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Feed (Newsflesh, Bk 1)
Feed - Newsflesh, Bk 1
Author: Mira Grant
The year was 2014. We had cured cancer. We had beaten the common cold. But in doing so we created something new, something terrible that no one could stop. The infection spread, virus blocks taking over bodies and minds with one, unstoppable command: FEED. Now, twenty years after the Rising, bloggers Georgia and Shaun Mason are on the trail of t...  more »
ISBN-13: 9780356500560
ISBN-10: 035650056X
Publication Date: 2011
Pages: 592
Rating:
  • Currently 4.3/5 Stars.
 12

4.3 stars, based on 12 ratings
Publisher: Orbit
Book Type: Paperback
Members Wishing: 3
Reviews: Member | Amazon | Write a Review

Top Member Book Reviews

midnightsmagic avatar reviewed Feed (Newsflesh, Bk 1) on
Helpful Score: 7
This book blew my mind. I'm picky with my stars, and this is my first five-star book of 2010 (out of 40). It's a book about zombies, sure, but the zombies are almost overshadowed at times by political intrigue and newsroom-esque drama.

I love the future Grant has created: The zombie apocalypse came, and the world neither ended nor was saved. The world has had to learn to live with the "infected," and blog culture has come to dominate society--bloggers report the news, create the news, and serve as the world's primary source of entertainment.

I enjoyed the novel from start to finish, but what really blew my mind was a certain event that happens about 3/4 of the way through the book, which made me sit up and take notice of this author--she's not afraid to take risks with her fiction, and I really admire her for that.

I'm supremely excited about the prospect of a sequel.
mreneerouser avatar reviewed Feed (Newsflesh, Bk 1) on + 127 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 6
I'm not very good at writing reviews. Why? Because I don't like big words, suck at grammar, and frankly, I just want everyone to trust me when I say "read the book" without explanation. Nevertheless, I know that I must put forth more effort than begging you to read this book.

Mira Grant aka Seanan McGuire created a world that sucked me in every minute I was reading it. I thought the beginning of the book was long, and boring. But without it, the last 400 pages would have not been what it was, a truly magnificant book!

I can't stop thinking about this book. Everything that happened, George and Shuan, and their relationship, the ending (you'll either love it or hate it), the politics, the action, oh yeah, and the Zombies.

Will I read the next book ?

I, without a shadow of doubt, will hit the pre-order button as soon as the second book becomes available!
Sue-in-AZ avatar reviewed Feed (Newsflesh, Bk 1) on + 108 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 3
I enjoyed this book much more than I expected. I'm not a zombie-book fan, so I was even more doubtful. But the author did a great job of making the zombie aspect fit so well into the story. Very believable.

Overall, I would say this is a story about love and loyalty. And how people define themselves in the face of impossible choices.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves a mystery/thriller with strong characters and some twists and turns along the way.
susieqmillsacoustics avatar reviewed Feed (Newsflesh, Bk 1) on + 1062 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 2
I did not expect to love this book, but I did. It is a fast paced thriller set in a future where the world is quite different. This follows a young news team on the campaign trail with the republican candidate for president in 2040. I loved the characters, the twists, and all the issues they had to deal with. This book is on the NPRs list of top 100 killer thrillers, as well it should be.
ophelia99 avatar reviewed Feed (Newsflesh, Bk 1) on + 2527 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
When I first saw Feed I was interested in reading it. When I found out the Mira Grant is a pen name for Seanan McGuire who writes the October Daye series I love...well then I was dying to read this book. It is an excellent, excellent book. It is the first book in the Newsflesh trilogy. The second book is going to be released in June of 2011 and will be called Deadline and the third book has a 2012 planned release and will be titled Blackout.

George and her brother Shaun are part of the vast community of bloggers who provide news and entertainment to the public. When the Outbreak first happened the media tried to cover it up, the people who ended up providing the public with life-saving and accurate information were the bloggers. Now in a society where the Infected and humans live together (if not really in harmony) it is the bloggers who provide a nation contained to their houses in seclusion with information and entertainment. George (a Newsie), Shaun (an Irwin - thrill-seeker), and Buffy (a Fictional and techno geek) are good bloggers and have a good following. When they win a job to follow a presedential candidate on his campaign trail they hit big time. When random outbreaks (or maybe not so random) of infection start happening near the potential president to be George smells trouble. Little do the trio know how deep the trouble goes and how much it will cost them to reveal.

