So this week I’m reading The Purge of Babylon, subtitled A Novel of Survival, by Sam Sisavath.
Oh wait, wrong Purge. Hang on …
There we go!
Now, I’m pretty sure I got this book from the BookBub discount ebook mailing list, because I doubt I would have spent actual money on it. I don’t have the highest expectations in the world, possibly because of the introduction, which seems to change verb tense at least four times. That sort of thing just annoys the crape out of me.
One night. That was all it took.
Creatures that once lived in the shadows, hidden from humankind, have risen, spreading like a plague across the globe over the course of a single night. Their numbers growing exponentially through infection, these seemingly unkillable creatures have swallowed up whole cities and collapsed unprepared governments.
Survivors call it The Purge.
Against all odds, a disparate group of survivors has emerged from that blood-soaked night that devastated the planet and reduced humanity to an endangered species. Among the survivors are two ex-Army Rangers, a businesswoman, and a third-year medical student. But surviving The Purge was one thing—staying alive is another matter entirely.
Hope exists in the countryside, in the form of a self-sustaining underground facility designed to withstand any calamity. But in order to reach its safety, the survivors must travel hundreds of treacherous miles, with the night—and the creatures that dwell within it—always at their backs.
The rules are simple: stay out of the dark, load up on silver bullets, and whatever you do, stay alive.
The road to salvation has begun …
On the other hand, I do like the first paragraph of the actual story, which is probably why I picked it up despite the intro.
It was sweaty and stuffy, and death likely awaited them beyond the door at the end of the staircase, so of course Danny was making with the jokes.
Yassss, surely death awaits you, with nasty big pointy teeth!
One possible problem with the book’s maintenance of suspense lies in the table of contents. I never read the table of contents for fiction books (because, really, I don’t care about it — it’s not like I’m going to use it as a reference), but this time I couldn’t help noticing each chapter is named for the character who narrates it. So unless the author has pulled a fast one, which would be awesome, we don’t have to worry about Will, Kate, or Lara, at least until the very end.
Anyway, speaking of, uh, death awaiting people, over in the world of Father’s Books, the haunted abode that may or may not be known as the “Death House” has been hard at work trying to kill people. Or at least to scare them.
Pedro turned away from the window. He could still feel the night at his back. He could imagine something―something grey and gaunt and tenuous―sitting on the roof of the old man’s house, clinging to the chimney, staring across the darkness at his room. Watching him. Waiting for him to come back. Knowing that he would.
Best keep that shade drawn, Pedro. For all the good it will do you.
Viscosity 