Between the Bookcovers

Author: Charlie Higson
Published: June 14, 2011
Pages: 496
Rating: 5/5 Stars

Description from Goodreads:

THE DEAD begins one year before the action in THE ENEMY, just after the Disaster. A terrible disease has struck everyone over the age of sixteen, leaving them either dead or a decomposing, flesh-eating creature. The action starts in a boarding school just outside London where all the teachers have turned into zombies. Together they begin a terrifying journey to find safety, and home.

Review:

Ever since I finished reading The Enemy, I have been anxiously awaiting the publication of The Dead. And Higson didn't disappoint with this one. The book opens with the start of the disease, and the YouTube video of The Scared Kid. As the disease spreads a group of boys find themselves stranded at a boarding school, fighting off the teachers who have become living monsters who want to eat them. It follows them as they watch the progression of the disease through the staff until the kids are left to fend for themselves. Anyone over sixteen has been stricken, and once again we follow the trials of the kids as they look for ways to survive in a world where they have no adult assistance and have to fight for their lives.

Higson has given us several wonderful characters, all of whom have their own unique traits and you will find yourself hoping that they can figure out a way to survive in a world turned upside down. It is heartbreaking to follow them as they realize that their parents are likely dead or diseased and that the world as they knew it is gone.

There is plenty of zombie type violence here, but necessary for the kids to keep themselves safe. The journey they take from the countryside into London had me on the edge of my seat and I found I could not put this book down.

This book explains a lot of questions that I had after The Enemy, but if you have not read the first book you could start here and then read it. You will not be disappointed and this one is not for the YA audience alone, anyone who loves zombie books will find this series well done and worth your time. I hear that there are six book planned for this series, I cannot wait to see how the story progresses and this series at the top of my wish list. Oh, and make sure to stop by and see "The Scared Kid".

Rating: An outstanding series, do not miss this one!




Note: I received this book from the publisher via NeyGalley for review but did not get any compensation for the review.