Author: Courtney Summers Website | Twitter
Genre: YA/Horror
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin (June 19th 2012)
Paperback: 322 pages
ISBN: 9780312656744
Source: Publisher
Available On: Amazon | Barnes&Noble | TheBookDepository | Kindle | Nook
Description from GoodReads:
It’s the end of the world. Six students have taken cover in Cortege High but shelter is little comfort when the dead outside won’t stop pounding on the doors. One bite is all it takes to kill a person and bring them back as a monstrous version of their former self.
To Sloane Price, that doesn’t sound so bad. Six months ago, her world collapsed and since then, she’s failed to find a reason to keep going. Now seems like the perfect time to give up. As Sloane eagerly waits for the barricades to fall, she’s forced to witness the apocalypse through the eyes of five people who actually want to live.
But as the days crawl by, the motivations for survival change in startling ways and soon the group’s fate is determined less and less by what’s happening outside and more and more by the unpredictable and violent bids for life—and death—inside.
When everything is gone, what do you hold on to?
My Review
First Impressions: I don't usually read horror stories. I have an overactive imagination and reading such books leaves me sleepless for a few nights. Yet, when This Is Not A Test arrived and I read the synopsis I was intrigued because it sounded more like a book about a girl finding a reason to survive then a gory retelling of people's flesh being torn off by the living dead.
Plot & Characters: Sloane has had it with life. She decides to end it but in a strange string of events she finds herself in her Cortege High taking refuge from the living dead with five other teens. I usually find it hard to relate to a character that wants to end her life and dislike when they are written in an over dramatic way but Courtney Summers does a wonderful job with Sloane. I loved the character and was almost praying for a fictional character.
The five other students are great because they show very different reactions to a catastrophic event. They have to not only deal with the zombies at their door but like typical teenagers the relationships between them.There are a few extremely sad moments as well as many very scary scenes. This Is Not A Test contains very little romance, it is more about raw human emotions in a time of crisis. Just as a warning, know that Courtney Summers is not scared to kill a character you really like and are hoping will survive.
Final Thoughts: This Is Not A Test does not have a dull moment. From beginning to end I was biting my nails scared for Sloane's life. If you enjoy contemporary books with tough issues or if you enjoy zombie/horror I think you will really enjoy this book. I wouldn't recommend this book to a younger audience because of the tough subject matter.
Buy, Borrow or Skip: Buy, but if you have an overactive imagination DO NOT read at night.
My Rating:
