Reign of Blood (Book 1) by Alexia Purdy

   April should be trying to finish high school.  Instead, she's killing vampires and raiding abandoned stores for food and supplies that she, her mother, and brother need to survive.  A year ago a virus overtook the world and now nothing is how it was.  Almost everyone died and those that didn't, turned into these zombie-like vampires with fangs and a taste for blood.  This is the world she now lives in.  April and her family live in this underground bunker that has solar powered energy and even showers.  Everything gets recycled and there is a lot of non-perishable food there.  But her mom doesn't want them using it unless they absolutely have to.  So they raid the empty stores in Las Vegas.  Then one of the worst things that can happen does; her family is taken.  She has no idea who has them or even where they could be.  So she starts searching for them in the numerous casinos.  Her new-found rage for the loss of her family causes April to get reckless and vengeful, burning some of the casinos and the vampires within them.  Then things change a lot.  Apparently there is more than one type of vampire out there.  There are ones out there that are so very similar to humans it is hard to see the difference except for their glowing, strange eyes, fangs, and incredible speed.  As much as she dislikes these creatures, they are the only way she will find her family.  So for now she must rely on what had been her enemy to find them.  Once April enters their hive though, she hopes she doesn't get murdered by the others before she can get the help she needs.

   I liked reading this book.  It was a different look at post-apocalyptic Vegas and what it would be like with vampires roaming the place.  The best part?  The diversity of the vampires.  It brings a whole new spin to the story.  There is so much that changed when the virus hit and you don't even find out the full extent of it until near the end of the book.  Even April has a few surprises about herself!  However, there were some slow spots in the book that bring down its rating for me personally.  Otherwise, this is a pretty fascinating read!

Virulent Books 2 & 3 by Shelbi Wescott

   After reading the first one in the Virulent series, I had to read the other two to find out what happens to Lucy, Grant, and the others.  So I am taking the time to give you a little idea of what books 2 and 3 are like. Part of what I love about the series is how the background information about some of the key players is slowly told.  No one's story is just immediately out there for everyone to see and just understand.  It requires careful attention and it requires you reading all three to really understand the reasons behind some of the things happening in the series.  Motive is a big deal in a book.  Without it, the book can turn out boring.  But this series has some powerful motives behind it.

The System: Book 2

   Grant and Lucy left in a hot air balloon to find the rest of the King family.  Lucy has no idea what she expects to find when she reaches the coordinates that her dad left as a clue.  Meanwhile, they are traveling the best that they can.  They find cars with gas still in them and drive as much as possible, but otherwise they are on foot.  The sight they see outside of their own town makes them realize just how bad things are.  This is basically the apocalypse, and possibly the end of most of humanity.  Grant and Lucy wonder if there are any others out there that survived since Grant did.  Grant was never immunized against the virus that swept through the entire world.  But he survived while everyone else died.
   Scott King's directions lead Lucy (his daughter) and Grant to Brixton, Nebraska.  Literally a town with only a handful of people.  But what they find is not what they expected.  They start finding bodies that were dead way before the virus, all of them executed.  A whole town was wiped out.  When they find the secret underground lair of Huck Truman (the man in charge of the virus and everything underground now), things get even more dangerous, especially for Grant who is an anomaly.  He is proof that others could have survived, and that goes against Huck's plan.  What's worse is that when Lucy is reunited with her family, they seem different.  They seem to be trying to settle into this new life under Huck's rule while Lucy hates it down underground.  And it puts her at odds with Huck and his family as well as her own family.
   Meanwhile, Ethan is still back at home waiting to see if Lucy and Grant will bring back people to rescue them from their situation.  Ethan's crushed legs have gotten worse and he is fighting for his life.  The doctor there is doing what she can, but she can only do so much when they have limited resources.


