3.5 stars
What I liked - the dark, subtle, and dry humour pervading the text; the incisive commentary on the geopolitical context and those who benefit from positions of power; the occasional perspective from the Ebola virus; the relevance to today's pandemic (e.g. masks, fear, panic, misinformation, overburdened healthcare systems (though on a vastly different scale)).
What I didn't like as much - the writing wasn't my personal favourite. The writing was a little too straightforward and removed from the audience - I don't know if it's a translation or an author thing. I also would have liked to see any of the female characters have interior worlds that don't involve the men in their lives.
Why I would recommend this book - If you're looking for fiction on outbreaks and disease (particularly Ebola), or if you want to read more translated fiction from African countries (i.e., South Sudan by a Sudanese author born in northern Sudan, translated from Arabic)
Content warnings - sexual assault and harassment is referenced throughout - never explicit, but present. References of blood, death and dying from Ebola - not too explicit, but still very present.