This was just an absolutely awesome book. I like the October Daye series by Seanan Mcguire; but I loved this book even more. This book has a lot more substance and is more of a horror/mystery/political thriller. You are faced with many social and psychological issues in this book. The plot is complex, surprising, and non-stop. This was an extremely hard book to put down. I read the whole 600 pages in under two days.

You can tell a lot of research went into this book (this is backed up by the long list of people at the back of the book who helped Grant with info). Grant presents us with a complex politcal system and society; as well as detailed info on technology, viruses, and weapons. I was impressed with the detail, accuracy, and complexity of it all. In addition to this the characters are easy to relate to, likable, admirable, and real. There is humor woven throughout, mystery, excellent action scenes, and wonderful characterization. Basically this book has it all. For those of you who aren't into being scared to death, no worries, this book isn't that scary...but it is graphic and gory during some of the fight scenes.

This is one of those books that is intense. It will make you laugh and then have you grabbing the edge of your seat in anxiety; it will make you angry and it will make you cry. It is absolutely engrossing and it takes a good author to make all of these elements come together to evoke that sort of emotion.

I am not usually into political motivated books, but this one was just so well done and combined elements of zombies, action, etc into serious issues so well that I loved it. The writing is very well done and easy to read. The plot is presented in such a way that it is complex, but easy enough to keep track of the plot elements.

The ending broke my heart, but everything was tied up nicely and left us at a good point for the next book. Just a warning; do not read the extras at the end of the book unless you want some major spoilers exposed to you. Seriously read the extras after the book.

Overall, just an absolutely excellent zombie book with elements of mystery, action, and political thriller. This book should appeal to a large audience; everyone should give this book a read it is absolutely engaging and you won't be disappointed. The violence does get extremely graphic so I would recommend for older young adults and adult readers only.
Read All 19 Book Reviews of "Feed Newsflesh Bk 1"

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ra7 avatar reviewed Feed (Newsflesh, Bk 1) on + 1006 more book reviews
This was interesting. It was a lot to unpack and once I got into it this was interesting. Set in the future after a major virus outbreak. I thought the concept is interesting- everyone has the Kellis-Amberlee virus and it becomes activated when one dies, gets bitten, or spontaneously converts. The virus is helpful in that it kills the cancer cells and other things. The problem is, once activated, people become zombies and require a head shot to die a 2nd time. Animals over 40# also are infected and the same things apply. I can't imagine a future where most don't have pets.
In this future, news is disseminated through bloggers. George (Georgia) is a Newsie (news and truth), her brother Shaun is an Irwin (likes danger), Buffy is a Fictional (stories). There are also Stewarts, Aunties). Together they run a blog/news site that gets chosen to follow the presidential campaign of Peter Ryman whose formative years were shaped by the outbreak.
I liked the writing, the characters, and the general story-line. There's a betrayal by someone close, trusted, and considered a friend. There's a conspiracy, murder. A major character dies in this. I do think this has a good solid end and was on the fence about reading the next. I did read some reviews regarding book 2 and certain things happen that I'm not crazy about, so the train stops at this one. I do recommend for those that like zombie stories.
SteveTheDM avatar reviewed Feed (Newsflesh, Bk 1) on + 204 more book reviews
Wow. I really loved reading this one. This is the story of a trio of young bloggers following a presidential candidate in the mid-21st century, in a world that has been unevenly overrun by zombies. That world has made for some serious changes in the way people live. Liberties have been curtailed in drastic fashion, crowds become extremely frightening, and network connectedness is crucial.

There was an abundance of literary action, along with a stab at how informal reportage and politics mix, and the increasing relevance of instant reporting of the blog crowd. The characters seemed deep to me, and they undergo significant change throughout the novel.

But one of the things that really struck me was how spot-on the envisioning of the mid-21st century was. Ive read a number of novels set a few decades in the future, and none of them feels as right as this one does. Maybe thats simply because Feed was written quite recently, and trends seem to have solidified a bit more than was obvious in the 90s, but still. Disregarding the whole zombie apocalypse issue, this really felt like the world that sits in our future and which Ill get to inhabit as an octogenarian. (Uploading my mind into the iCloud never appealed to me anyway.)

Im really looking forward to the next books in this trilogy!

5 of 5 stars.
roisindubh avatar reviewed Feed (Newsflesh, Bk 1) on + 49 more book reviews
Awesome book! Grant blew me away with the ending, but I give her props for doing something I never expected.

The only thing I can criticize is the almost-but-not-quite incestuous relationship between Georgia and Shaun (they were not blood related, but still). The fact that Grant added some of these elements, but never properly addressed them grated on my nerves. It was like the pink elephant in the room.

Other than that, I loved this novel! Getting Deadline asap!


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