coral reviewed Kingdom of Needle and Bone by Seanan McGuire
None
5 stars
I almost gave this 4 stars because I'm mad that it's over. But that seems unfair: I knew I was picking up a novella when I started. And hey, Mira Grant has written full follow-up books to her short stories and novellas in the past, so there's hope. (See also: [b:Rolling in the Deep|23634011|Rolling in the Deep (Rolling in the Deep, #0.5)|Mira Grant|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1417291618s/23634011.jpg|43239096], which I haven't read yet, but I really loved its sequel, [b:Into the Drowning Deep|34523174|Into the Drowning Deep (Rolling in the Deep, #1)|Mira Grant|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1489176444s/34523174.jpg|55657440].)
I love Mira Grant's scientists. They're usually women and usually deeply flawed. Dr. Gauley's no exception.
I also love Mira Grant's science. She has come up with at least two plausible apocalypses, counting this one, and while I always hope she's wrong, I can usually see the ways in which she might not be.
This apocalypse--not that I recall her using the term …
I almost gave this 4 stars because I'm mad that it's over. But that seems unfair: I knew I was picking up a novella when I started. And hey, Mira Grant has written full follow-up books to her short stories and novellas in the past, so there's hope. (See also: [b:Rolling in the Deep|23634011|Rolling in the Deep (Rolling in the Deep, #0.5)|Mira Grant|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1417291618s/23634011.jpg|43239096], which I haven't read yet, but I really loved its sequel, [b:Into the Drowning Deep|34523174|Into the Drowning Deep (Rolling in the Deep, #1)|Mira Grant|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1489176444s/34523174.jpg|55657440].)
I love Mira Grant's scientists. They're usually women and usually deeply flawed. Dr. Gauley's no exception.
I also love Mira Grant's science. She has come up with at least two plausible apocalypses, counting this one, and while I always hope she's wrong, I can usually see the ways in which she might not be.
This apocalypse--not that I recall her using the term in this novella, but it is--is due to the anti-vaccine movement. And she pulls no punches: anti-vaxxers are a threat to our existence as a species. Coddling their rejection of science is not in anyone's best interest.
As a bonus, she also has a pretty chilling guess at where politics could end up, should we start to succumb to "extinct" diseases.
So, if you'd like to read through a short, terrifying, angry story with a badass lady scientist and a gut-wrenching possible future, this one might be a good choice for you.