ReBUILT

Plague Land #3

by Alex Scarrow, Pierre Szczeciner (Translator)

Au moment d’embarquer sur le navire qui les mène aux États-Unis, Léo et Freya sont séparés. Grace, reconnue comme infectée, est envoyée dans une unité de recherche en Nouvelle Zélande. Pour ne rien arranger, le virus a assimilé la quasi-totalité de la population. De plus en plus évolué, il peut désormais communiquer. Son but : convaincre les derniers humains rescapés – dont Léo et Freya - de capituler… Quel sera leur choix ultime ?

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

346 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 26, 2018

About the author

I live a nomadic existence with my wife Frances, and son Jacob. For now we're living in Norwich. I spent the first 10 years out of college in the music business chasing record deals and the next 12 years in the computer games business as a graphic artist and eventually a games designer. For those of you who like their computer games, here's some of the titles I've worked on:
Waterworld, Evolva, The Thing, Spartan, Gates of Troy, Legion Arena
Since signing up as an author with Orion, I seem to spend most of my time hunched over my laptop in various cafes and coffee bars sipping lattes, tapping keys and watching the ebb and flow of shoppers outside on the street. As I write this, I'm awaiting the launch of my next book - the sequel to , LAST LIGHT, and getting ready to find a publisher for the first book in a separate series, ELLIE QUIN. Ahead of me, lies research work for my next thriller, and also some screenplays I'm looking forward to writing. Although I'm glad to be where I am now, I do occasionally kick myself for not having succumbed to the writing bug much earlier. But then we all just muddle along through life, don't we? There's rarely a plan.
-Source: http://www.scarrow.co.uk/page9.html

Reviews

[Perla · Rating 3 out of 5]

What the fuck was that ending?!
Okkkie let me just take a quick breather...
So this book started out strong, I was ready for the ride. And I absolutely love Leon. I loved witnessing his journey in this long and dreadful apocalyptical adventure. But we didn’t get much of him in the finale. We got more of the side characters like Grace, Tom, Freya and even the virus.
And at a certain point I got tired of it. I mean we GET IT. The virus wants to “save” everyone, blah blah blah. But I wanted more. Don’t get me wrong, we do get some answers but none will leave you with a complete understanding and a sense of fulfillment. I guess I felt cheated. Especially with that stupid ending. I absolutely hate when books end that way. Especially with such a strong and brave character in the mist.
Overall the series was really good, this one was my least favorite and short to disappointing. But thank god the author can write some gory and terrifying scenes. And we did get several. So for that and Leon’s POV, this shall receive 3 stars instead of 2.
But it definitely has me yearning for more sci-fi/apocalypse/end-of-the-world novels.

[Aimee Dars · Rating 2 out of 5]

The third novel in the Plague Land series finds Leon left in the UK, Freya on her way to what’s left of the United States, now hosted by Cuba, and Grace on a Chinese aircraft carrier. In the first novel, a malevolent virus wiped out most of humankind within a week. Only those taking drugs seemed to be spared. The second novel showed the virus’s development and introduced Tom, Leon and Grace’s father, who was desperate to find his children. Partnering with the Pacific Nations Alliance, he led a disastrous attempt to rescue English survivors. With too many refugees in a small camp, it became overrun with the virus that was now able to copy humans and hide in plain sight. As chaos spread among the survivors, the three teenagers became separated.

Plague Land: No Escape concludes the trilogy, with the virus attempting to reach out to humans to communicate and explain its mission. However, the virus is willing to forgo negotiations and complete the mission by any means necessary. It seems inevitable that the ever decreasing number of survivors will be annihilated by the virus which can now flawlessly duplicate any living form and withstand any attack. Those left now must decide to fight or acquiesce to the virus’s demands.

This series is marketed as young adult which surprises me a little bit, partly because of the language but mainly because of the gore. It is so disgusting, and each volume was more graphic and gross! These weren’t descriptions of violence but of the effect of the virus. Furthermore, it didn’t make much biological sense so felt gratuitous. No Escape introduced a few new characters, but the characterization was light, and I didn’t like the separation of the three main characters. To me, the action wasn’t as compelling as the previous entry, and many conversations between the virus and the humans were repetitive. I suppose when it came down to it, I didn’t much like the mission of the virus or how it played out. I’d hoped that the ending would wrap it up in a compelling way, but I was underwhelmed.

