Reviews with content warning for Pandemic/Epidemic - The Girl with All the Gifts

Reviews tagging 'Pandemic/Epidemic'

The Girl with All the Gifts by M.R. Carey

16 reviews

simmonsj's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This is a zombie book, but unlike one I've read before. We follow mostly through Melanie's point of view, a kid who goes to school like most other kids except she's not like most other kids. And this isn't a school like other schools.

This is not an action packed book. It is more thoughtful and more literary than any other zombie book I've read. Lots of questions of humanity and science and how they intersect. Lots of pondering what the right thing to do is when confronted with humanity-altering scenarios. The plot starts off amazingly, giving us glimpses of this world mostly through Melanie's POV. We do also get POVs from a few other main/side characters to round out the world building and scope of the plot. Things start to slow down pretty quickly after a major event, and then the plot seems to wander without saying much. Hence the deduction of a star - I felt like not a lot happened in a long time. But again, this book wants to do something more than dole out action scenes. I really couldn't see how this could have a satisfying ending for 90% of the story, but at the very end we get a few scientific revelations that gave the ending a chance to make sense.

The writing feels more like literary fiction than a fantasy novel. Lots of poignant descriptions, metaphors, more flowery language for a dystopian novel than I would expect. Things are told in 3rd person throughout all POVs which took me out of an immersed experience and more like I was floating above watching it all happen. It worked well for this particular story. I listened to the audiobook, and the narrator, Finty Williams, had a nice English tone that fit the story rather well.

Overall, a very interesting take on the zombie and dystopian genres. Very literary and introspective. Few action scenes, little bit of science, and an ending that made sense even if it took a while to get there. But if you want a lot of action with your survival and zombies, this may not be the book you are looking for.

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chriswaldron15's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

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leligavi's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

I've tried for so long (since middle school, I think) to read this book and for some reason, I kept putting it down. However, I am SO glad I finally took the time to finish it. I really, really liked this book and I think that their makeshift team was brilliant. I love their character development as they get to know Melanie.

I CANT BELIEVE MY MAN GALLAGHER WENT OUT LIKE THAT. I was SCREAMING when he was getting chomped on and saying he didn't want to hurt them. LIKE MY MAN HAD TO GO OUT LIKE THAT? BUT MELANIE WAS SO CLOSE TO FINDING HIM! AND PARKS TOO MAN! HE WAS SO CLOSE, MELANIE ALMOST SAVED HIM BUT HE DIED TOO????? AND LIKE IN A REALLY FREAKING SAD WAY????? LIKE REALLY? I'M HEARTBROKEN. Honestly, a little underwhelmed by Helen surviving and being a teacher but like...the rest of the book just makes up for it.

But, all in all, I think we can all agree that Dr. Caldwell sucks.

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corin_134340's review against another edition

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emotional slow-paced

Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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lpogo16's review against another edition

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dark mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

This is less horror and more a fantasy journey story.

The story could have been edited down. There’s a lot that happens for the shock value or to make comments about other characters.

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