Number of Pages: 460
Genre: Horror, science-fiction, thriller
This 2014 novel from writer M. R. Carey (the pen-name of British writer Mike Carey, whose probably best known as a comics writer probably best known for his runs on X-Men, John Constantine: Hellblazer, Lucifer and his own series The Unwritten), is a striking post-apocalyptic science-fiction / horror tale. Set in a near future Britain, ten year old Melanie is a bright, intelligent, friendly girl who loves school, particularly her favourite teacher Miss Justineau. She lives in a cell on a military base. Every day soldiers strap her to a wheelchair at gunpoint, muzzle her and take her to her classes with the other children on the base, similarly strapped and muzzled. Occasionally there are new faces. More often children disappear and are never seen again. Outside the world is gone, most of the population has become infected by a fungus that turns humans into cannibalistic zombies known as "Hungries".
This a deeply affecting, exciting, thrilling, and occasionally surprisingly tender story. The plot moves along at a brisk pace, with interesting and engaging characters. The are some plot contrivances, with characters often being rescued from certain death at the very last moment, and it's full of stuff that you will probably have seen before in many other zombie apocalypse stories (of which there have been a lot!).
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