The Variables: Book 3

   Lucy and Grant are finally together after having a hard time freeing Grant from her own father's experiments.  Huck wanted to know as much as possible about why Grant was immune so that another virus could be created to kill those immune to the old one.  Although Scott King seems cold and distant, he is trying his best to keep his family protected.  Being protected means going along with whatever Huck wants or else.  Lucy is still at odds with her parents over how they are acting about their new home and is constantly fighting with them about it.  To make matters worse, Huck has started his reign of terror in Book 3.  He wants absolute power and for no one to question him so he starts making examples of people with the new virus Scott made.  Ethan is back with his family as well as the boy Teddy.  While Teddy is living with the Kings, his future is uncertain as well.  There is another within the system wanting to raise the boy and they may very well get their wish.  In fact, in this book the fate of the whole King family is in a precarious position.  Circumstances have put them in all in danger.  Everyone in the family is also unhappy with the happenings around them, causing even more tension.
   While the Kings are underground, Darla (Teddy's mom) and Dean (Grant's dad) are making their way to Brixton to find their children.  When help came for Ethan, everyone else in their little group was killed besides them, Ethan, Teddy, and Ainsley.  Ethan is Ainsley's only friend.  Her mom was the doctor tending to Ethan.  She was killed during the "rescue".  The three of them are going to face harsh circumstances themselves.  They can only hope to get to Brixton in time to save everyone before the underground group is relocated to their permanent residences.



 

Virulent: The Release by Shelbi Wescott

   Lucy King has just been thrust into a world where everyone around her is dying.  Someone has let loose a deadly virus on the entire world that started off by killing the dogs.  One day she got up and all of the dogs were just gone.  At that point some of the elderly and very young children were getting sick with flu-like symptoms,  but death came quickly.  Then everyone else started dying.  People were just dropping left and right.  The bad thing is that all of the chaos starts on the day that Lucy and her family are supposed to be going on a vacation given to her dad, who is a scientist.  He had been working on some major project for a long time and his job was now giving them a vacation.  They had their vaccinations and their bags were ready to go out somewhere close to Madagascar.  But that day Lucy had forgotten her homework at the high school in her locker and Ethan, her big brother, had to drive her back real quick.  When she gets there though the school is on lock down.  Once she is in, she can't get back out to her brother.  What she sees inside will forever change her.  There are bodies in the hallway and classrooms of fallen classmates and teachers, and everyone is in the auditorium awaiting instructions from their dictator principal.  Even though death comes quickly to those falling ill,  it is gruesome with vomiting and bleeding from their eyes, nose, and mouth.  Many families outside of the school have been wiped out at this point.  And now Lucy is stuck here.  What she doesn't know? It is safer inside the locked down school than outside where looting and illegal activities have started.  The only thing she must deal with inside is the crazy principal that is now showing his true colors.  Lucy is determined to get out and to her family.  But she will need the help and support of her friends, Salem and Grant.  That is, if they live long enough to get out.


"Have you thought that maybe we're just taking longer...to die."


   If someone actually let loose such a virus on the Earth, I would imagine things would go something like this should it be at a time when school was in session.  It is a rather graphic book in some ways, but it shows a side to humanity that is rarely seen, especially where I live in the United States.  War, chaos, and death is not familiar to many areas around the globe.   A virus that wipes out humanity this fast would create a panic unlike any we had ever seen.  Lucy King has to live through some absolutely horrifying circumstances during this book.  The reality of nothing being safe to eat or drink anymore if it isn't packaged, is a harsh reality indeed.  They cannot even use the toilets because they are overflowing with contaminated water.  Everything is poisoned with the virus: the crops, the water, the people.  Even when they do get out of the school, almost everyone is dead.  The few that are alive do what they must to survive, and they are dangerous.  The real surprise comes when Lucy learns more about the time frame of the virus and how her family is more connected to it than she knows.  This nightmare could be even worse than what is going on outside.

Make sure you check out book 2!!  You want answers?  You will definitely get some!


*images via Shelbi Wescott
*quote via Shelbi Wescott