The Girl With All The Gifts

Ferrell zombie/child hybrids are the focal point of M.R Carey's The Girl With All The Gifts and this is a book that hits you right in the feels in a completely unanticipated way. I picked this book up at random and totally wasn't expecting to find a zombie novel but that's what I got and it was a reading revelation for me. I really like picking up books thinking I'm going to get one thing but finding something absolutely better. A dystopian London is the setting for this sci-fi novel. Society has crumbled under the weight of a zombie like infection that turns happy human beings into flesh eating monsters aka 'hungries'.  We see this terrifying world through the eyes of not one but five main characters, each as endearing as the next. Our main focus, however, is Melanie. Melanie is a little girl, a keen learner who loves her teacher, loves books, facts and mythical tails. She's also a flesh eating hungry who just doesn't know it. As a reader she's introduced to you as a monster but throughout the narrative you're mind is stretched beyond it's moral compass and you're affection for Melanie is something that never leaves you until the very end.

Lets get my only issue with this book out of the way so I can gush about all the great stuff. Looking purely at narrative alone, The Girl With All The Gifts isn't going to blow you away. You've got your standard post apocalyptic London with a military base and all the issues that come along with that. You're going to find the general story line with problems and solutions that you've read/watched over and over again but to be fair; zombies have been done to death by everyone so coming up with a unique setting or story line is tricky.  Sometimes it can get a little repetitive, the middle section is bleak and you kind of just want your characters to catch a break to move the story along a little bit. However, all that is made completely worth it by the spectacular selection of main characters that truly make this story an emotionally captivating triumph. Here is a little run down of the five characters you're going to become obsessed with when you read this book.

Melanie - Our main character and introduction to these child/zombie creations that push your moral boundaries. Melanie is only a kid and therefore you've got this deep paternal urge to want her to be safe but she's hungry for human flesh so you're kind of torn. Ya know, that whole nut shell.

Miss Justineau - She's the base teacher and Melanie's protector. She's your all round mother figure but is torn between wanting to keep Melanie safe from a barrage of horrible endings and her own desire to live. A darker past is touched upon and you're able to get right into the inner moral fight Miss Justeneu is constantly battling.

Sargent Parks - Is he our hero? Is he our bad guy? I just don't know! He's top dog in zombie slaughtering and his main focus is getting our little survival family safely to a hopeful safe haven known as Beacon. He's got the hots for Miss Justineau too - obviously.

Dr. Caldwell - I dislike her almost as much as i dislike the hungries and I really hate things that would eat me given half the chance. This uptight doctor would be the hero in another story but as you fall into the part of Melanie's protector her will to find a cure for the infection by wanting to chop Melanie's head off becomes nothing but a murder attempt on her part. She sucks.

Gallagher - Oh sweet, sweet Gallagher. Born after London's breakdown,  the world of hungries is all he's known but that hasn't necessarily made him wise to the ways of survival. He's a puppy dog dressed as a solider and a character that's easy to root for. I'm trying not to give up too many spoilers on Gallagher but I will say his fate was my favourite part of the whole book.

My overall opinion of The Girl With All The Gifts is a positive one! The general narrative was a little generic but the characters save it and make it completely compelling. The ending feels a little bit rushed and I did have to read the last section a couple of times just to make sure that was it, I'd very much like a second book to see what happens next!

Elly