The thing that's happening inside The Way We Fall, that right there is one of my biggest fears. Seriously, I know we don't have a cure for a lot of things that should scare me, but a virus or bacteria that we cannot conquer is what creeps the heck out of me. Mostly because I know it's a viable possibility.So now that I've tried to put the fear in you by being a prophet of DOOM, let's talk about the book.
Because for a book dealing with a subject that's most likely to keep me up at night, The Way We Fall lacked any excitement whatsoever. I mean, I expected being on the edge of my seat and being horrified and just feeling all of those things and emerging breathlessness and not being able to sleep because this is my worst nightmare. Turns out reading about it can actually be rather boring.
Maybe it's the fact that it's written in journal format and it doesn't feel as if the stuff is happening right at that moment. I didn't feel a connection to Kaelyn or any of the other characters. And this meant that although there were lots of awful things happening to her and the people around her, I didn't really feel it. I never felt that I got to know her and maybe it's because she's more of an observer than someone who takes action, but we never really delve into her emotions and character. Which is weird, because she's the one narrating it.
One other thing that bothered me: they let a teenager into the files of all the patients. I mean, hello! Doctor-patient confidentiality and all that?? That rule was broken so many times in The Way We Fall and it got really annoying.
I did think the epidemic was really interesting and I can absolutely imagine everything turning out the way it did. Because really, people get scared. And when people are scared they do things you can't even imagine sitting on your couch wrapped in warm blanket (like I am).
This wasn't a bad book, it just didn't really work for me and I'd expected a little more excitement.
My rating: 2 stars