Plague by Michael Grant

Cover via Goodreads

Rating: 5/5 stars.

Plague, the fourth book in the Gone series, continues the story of the FAYZ inhabitants and their struggle to survive. There’s a creepy cough-until-you-die disease going around, the Darkness is slowly spreading its malevolent influence, and the characters are killing each other. Again. But let me tell you something…

THE BUGS. OH DEAR LORD, THE BUGS.

The book jacket describes the disturbing insects that appear in this book as “sinister” and “predatory”. I prefer “scary as hell”. They hatch their eggs inside of you and eat you from the inside out – lovely, I know. Just let me die of fever or something, please.

Anyway, I love this series. The writing isn’t verbose or decadent – it’s simple, straightforward, and to the point. With a cast of so many characters not all of them are as developed as they could be, but ultimately, it doesn’t matter. I love these books because of the total thrill they provide.

If you didn’t get the message from my ostentatiously capitalized exclamation above, Plague is not for the faint of heart. There are sickening scenes – the content is much worse than in most young-adult books. After reading this late at night, I was almost afraid to go to sleep.

However, if you’re looking for a fantastic, frenetic read, check out Plague and the other books in the Gone series. They will not disappoint you.