Contagious

Scott Sigler

Crown Publishing

So there’s this author I like. He’s short, bald, and he wants to take over the world with his plaid tanks. His name is Scott Sigler, and I’ve been following him since the early days. Since he started podcasting his fiction. Last year, he put out a new book call Contagious. Contagious is the sequel to the first book that came out from Crown Publishing, Infected. You really should read Infected, because it was good. Like, really freaking good. But that’s for a different post.

Contagious follows Scary Perry Dawsey, who was previously infected with a disease that thinks and eventually walks; Dr. Margaret Montoya and her team, as she tries to find a cure for the disease; and a creepy little kid called Chelsea; who is leading the infected people. Oh, and the heads at the US government, of course. At the start of the book, the disease is basically the same as the one that Dawsey had fought off in the previous book. But then there’s a new strand. One that is contagious.

Let me explain how creepy this disease is. This disease is smart. It invades your body and starts growing inside of you. The first symptom is itching. Itching to the point where you bleed, but you don’t stop. Then come the voices. Yea, they start talking to you. And learning from your memories. Oh, did I mention the paranoia that comes with it as well. And the absolute fear of medical personnel, law enforcement and the military. Not to mention the fact that the disease turned you into a violent person, no matter what kind of a person you were before.

Anyhow, the book is fantastic. Yea, freaking fantastic. It’s also scary. Especially when the disease becomes contagious. But it’s also has a thriller edge. It’s kinda like at the edge- of- your- seat combined with hurtling -towards -the -sun - at - the - speed - of - light - and- holy- shit- there’s- no -way- to - stop -this - thing. Yea, it’s like that.

So, let’s recap: this disease is creepy. Check. This book isn’t the greatest book to read before going to sleep. Check. This book isn’t a good book to read while eating, especially if you don’t have a strong stomach. Check. I really hate Chelsea. Check. I can’t believe you killed one of my favourite characters, Siggy. Check. Sigler wants to take over the world, starting with publishing. Check.

If you are too lazy to go buy the book, you can subscribe to the podcast version at scottsigler.com. Don’t worry, it’s unabridged and free. And all you really need is a computer with internet access. Which clearly you have.
But you should buy the book.

But something that morning told him not to go. But David ignored it.

Remember: this post is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 2.5 Canada license. That means you can take it, change it, sell it, eat it, throw it in someone's face. Which ever one it is, make sure you give me credit.

What Z Sees
Karen Rivers
Raincoast

So a while ago, I reviewed Karen Rivers’ other book Y in the Shadows.That book was awesome by the way. So obviously, I was excited when I saw this book on the Mini Book Expo site for grabs. Like really excited. So, I claimed it. And then school got in the way, so did the organization and running of an event called Trick or Eat. Which unfortunately meant, that reading this book got pushed to the major back burner. (and it probably means that I’ve been blacklisted from ever claiming another book from Mini Book Expo because I broke the rules)

Opps, digression. Now I un-digress (if there is such a word).

Like Y in the Shadows, What Z Sees also has 3 narrators and different point of views. After reading What Z Sees, I now know that it was the switching of narrators and point of view writing that made me dizzy in Y in the Shadows. Well, at least, I’m reasonably sure that that’s what was making my head spin. What Z Sees follows Zara, who after an accident gains the power to see people’s thoughts. Everyone’s thoughts, and not just her twin brother’s thoughts like before the accident. The other two narrators are Axel, Zara’s twin brother who has problems of his own; and Sin (short for Cynthia), who is Zara’s best friend and has a serious crush on Axel.

Zara’s narration is in 1st person; Axel’s is in third person; and Sin’s is in 2nd person. Which is like, huh? 2nd person? I haven’t read 2nd person since my childhood obsessions with those Choose your own adventure books. So it was a little weird reading in 2nd person. For a while, I would turn the page and expect there to be choices at the bottom.

Anyhow, What Z Sees was pretty good. My head did spin when I read the book this time. And there was a really good break-up scene in the book. It was awesome. I’m disappointed that we weren’t given an explanation on why she could see everyone’s thoughts all of a sudden. And why she stopped seeing everyone thoughts.

Shadow Song
Lorina Stephens
Five Rivers Chapmanry

Shadow Song by Lorina Stephens is about a young girl named Danielle, who is shipped off to Canada to live with her uncle when both her parents die. Set in the 1830s, the story follows Danielle’s life in Canada as she matures in to a young woman.

There isn’t much that I have to say about this book. First of all, I couldn’t even finish the book. I had put it down for 2 weeks and when I picked it up, I forget everything that had happened before then, and I wasn’t about to go back and re-read the previous content. The main reason for this, I think, was because I couldn’t make a connection with the main character. Or any of the characters for that matter. And I found that it also took a really long time to get into. And I mean a really long time.

This book, kinda reminded me of Jayne Eyre by Charlotte Bronte. I only say “kinda” because while I couldn’t make a connection with Danielle, I didn’t hate her. I was just indifferent to her well being. Jayne Eyre, on the other hand, I really couldn’t stand her. But that’s a whole ‘nother rant that’s completely unrelated to this book. Anyhow, the writing style of the two books are similar. So, perhaps if you enjoyed Jayne Eyre, maybe you’ll enjoy Shadow Song as well.

Author's Note: this post was inspired by Rain Delays by Crash Parrellel.

Remember: this post is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 2.5 Canada license. That means you can take it, change it, sell it, eat it, throw it in someone's face. Which ever one it is, make sure you give me credit.