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3.83 AVERAGE
3.83 AVERAGE
A fun book, but nothing mind blowing. The plot draws from a wide range of scifi and horror. A distress call is coming from a secret drilling site at the edge of a star system. The captain disregards company instructions and forces her crew to investigate. There are dead bodies, a pit, and one of the crew members gets infected. Space zombies! Now it is a mad rush to escape with their lives! All of the tropes made for a fun read that was engaging, but predictable. What hooked me was the setup at the end for the next book in the series.
Fans of Alien, Event Horizon, or other movies/books like that will enjoy this.
Fans of Alien, Event Horizon, or other movies/books like that will enjoy this.
Only book in recent years I've actually reread. I'd love to see this turned into a miniseries. Audiobook narrator is fantastic.
No!!!! I need answers! Ah!
This one sucked me in slowly and then left me to rage because that ending! I need book two!
This one sucked me in slowly and then left me to rage because that ending! I need book two!
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Suicide, Blood, Injury/Injury detail
I picked this up one evening intending to read a few chapters and get a feel for ‘Contagion.’ Skip to 3am and I was halfway through. I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. It was a little bit ‘Illuminae’ and a little bit ‘Alien.’ I was hooked from start to finish.
The only point that played against ‘Contagion’ for me is a tiny one. We get introduced to a lot of cast members in the debut chapters and it took a lot of concentration to keep it all straight. I nearly sketched up a diagram... but as the narrative began to focus on a small handful as the story progressed my enrapture increased exponentially. This is a real thrill ride.
We get many different perspectives in the novel, some only lasting for a paragraph or two. Normally I would find this jarring, but it drove the story forward, each new member bringing something unique to the storyline, or revealing a plot point. The main characters we end following the most, however are intern scientist Thea (to a Dr. Tarlow – who is also important to this story), Black Quarry survivor Coen, student pilot Nova, and young ambitious captain Dylan. They all have their secrets and all have an individual drive to be where they are. ‘Contagion’ reads a lot like a mystery thriller as each of their back stories comes to light. I loved Erin Bowman’s writing style, it totally captivated my attention from start to finish. The cast all have their own arcs and have changed by the conclusion of the novel. Bowman did not miss a beat. She has made me an instant fan from this book alone.
Be warned – ‘Contagion’ ends on a cliff hanger. You might want to pick up the sequel ‘Immunity’ straight away… if you’re one that does not have a lot of patience.
There were many plot twist revealed in ‘Contagion.’ Many I did not see coming, and I loved the surprise! I had a few predictions, but none of what I thought came about (well one sort of did, but that’s another story.)
This novel plays with themes of trust, fear and paranoia, the science of how epidemics come about, isolation, zombies (of sorts), and greedy corporations.
An excellent read that I am giving the highest recommendation.
The only point that played against ‘Contagion’ for me is a tiny one. We get introduced to a lot of cast members in the debut chapters and it took a lot of concentration to keep it all straight. I nearly sketched up a diagram... but as the narrative began to focus on a small handful as the story progressed my enrapture increased exponentially. This is a real thrill ride.
We get many different perspectives in the novel, some only lasting for a paragraph or two. Normally I would find this jarring, but it drove the story forward, each new member bringing something unique to the storyline, or revealing a plot point. The main characters we end following the most, however are intern scientist Thea (to a Dr. Tarlow – who is also important to this story), Black Quarry survivor Coen, student pilot Nova, and young ambitious captain Dylan. They all have their secrets and all have an individual drive to be where they are. ‘Contagion’ reads a lot like a mystery thriller as each of their back stories comes to light. I loved Erin Bowman’s writing style, it totally captivated my attention from start to finish. The cast all have their own arcs and have changed by the conclusion of the novel. Bowman did not miss a beat. She has made me an instant fan from this book alone.
Be warned – ‘Contagion’ ends on a cliff hanger. You might want to pick up the sequel ‘Immunity’ straight away… if you’re one that does not have a lot of patience.
There were many plot twist revealed in ‘Contagion.’ Many I did not see coming, and I loved the surprise! I had a few predictions, but none of what I thought came about (well one sort of did, but that’s another story.)
This novel plays with themes of trust, fear and paranoia, the science of how epidemics come about, isolation, zombies (of sorts), and greedy corporations.
An excellent read that I am giving the highest recommendation.
I don't feel strongly one way or another about Contagion. It seemed by the time I started learning or caring about the characters the book was finished. I'll pass on book two.
adventurous
mysterious
slow-paced
*2021*
Audio is pretty good. I didn't like the voices used for a few characters because they sounded odd in context, but I feel like I got a better sense for Thea and Coen's dynamic and when they became a team
*2019*
This book took me a little while to get into it. The first fifty pages were a little confusing and some characters weren't introduced very well. They just kind of popped up and only had a little bit of backstory.
I have to say, I hated Toby so much. He was so disrespectful and rude and the way he was written was so similar to how little boys act when they have a supposed crush on a girl. I was basically waiting in fear for that moment when Toby admits to having a crush on Thea.
Also I expected this book to be scarier then it was. I just kind of assumed it was a sci-fi/horror. It was really creepy when they were first on the planet and starting to look around and stuff. Especially with the seaweed thing. But then it became more like an action adventure story. Still, I really liked it.
For Read Infinity and Beyond: Terraformed planet - Set on a planet that isn't Earth
Audio is pretty good. I didn't like the voices used for a few characters because they sounded odd in context, but I feel like I got a better sense for Thea and Coen's dynamic and when they became a team
*2019*
This book took me a little while to get into it. The first fifty pages were a little confusing and some characters weren't introduced very well. They just kind of popped up and only had a little bit of backstory.
I have to say, I hated Toby so much. He was so disrespectful and rude and the way he was written was so similar to how little boys act when they have a supposed crush on a girl. I was basically waiting in fear for that moment when Toby admits to having a crush on Thea.
Spoiler
I was honestly so happy he died.Also I expected this book to be scarier then it was. I just kind of assumed it was a sci-fi/horror. It was really creepy when they were first on the planet and starting to look around and stuff. Especially with the seaweed thing. But then it became more like an action adventure story. Still, I really liked it.
For Read Infinity and Beyond: Terraformed planet - Set on a planet that isn't Earth
Fun book that had a good mix of horror, mystery, and space. It took me far too long to realize there were multiple perspectives, probably a fault of listening to the audiobook instead of reading a physical copy but characters did seem to blend together sometimes. Overall fun and enjoyable read. After finishing this and the sequel I think it would have been fine to just leave it here.