The Girl with All the Gifts

By: M. R. Carey

Narrated by: Finty Williams

Length: 13 hrs and 4 mins

Publisher's summary

In the ruins of civilization, a young girl's kindness and capacity for love will either save humanity - or wipe it out in this USA Today best-selling thriller Joss Whedon calls "heartfelt, remorseless, and painfully human."

Melanie is a very special girl. Dr. Caldwell calls her "our little genius."

Every morning, Melanie waits in her cell to be collected for class. When they come for her, Sergeant keeps his gun pointed at her while two of his people strap her into the wheelchair. She thinks they don't like her. She jokes that she won't bite, but they don't laugh.

©2014 M. R. Carrey (P)2014 Hachette Audio

Critic reviews

"Original, thrilling and powerful." (The Guardian)

"One of the more imaginative and ingenious additions to the dystopian canon." (Kirkus)

"A great read that takes hold of you and doesn't let go." (John Ajvide Lindqvist, author of Let the Right One In)

Saturated Market, Good Book on Sale

Zombie fatigue? I love The Walking Dead (at least the first 3 seasons); respect the simple genius of Night of the Living Dead; and enjoyed a few others out there currently. When this title was hyped in Entertainment Weekly, I rolled my eyes and flipped the page. However, when it popped up on sale and with the recommendation of an Audible editor, clicked 2X and began listening. The POV of 3 females: scientist, teacher, 10 year old girl make for a different take on the genre. The explanation of how the virus affects different generations at the end is a nice surprise. There were some slow and predictable parts, but on sale, it's worth a listen.

Zombie books actually CAN buck the trend!

Not one, but TWO “this is how [X] should be!” This is how to not make a child character annoying. This is also how to do a human-aspect zombie novel.

The book only has a handful of characters, and because of that, the author was able to really focus on each of them. These characters are all extremely believable and realistic to a fault. I can’t count how many times I got mad at a character for something they did, only to realize that given the circumstances or the character’s personality, it made total sense. This is an example of impeccable writing if you ask me. Not only that, there are characters that I liked and characters I disliked, but not because they were dumb or badly written, but because they were mean to the characters I did like. Follow all that? It’s great when a dystopian novel is written and not every character is unlikeable on purpose.

The ending fell flat for me, but not for my friend, so who knows there. The book as a whole has a way of sucking you in and making you lose track of time, so it was well worth it in the end for me.

I recommend this to anyone who wants a focused character-driven story in a zombie wasteland. It’s especially good if you liked the game Last of Us.

FLIPPING BRILLIANT

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

It was excellent

Who was your favorite character and why?

Sarge

What about Finty Williams’s performance did you like?

Fantastic at every turn

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

It was great

Any additional comments?

My heart is still beating 90 miles an hour. So smart and clever and if you think you know what's coming next your wrong. I have read and listened to almost every zombie book out there . I hate to pigeonhole this because it is so much more than that. I thought it was genius . And if you started it and didn't get hooked instantly . Well it's probably your fault . Try again.
If anyone has any recommendations on anything similar
Leave a comment and let me know !

Zombies with a Twist

Fresh take on the zombie. Engaging story, well written and expertly narrated. Characters are well developed and empathetic. I couldn't stop listening to this one. Definitely worth the credit.

that was the end?!

the book is compelling, the charactors are relatable, for good or bad you understand their modivations, and want to see how such a seemingly bleak situation resolves itself, and then boom! it's over. the ending seemed like a copout. The best way I can describe the ending without giving anything away is if it were to happen at the beginning of the book or the end, it wouldn't change anything. made me feel as if everything that happened in between was waisted paper and felt more like erasing a bad script than actually resolving anything. Though the ending disappointed me, it's still worth a read. the book gets a bit technical at points and built up the reason for the logic for the decision at the end. it's purely up to opinion if it was resolved well or not.

The only intelligent "Zombie" story ever written

Any additional comments?

This is a real story with excellent characterization, skillful writing and an outstanding narrator. As others have said, don't let the zombie concept deter you from reading this book, particularly if you have never read a "zombie" book. The character development is particularly good and kept me deeply interested in the book. Don't even hesitate one second to buy this book.

Gripping!

What did you love best about The Girl with All the Gifts?

The pacing of the story was fantastic. The author did a great job balancing the character development with the "run for your life" segments. And that ending!

Have you listened to any of Finty Williams’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

No, but I would for sure. The British accent was perfect since the story was set there. It added authenticity to the performance. Great work!

Any additional comments?

Excited to see if they option this into a movie of some kind. I think it would work beautifully. A great listen and completely unpredictable.

WOW!

Would you listen to The Girl with All the Gifts again? Why?

I would. This book is amazing!

What did you like best about this story?

It is hard to find books that are zombie books but not really about the zombies. This has a strong story line and characters. The author really took some time to develop this book. Well written and presented.

Have you listened to any of Finty Williams’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I have never listen to her performance before but I am about to search all of her narrations and listen to all of them. She has such a great voice and distinction between all the characters. She brings life to the characters and I never once got lost.

Any additional comments?

Yes, a million times. This book needs to be in your life.

Eh

Not impressed with story. Would have liked a little more substance. Ending should have had a little more meat.

FANTASTIC.

This book totally surprised me - in the best way. LOVED it. As soon as I met Melanie, the main character, I knew that I would love her but that there was something seriously unforeseen to come. As I continued reading, it was obvious there was something sinister about the children in the book going to their lessons taught by the kind Miss Justineau and yet treated like prisoners outside of the classroom. It's clear that Melanie is a brilliant, special child - so why the coldhearted treatment of her.

An attack on this "school" changes everything. The characters must respond to the threat, and some choose to react in a way that honours Melanie and who/what she is, and do so in a way that is both kind and guarded.

This story reveals declares that no one can be "judged by the cover". It is a sci-fi page-turner, but has a heart and thoughtful look at what makes someone valuable and worthy of love. It is a unique book in this genre which will both stretch your mind and imagination with its particular look at the science and post-apocalyptic word, but open your heart to seeing the "different" in a new way.

I'm not a sci-fi/horror fan, but loved LOVED this book. I hear it's being made into a movie, and can only hope they capture the nuances and changes in the characters as they learn more about themselves and their outlook on "normal".