[Cody Carter · Rating 3 out of 5]

Definitely my least favorite in the series. I feel like the author just didn’t really know what else to write about. Obviously this series is kind of unbelievable. But like this just seemed meh? Like really that’s how the virus does earth? All that fighting and then done. Nothing else? It’s really bleak. I like bleak. But this nahh? It honestly happened so slowly and then BAM, last 50 pages it’s just over. There isn’t even an answer of what happens to the MC. I don’t want to guess. I mean what?
Anyways I prob would of gave this a 2 if I didn’t like the series as a whole. But overall it was pretty good until the last 100 or so pages of this book.

[Woff · Rating 2 out of 5]

An unsatisfying conclusion to an otherwise reasonably entertaining series.

[Adrienna · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book wasn't the best in the series yet had a great, expected ending.
I was going to give it a 2 for okay until I read the end.

[Przemek Szewciów · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not as good as Afterlight. This is the first in a series of books about what is supposed to be a new take on dystopian aftermath of a virus outbreak turning everybody into mush only to come back to life as reincarnated zombies. The author tries to introduce new logic into his world. Unfortunately, the plot is infested not only with ever mutating and intelligent virus but also preposterously inconsistent consequences of the plague and series of unconvincing events. For one the survivors of the plague apparently owe their lives to being on medication. In this book it seems as though it is extremely rare to take painkillers which why almost the entire human population got wiped out. There are tons of silly things that the characters do or simply happen in the book but the overall story is somewhat okay although a little naive.

[Angela Oatham · Rating 5 out of 5]

Unlike some readers I had no issue with the direction this trilogy took. I thought the whole concept was clever, original and thought provoking. That said the end drove me crazy! I like to think I know what Leon chose but alas I will never know for sure.

[Kristin Cuelho · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was my least favorite in the series. I didn’t like the ending. It lead up to it from the start of the book but I was disappointed. No spoilers but it wasn’t what I wanted the ending to be from the first book but it was entertaining.

[Jessicat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Could not put it down! I know a lot of people don't like the ending, but I thought it was perfect.

[Michelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have been a bit apprehensive about starting this series and also confused about why it's under two titles. I loved the TimeRiders series by the same author, but have hated all of the previous adult books he's done so far. So I was unsure about starting this series.

The first book I zipped through in a day's reading and while I found it similar to the previous books I've tried, where something happens to the world/population and we enter into an apocalyptic future, this series has something different. It's hard to describe without ruining some of the storyline.

The third in the series follows on from the finale of the second book, however, it's now getting to the point where I was trying to work out where Alex was going with this series. He's in the middle of writing book 10 in the TimeRiders series (at the time of writing), when book 9 - apparently the last - was published in 2014.

I found this book more on a par with the first book, as I fairly sped through this. Again, much like the second, there are some sections which my brain couldn't imagine, particularly some of the virus scenes. Again, the video game designer brain that Alex has, excels in the description, but also feels like he's trying to hard to get it optioned for a film.

After finishing this third book during a quiet shift at work, I really hate the way it finished and ended up throwing it on the floor, probably giving my colleagues a fright. I honestly can see there being another book in this series, but genuinely, do not know where Alex would go with it. I think he'd written himself into a corner, and didn't know how to get out of it.

Another bug bear of mine, apart from the change in titles, is the change in formats. I have kept all my TimeRiders series in the same format, with the same style of covers, however, these series covers have changed too much for my liking, due to re-releases. Despite my copy of "Remade" (aka Plague Nation), only being released in 2016, it was re-released in 2018, presumably to tie in with the new names of Plague Land and Plague World.

While the previous two books were good, the ending of this has soured my thoughts on the book, however, for the time being, I will keep them in case a fourth book is on its way at some point in the future. Not as good as TimeRiders, but definitely better than his adult books.

[Lexi · Rating 5 out of 5]

if i had finished this book while i wasn't in public, i think i would have cried. alas, i am in public

[Veronika · Rating 4 out of 5]

Celkově sérii hodnotím jako opravdu lepší průměr

[Saba · Rating 2 out of 5]

What started off as a sudden week long plague outbreak across the world, has now evolved into the virus approaching the remaining human survivors with a plan. How they choose to respond to the virus will decide their fate.

