Apocalyptic USA!
The Tick is rampant and turning people into zombies but there’s a new medicine that turns the effects around, as long as it’s taken consistently. 17 yo Mara has turned and then been given the medicine so she’s now considered one of the Altered. The Altered are coherent and human acting while taking the medicine consistently but if they miss a few doses, they can turn and become dangerous.
Mara is brought back to her godparents since her parents are dead. The community doesn’t trust the Altered but circumstances change quickly when a human makes decisions that are deceptive and dangerous.
Likes/dislikes: The author created an interesting world. The dystopian premise and zombies will intrigue young adult readers. I enjoyed the suspense that came along with the mystery of the killings.
Mature content: PG for kissing, mention of underage drinking.
Language: R for 75 swears and 7 f-words.
Violence: R for repeated bloody violence and deaths.
Ethnicity: falls to white with a brown skinned side character.
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