Book Review - Autumn: The City

Autumn: The City by David Moody
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

When I started this book, so quickly after finishing the first in the Autumn series, my first thoughts were "Oh, no - Where's Emma??? Where's Michael??!! I wasn't expecting to start over at the beginning of the disaster, just in another area of the country. "Meanwhile, back at the ranch..." is what I call that kind of book in a series, and it is one of the reasons I sometimes find myself turning up my nose at serial fiction (along with the repetitive, over-explanatory nature of sequels that continually re-hash old events to inform those just tuning in).

At any rate, you finally catch up with Michael and Emma about halfway through the book, when the timeline in the city reaches where they were on their flight from the farmhouse during the first book. Whew. I was almost ready to give up on the series, but again, there is something about these books that I can't quite explain that draws me in and doesn't let go.

I kind of love the fact that not a single character in these books - nor the author, at least not so far - ever utters the word "Zombie". It's so obvious. If I was in this situation, with dead people trying to break into my shelter to get to me, I would certainly proclaim that they were zombies. Somehow, though, it never comes up. Even when they ask each other what is going on. It had to take a lot of willpower for the author to keep true to this one, and I am going to be keeping my eye on it in future books, to see if it ever comes up.

Another thing I kind of love about these books is that the people are reacting in real ways. Not everyone is a hero. Some people lock themselves up alone with their grief. Some give up and turn to suicide or drinking themselves to death. Some are heroes, but reluctantly, because there doesn't seem to be any other option at the moment. It's gritty and real and made me get up at one point, around 2 in the morning, to double check that that sound outside my bedroom window wasn't a dead guy trying to get in.

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