| Title: | Monster Island |
| Author: | David Wellington |
| Genre: | Horror/Post-Apocalyptic/Zombies |
| Synopsis: | A man who found himself in a third-world country when civilisation collapsed has to try find rare medical supplies in NYC with which to barter his position in a new warlord run society whilst dodging the zombies that now rule the city and most of the planet. |
| Verdict: | Interesting assessment of countries’ chances based on their existing and previous power structures and what will be considered important in a post-apocalyptic society. The use of mummies and the description of energy transfer are both quite original. |
| Pages: | 282 |
| Read: | January 2010 |
30 January 2010
#30. Monster Island by David Wellington
#29. Things We Didn't See Coming by Steven Amsterdam
| Title: | Things We Didn’t See Coming |
| Author: | Steven Amsterdam |
| Genre: | Post-Apocalyptic Fiction |
| Synopsis: | A series of short stories follow one character through a quickly morphing post-apocalyptic society. |
| Verdict: | Strange, a bit confusing and disjointed but decent nevertheless. It takes a few of the stories to be sure you are following the same character but once you are sure you realise how quickly things are changing around them and how drastically this changes them. |
| Pages: | 174 |
| Read: | January 2010 |
30 December 2009
#28. The Girl Who Played With Fire by Stieg Larsson
| Title: | The Girl Who Played With Fire |
| Author: | Stieg Larsson |
| Genre: | Scandinavian Murder/Crime Fiction/Thriller |
| Synopsis: | Journalist Mikael Blomkvist and hacker Lisbeth Salander are reunited after a journalist and a scholar are murdered whilst investigating a connection between prostitution, the government and organised crime. An old conspiracy is raked up and intrigue and violence abound as we discover more of Lisbeth's past and some of it comes looking for her. |
| Verdict: | Larsson’s story and characters continue to be gripping, unexpected and really carefully presented. More pieces of the puzzle are revealed by the picture as a whole is still a mystery. |
| Pages: | 569 |
| Read: | December 2009 |
#27. The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood
| Title: | The Handmaid’s Tale |
| Author: | Margaret Atwood |
| Genre: | Post-Apocalyptic Fiction/Thriller |
| Synopsis: | Via a kind of diary we find the main character in a patriarchal oppressive religious society which is based around infertility and ritual. |
| Verdict: | This book scared the bejesus out of me on a whole other level. The idea that women’s rights could slowly – or not so slowly – be phased out again, even in a developed country and then completely removed left me feeling panicky and convinced that a) I have never appreciated those rights before and b) I should be doing a lot more personally to cement and advance gender equality. |
| Pages: | 324 |
| Read: | December 2009 |
#26. The Hyperion Omnibus by Dan Simmons
| Title: | The Hyperion Omnibus |
| Author: | Dan Simmons |
| Genre: | Science-Fiction |
| Synopsis: | Pilgrims on the way to visit the Time Tombs share their stories as an intergalactic war threatens. Their interlacing tales and fates that bring them to this point at this time drive a compelling plot as they try to uncover the divisions within their company and identify the enemies outside their civilisation. |
| Verdict: | Very layered, intriguing high-concept sci-fi. Impressive and carefully planned. |
| Pages: | 779 |
| Read: | December 2009 |
30 November 2009
#25. Heart-Shaped Box by Joe Hill
| Title: | Heart-Shaped Box |
| Author: | Joe Hill |
| Genre: | Horror/Supernatural/Thriller |
| Synopsis: | An aging rock star buys a ghost off the internet and finds himself actually haunted by a vengeful spirit, punishing him for his past, intent on ensuring he hasn’t got a future and none too careful of those around him. |
| Verdict: | This was a lot darker and more emotional than I expected, raw and honest and harsh. Lots of fun to read, real gut twisting reactions. One of those books you can’t put down until you’ve finished it because you won’t be able to sleep with the events it describes unresolved. Also I really, really appreciate owning dogs after reading this. Read it, you’ll understand. |
| Pages: | 309 |
| Read: | November – December 2009 |
#24. The Complete Polysyllabic Spree by Nick Hornby
| Title: | The Complete Polysyllabic Spree |
| Author: | Nick Hornby |
| Genre: | Book Reviews/Humour |
| Synopsis: | The author reviews other writers’ books and documents his purchases, his own reading habits and his complete failure to ever get around to certain books. |
| Verdict: | Entertaining but not hilarious, gave me some reading ideas. I’ve never liked Nick Hornby’s novels but found his reviews decent reading. |
| Pages: | 273 |
| Read: | November – December 2009 |