Sunday, August 1, 2010

The Forest of Hands and Teeth

by Carrie Ryan

Dedication: "to jp for giving me the world"

First paragraph: "My mother used to tell me about the ocean. She said there was a place where there was nothing but water as far as you could see and that it was always moving, rushing toward you and then away. She once showed me a picture that she said was my great-great-great-grandmother standing in the ocean as a child. It has been years since, and the picture was lost to fire long ago, but I remember it, faded and worn. A little girl surrounded by nothingness."

Review: I hate zombies. I hate zombie movies, I hate zombie video games ... but it turns out ... I don't hate zombie books. Who would have thought.

It's a post-apocalyptic world and Mary lives in her small caged off world growing up with three absolute truths. First, the sisterhood knows best. Second, the guardians protect and serve. And third, the unconsecrated will never relent. But as her curiosity gets the better of her and her desire to see the ocean grows, she learns things that turn her world upside down.

This book was gripping. It was a decent, easy read and it was hard to predict what would happen next ... for the most part.

It took me about 6-7 hours to read this book. Once I picked it up I couldn't put it down. I think the beginning was a little slow, trying to get the reader to understand the dimensions of Mary's world, but as soon as you're really immersed in the story, it is action and suspense until the end.

There were some questions about the characters themselves that were left untouched. I wish there would have been more character development for Jed, Harry and Travis so that you can better understand the decisions they make, but I guess the story isn't theirs, it's Mary's and you can almost predict her thoughts because you know her so well.

There is a companion book to this one titled The Dead-Tossed Waves and I plan on reading it as soon as possible. If it's anything like this book, I think I'll be more than entertained.

Click Here for Carrie Ryan's website for The Forest of Hands and Teeth

1 comment:

Hilary said...

This sounds intriguing enough I may have to read it! Thanks for the review on all these books! Did you get the 3rd Hunger games series book? I still would love to borrow the 1st and 2nd Hunger Games books if that is okay.