this was so bad i don't even have the words

the whole series could be one book
should be

ah Mira why do you EXPLAIN stuff

why does everyone need to answer everything with a witty paragraph even when in urgent situations of mortal peril

why do you feel the need to explain everything at least fifteen times within each of these books

and dammit

it never made sense that people would be ok with worms living within one's body

and your protagonist never felt like a worm

and she was basically 6 years old but talked like an adult and had adult sex and knowledge and agh

no

i will pretend this never happened

i love you too much for this book to have happened ( )

This is not an easy read. To clarify: the writing’s pretty simple, in the sort of sci-fi thriller style that I like, and the plot is right at the surface so there’s no thinking there, but the issues Grant brings up? The scientific ethics and the issues of bodily autonomy and the stuff about security and control and the right course of action in an emergency? Lord. Gut punch just about every chapter, there, and a lot to think about. I’ll admit, I’m not really a fan of this sort of science fiction—I lean a bit more towards Issues as Subtext, instead of Issues as Plot—and I found Grant a bit repetitive with her points sometimes, so I’m at the wonderful impasse stage of having to say: This was a good read, an important read, liked it, would recommend the series, did not exactly enjoy it. Your mileage may vary, though, since like I said, I’m only mostly the target audience and we all have our preferences.

7/10 ( )

Okay, there's still no zombies in this book, not that I was actually expecting any, but all those Throwbacks are such a close fit, I just had to add the descriptor.

How did the trilogy end? Was it a satisfying ride? Did it fulfill all my expectations?

It was okay. It didn't quite wow me like Newsflesh did. I enjoyed the feel of falling deeper into Sal's viewpoint all the way from book one and having a slow burn, and it did promise to have a pretty interesting finale. So now that I've made it through book three, did it fill the promise?

Yes, and no. I got the feeling that the story was there and the expected grandness of destruction was also there, but at the same time, it just wasn't pulled off.

It didn't suck. Loose ends were picked up. Sal got to confront or engage with all the interested parties, and no one was left unscathed. She wasn't a real fighter, after all, and being a family-gal will only get her a so-so epic rating, but I still feel like the series could have shined more.

Perhaps I didn't like the feeling that the entire tale felt like we were being pulled from one camp to another like the a tide, or like the we just had to touch all the bases once before settling on one final solution. It simply didn't wow me, but it did give me some closure, and for that, I'm grateful.

I love my parasites. Brain parasites are always going to be precious to me. I just wish... well, I just wish that Tansy had been allowed to grow and flourish in the series. She's just NOT INTERESTING as a coma victim. Sorry. She was so damn awesome, too. I never wanted to have her live out her days on the page as the victim. She had so much LIFE in her!

*sigh* Could my one complaint drag down the enjoyment of the entire novel? Or even two novels?

Possibly. Likely, even. *sigh* ( )

For me, this audiobook seemed to drag on and on. I’m relieved to find have gotten it done, as it never takes this long (5 days) to finish an audiobook. Granted, I don’t have as much time as I used to as nearly everyone is home right now, not working and not going out unless they have to, so we are watching more tv than I usually do (which is usually not at all). So I’m getting interrupted quite a bit more than usual, and my attention is shattered so I’m very easily distracted and not really paying good attention. Who knew a global pandemic would effect my reading to drastically? I’d have thought I’d read more to get away from the world.
We were also quite sick for a few weeks there, but I tired to listen to the audiobook when I had the time.

Christine Lakin is the narrator once again, and she did a marvelous job on this book. I just wish I had it in me to enjoy it more than I did. Please don’t think this is your fault, Ms. Lakin. It’s not you, it’s me.

3.5 stars, and recommended to die hard Mira Grant fans ( )

Whelp this series started off boring and now I'm sitting here crying because it's over so good job I guess. ( )