Amanda Hocking

First of all, I want to say that I did like this book. I read it in two sittings. I was torn between a 3 star and a 4 star rating - and I decided to give it 4 stars, which I will explain in a minute.

Remy, the 19-year-old protagonist, is living in a post-apocalyptic world overrun with zombies. She is desperately searching for her little brother and is the somewhat reluctant leader of a group of people who are tagging along as she makes her way across the country in search of her 8-year-old brother, Max. I almost just gave it three stars because there were a few things that made me lean toward a "like" instead of a "really like" - for example, even though the beginning starts off with a bang and threw me right into the middle of the action, some things happen to characters that I just didn't care about yet, and it didn't seem too much like Remy overly cared about them either. I guess those scenes were just supposed to show how bad this world had become and to show what lengths Remy would go to to find her brother and that she did not have a moment to waste. But then there was the lion. Ripley. The fact that Remy stopped to free this lion that could have ripped her to shreds sort of went against her earlier "can't stop" attitude about looking for Max. Then the lion sort of follows her and her group around helping to fend off zombie attacks. Somehow, this lion has become Remy's guard lion. Also, she encounters two older boys along the way and there is never any struggle over leadership - Remy is the leader and everybody just accepts that, even though Remy insists several times that she'd rather be making this trip alone. Character development is minimal, but being that this was mainly an action oriented story, that didn't really bother me all that much. Also, Remy and her brother were supposed to have been in this "quarantine" or army-type base at an old school at the beginning of this novel for about two months before the zombies broke through, Max was evacuated, and Remy escaped and started looking for him. A soldier working there, Beck, had evidently been training Remy how to shoot and defend herself against the zombies while he was also looking out for Max, who was in the sick bay, during those two months. Well, Beck must have had some mad ninja training skills because in two months this 19 year old girl not only became a marksman, being able to hit snipers on rooftops, but she also developed hand-to-hand combat skills and used techniques rivaling Lara Croft from Tomb Raider - including quickly climbing a tree in the middle of a zombie attack, swinging from a branch, and kicking a zombie to make it impale itself onto some branches from a neighboring tree stump. So, basically, I had to suspend belief a little while I was reading this to really enjoy it. But...when the story is interesting enough, I am willing to do that. I mean, this is a story full of flesh-eating zombies, right? Suspending belief a little bit sort of comes with the territory for that, anyway, doesn't it? The pacing in the story is handled really well and it kept me reading...which brings me to why I decided to give it a 4 star rating.

I almost never read this kind of novel. I've read a few vampire novels and stuff like that - and they really weren't my favorite reads. But this is my first zombie novel. I downloaded this book to my kindle months and months ago - I can't even remember who recommended it to me - and I never read it because I was so convinced I wouldn't like it. But I did like it. I would have never finished it in two sittings if I wasn't engaged in the story. It was a quick, light read (despite its subject matter) and I enjoyed it. There is a sex scene that may be inappropriate for younger audiences - it isn't overly graphic, but, still, it's a definite sex scene and it's handled in such a way that makes unprotected sex between young people who essentially just met commonplace and no big deal. It ends in a sort of cliffhanger, setting up for the sequel. If you like zombie tales, post-apocalyptic novels, female leads with fighting skills, and action oriented stories, you will probably like this novel a lot. If you are looking for a more emotional story with lots of character development, maybe this novel isn't for you. But not every novel is for every person. I generally prefer the latter, myself, but this novel made me rethink my stance on zombie stories. And that is what makes it a 4 star novel for me.… (more)

3.5 stars - I was initially intrigued to learn more about the sirens, then lost interest when Gemma put her family in danger for the 2nd time while making zero progress in breaking her curse. If she wanted to protect them she could've just sang them away in the first place, instead of sitting around together waiting for the sirens to arrive... in the first place they'd think to check!

In general there was too much back and forth about what they were, weren't, should, and shouldn't be doing, and very little actually being done. Also, Gemma and Alex seem a little flat despite being the main couple, though I really enjoyed Harper's and Daniel's dynamic. That, along with some interesting reveals about the sirens, is the main reason I haven't given up yet on this series. At least they're quick reads and will give my childhood self some closure, since I remembered liking the first book so much.… (more)

Thankfully, the pace picked up with this one! The stakes are higher, a few more clues have come to light, and I'm emotionally invested in most of the characters again. The romance was still my least favorite part; I normally don't care for that aspect of YA to begin with, but there were a lot more dark secrets and drama this time around, especially with Harper/Daniel whose dynamic I liked so much before. But the backstory of the sirens is as fascinating as it is bloody, and I'm excited to see how this saga ends.… (more)