3.5 stars
I had no idea what this book was about when I bought it. I saw the cover and the high ratings and just decided to go for it. I'm glad I did, even though I'm not quite as enthralled with it as everyone else seems to be. For the first 70% of this book I thought it would be a 4-star read, but the ending dragged it down for me.

What I liked:

1. Pacing. For the most part, the pacing in this book really works. It's fast-paced and full of action. I listened to the first 60-70% of this book in one sitting. I do feel like the last quarter or so suffers a bit, but I'll talk about that in a minute.

2. Catarina (for the first half or so). Even though she has a bit of 'special snowflake-ness' because of her inability to use the same tech as everyone else, I liked how it plays out in the first part of this book. She has to rely on the very little tech she has to navigate the world around her. The rest is her instinct and intelligence.

3. The post-apocalyptic element. Although it's not exactly the most unique concept (there are several moments I was reminded of the Razorland trilogy by Ann Aguirre), I found the hydra plague itself not only unique, but disturbing. The idea that people trying to live in the world are forced to kill and eat people who are suffering from the plague so they themselves can gain a temporary immunity is...gross.

What I didn't like:

1. The ending. I felt like the last quarter of the book should've been the first part of the next book. It just felt too anti-climactic to me. For the first 70% of the book,

we are on a journey with Catarina and Cole to find a vaccine for the plague and make sure it gets distributed to everyone. Then, Catarina learns that in order to save everyone, she must sacrifice herself. Now, it was obvious that she would be fine, because this book is in first person from her perspective. So that in and of itself was a little anti-climactic. But anyway, after the vaccine is distributed, there's still another hundred or so pages (I listened to the audio book so I'm unsure exactly how long the ending is.) of the book, and it felt like it went on too long, even though we learned a lot of information in the scene between Catarina and Lachlan. I felt like it should've ended with the wrath at Sunnyvale and then learning Lachlan is actually alive. The scene between Lachlan and Catarina would've had more impact for me if it wasn't tacked on to the ending of this book, which was focusing on ending the plague for the first 70% of the story.

2. The sci-fi element. To be clear, I didn't hate the sci-fi element. I really like the idea of a post-apocalyptic world where technology is such a huge factor in people's lives still. However, I felt like some of the explanations for different things lacked clarity. As the story went on and we learned

about all of the atrocities that Lachlan perpetrated in the name of science,

the explanations get more and more convoluted and I found myself losing interest because it didn't seem remotely plausible.

3. Dax. I felt like Dax's character was written in a very inconsistent way. This impression may also be the fault of the voice actor, who would play him as flirty and devil-may-care one moment and completely normal the next.

Then we're supposed to believe that he didn't really care about Catarina. He was just interested in getting closer to Lachlan to be a part of his research. Then we're supposed to believe he really does care about her.

WHICH IS IT?! I wish the author had fleshed his character out a little more, because for me he totally fell flat. I didn't see why Catarina would've ever been interested in him in the first place.

Other odds and ends:

1. Maybe this was explained and I just missed it. Anyway, at the beginning of the book, atarina is asked by Novak to be with her on her broadcast. Who is watching this broadcast? This world has been wrecked. People have trouble finding food and medicine, but we're supposed to believe they have access to a television? Or is it that the broadcasts are sent to people's panels? In any case, I don't think it was adequately explained.

2. Up until the very end I kept thinking that this book could've been a stand alone. Maybe that's why I didn't like the last part of the book, because it created the need for more books. I wish it had just been a stand alone novel. I'm not sure if I will feel compelled to pick up the next book.

3. The audio book actor. I am totally stumped as to how this actor was cast to narrate this or any audio book. First of all, she uses the same monotonous voice for each character. So many times I was unsure of who was talking in a conversation because everyone sounded the same. Secondly, she mispronounces words; capillaries, saline, azure were three I noticed. Apparently the actor is British, but the book takes place in America with American characters, so you would think whoever was directing this audio book would've corrected her. Also, I had no idea the character's name was Leoben. If you're listening to the book that voice actor says what sounds like 'Logan' or 'Loban', when I'm pretty sure it should be 'lay-oh-ben'. I probably won't listen to another audiobook narrated by this actor. I don't take off stars or anything for it, but it did affect my enjoyment level, especially as the book went on.

I liked this take on a illness-induced post-apocalyptic book. I think people who like those kind of books may really enjoy this, as long as you also enjoy sci-fi/tech talk in books.