Paradise Girl

I am falling asleep at my desk today because I ended up staying up way too late last night in order to finish this book. This post apocalyptic, dystopian novel really pulled me in and I couldn't put it down until the bitter end. The author does an excellent job building tension and parts of this story had me genuinely creeped out. I can't say that I "liked" how the story ends but it does tie up a lot of loose end s, with plenty left open to interpretation.

Contains spoilers:

This book gave me chills. I was so tense reading it the entire time, and in one go, that my shoulders hurt by the time that I was done. I was that tense.

Kerryl is stuck in a truly horrific situation, with no parallel in any book that I've recently read, or can recall though I do suffer from some memory issues. (No. Seriously) She is a character who is filled with hope, and it was heartbreaking to see that hope start to shift to despair and pain shift into delusion.

The loss of her mother nagged at me, but when her grandparents passed, trying to keep her safe I found myself fighting back tears.

With the reveal at the end of the novel I felt nothing but anger, that someone would use humans for experimentation and in such a cruel way. Perhaps it upset me so much because it felt realistic.

Either way this was a thriller that kept me guessing on what was going to happen next. And you know the writing is masterful when even the times someone is completely alone talking about chores can still manage to capture your attention.

First line: "<i>Introductions are boring, but unless I take time to explain things it will be confusing for you.</i>"

Wow! This was an interesting read which started off slow and steady....and became really complex and interesting quite rapidly! I have to say that the Infection originally made me think about Ebola...not entirely the same thing, but quite scary just the same!

The plot was believable and kept my attention throughout. I did not expect the ending until it started to unravel. It was really surprising, yet not so surprising at the same time, if you get my feel?
I thought Kerryl was a main character that, despite the crazy circumstances, was doing quite well at keeping the pretext of a normal life...until things started to get a bit crazy and she began seeing things that weren't really there.

I think the ending was the most interesting part of the book, simply because it really explains everything so clearly and concisely...

I will definitely consider reading more of Phil Featherstone's work!

Kerryl lives on an isolated farm in a small town in London. She is the sole survivor after a highly contagious infection wipes out everyone in the town. Kerryl works hard to survive and keep the farm running, while slowing succumbing to loneliness.

I love survival stories, especially those that involve a post-apocalyptic world. Paradise Girl, however, barely held my interest. Kerryl's obsession with her weight was a distraction to an already boring story. Definitely an interesting take on infectious diseases that failed to fulfill.

This book revolves around Kerryl and how she gets through a plague epidemic. Did this book give me a book hangover? Yes! Did I see the twist coming? No! I've always wondered how I would get by if everyone I knew (and didn't know) died and I was on my own. Kerryl's journey with this was very engaging to me. She went about it almost systematically and as if she was expecting it all to go back to the way it was before the plague. Although some parts were ramblings I feel that being alone that long I would ramble too. She was smart and used her head but you could see her slide downward. I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Paradise Girl by Phil Featherstone.
A highly infectious and incurable virus spreads worldwide. Seventeen-year-old Kerryl Shaw and her family live on a remote farm and think they will be safe, but the plague advances. Despite deaths around them, the Shaws survive. However, this changes when a stranger arrives, and it soon becomes apparent he has brought the infection to their door. One by one the family succumbs, leaving Kerryl alone. Kerryl is sure it’s only a matter of time before she, too, dies. She decides to record what she thinks will be her final days in a diary. She realises that it will never be read, so she imagines a reader and calls him Adam. As loneliness and isolation affect the balance of her mind, Adam ceases to be an imaginary character and becomes real to her. Communications break down and services fail. Unexplained events build fear and menace: Kerryl hears her name called in the night; she’s attacked by stray animals; she’s molested when she visits the town; she sees a stranger outside her house, who vanishes when she tries to make contact; objects appear and disappear. The climax comes when she finds a text message on her phone. Who is texting her? How? She thinks it can only be Adam, because by now there is no one else left. Another text invites her to a rendezvous at the Bride Stones, a beauty spot popular with lovers, and she leaves for what she is sure will be a meeting with Adam...
OMG. An absolutely fantastic read with brilliant characters. Although a little slow in places it picked up. I didn't expect that. 5*. Netgalley and matador.

This was a great book and had me hooked from the moment I started. The way the book was written as two diaries made it particularly interesting and the first chapter really set the scene well. Kerryl was totally believeable throughout and I felt like I went through all her different emotions with her. At first I wasn't too sure about the premis that the reader was male but this all revealed itself by the end of the storyand I now understand that decision. A wonderful, gripping read. If there is a sequel I will deifnitely be first in line!