My top three thoughts on ‘Plague World’:
1. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. I really enjoyed the first book and didn’t feel anywhere close to that in the second one. So, I expected the third book to save the series for me. Instead, I was left feeling annoyed, disappointed and frustrated. After investing all this time and energy in the series, I expected something entirely different to what Scarrow offered. The story moves into a different genre of Sci-fi and the ending is just plain bizarre. I still gave this book a higher rating because it has a few thought provoking moments and some scattered messages about strength and bravery.
2. My main complaint about the second book was about all the repetitions in it. This one has the same problem of repetitions on a loop for almost 80% of the book - The same discussions, the same reactions and the same feelings from all the characters. It was a tedious task to read through these repeated scenarios of explanations and reactions that offered nothing new towards the story.
3. Another disappointing part of the book is, how little character focus there is. Everything is JUST about the virus’s plan. There are no new characters and there is no further character development for the old ones. I don’t find myself recommending this series to anyone despite enjoying the first book in the trilogy.

[Jade Vincent · Rating 5 out of 5]

Une grosse blague la fin (mais c'est nice)

[Ash · Rating 4 out of 5]

Make sure to check out more of our reviews on our blog: JennReneeRead

Mini Review:
I'm not going to lie, all of these sort of blended together and I don't really remember what happened in each.

One of my favorite things about this series is the virus. Viruses like these are absolutely terrifying and this one is especially. Because it gets smart.
It's really scary thinking that we don't know why or how it got started and it just starts... completely destroying the entire world.
I feel like it was written well, very gruesome and descriptive.

I did get a little confused at times when it switched from the viruses POV and the characters POV. There was no warning it just kind of switched.

Overall I really enjoyed this series. It was well done and it kept me needing to finish it. I had to know what the f was going on and how it ended.
I finished this whole series in under two weeks.

[Jenn · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really wanted to like this. I really, really did. And it's not that it's so awful. It's a great survival story, for the most part. The ending is totally infuriating, but a lot of books do that nowadays, so I can live with it.

I think it's my contrary nature. The notion of absolutely everyone everywhere having the exact same feelings about the Virus once they're infected? That doesn't say 'perfect peace and Heaven' to me, it says 'brainwashing, these people are not real any more'. Which is the exact opposite of what Alex Scarrow was apparently going for.

I like the series as a whole. I'll keep recommending it to people. But I won't be rereading this one, personally.

[P.M. · Rating 3 out of 5]

The virus is overtaking the whole world because it has devised a method to cross salt water. Our three main characters have been separated and are relating their stories. Grace has become the spokesgirl for the virus in New Zealand while Freya is now in the New United States in Cuba. Leon has escaped the warehouse and has found tentative safety on an island. When the virus arrives there, Leon and a small few escape to a lighthouse. Finally, Leon is the last human left on Earth when he must make a choice. I have given three stars because I have gone back and forth on what Leon chose. I wish the author had been less circumspect because I can find evidence for both choices.

[Demi · Rating 2 out of 5]

The idea is great at first because I think the world will end with a plague BUT making it an alien was a bit too much. Also for a young adult book having someone being set on fire was a bit violent. The characters that don’t get much depth get killed off pretty quickly so you don’t form attachments to them and after a while all the deaths become boring. I will probably read the others just to see how they develop this

[Angela Oatham · Rating 5 out of 5]

Is help on the way for the survivors? Leon and Freya are trying to deal with the aftermath from what happened to Grace whilst attempting to fight off the snarks. However there are rumours of a rescue? Can it be true and will Leon finally be reunited with his father? A great second book which does not let the standard set by the first slip.

[Veronyka Quarry · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to like this book so bad! It was amazing until the end. I’m not a fan of an ending where the reader is left to wonder what just happened. I don’t like an ending where there is no definitive answer. So this spoiled the book for me because I really don’t know what the character decided about his future.

[Dan Robinson · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really liked the first book. I mostly liked the second book.

This book was headed to a solid 3 or 4 star review until that ending. Are you kidding me? I spent a week reading these three books only for the author to decide they were just done writing with no resolution? No thanks. I will not read this series again and am giving it away.

[Kristian Beverly]

I enjoyed the first book, was okay with the second book, and the third one wasn’t it. I could see the lack of an ending coming but it didn’t expect for it to be this bad? I feel the author wrote themselves into a corner in terms of planning out the story. The series had a cool premise but missed world-building opportunities or a lack of planning really hindered the plot.

[Jenny · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well darn. I had high hopes. Even as I was reading this final book, and knowing I didn’t like the way the story was headed, I was determined to give it a good rating because I could appreciate where the author naturally carried the storyline. But then I read the very last sentence and I wanted to give it one star. But I decided on two.

