Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers
Publication date: March 2011
ISBN: 9780385738590
Source: Library
Annah has grown up in the Dark City, every day reliving the memory of leaving her twin sister behind in the Forest of Hands and Teeth. And then the more recent memory of Elias leaving her behind. When both her sister and Elias return unexpectedly, she is thrown into a world of swirling emotions. But she doesn't have much time to worry about them or about the new boy Catcher who makes her feel so different, because everything about her world is about to change.
Things I Liked:
I really love these books because of their balanced look at zombie action and humane reactions. I love how it challenges what you think and expect about zombies and how you will look sympathetically perhaps to their plight as well as the human plight. I became wrapped up in the reality of Annah and Gabry and Elias and Catcher, who struggle to survive in an ever shrinking world of thinking humans. It was such a realistic view of how it would feel to watch the human race disappear a piece at a time and then to see the different reactions survivors have. I just love the heart and soul of this series and the tough and sympathetic characters Ryan creates. Great series!
Things I Didn't Like:
It dragged for a while in the middle. Not much seemed to happen while they were trapped on the island for most of the chapters. Things definitely picked up near the end and were exciting for much of the beginning, but there is a bit of a slow spot right in the middle. And the ending is a bit of a stretch too. Still, I never wanted to stop reading it.
Read-alikes:
Read The Forest of Hands and Teeth and The Dead-Tossed Waves by Carrie Ryan first
Rot & Ruin by Jonathan Maberry
BOOK CONTENT RATINGS:
s-factor: !@
some, not a lot
mrg-factor: X
a few incidents, but nothing explicit
v-factor: ->->
quite a bit, what with zombies and all
Overall rating: ****
Is there a book or series that almost makes you believe in zombies?
If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percentage
Posts
The Dark and Hollow Places lives up to it's name and is the darker of the three, but it also made it the most realistic. Without giving away any spoilers, what happens with the characters in the story wasn't shocking to me and is something that fits a story who's world is facing an end. This is something that felt real and something I can see really happening, as human nature takes over. People either fight to survive or become barbaric and let me just say that a few of the Recruiters make the zombies look nice.
ReplyDeleteWhat I've loved about this series is that each book is from a different character's point of view, and each story is told in manner that I not only get to see the characters in a variety of ways, but also their world. What I loved most with this story is the way in which Carrie brings all her characters together and wraps up her series. The Dark and Hollow Places is told from Annah's point of view, Gabry's twin sister. I really enjoyed getting to know Annah, and I loved the romance that grows between her and Catcher. It's so broken, and hopeful all at the same time and filled with tension, which I love. I really fell in love with Catcher in TDTW, but this time his desperation is so much more urgent that I really wanted to reach out to him. Annah and Catcher mold together perfectly, as they're the only ones who are able to really understand each other. I'm so glad that Gabry and Elias were apart of the story, but this time they were great supporting characters.
A wonderful assessment of this book's strengths! I love series that look through different eyes in each book. And I completely agree that those Recruiters were nastier than the zombies at times.
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