This Is Not a Test (edition 2012)

Title : This is Not a Test
Series : -
Author : Courtney Summers
Pages : 320
Release Date : June 19th 2012
Publisher : St. Martin's Griffin / Raincoast Books
Format : ARC
Source :
**An ARC was provided from Raincoast Books in exchange of an honest review**









My Opinion :


This was my first book from Courtney Summers, and even though I had heard so many great things about her books, but I was still reluctant. I don't know why. I was SO stupid back then. Okay, maybe not stupid, but still. I guess I just like to be with my comfortable authors!

This is Not a Test is a heart-pounding novel that will leave you breathless.


" This is not a test. Listen closely. This is not a test."
This is Not a Test is the story of Sloane, a girl who has lost her sister because she ran away, and Sloane is the daughter of a father that beats her up. But now, even if her world ended when her sister ran away, the whole world has ended because of a zombie apocalypse. Now, she's stuck with five other teenagers in her school, trying to survive. The problem is, she doesn't want to survive.

This book is powerful. Parents, or anyone, who beats people up for whatever reason is bad.

I don't really like zombie books, and I guess that just... I didn't really want to read it a t first, but so many people seemed to love it, that I decided to finally read it! Just so you know... the zombie part really isn't big in this book. I'd say it's 5% zombie. The book really isn't mainoly about zombie! I'm telling you! I mean, I know I was doutbfull when people said there almost weren't anything about zombies, but, REALLY! Don't be stubborn like me!

The book isn't exactly fast-paced, but you just can't stop turning the pages! I was sad everytime I had to stop reading, and I really had to force myself to stop. I just wanted to devour it and not stop until I finished it! The writing is just so good and sucks you in!

The main character is really attaching, and yet you want to let her alone, because she... seems like she doesn't like people.

This is Not a Test is an incredible book that will suck you in from the start

Rating :
4.5 ROSES!
( )

Zombies done right.

I'm not a huge fan of the zombie genre (though I am admittedly obsessed with The Walking Dead), but this novel got a hold of me and did not let go until the final page. There was something very real about the way Courtney Summers handled her characters. I've always thought that in the face of an apocalypse, your personal demons wouldn't just evaporate. You'd still have guilt, regrets, insecurities... Summers doesn't waver when it comes to the human side of an apocalypse and, to me, this fact is what makes 'This is Not a Test' so great.

Courtney Summers has created a masterpiece in This is Not a Test.

It is a page-turner, a zombie apocalypse story, a coming of age novel, a romance, while still being contemporary, realistic, heartfelt, and completely engrossing.

I would recommend it to just about everyone. Fans of YA fiction of all ages, fans of zombie stories/movies/video games. Reluctant readers. Teens who read a lot. Adults who have never read YA fiction. Seriously. Everyone. ( )

The writing, which has a very particular style, definitely took some getting used to. Even now, I'm not completely sure how I feel about the book or the writing. I think it's probably because it's so beautiful, so nuanced and so gut-wrenching. Her writing also has a strangely lyrical quality, enhanced by the strange placement of punctuation.

The world-building in This Is Not a Test is minimal. All we really know is that there was a zombie outbreak, and that's about it. That's because the dystopian aspects aren't what make the book unique, they're not what the book is really about. Whereas most dystopias focus on a person, or group of people, desperate to survive, This Is Not a Test focuses on a girl who wants to die. This viewpoint really changed everything. What scares Sloane is not the zombies, not the dying. She fears having to live.

I've seen this book called "The Breakfast Club meets The Walking Dead." I see where they're going with that, and it's valid. I want to add a comparison to Laurie Halse Anderson and Ilsa J. Bick. If you enjoy those authors, you will love this, and by love I mean be seriously depressed by. I think this one is going to stick with me. ( )

Loved it, but it feels unfinished. A sequel, please? ( )