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What Members Thought

Beverly
Great premise! I am a fan of near/post apocalyptic storylines that have an adult tone. This book immediately built the suspense and tension but it sizzled out a little for me during the flashbacks as those events became anti-climatic because of the river journey. But was still anxious to turn the pages to the end. I also enjoy storylines where there are several – what would I do in those situation moments, especially those when there are so many unknowns and this book provided several for me to ...more
Barondestructo
May 29, 2014 rated it liked it
A suspenseful horror thriller that is undermined by some minor inconsistencies in logic. A series of bizarre murder-suicides in Russia pique the media’s interest, but when these horrific incidents begin to proliferate and start striking closer to home, the world descends into a blind panic. Rumour spreads that people are being driven insane by the sight of some mysterious otherworldly entities and, soon, people have retreated into their homes, covering up their windows, refusing to open their ey ...more
Elizabeth
Sep 22, 2016 rated it liked it
I read this in a single sitting. It's an absorbing read by a pretty good student of the horror genre. My main impression is that the writing is workmanlike, and not distractingly bad, but that Malerman makes good choices, mostly about the types of characters he includes, and the kinds of ideas about society and survival that he explores.

It has a somewhat Walking Dead feel to it ... only instead of zombies, the human race is wiped out by people going insane and suicidal after seeing something ..
...more
Tony
The publisher's description of this debut novel invokes the page-turning readability of Stephen King with the grim parenting anxiety of Cormac McCarthy's The Road. Although this is obviously a comparison designed to capture maximum eyeballs ("Hey, check this out -- it works as both mass and literary work!), it's also a pretty decent shorthand for the book.

The story revolves around a young woman names Malorie, who has two 4-year-olds. While she was pregnant, some unknown event resulted in the arr
...more
Jen
Nov 10, 2018 rated it really liked it
This book was thought provoking and creepy. Seeing something makes you want to harm yourself or others and everyone is trying to figure out how to live with this reality. There are moments where this book really reminds me of Station Eleven because overall it is about humanity and the will to survive.
Ann
Nov 17, 2019 rated it really liked it
Shelves: 2019-atw-80
They say that the book is better than the movie but I think that the movie is a good version of the book. The book didn't have the type of ambivalence about motherhood that Mallory had in the movie. I also liked the moral dilemma in the movie that wasn't in the book. I imagine that it's tricky to make a movie - very visual - about an unseen monster but maybe the movie could have been better at building a feeling of fear, like maybe goosebumps when the creature is near or the fear that the creatu ...more
Joanne
May 11, 2015 rated it liked it
I have no idea what to think of this book. It was strange and odd, for sure. The concept was a little interesting but, somehow, I never felt "scared" enough. It wasn't all that scary or horrifying or "hitchcockian" like the cover boasts (which made me buy it). It was original though, so 3 stars. ...more
Jayme Pendergraft
Nov 14, 2013 rated it it was amazing
Shelves: library
Not giving this 5 stars for the depth of the content, but boy I couldn't put it down. It was a terrifying page turner. A short read but I got attached to the characters and definitely felt their fear. Very well done! ...more
Susan
Feb 03, 2015 rated it really liked it
Compulsively readable, gotta love a good post-apocalyptic story.
Tracyene
Dec 30, 2013 rated it really liked it
Rachel
Jul 16, 2014 marked it as to-read
Sam
Oct 06, 2014 marked it as to-read
Becca
Nov 15, 2014 rated it liked it
Katy
Nov 17, 2014 marked it as to-read
Andy Plonka
Feb 14, 2016 added it
Shelves: src
Paula
Jun 23, 2017 marked it as to-read
Grace
Feb 27, 2018 rated it liked it
Kathy Jo
Apr 29, 2018 marked it as to-read
Nikki
Sep 08, 2018 rated it liked it
Rachel
Oct 28, 2018 rated it liked it  ·  review of another edition
Shelves: fiction, horror
Lori
Mar 01, 2019 rated it really liked it
Mirja
Jan 09, 2019 marked it as to-read
grace
Jan 15, 2019 marked it as to-read  ·  review of another edition
Tammy Grimm
May 05, 2019 rated it it was amazing  ·  review of another edition
Jennifer
Dec 31, 2019 rated it really liked it  ·  review of another edition
Claire Fun
Dec 22, 2019 rated it really liked it  ·  review of another edition
Claire Fun
Oct 04, 2019 marked it as to-read
Shelves: b
Kirsty
Feb 22, 2020 marked it as to-read
Amanda R
Apr 10, 2020 rated it it was amazing
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