David Fleming reviews The Girl With All The Gifts by M.R. Carey…
In a world that is over saturated with the zombie apocalypse scenario it’s hard to imagine a fresh approach popping up, but it does happen. When Danny Boyle released 28 Days Later, not many people had given thought to the idea of a zombie who could really chase you down. We were so used to the idea of the slow moving lumbering zombies that gave you time to stop and put on your running shoes that to suddenly have those Usain Bolt-esque zombies was something of a giant leap.
Well earlier this year M. R. Carey made a similar leap with The Girl With All The Gifts. I hadn’t heard about it at launch, and in case you didn’t either, it’s time to go and buy a copy.
We’re introduced to Melanie, a little girl growing up on an army base where they are kept safe from the “hungries” outside the fences. Sounds like a pretty typical start to the usual scenario right? But it’s not, Melanie is different. She goes to school on the base with a class of kids just like her. She is incredibly intelligent and loves listening and learning. Here’s the thing though, all of the kids are kept chained and strapped to chairs and more often than not have guns pointed at them by soldiers who clearly fear them. Why? Because Melanie and the kids are zombies…. sorry, hungries!
We see the world through the eyes of Melanie’s childlike innocence as well as her flesh crazed madness. She is so well fleshed out (sorry I couldn’t resist) you really feel for her.
The central characters are pretty typical of this sort of thing, mad scientist, caring mother figure, battle fatigued sergeant. Each of them has a real struggle with the situation they find themselves in with Melanie, and you see everyone’s point making sense. But being able to see through the eyes of Melanie as both a lost little girl trying to find connection and a bloodthirsty monster trying to keep her natural urges at bay are only the tip of the ice berg. Carey’s reason for the speedy fall of humanity and rise of the flesh hungry monsters is inspired and the directions he takes it from there are jaw dropping. The book ends extremely smartly, catching you off guard and leaving you gob smacked. The only disappointing thing about it is that it is the end and I want more.
Melanie won’t just eat your heart, she’ll break it first. I highly recommend it to anyone and everyone who will listen to me long enough.
David Fleming
Originally published August 1, 2014. Updated April 15, 2018.
