Gone Series, Book 4
By Michael Grant
517 pages
Okay, so the term "science-fiction" has about eight billion different definitions and I'm not sure that any of them fit with this book 100%. While there are definitely elements of many definitions apparent in this book, the one definition I will choose to use is by John W. Campbell and it states, "Science fiction is what I say it is."
Plague is the fourth book in the Gone series. You can read my reviews of the three previous books earlier on this list.
In this book, the group of survivors finds itself split during some of the most troubling times they have seen in the FAYZ. Sam and three other "freaks" are off on a mission to find more water, Caine and Diana are playing house on their private island, Drake/Brittany escapes, Astrid, Orc and Petey are AWOL, Albert is mostly dead, and Edilio is very sick.
The plague has hit. This is a nasty flu that can cause the person to literally cough out their own lungs and die. There is nothing that can cure it. Lana can't heal it. The only thing that saves the population is that only about one in ten actually get to the point of death. If this isn't bad enough, The Darkness has sent out these bugs to kill anyone and everyone -- expect Petey. These bugs start with a human host and eventually chew their way out through the skin. After they escape, they grow. They grow to the size of school buses. Maybe larger. Guess who controls this army of bugs? Drake. Yes, Evil himself. Drake sends half of the army to Perdido Beach to kill them all and the other half he leads to the new found lake to take out Sam, Jack, Dekka, and Toto (the new kid). Sam's powers only work against the bugs if he is inside them, burning them from the inside. So, who do you call in a helpless situation like this? Caine. Of course. You get Caine and bring him back to destroy the bugs. Oh, and for his services, he becomes king. Yes, King Caine.
The most pressing, unanswered question in this volume is: Why does The Darkness need Petey so badly? He claims it's so he (The Darkness) can be born, but what does that even mean? I don't know. There are only two volumes left in the series, so I know the answers are coming soon. So much happens in each book, I know I'm not doing any of them justice. I think you just need to read them. Haha. I already started the next one, so I'll keep you posted!
Oh, and I'll leave you with this nugget: Sam is going to be an uncle.
3.5 Stars