2012 Book 14: San Diego 2014
Book 14: SAN DIEGO 2014: The Last Stand of the California Browncoats by Mira Grant, isbn 9780316218962, 120 pages, Orbit Short Fiction Program, $2.99
The Premise: (from the BN page): It was the summer of 2014, and the true horrors of the Rising were only just beginning to reveal themselves. Fans from all over the world gathered in San Diego, California for the annual comic book and media convention, planning to forget about the troubling rumors of new diseases and walking dead by immersing themselves in a familiar environment. Over the course of five grueling days and nights, it became clear that the news was very close to home...and that most of the people who picked up their badges would never make it out alive.
My Rating: 5 stars
My Thoughts: Even though I knew what this story was going to be about and how it was likely to end (given that I've read all three books in the NEWSFLESH series and the previous novella that described the events of The Rising on a larger scale), it still surprised me in places and several times had me thinking "no, come on, let things work out..."
If you're familiar with the NEWSFLESH world built by Mira Grant in her books, you know that the events of the summer of 2014 don't end well for a large part of the population, and you know that the San Diego Outbreak was one of the worst events of The Rising. The fact that I knew this going in, and could still feel for all of the characters Mira introduces us to (none of which, by necessity, are a part of the main NEWSFLESH books), says something about the authors ability to create characters and believable tension. I wanted these characters to survive, dammit. I wanted them to find a way out of a no-win situation.
The story richochets between multiple points of view and two time-frames (the narratorial device is set in the time frame of the novels, while the action of 2014 is several decades earlier), but I never felt lost or overwhelmed. I found I was able to keep track of who was where, and how the narratives overlapped.
I recommend this novella whether you've read the Newsflesh books or not. If you haven't read them, this won't spoil a darn thing (since the books take place 20 or so years later) and if you have read them, this will just enhance the narrative you already know.
The Premise: (from the BN page): It was the summer of 2014, and the true horrors of the Rising were only just beginning to reveal themselves. Fans from all over the world gathered in San Diego, California for the annual comic book and media convention, planning to forget about the troubling rumors of new diseases and walking dead by immersing themselves in a familiar environment. Over the course of five grueling days and nights, it became clear that the news was very close to home...and that most of the people who picked up their badges would never make it out alive.
My Rating: 5 stars
My Thoughts: Even though I knew what this story was going to be about and how it was likely to end (given that I've read all three books in the NEWSFLESH series and the previous novella that described the events of The Rising on a larger scale), it still surprised me in places and several times had me thinking "no, come on, let things work out..."
If you're familiar with the NEWSFLESH world built by Mira Grant in her books, you know that the events of the summer of 2014 don't end well for a large part of the population, and you know that the San Diego Outbreak was one of the worst events of The Rising. The fact that I knew this going in, and could still feel for all of the characters Mira introduces us to (none of which, by necessity, are a part of the main NEWSFLESH books), says something about the authors ability to create characters and believable tension. I wanted these characters to survive, dammit. I wanted them to find a way out of a no-win situation.
The story richochets between multiple points of view and two time-frames (the narratorial device is set in the time frame of the novels, while the action of 2014 is several decades earlier), but I never felt lost or overwhelmed. I found I was able to keep track of who was where, and how the narratives overlapped.
I recommend this novella whether you've read the Newsflesh books or not. If you haven't read them, this won't spoil a darn thing (since the books take place 20 or so years later) and if you have read them, this will just enhance the narrative you already know.