[Confessionsdunebookaholic · Rating 5 out of 5]

Une fin vraiment géniale. J'ai énormément apprécié cette saga avec un virus intelligent que l'on peu suivre au fil du récit. Je ne m'attendais pas à un tel dénouement

[Freda Witt · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not the best apocalypse book

[Cammy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really enjoyed books 1 and 2… but book 3 I was like what? Not an ending I expected or liked.

[Tracey · Rating 5 out of 5]

"[Leon] missed everything--the flicker of a TV set, the amber glow of street lights, the smell when you passed the coffee shop, the warmth of clothes fresh from a tumble dryer, the soft whirr of his laptop's fan, the ping of a new post or text. All of that vanished in a single week...They had drifted onto that whole fantasy thing about wishing that a zombie apocalypse would actually happen. And then, how quickly their lives had become that stupid fantasy--how much they wanted boring normality to return. 'I miss waking up safely. Knowing the only tough decision that's going to happen this morning is which cereal to pour out.'" I'm with you, Leon. Scarrow's last installment of the Plague Land trilogy is really good. It doesn't take the easy way out and the ending is philosophically interesting (pieces of this remind me of Sagan's Contact). The trilogy itself examines and exposes pretty much what we are discovering now, which is that it is impossible to predict the ripple effects of a large-scale crisis that is mismanaged from the outset. Clearly Scarrow had some current world leaders in mind when he wrote this and we are meant to see how isolationism is problematic (he is British so I do mean world leaderS). The virus itself is actually the least scary part of this book, which also isn't too far off from real life right now.

[Josef Hrůza · Rating 5 out of 5]

Zvláštní konec trilogie. V poslední knize už se vlastně mnoho nedělo, a přesto se dělo vše, na čem záleželo. Tak jak to bylo vystavené, začalo být už dlouho před koncem jasné, jak to dopadne. Alespoň v hrubých rysech.
A přesto, dosti iracionálně, to moje mysl odmítla akceptovat. Stále vyhlížela, doufala, snila a přála si. Až do hořkého konce. Přesně to byla ale zároveň pointa. Takže za mě jednoznačně úspěch.
Všichni, jeden po druhém, začínají tvrdit stejnou věc. Dává to smysl. Chápu, co tím myslí. Přijímám efekt, který na ně situace měla a proč se rozhodli, jak se rozhodli. Ale já prostě nemůžu. Nemějte mi to za zlé. Nikdy... nebo... ne! Ne! Ne! Jenže... co když... ne!
A tak dál.


Až na úplném konci jsem plně docenil dilema, kterým trilogie končí. A za mě poslední díl ukazuje, jak dalekou cestu děj ušel. Od jednoduchého atmosférického postapo příběhu až k téměř filosofickému konci, který už nemá žádné správné odpovědi.

[Asheley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ok, so I’ve dropped my star rating for the 3rd instalment of this trilogy (hoping that there might be a forth in the wings, or a spin off).

I really have enjoyed this trilogy, loved the focus on the Virus and the fact Scarrow didn’t go down the usual rabbit hole of relationships and drama that a lot of these dystopian book sets go down. I also loved the narration from the point of view of the virus.

My reasoning for dropping to 3 stars:

1. The ending was rubbish, after investing in 3 books there was no absolute ending for Leon’s character.

2. Had hoped there would have been a more in-depth explanation to the virus’s history, reason and future plan.

3. After the ‘big’ finale / push by the virus we get a snippet of Leon’s story which was brilliant BUT Grace, Freya and Tom’s literally just ended. This felt u unfinished for me.

I would absolutely recommend this trilogy BUT I’m really hoping there will be another book as I feel there is still loads left to tell us.

[Alyssa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gonna be honest, this was my least favorite installment of the Plague Land trilogy. I saw someone else say that this book seemed like Scarrow wasn’t sure how to conclude everything, and I have to agree. I really enjoyed the multiple perspectives we got in this book compared to the first and second books. It expanded upon the world, and we got to meet new characters and see how they’ve been surviving. It did tend to drag in some areas, though, and it feels unfinished in a way. Especially that ending!!! We’ve been with Leon since the literal beginning of this story, and we don’t even know what he chooses. I feel he should’ve chosen to go through with his suicide because he was so adamant about it the entire series. He made it especially clear throughout No Escape that he would rather die than submit to the virus. If he were the last man on Earth, I feel he should’ve taken that win and let go. As much as I’m disappointed, I still loved this series. <3