A review by rsoccer70
American Rapture by CJ Leede

adventurous challenging dark mysterious sad tense fast-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

4.5

I found this novel on a "best" list and I'm glad I picked up this fast paced story. The first-person narrator-Sophie- is 16 and being raised in a traditionalistic Catholic family and community. As the reader is learning about her repressed world, a pandemic begins to spread to Sophie's home in Wisconsin. In a remarkable twist, the virus causes the infected to become insanely sexually agressive before they perish. Things get intense as Sophie leaves her home to find her twin brother. She faces sexual violence and zombie-like infected people. There's a strong "American Gods" reference and I think the author uses this to point to a deeper theme which I appreciated. Religious terrorists enter the story 1/2 way through. This sets up a battle between the Vengeful Reaping god of the Old Testament and fundamentalistic Christianity against a loving community embodied by the found family Sophie gathers. An excellent book with great action - and many thoughts about the state of Christianity in America today. 
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