Welcome to the world of our future, where our overuse (and misuse) of antibiotics has met with ancient bacteria and resulted in the perfect storm of a world where you can die from simple infections and viruses. The world has plunged from being in a bright and prosperous time, to an almost medieval world of death and an unbelievable gulf between the haves and the have nots. It's not just down to the lack of antibiotics though, they are also living in a world trying to recover from an act of bioterrorism from a fundamentalist with the goal of reducing the human population to save the planet. The 8/17 attack as it came to be known wiped out thousands of lives in New York, lead to the creation of a 'refugee' camp in Central Park, a law that requires you to report anyone with a serious illness, and generally created a lack of trust in the people of New York who have found themselves in a world where surviving the rat race has a completely new meaning.
The 8/17 attack left Detective Jacob 'Jake' Gibson a widower with a young daughter to raise and protect, a young daughter who is now sick and that last thing he wants to do is follow the law and report her. The last thing he needs is for an explosive case to land in his lap, but that is exactly what happens when he and his partner are called to the scene of a massacre at the Central Park camp. Someone managed to get into the camp and kill an entire settlement with no one being the wiser, and that someone seems determined to track down a young boy who survived the massacre. Mateo managed to escape but he's not safe yet, and he has no idea how far the men who are chasing him will go to track him down and bring him in. Jake and his partner have walked into a conspiracy that has it's fingers in the past and the future - and they have no idea who they are facing or how deep the rabbit hole goes.
This book was absolutely terrifying to read - and not for the reason you might suspect - it is because this is a work that is best described as speculative fiction, our future that is just around the corner but coming into view. For years (decades?) we've been hearing about how bacteria is becoming more resistant to medications, way more than the traditional baddies like MRSA, and that scientists have discovered all sorts of nasty ancient microbes while exploring permafrost layers in far flung places. Reading the reality of a world where this disaster waiting to happen has actually happened is scary beyond comprehension - simple injuries can kill you, as can viruses, things that have been treated and healed for years are suddenly fatal and medical care has been shot back to the dark ages. The underlying conspiracy is also all to easy to believe - the rich will always look after themselves, as will the powerful, and no one wants their dirty laundry aired in public.
This is an addictive read that was hard to put down, and a lot of that comes from the realism and the relateable characters. It is all to easy to put yourself in Jake's shoes, to understand his motivation and drive. There are moments where it is easy to see the best in people, but also the best of people. I also laughed out loud a few times, which may seem strange until you realise that I live in New Zealand and there are quite a few references to our little country at the bottom of the world. I can't help but think that Holm got the idea from our closed borders during the first two years of the pandemic. A highly recommended, if scary read, for lovers of speculative fiction or action novels.
If you like this book then try:
- Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton
- Next by Michael Crichton
- The devil's cure by Kenneth Oppel
- Antibodies by Kevin J. Anderson
- Zoo by James Patterson and Michael Ledwidge
Reviewed by Brilla
