One by Conrad WilliamsPages 363
Published 2009
Why I continue to do this.. I wanted to read this one because I wanted some zombies and some action and what I got was a boring pointless book...
In this novel we follow Jane (a man, not a woman) as he tries to return to London to get to his son and ex-wife after a apocalyptic event. What even you may ask? Well we don't know and will never know... the only hint is in the acknowledgements he thanks some Drº for explaining what Gamma Ray bursts are, so I deduce a gamma ray burst , well burst into earth? From what I know, is that Gamma Ray Bursts could vaporize earth OR just burn everything it touched. So basically all life. The question is it globally? Or only affect the side the gamma ray strikes? And what the dimension? Will envelop all earth, only a couple of klms or what. I will not pretend I understand so I accept this story premise.. (although it was never really explain OR even talked about).
So this guy was under water, several hundreds meters below on north scotland and when he came up, nothing lived. So he decides to go Scotland and travel to London to check on his boy.
He meets a bunch of people, some not that important, others will be. This is the first half of the book. The second half is ten years in the future where he and some other people are trying to survive and decide what to do... and thus comes the "Raft".
So, the man is obessesed with the child , which is normal but when the writing is putting on paper the chapters he mix the stories. It's confusing to say the least. It's like now he is on "present" now on "past", now he is only thinking of past whilst on present etc. Tho be honest this is a problem throughout the book. This disconcerted immensely.
The second part of the novel, the ten years after start and we are not even aware that is 10 years in the future. After a couple of chapters or pages I don't know, then someone says oh, it has been 10 years. WHAT? The last page of the first "book" doesn't hint for anytihng of that. He had just arrive to london. What did he do? We don't know. What happened throughout those 10 years? Well screw you. Not going to tell you. It doesn't matter... you just have to believe the writer is not important.
And the ending is good Paulo? well darn if I Am going tell you because well it's just is. Going to spoil a bit so...
As expected the boy is not alive and he can't cope really well with it, nevertheless he hook up with Becky which he encountered early and they live together along 4000 other people in makeshift community... because people don't care one for the other.. it's so badly development that I Didn't understand what was happening with those communities. And the ending? What a heck man? Ok, so for ten years they were in london, no connection nicles, nada... and now out of the bat, let's go Europe (france) why? Why thinking that France is a better place than UK? I don't understand...
The all story with his son and then it felt empty. To be honest I didn't want to be alive because that would be even worse but you have to have somekind of closure but no.. we get an open hallucinogetic kind of ending...
What about the fucking skinners? WTHAT A FUCK ARE THEY? Are they zombies? Or something that is not zombies but also not living but due to gamma ray you didn't really explain, created this beings that kidnap pregnant women? how are they created? How do they function , etc, no, no explanation for you...
Another thing that I find strange is how are these people alive? HOW? So gamma ray kills 99%. I don't buy it but ok. If the author says mines are safe, then subways are safe therefore at least a half a million would be underground or in some protective thing... but now, ten years later in London there 5000. OKay another thing that doesn't add up, if people were instant killed by this thing that boiled people, it should have boiled the trees, grass, food , I don't know about fires but okay, lets say it's 300 degrees so, how can after 10 years they are still alive? OK they talk about having low food but I highly doubt it if they don't plant , 10 years would be way past the expiration date of most things, if they were boiled. And then the Tiger... WHAT? How was that the tiger survive in the first place ? Well fuck it. I want a tiger in my book.
Overall.. I am disappointed. IT read fast, don't get me wrong, but I expected more. It's like the Road but less... It's not bleaker. It's okay book, like a an sunday afternoon movie. Unfortunately it felt flat in what I expected. Probably others will love it or not... As you can see the rating is now 3.44 so it's not universally loved 4/10
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