From the Bookshelf of Nothing But Reading Challenges…

Feed (Newsflesh, #1)

Mira Grant

Start date: January 22, 2012

Finish date: January 31, 2012

Discussion: Books of the Month

Why we're reading this: We voted and this one won for January's Anything Goes (Except Paranormal/Urban Fantasy and Young Adult/Sc…more
[close] We voted and this one won for January's Anything Goes (Except Paranormal/Urban Fantasy and Young Adult/SciFi/Fantasy)Book of the Month. Link to discussion:
http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/7...

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What Members Thought

Apr 30, 2016 Krissy rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: audiobook, audible-library, buddy-read, zombies-zombies-everywhere, pgs-500-599

2 stars because it took too long to get exciting. And that can get pretty boring especially in a book over 500 pages. I also found the entire section where they were following and reporting on the presidential campaign extremely dull. I don't care about politics in my zombie books. I care about zombies. Unfortunately there were only a couple of zombie attack scenes in this entire 593 page book. I might pick up book 2 because I really liked the Shaun character. We'll see. ...more

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Jul 06, 2015 Gremlin rated it liked it

Shelves: post-apocalyptic, book-group, think-galactic, strong-female-characters

Full disclosure - I enjoy zombie stories. Though I'll also admit that I have a very difficult time READING zombie stories. (I generally think that zombies work better on screen). But I digress...

Feed feels like a YA. Young(er) blogger protagonists in a fairly black and white world where good and bad are pretty easily defined. (And heck - they still live with their parents). It seemed a little odd for a story that was supposed to be a zombie based political thriller. As someone in my book group s Full disclosure - I enjoy zombie stories. Though I'll also admit that I have a very difficult time READING zombie stories. (I generally think that zombies work better on screen). But I digress...

Feed feels like a YA. Young(er) blogger protagonists in a fairly black and white world where good and bad are pretty easily defined. (And heck - they still live with their parents). It seemed a little odd for a story that was supposed to be a zombie based political thriller. As someone in my book group said "The twist in this book is that there is no twist."

And - like so many zombie stories before it - if you take a good look at the world that's been created, you find yourself asking all these questions that start to blow the whole thing apart. (Where is all this tech coming from? How does food exist when so much of the earth has been covered in chemicals and bleach to eradicate the virus? Etc). And that doesn't include some of the more obvious plot-holes within some of the outer characters themselves. (view spoiler)

All of that being said - I chose to read this book as a movie, which somehow made it more palatable and less frustrating. The general story was worthwhile. The general world building was interesting. Many of the ideas were solid. And the main characters, while still a little black and white, were engaging. Particularly the relationships.

I appreciated the bond between Georgia and Shaun, two adoptive children (not genetically related) who grew up together. Their relationship felt very true. If you spent your whole life depending on and trusting only one other person (often with your life) that level of co-dependency felt real. And while some readers might actually find the relationship a little creepy, I personally loved that it didn't try to overly explain itself. They loved each other. Trusted each other. Needed one another. It wasn't sexual - it was authentic care, coupled with a natural blend of their talents that allowed them to create a livelihood together. It was honestly a refreshing break from all the love triangles out there. And frankly, I think relationships are way more complex than most books allow them to be, so I was glad to see something new.

Similarly, I feel like the author got something right in the blogger relationships. These are online friendships, developed over years, most of which were people that the main characters had never met. In particular, Mahir - Georgia's right-hand "newsie" wasn't just invested in working with the After The End times, but was specifically invested in Georgia's life. They had a very real friendship and connection, despite living thousands of miles apart. It speaks to the ways in which our world has developed in the last several decades. Our online presense is an actual part of who we are. And the relationships that we form in that sphere have the ability to become just as deep, life-changing, and real as anything in our "real" world. Sometimes more so. (But again, I digress...)

Bottom line? Entertaining. The actual "blog posts" in the books were some of my favorite parts.
I might read the next in the series.

...more

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Apr 05, 2012 Yzabel Ginsberg rated it it was amazing

Shelves: zombies, death

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I read this book one year ago and never left a review, and now I'm wondering why. Probably because I wasn't logging much on GR back then.

I'm no fan of 'regular' zombie flicks or stories. If it's only about gore and killing zombies, it usually doesn't keep my interest up for long. I am more entertained already when there is something else in it. In this book, I found something that I hadn't thought of at first, but loved reading about: the analysis of how society would go on. How it would get org I read this book one year ago and never left a review, and now I'm wondering why. Probably because I wasn't logging much on GR back then.

I'm no fan of 'regular' zombie flicks or stories. If it's only about gore and killing zombies, it usually doesn't keep my interest up for long. I am more entertained already when there is something else in it. In this book, I found something that I hadn't thought of at first, but loved reading about: the analysis of how society would go on. How it would get organized. Security matters. Limiting gatherings. Making sure you're not contaminated. The developing role of internet and blogging to spread the 'real' news. Politics. How the virus was born and got to spread—no mad scientist, no ugly plan to kill the whole human race: merely an accident, and unfortunate circumstances.

For me, this book was an exercise in world building. It could've been boring, as many works of that type are (unfortunately). It wasn't at all. Not only the depiction of society got me hooked, but I found the main characters really enjoyable. Their strength, their selflessness, the way they go about their business, their relationships—all of those made me feel close to them (so close that while I saw the end approaching for Buffy and George, I couldn't bear it). The book also has just the right amount of 'politics' for me: I am mildly interested in it, but not too much, and I found the balance just right enough for me.

Granted, the story has its flaws. I was a little disappointed at the 'villain', for instance. And some information seems more like info-dumping, and could probably have been introduced differently; however, the "blogging approach" makes it somehow quite logical, and it wasn't jarring in my opinion.

I admit I'm far, very far from having read a lot of "zombie stories", so maybe my advice would be more qualified if I had more reading experience in that domain. As of now, the book does deserve my personal 5-* rating. I enjoyed thoroughly, it entertained me for long hours, and all in all, it's really what I ask from such a novel. ...more

2 likes · Like · see review

Feb 10, 2020 Angie rated it it was amazing

Shelves: audio-books, great-reading-challenge, dystopia, geek-out-book-club, bookclub, first-in-series, pandemic, apocalypse-now, zombies, 2020-books

Geek Out! Book Club meets tonight! Will update after the discussion.

1 like · Like · see review

Sep 02, 2013 Andria rated it it was ok

So, the writing is pretty painful. Between the 5,000 blood testing scenes, the one-sided obvious villain, and the snarky side-thoughts accompanying almost every line of dialogue, it was hard to make it to the end.

But I'm glad I did. Because *SPOILER ALERT SPOILER ALERT* that chapter when she dies? Totally worth getting to the end for. The final transmission was perfect. Really affected me. *END SPOILER ALERT*

I'm going 2 stars. Recommended for readers who love their zombies. But others may not ha ...more

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Oct 31, 2015 Haze rated it really liked it

Shelves: 2015-books-read, reread, audiobook, 2022-books-read

This is a reread. I loved it the first time but didn't continue the series then, so the reread is a great refresher for me before going to the next book. ...more

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