that combines Steampunk (which I love) with zombies (that scare the bejesus out of me).  She even manages to toss in some dystopian themes as well as a kick butt heroine who may dress and act like a lady but can serious maim you in a heartbeat.  How could you NOT love this book!!! Bram was delicious.  So sweet and caring.  He's adorable and I want to buy his action figure.  Even Nora's best friend is lovely.  The men other than Bram are a bit of a let down but it's realistic isn't it??? Not all men rock.  A good man is hard to find.  But all told this book is one of the best I've read this year and this series is going to be added to my list of favorites.

You can find out more about Lia Habel on her website.  You can also follow her on Twitter and find her on Facebook.  You can also click here to add Dearly, Departed to your Goodreads.

Dearly, Departed earns 5 Fairies for being an amazing conglomerate of all of my favorite things!