Review: The Feeding by Anthony Ryan

Blurb:

With echoes of The Road, The New York Times bestselling author Anthony Ryan’s The Feeding is a brilliant postapocalyptic novel that finds the sweet spot between commercial, literary, and creepy. Perfect for fans of Justin Cronin, M. R. Carey, and Alexis Henderson.

Fifteen years ago the feeders rose from the shadows to transform the world into a graveyard. The few survivors exist in fortified settlements surrounded by the empty ruins of a destroyed civilization. For years the citizens of New City Redoubt have relied on an elite cadre of Crossers to navigate the feeder infested wasteland between settlements in order to trade for vital supplies. But the Outside is becoming ever more dangerous, and the ranks of the Crossers grow thinner with every crossing.

Layla, only a child when the Feeding destroyed the old world, spends her days scavenging the ruins for valuable scrap and her nights helping her adoptive family eke a living from the Redoubt’s only movie theatre. Now, with her father slowly dying, Layla resolves to join the Crossers to retrieve the medicine that can save him. Smart, ruthless, and fast on her feet, Layla quickly gains the respect of her fellow Crossers. But, in a world lost to the deadliest predators, can even the most cunning prey survive?

Review:

I have long known Anthony Ryan for his brutal fantasy tales that read as if the reality is bleeding off of the page. His prose is always excellent, almost to the point of being poetic. That being said, I generally enjoy his stories and know that it will be one that I am pulled into. Recently I was asked if I liked post-apocalyptic tales. I responded in the affirmative and then was surprised to see who the author was. I was very excited to jump into this book, knowing that it will be written with excellent style. It is a different genre than I expected the author to write in, but I was immediately in awe of the world that is created, and everything else that is contained within the pages. It is a story where The Feeding is a disease that has rampaged across the world, forcing society to hunker down behind walls that keep the creatures out. The creatures were fascinating, a hybrid of vampires and zombies. Either way, they are creepy and form a formidable enemy. The runners are those who venture outside the walls and visit the other settlements in order to obtain needed supplies. With these ideas in mind, it sets up a fast paced apocalypse. It had elements of lots of the stories I do like, and this will be one that is added to my list.

The strength of the novel is most definitely the main character of Layla. She is interesting, with limited knowledge of the world in which she has grown up in. The skills that she has obtained are realistic and make it so that as she ventures forth into the world, she is able to excel in a variety of different ways. There are many characters that she interacts with that are also fun and interesting. They all have their own motivations for what can be obtained, but only a select few are able to pass the test in order to go get the supplies. The world has remnants of our existing world, but it has changed in many ways. I loved seeing the way that the characters who are unfamiliar with the things we enjoy, explain them in different ways. There is the possibility that readers would want to see more of the world, and how it came to be. The answers that are supplied are very realistic and intriguing. There are some elements that did feel as if they were skipped over though. Overall, the story is engaging and very fast paced that will fly by in the blink of an eye.

If you are a fan of any of the other works from Anthony Ryan, this is another one that will entertain and excite the readers that decide to pick it up. The prose and ideas are once again top notch, only surpassed by the explosive conclusion that will drop the jaws of all those who pick it up. The way that this novel pulled me in was great but I will say that I hope that there is a lot more to come in this world, further exploring this world that has been invaded by the feeders. This is a post-apocalyptic tale that fans of The Last of Us or The Walking Dead will add to their shelves without a second thought, enjoying it immensely. I know that I will look forward to all types of stories that Mr. Ryan decides to write. He has won over my belief without a doubt. Do yourself a favor, pick this one up as fast as you can run to it.

Thank you for taking the time to read my review. As always, happy reading and Stay Great!!