Feed Newsflesh, Book 1 Paperback | Kindle
By Mira Grant
Orbit
Release Date: May 1, 2010
Written by Seanan Maguire under the pen name of Mira Grant, Feed tells the story of Georgia and Shaun, a sibling blogger duo who live in a future where although cancer and the common cold are ancient history, zombies are active and stronger than ever. The two go on a crusade not only to fight the creatures, but also to challenge their government to do more to help others.
The book starts off with an intense getaway scene, the zombies chasing Georgia and Shaun. It’s high octane and exciting — the opening chapters are very memorable. The style and language are also highly readable, which makes a book like this more entertaining.
Like Resident Evil, a virus outbreak has caused the zombie strain, placing this book more in the sci-fi horror category, and it’s labeled as science fiction on the spine, which is appropriate as the reason for the undead mutation is scientifically based, and it’s a technology-focused book that features blogging prominently.
The disease that spreads the zombie condition is tested regularly to determine whether a virus has amplified in a person. It turns out that Georgia and Shaun had foster parents. Their biological son was the first confirmed case of human Kellis-Amberlee conversion and it was because an infected dog bit him. It’s heart-wrenching to use this as the root of the spread, but ultimately pays off for Grant in evoking more sympathy from the reader.
It’s a frighteningly realistic scenario that contains an astute political commentary on the media and the United States government. Bloggers are privileged in this society, and blogging even has different class access points. The higher one’s rank, the more important information one can post. Bloggers have a lot more importance here, and although traditional journalists don’t see them as equals by any stretch of the imagination, they often compete to cover stories.
When Georgia goes into how the disease spread, it hits home because it’s not inconceivable that a zombie virus could spread the way it did in this book. But ultimately it’s the brother-sister relationship between Georgia and Shaun that is the most compelling part of the novel.
The blog entries from both protagonists help to show the suffering that they’re going through especially after they have to decontaminate an area after a zombie attack. They kill all the animals, burn all the vegetation, and above all, watch out for more zombies.
The humor and dialogue are also the author’s strengths and make the work come to life even more. A sci-fi zombie thriller with an emotional connection, Feed is a book in the post-apocalyptic category that should be on every zombie fan’s TBR list.
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Students of the Unusual™ comic cover used with permission of 3BoysProductions
The Mercuri Bros.™ comic cover used with permission of Prodigal Son Press
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