I just received this book as a review ARC and I couldn't put it down. I made the mistake of reading it while Jason was out of town one evening - and feared the attack of vampire spiders the rest of the night. It is young adult, but it is super creepy!
Here's the gist:
Katie and Elijah are Amish. They are looking
forward to Rumspringa - a time when they are allowed to leave their community
to see and experience the outside world. It's a time to measure your choices
and decide if the Amish life is what you want. Katie wants to see a movie, have
a coca cola, and do some things she hasn't been allowed to do.
Before she gets her chance, however, a contagion sweeps the world. Since the
Amish are cut off from communication with the world at large, the news has to
trickle in slowly. By the time it does, 2/3 of the population has been wiped
out with the contagion still at large.
The contagion causes a mutation that is likened to a spider-vampire, and it
spreads from victim to victim - if you aren't torn apart by these blood thirsty
mutants.
The Elders of this Amish community decide to shut their gates and preserve
their faith - no one in, no one out. This seems to keep the contagion at bay,
but separates some family members, causing discord. One afternoon, Katie finds
a man tangled in the barbed wire of the gate. Going against the word of the
Elders, Katie moves him to the barn and nurses him back to health, something
that will change her life forever.
This novel is intense, a real page turner. It is an eerie setting, and
imagining the isolationism of the community sets the stage for a good horror
novel. If I were using it in my library, I would say that it would be an interesting springboard for a religious discussion about
the role of faith and a belief system.
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