Review: Contagion by Erin Bowman

Title: Contagion

Author:  Erin Bowman
Publisher: HarperTeen

Publishing Date: July 24th, 2018

Pages: 432
Genre: YA Sci-Fi Horror

Series:  Contagion
Source:  Audio

 

It got in us
After receiving an urgent SOS from a work detail on a distant planet, a skeleton crew is dispatched to perform a standard search-and-rescue mission.
Most are dead.
But when the crew arrives, they find an abandoned site, littered with rotten food, discarded weapons…and dead bodies.
Don't set foot here again.
As they try to piece together who—or what—could have decimated an entire operation, they discover that some things are best left buried—and some monsters are only too ready to awaken

This book has been on my TBR since it showed up on Goodreads, or somewhere around that time. I have been wanting to read it for quite some time. I did have the ARC but decided I wanted to experience this one on audio. I am so glad that I did. This book was pretty intense. It had all the goodness that I expect out of a science fiction horror book. I really couldn't put it down.  

This story takes place in outer space, on a foreign and unstable planet. The story starts off where there is a storm, and evacuation, a crew put together, and then a distress call. This crew consists of a scientist, her assistant, a pilot, a captain, a mechanic, and a systems engineer. They take off in space to escape the planet with a huge storm and end up getting a distress call from a crew on a very volatile planet. They are the closest to the crew and decide to respond. Once they get there they find horror. Death and warnings and a mysterious boy. They come to find that something horrible has happened and they need to escape it... not everyone will survive. 

 I don't really know where to start with this review. This book was everything I was hoping for in a horror story. I have been looking for a great horror read for a while now and keep getting disappointed. This book did not disappoint. The horror, the suspense, the nail biting, the scares, the nerves, the blood, the monsters. All there. It was truly a horror story. And to top it off with a cherry, in outer space. YES! I love space stories and I love horror stories, so this book just had me all undone. 

I can say the only negative I found for this book was there was a lot going on with a lot of different characters. It was a little difficult to get them all figured out at first. This didn't help that it is told in third person, but the story wouldn't of worked as well in first person.  There were just lots of characters with lots of back story and lots of connections. It didn't take too long to get with the program, but it was a bit much at first. 

Once I had all the characters figured out the story just flowed and just took off. I mean this book didn't really have any slow parts. From the very beginning things are happening. The story didn't take long to build and once all hell broke out, it was just crazy from there. I mean CRAZY.  I wasn't quite prepared. Like I said lots of nail biting and jumping, and possibly some unexpected noises escaping from my mouth. 

There really isn't a whole lot to say about the characters. Just like most horror books, no matter how well they are written, character connection is not there, nor do I think it's needed.  I mean especially when some are going to die... as they always do in horror. I mean to have a good horror there needs to be death. There were a few characters I liked. There were some easier to like than others. They were all different in personalities and each had a strong individual voice. 

I am very much a character reader, I love to get to know them and befriend them, but in some books its not that important. So even though I didn't feel a strong character connection, I was able to connect to the story and the events. I still wanted the best for all the characters too, I just knew better than to get attached. 

The story was really good. I mean the connections made, the revelations, the conspiracies, for a horror story, this story had layers to go with the blood shed. I think that the story line for sure made the book, the horror and the pacing just added to the goodness. 

For a horror book this one is a good one. I really appreciated it for what it was and full warning, I wouldn't read this in the middle of the night, alone, in the silent dark. It was pretty creepy. 

So awesome, surpassed my expectations. CRAZY LOVED IT!

Erin Bowman used to tell stories visually as a web designer. Now a full-time writer, she relies solely on words. She lives in New Hampshire with her family and when not writing she can often be found hiking, commenting on good typography, and obsessing over all things Harry Potter.
Erin is represented by Sara Crowe of Pippin Properties, and is the author of the Taken Trilogy, VENGEANCE ROAD, RETRIBUTION RAILS, and the forthcoming CONTAGION (7/24/18).
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PLEASE NOTE: Erin does not check goodreads mail. If you message her this way she will not see it. For contact methods, visit Erin's website.