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pjwhyman's review against another edition
2.0
While readable, it's also repetitive and frequently unbelievable. Smart people making dumb decisions for the sake of moving the plot. I don't intend reading the 3rd book.
fluffernutter's review against another edition
2.0
Sal was too much of a whiner and I gave up with about 10% left to read. Following a fearful and anxious character through an adventure is not enjoyable.
llahyaj's review against another edition
Meh. Not impressed. Not like the News flesh series. Sal annoys the hell out of me.
jules_writes's review against another edition
4.0
I didn't think the book was perfect, but it was entertaining and I'm quite looking forward to the next one.
_b_a_l_'s review against another edition
2.0
Okay so I love biologically credible horror way more than the next guy. (No seriously, I think this is rather a niche market, but one of my favourite thing about these books is the delicious way in which tapeworms & toxoplasmosis combine to create a sometimes sentient human/tapeworm hybrid. Its also what makes the NewsFlesh series stand out in the increasingly saturated world of zombies).
BUT. And this was exactly what I didn't like about her last novel.
When I buy a novel: I. Expect. To. Receive. A. Novel.
A novel has structure: It has a beginning, and a middle and then a end.
At the end of a novel I expect to experience a certain sense of satisfaction. Like I've been on a journey and arrived at a new destination.
I understand that authors want to write entire series of books. Hell, I WANT them to write series. I LOVE books. I'll buy all of them.
But this isn't television.
You can't just wrap a story fragment in a cover and tell me its a book and that you'll see me next week. It makes me feel cheated.
Or if you do this - you need to tell me that you're writing a serial and this is just a chapter and provide me with a corresponding costing model.
If this had been sold to me as such, and I'd knowingly entered into such a transaction (and I would have because TAPEWORM HYBRIDS people!) I probably would have given this 3.5 stars instead of 2.
BUT. And this was exactly what I didn't like about her last novel.
When I buy a novel: I. Expect. To. Receive. A. Novel.
A novel has structure: It has a beginning, and a middle and then a end.
At the end of a novel I expect to experience a certain sense of satisfaction. Like I've been on a journey and arrived at a new destination.
I understand that authors want to write entire series of books. Hell, I WANT them to write series. I LOVE books. I'll buy all of them.
But this isn't television.
You can't just wrap a story fragment in a cover and tell me its a book and that you'll see me next week. It makes me feel cheated.
Or if you do this - you need to tell me that you're writing a serial and this is just a chapter and provide me with a corresponding costing model.
If this had been sold to me as such, and I'd knowingly entered into such a transaction (and I would have because TAPEWORM HYBRIDS people!) I probably would have given this 3.5 stars instead of 2.
holly_117's review against another edition
4.0
This ending is the kind of cliff-hanger that I like! It didn't feel like the story was dragged out unnecessarily or chopped off in an awkward place just to make more money on a third book. Instead, it felt like a natural stopping point where one phase of the story has ended (and the reader has learned a lot about what's going on) and the next phase is set to begin.
As always, I like this different take on the zombie apocalypse. I love the detailed scientific thought process that's gone into the "how" of the zombies and I REALLY love the creepy children's book quotes that start the chapters.
Note to Mira Grant, if, for some crazy reason, you haven't written Don't Go Out Alone DO IT! PLEASE!!! I'd definitely buy a copy - get someone to do really creepy illustrations, like the original ones from [b:The Scary Stories Treasury|584460|The Scary Stories Treasury|Alvin Schwartz|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1401166423s/584460.jpg|571313] by Alvin Schwartz (not the new illustrations, they're not scary at all) and I'll be the first one in line shouting at you to TAKE MY MONEY already!
As always, I like this different take on the zombie apocalypse. I love the detailed scientific thought process that's gone into the "how" of the zombies and I REALLY love the creepy children's book quotes that start the chapters.
Note to Mira Grant, if, for some crazy reason, you haven't written Don't Go Out Alone DO IT! PLEASE!!! I'd definitely buy a copy - get someone to do really creepy illustrations, like the original ones from [b:The Scary Stories Treasury|584460|The Scary Stories Treasury|Alvin Schwartz|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1401166423s/584460.jpg|571313] by Alvin Schwartz (not the new illustrations, they're not scary at all) and I'll be the first one in line shouting at you to TAKE MY MONEY already!
seeinghowitgoes's review against another edition
3.0
Sadly not as engaging as the Newsfeed world, but raises strange moral questions which are actually tipping me in various directions as the series goes on.
