Gabry (Gabrielle) knows that she should not venture outside of Vista. The fences are there for a reason. They keep you safe from the undead (or “Mudo” as they are referred to in this book). Gabry is a good girl. She never breaks the rules and enjoys her quiet life living in the lighthouse with her mother, Mary (yes – the Mary from book one). That is until Catcher, the boy she has a crush on and the brother of her best friend Cira, convinces her to jump over the wall one night with he, Cira and some of their friends. They are going to go check out the old abandoned amusement park. Against her best instincts, Gabry agrees. It seems harmless enough, but when a “breaker” (a fast-moving zombie) attacks the group, Gabry barely escapes. Now some of her friends have turned, others have been caught by the Militia, and Catcher is missing.

Feeling guilty for escaping while her surviving friends are being held captive for breaching security, Gabry tells Cira she will find Catcher. Once again, Gabry sets out on her own, dodging Mudo, and risking her life to find out what happened to Catcher. Once Gabry meets Elias, a stranger that seems to have a strange connection to her, a string of events takes place that eventually has Gabry fleeing the safety of Vista and braving the Forest of Hands & Teeth.

“The Dead-Tossed Waves” is Carrie Ryan’s second book in “The Forest of Hands & Teeth” series. This book was even more thrilling than the first. Sometimes I find that the second book in a trilogy seems to lack excitement. That was not the case here. You barely have time to catch your breath before Ryan drops you in the middle of another exciting battle or harrowing escape. I particularly like how the stories from the first book were tied in to this one, and some of my lingering questions from the first book were answered here.