No Exit

The Big Empty #4

by J.B. Stephens

In the action-packed conclusion to The Big Empty series, new revelations about the Strain 7 virus come from a shocking source, as the countdown to a final confrontation begins.

Genres: Young Adult, Science Fiction, Dystopia, Fiction, Post Apocalyptic

245 pages, Paperback

First published June 16, 2005

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Reviews

[Justin · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Strain 7 killed half the world. Strain 8 will be worse."

When we last left off, Keely was trying to contact her mom, trying to convince her that there is a maniac trying to create a new Strain that could kill more people. And she comes.

But more trouble lies ahead. How will they sneak back into Novo Mundum under the watchful eyes of the Slattery brothers? And the biggest fear of them all: have they already been exposed to Strain 8?

Did it really take me 2 weeks to finish a book with 247 pages? .-. Not that it wasn't interesting, but I had a lot of things to do concerning school. Anyway...

I believe this book took a step down from the third one. Character development was still the same, they were still real teenagers with relationship drama, as we are. Especially with the new relationship of Keely and Michael! They seemed perfect since the beginning, tbh. :3 The plot was ok. There were longer chapters at some points, so the POV didn't change as quickly. It wasn't as driven and action packed as last time. There were a few shocks here and there. But I really liked the addition of Catherine Gilmore (Keely's Mom) as a POV.

The climax really took a step down. It was a bit anticlimactic in my eyes. Not as dramatic as I would've hoped. And then comes the ending. I liked how it ended on a good note (sort-of) but there were lots of loose ends like What happened to Amber and her baby? And what happened to Jonah and the virus ? I like it better when the story is tied together nicely.

Otherwise, this series was all right. It was a great idea, maybe if it was fleshed out a little more.

[Joey l · Rating 1 out of 5]

I did not like this book. Was very hard to read for me.

[James Crawford · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the final book in The Big Empty series. The group of friends has a somewhat difficult task in front of them.

1. Keely and her mother need to work out their problems and start communicating.

2. They need to find a way to sneak back into Novo Mundum.

3. They have to take out the mad scientist Slattery even if it means killing him.

4. While doing all of this, they need to stay out of the hands of the military that doesn't take kindly to people being in The Big Empty area.

5. Oh, yes, they need to do all of this in order to save the world since Slattery has already run a test of his new germ warfare product and has wiped out an entire village of people in the process.

This is a really good conclusion to the series, even leaving open the possibility of further trouble (and books) for the group and for the U.S. government, what there is of it at the time.

It's a very tense book, a lot of things going on and written quite well.

[Carol · Rating 3 out of 5]

Half the world is dead, the other half is trying to survive. The government is trying to control everything. A group of teenagers are trying to follow some coded messages to a supposed safe haven somewhere in the northern part of the United States. Novo Mundum doesn't quite live up to their individual expectations. When life throws them in another direction they must test their loyalties to each other and their ideals. They find traitors and allies in extremely unexpected places.The end result was slightly disappointing to me, just a little anti-climatic. Otherwise, this is an interesting addition to the teen post-apocalyptic genre.

[justablondemoment · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is my least favorite of the series. It felt very rushed like the author didn't know how to tie everything up so just threw things out for the reader to read. I dunno started out okay but quickly went down for me. I just came to care for these kids and I didn't get any kind of real closure I wanted.

[Mandy · Rating 5 out of 5]

My ship has been fulfilled. All is good in the world. Well, not really this world. Novo Mondum has some issues. My world is good now that my particular ship has sailed.

But honestly, this is one of the best underrated series in all of YA history.

[Brandee Terry · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the best series I have read in a long time. It rates among my favorites. The characters were deep and the story lines exhilarating.

[Kristina · Rating 2 out of 5]

Took awhile to get going and then ended too quickly and unrealistically.

Yeah.

[Clackamas · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the addtion of Keely's mother to this group of misfits. That said, this ending was not the best. It was very tidy though. Anything else that I could say would give away the story.

[Pam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sad this is the last one...I would not mind reading more about these characters.

[Alobuba · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hated the end. Total cliffhanger... I couldn't get over it for 2 week. Loved the book though