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3.94 AVERAGE
3.94 AVERAGE
Boring, full of exaggerated tropes - teacher reminds me of a similar version of Jennifer Honey, evil scientists believing they are doing good, preachy moral arguments - and the horror of horrors, the book slowly descended into the zombie genre. I rarely enjoy zombie books, and I didn't realise this was a zombie book otherwise I probably wouldn't have picked it up. Not for me I guess.
I really liked this book, it took what has become a fairly common trope and snuck up on it sideways giving it a solid real world scientific basis.The characters were engaging though it took them a bit to grow out of what seemed liked assigned parts (gifted child, empathic teacher, mean soldier, brilliant but sociopathic scientist). The story started developing into a sort of "hero's journey" bit took a number of interesting turns and went in a pretty unexpected direction at the end. Very satisfying
dark
tense
medium-paced
WOW. This was a completely unique read. I was fascinated by the apocalyptic setting and by the characters, especially Melanie. The narrator did a fantastic job, although it was difficult to listen to some of the more graphic descriptions of violence. I plan on reading the follow-up book soon.
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I did not expect this book to turn out the way it did. I was definitely not expecting a zombie apocalypse. The plot unveiled itself and I read in horrified fascination about each of the character's struggles against their beliefs and against their situation. I was totally grossed out by the description of the "infection". It was so good I might have nightmares about fungi. I was on the last few chapters and I was so worried on how it will turn out, I wanted Sergeant Parks to survive! I despised him at the beginning but he became one of my favorite characters.
This book started out just amazing -- I'm not one to read much of post-apocalyptic horror or thrillers, but it was exceedingly compelling and gripping. The use of Melanie's narrative helped to explore the world and plot in an unrushed yet not drawling manner, and honestly she was such an interesting character to get to grips with. The mental world she constructed for herself while kept within the facility, the relationships she has with characters like Miss J, how she comes to grip with herself and her true nature... all really strong hooks for me.
This is really the book's unique flair and unfortunately towards the middle of the book it gets lost somewhat as it turns more into a classic group zombie survival thing. I still enjoyed it but it just wasn't as good as the setting at the start. Going towards the end of the book though the pace picks up with certain developments (no big spoilers!) and the ending was just insane. I was honestly wishing for a sequel as I marched towards the finish line but after that utterly poetic end I think any further installments might leave this tale sour. And sorry, the end is so poetic because of all the moral and ethical questions, concerns, and crises that keep getting thrown our way from all of the different viewpoints (Miss J's compassion, Sergeant Parks' pragmatism, Dr Caldwell's dogmatic pursuit in science, and, of course, Melanie's own).
So, a great read overall, another book I finished in a day. Absolutely worth your time if you like this genre.
This is really the book's unique flair and unfortunately towards the middle of the book it gets lost somewhat as it turns more into a classic group zombie survival thing. I still enjoyed it but it just wasn't as good as the setting at the start. Going towards the end of the book though the pace picks up with certain developments (no big spoilers!) and the ending was just insane. I was honestly wishing for a sequel as I marched towards the finish line but after that utterly poetic end I think any further installments might leave this tale sour. And sorry, the end is so poetic because of all the moral and ethical questions, concerns, and crises that keep getting thrown our way from all of the different viewpoints (Miss J's compassion, Sergeant Parks' pragmatism, Dr Caldwell's dogmatic pursuit in science, and, of course, Melanie's own).
So, a great read overall, another book I finished in a day. Absolutely worth your time if you like this genre.
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
dark
hopeful
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No