Also, TRILOGY?! Oh god.
The action picks up with our heroine Sal now fully aware that she is actually a sentient tapeworm living the body of Sally Mitchel, there's a lot of creepy tapeworm bonding and a lot of really ridiculous actions that feel more in place in an action film (e.g. the scene the walkers falling endlessly off a bridge).
At the end of it all, these characters just haven't resonated as much with me. Nathan pings almost nothing in me, Sal is rather annoying and the most intriguing character Tansy also tragically spends the entire novel being tortured. It will be interesting to see how it all pans out in the end.
Also, TRILOGY?! Oh god.
The action picks up with our heroine Sal now fully aware that she is actually a sentient tapeworm living the body of Sally Mitchel, there's a lot of creepy tapeworm bonding and a lot of really ridiculous actions that feel more in place in an action film (e.g. the scene the walkers falling endlessly off a bridge).
At the end of it all, these characters just haven't resonated as much with me. Nathan pings almost nothing in me, Sal is rather annoying and the most intriguing character Tansy also tragically spends the entire novel being tortured. It will be interesting to see how it all pans out in the end.
allymack's review against another edition
4.0
If you thought "Parasite" was good - HOO BOY! I can't begin to explain how much this book surprised me with its twists and turns and good, good, GOOD story!
berlinbibliophile's review against another edition
3.0
I read the first book of this series years ago, but never got around to reading this one. Despite the long pause, it wasn't hard to get back into it, and all the memories of the first book returned quickly.
I really enjoyed this book, and especially the development of the global crisis the characters are facing. The portrayal of the sleepwalkers is sometimes a little inconsistent, but I think that's just because Grant is working towards some larger revelations in the last book of the trilogy.
I also especially liked Sal's characters development, it felt organic and unforced, yet she changes considerably over the course of the novel. Nathan, on the other hand, seems stagnant, and still like a cardboard cutout who's only there to love Sal unconditionally. The settings that Grant chooses, however, like the Candy factory hideout, more than make up for some little deficiencies.
Once more, the book ends on a cliffhanger, so I guess I'll have to read the conclusion of the trilogy more quickly than I did this one.
Update on 2019 re-read: Wow, I sure did not read the last one more quickly as I said I would. In fact, I still haven't. But this time, being the completist that I am, I really am planning on it.
I had a different reaction to this than the last time I read it. This time, the sleepwalker business interested me much more, while I was a bit impatient with Sal constantly fainting and being lugged from one location to another by the other characters. But I guess this time around I appreciated the side characters more, like Fishy, who believes he lives in a video game and that the apocalypse isn't really happening, but who is still trying to help out instead of looting or shooting things purely for fun. I also loved the dogs a whole lot more than I remembered.
I really enjoyed this book, and especially the development of the global crisis the characters are facing. The portrayal of the sleepwalkers is sometimes a little inconsistent, but I think that's just because Grant is working towards some larger revelations in the last book of the trilogy.
I also especially liked Sal's characters development, it felt organic and unforced, yet she changes considerably over the course of the novel. Nathan, on the other hand, seems stagnant, and still like a cardboard cutout who's only there to love Sal unconditionally. The settings that Grant chooses, however, like the Candy factory hideout, more than make up for some little deficiencies.
Once more, the book ends on a cliffhanger, so I guess I'll have to read the conclusion of the trilogy more quickly than I did this one.
Update on 2019 re-read: Wow, I sure did not read the last one more quickly as I said I would. In fact, I still haven't. But this time, being the completist that I am, I really am planning on it.
I had a different reaction to this than the last time I read it. This time, the sleepwalker business interested me much more, while I was a bit impatient with Sal constantly fainting and being lugged from one location to another by the other characters. But I guess this time around I appreciated the side characters more, like Fishy, who believes he lives in a video game and that the apocalypse isn't really happening, but who is still trying to help out instead of looting or shooting things purely for fun. I also loved the dogs a whole lot more than I remembered.