Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.85 AVERAGE
3.85 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
this didn't grab me from the first page like Brooks's last book World War Z did, but it grew on me over time, and by the end, I was really into it. Brooks does a great job mixing the main narrative with outside perspectives. He makes this absurd premise seem like a real possibility.
Thanks to Netgalley for providing a copy of this book for review.
At the end of this book, the author thanks a friend of his for giving him back the novel rights to a screenplay he wrote. I'm guessing this book was originally a screenplay- it sort of reads that way plotwise.
How the book is constructed- it's mostly the journal of Kate Holland, the main character. This is a bit of a shame because you pretty much know that she must survive at least until the end of the story. There are also the interviews and pieces of other media information inserted throughout the book in a similar fashion to World War Z. In this case, Kate's brother is searching for her, and he including pieces of sasquatch lore as he describes his search.
So- Kate and her husband Dan end up in a green community out in the Washington wilderness. They are staying in Kate's brother's house and looking after the place while he's gone. This community is high tech- everything you need to order is flown in by drones, the wifi network is state of the art, smart houses, composting, solar panels, electric cars, you name it.
HOWEVER- Mount Ranier erupts. This totally destroys the community infrastructure. No more internet, no more deliveries, and no one even has a walkie talkie that works or a hammer in their house because they just didn't think they'd need one. And no one knows exactly where the community is and the government is so overwhelmed with emergency response that this community isn't even on their radar.
Kate is an accountant. She's hyper organized, hyper neurotic, and not what you'd call a rugged survivalist type. BUT- she and Dan are pegged by a community neighbor named Mostar (if you've heard of the place, you'll know her backstory) as allies in a sudden survival situation.
Most of the people in this little community are in denial about the seriousness of their situation. They'll have to figure out how to feed themselves through the winter unless help comes, because their one access road has been cut off by lava flow.
THEN- if things weren't bad enough, you know by the giant footprint on the cover of the book that Sasquatch will be involved. Brooks posits a species of giant ape-like hominids that have been hidden this whole time, but who now have to be on the move because of the volcano. And with resources scarce, they can't afford to be picky eaters...
So there you have the plot. Kate must dig deep to survive and transcend her former self. There's bloodshed and gore. There's fast paced action. There's suspense.
I didn't rate it higher because by the time everyone in the community was described, I was pretty sure who was going to die and who was going to live. I was right. So, it's a quick and exhilarating ride, but predictable when it comes right down to it. The author has some things to say about modern society's lack of preparedness for disaster that hits home especially hard at this time.
At the end of this book, the author thanks a friend of his for giving him back the novel rights to a screenplay he wrote. I'm guessing this book was originally a screenplay- it sort of reads that way plotwise.
How the book is constructed- it's mostly the journal of Kate Holland, the main character. This is a bit of a shame because you pretty much know that she must survive at least until the end of the story. There are also the interviews and pieces of other media information inserted throughout the book in a similar fashion to World War Z. In this case, Kate's brother is searching for her, and he including pieces of sasquatch lore as he describes his search.
So- Kate and her husband Dan end up in a green community out in the Washington wilderness. They are staying in Kate's brother's house and looking after the place while he's gone. This community is high tech- everything you need to order is flown in by drones, the wifi network is state of the art, smart houses, composting, solar panels, electric cars, you name it.
HOWEVER- Mount Ranier erupts. This totally destroys the community infrastructure. No more internet, no more deliveries, and no one even has a walkie talkie that works or a hammer in their house because they just didn't think they'd need one. And no one knows exactly where the community is and the government is so overwhelmed with emergency response that this community isn't even on their radar.
Kate is an accountant. She's hyper organized, hyper neurotic, and not what you'd call a rugged survivalist type. BUT- she and Dan are pegged by a community neighbor named Mostar (if you've heard of the place, you'll know her backstory) as allies in a sudden survival situation.
Most of the people in this little community are in denial about the seriousness of their situation. They'll have to figure out how to feed themselves through the winter unless help comes, because their one access road has been cut off by lava flow.
THEN- if things weren't bad enough, you know by the giant footprint on the cover of the book that Sasquatch will be involved. Brooks posits a species of giant ape-like hominids that have been hidden this whole time, but who now have to be on the move because of the volcano. And with resources scarce, they can't afford to be picky eaters...
So there you have the plot. Kate must dig deep to survive and transcend her former self. There's bloodshed and gore. There's fast paced action. There's suspense.
I didn't rate it higher because by the time everyone in the community was described, I was pretty sure who was going to die and who was going to live. I was right. So, it's a quick and exhilarating ride, but predictable when it comes right down to it. The author has some things to say about modern society's lack of preparedness for disaster that hits home especially hard at this time.
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
dark
funny
medium-paced