When Wally Pratt asks dodgy solicitor Jonathan Badde for a £60,000 advance on his inheritance, he faces having to cough up £50,000 in fees. While Badde of Lowe, Petty and Badde Solicitors exults at the prospect of wringing as much in probate fees as possible from Pratt, little does he know of Pratt’s ulterior motives, having discovered the Lazarus Machine in the cellar of the house he has inherited.

This is the machine that brought to life zombie Floyd Rampant and zomcat Henderson in Jack Strange’s Celebrity Chef Zombie Apocalypse.

In the sequel Zomcats! Pratt agrees to Badde’s fees despite knowing that he has been ‘skinned alive by this ghoul of a solicitor’ so that he can use the Lazarus Machine himself. When Badde congratulates Pratt for ‘making the right choice’, he is blissfully unaware of Pratt’s shopping list consisting of body parts, ‘No More Nails’ adhesive and a caulking gun. Thus Zomcats! builds to an hilarious finale.

Author: Jack Strange

£9.99, KGHH Publishing

But with the ebullient Floyd Rampant and his cohorts Kat De Vine and Gary Fletcher appearing later in Zomcats! the book lacks a main character. There is, of course, zomcat Henderson and his legions, including Choo-Choo and Fluffy – once again Strange showcases his felicity for memorable names – but their actions are predictably bloody.

Perhaps Strange - former solicitor Andrew Komarnyckyj - has this time introduced too many ingredients to make a satisfying dish.

Nicholas Goodman

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