The Last One
Registered by 
GoryDetails
of Nashua, New Hampshire USA on 12/24/2019
This Book is Currently in the Wild!
GoryDetails of Nashua, New Hampshire USA on 12/24/2019 This Book is Currently in the Wild!
1 journaler for this copy...
I got this ex-library hardcover from Better World Books, for yet another release copy of this intriguing book. (I really enjoyed the audiobook version.)
The premise: a devastating plague strikes the world just as a new reality-TV show gets underway, with the competitors and the crew established in a remote wilderness and unaware of what's going on outside. One competitor, dubbed "Zoo" because of her job working with animals, is the main viewpoint character - and from her point of view she's continuing to play the game, in the face of prolonged illness, disorientation, highly realistic "special effects" - or so she tells herself... The story opens with a third-person narration that makes it clear what's really going on, but it alternates with Zoo's version of events, making a lot of tension as she eventually begins to work out what's real, even though she desperately doesn't want to believe it.
The story unfolds in flashbacks, with lots of entertaining segments about the making of reality shows, with the staged tasks and conflicts, carefully edited and manipulated reactions, and so forth - all too believable, from what I've read about actual TV shows. This lets us get to know the characters even though we already have an idea that few of them will survive, and adds some suspense as the contestants start to drop out.
There's a third viewpoint as well - the social-media segment, which opens with fans eager to learn more about the show before it's even aired, and which eventually turns into desperate pleas for information about the fates of the contestants left behind.
The majority of the story involves Zoo's increasingly-difficult trek out of the game-world and into whatever truth she can bring herself to accept, but there is more of a resolution here than I'd expected from the setup. Sometimes quite brutal, often more horrifying in retrospect than in the moment, with some touches of hope and even triumph - and some of heartbreak... A really good apocalyptic thriller!
The premise: a devastating plague strikes the world just as a new reality-TV show gets underway, with the competitors and the crew established in a remote wilderness and unaware of what's going on outside. One competitor, dubbed "Zoo" because of her job working with animals, is the main viewpoint character - and from her point of view she's continuing to play the game, in the face of prolonged illness, disorientation, highly realistic "special effects" - or so she tells herself... The story opens with a third-person narration that makes it clear what's really going on, but it alternates with Zoo's version of events, making a lot of tension as she eventually begins to work out what's real, even though she desperately doesn't want to believe it.
The story unfolds in flashbacks, with lots of entertaining segments about the making of reality shows, with the staged tasks and conflicts, carefully edited and manipulated reactions, and so forth - all too believable, from what I've read about actual TV shows. This lets us get to know the characters even though we already have an idea that few of them will survive, and adds some suspense as the contestants start to drop out.
There's a third viewpoint as well - the social-media segment, which opens with fans eager to learn more about the show before it's even aired, and which eventually turns into desperate pleas for information about the fates of the contestants left behind.
The majority of the story involves Zoo's increasingly-difficult trek out of the game-world and into whatever truth she can bring herself to accept, but there is more of a resolution here than I'd expected from the setup. Sometimes quite brutal, often more horrifying in retrospect than in the moment, with some touches of hope and even triumph - and some of heartbreak... A really good apocalyptic thriller!
Journal Entry 2 by GoryDetails at LFL - Broadway and Liberty in Newburgh, New York USA on Wednesday, December 25, 2019
GoryDetails at LFL - Broadway and Liberty in Newburgh, New York USA on Wednesday, December 25, 2019
Released 5 yrs ago (12/26/2019 UTC) at LFL - Broadway and Liberty in Newburgh, New York USA
WILD RELEASE NOTES:
I left this book in this roomy LFL on Christmas Day, on my way home from visiting family. Hope someone enjoys the book![See other recent releases in NY here.]
