The Forest of Hands and Teeth

The Forest of Hands and Teeth

by Carrie Ryan

For generations, the fence has stayed strong.  There are occasional breaches, but the Guardians, and Sisterhood which leads them, have kept the village safe.  Practically from birth, villagers are trained on how to handle any breaches from fighting to getting up onto the platforms in the trees.

After her mother gets too close and becomes infected by the Unconsecrated, Mary is sent to become a Sister and devote herself to saving the villagers, both their physical bodies and their immortal souls.  But Mary does not want this life.  She wants Travis, even though he is betrothed to another.  And she wants to see the ocean, which her mother used to tell her about and show her a picture of when she was a child.

She wants so much more than the village can give her.

She wants answers.

How did the Unconsecrated really come to be?  Are they really the last of the human race?  Is the ocean real?  Is there anything else out there away from her small village and limited choices?

Will she find out the answers before it's too late?

Final thoughts:  I guess I'm just not a zombie fan.  I really tried to get into this, but the whole post-apocalyptic feel just wasn't jiving with me.  I also had a very hard time believing that Mary really loved Travis.  They just weren't together often enough in the book and, what time they were together, there just didn't seem to be any chemistry (no matter how many times the author said there was).  I just felt that Mary was a little selfish and slightly obsessed.  Even when things are going to crap around her, she's completely focused on finding the ocean and to hell with the people she loves.  It just lacked flair.  I have the ARC for the third book, but I don't know if I care enough to get the second one so that I can read it (and have it make sense) or if I should just hand it off.

Rating: 3/5