I reviewed this for Strange Horizons, so that should be up soon. Basically, I found it fascinating! Not so much for the plot or the characters, though - which is not to say that the plot or the characters aren't entertaining, because they are. Jean's road trip with Sue the dingo, and the relationship between them - not always comfortable, and often one of mutual incomprehension - is a highlight. But my favourite part of this book, the bit that stands out for me most of all, is often what's going on in the background. A pandemic gives infected people the ability to communicate with animals, and this up-ends an entire culture.

Some people, of course, in our reality-based uninfected state, are better at this sort of communication than others, although there's a point which no-one can go beyond. With the arrival of the zooflu, however, communication is available to everyone, and the results are frankly not that pretty... which seems to me like the only possible choice. It's one thing to know that pigs are intelligent creatures, but if they're talking to you on their way to the slaughterhouse? Do you really want to know what your pet thinks of you? What happens when understanding whale song causes mass drownings, or when the ability to understand insects means your mind is never free from chatter, not ever? It's just a whole destabilising mess, no Snow White singing to bluebirds here. Which makes the exploration of that mess - often in very black-humoured tones, as McKay does - really interesting and original to read.