Teri Terry

Don't miss this startling first book in a breathtaking new trilogy from Teri Terry, queen of the YA psychological thriller and author of the bestselling Slated trilogy! URGENT! An epidemic is sweeping the country. You are among the infected. There is no cure; and you cannot be permitted to infect others. You are now under quarantine. The 5% of the infected who survive are dangerous and will be taken into the custody of the army. Young runaway Callie survived the disease, but not the so-called treatment. Her brother Kai is still looking for her. And his new friend Shay may hold the keyto uncovering what truly happened. From the author of the international sensation Slated comes the first book in a powerful new story of survival and transformation; love and power.

Contagion

Caitlin Scott

Overall I just found it somewhat underwhelming. I didn't exactly have high expectations. I think it was a bit young for me and perhaps if i read it a few years ago when I read and loved Terry's other series, Slated, I may have enjoyed it a lot more.

Positives: 
- Very fast paced; even when i wasn't particularly enjoying it, it still somehow managed to be a page-turner and was very action packed.
-Interesting Concept; both the epidemic and Callie's character I though where quite unique and interesting ideas.
-Distinct POV's; sometimes when a book has multiple POVs I find the characters aren't distinct enough, their voices sound the same and you forget who's chapter it is. This book didn't have that which impressed me. Callie and Shay where different enough that I thought this worked quite well.
-Short Chapters; I think this is part of what made it quite fast-paced and stopped me from getting too bored. Definitely fitted well with the story.

Negatives:
-Characters; I found them quite boring and I couldn't really connect with them and so I didn't really care about what happened to them. Callie had potential and maybe she will become more interesting in later books. Apart from Callie there was nothing particularly remarkable about the characters, i felt like I'd seen then before in other books hundreds of times.
-Predictability; None of the plot surprised me at any points.
-The Romance; This really irritated me, it felt very instalove-ish and I just found it quite unnecessary and unbelievable. Maybe it woud have been alright if it developed slowly over the course of the book but it just really annoyed me.
-Show not Tell and dialouge; Probably the most well-known writing tip and yet I felt sometimes that the characters seemed to just be talking directly to the reader to inform them what was going on, not to the other characters. The dialogue in general just felt a bit stiff and unrealistic at times as well.
-Lack of explanation; Something's weren't explained (which is understandable as it's a series) and some things took so long to be explained that I'd kind of lost interest in the answer. It didn't hold my attention.
-Not what I was expecting; This isn't really a fault of the book, but it wasn't what I expected from the blurb. There was no mention of sci-fi or the supernatural at all and i thought it was just going to be about 2 characters trying to find this missing girl while an epidemic was happening with maybe a little government conspiracy.

Overall, mixed feelings but I probably would recommend to someone a few years younger than myself. Although, even considering that, I think her Slated series was much better, so maybe try that first. I might come back to this series at some point, if I want something quite light and easy to read, so I can find out what happens. I know Kai has a POV in the second book which I think could be quite interesting.

Imogen Barr

Started this book and took a while to get into it which was a shame because it looked really good and the reviews were amazing. But maybe this style of writing just wasn’t for me :( I got a few chapters in and seriously was just really bored so had to put it down. This isn’t like me at all, even if I struggle with a book at first, I always try to get at least half way through before deciding whether I’ll finish it or not. However, this just obviously wasn’t the book for me. What a shame.

Kate

4.25* Contagion is a fast paced, unpredictable and gripping read. It's unlike anything I've read in a while and totally unexpected and surprising in the best way. I couldn't put it down. I loved the structure of the super short chapters and the way the dual perspectives flowed from one to the other. I found myself warming to the characters and loved the different and intriguing sides to each of them. The only thing I didn't enjoy it the fact that I will now have a long wait for the next book, I need to know what happens next!

Freya Keogh

The first book in the spine-tingling Dark Matter trilogy about the frightening effects of a biological experiment gone wrong. An epidemic is sweeping the country. It spreads fast, mercilessly. Everyone will be infected. . . . It is only a matter of time. You are now under quarantine. Young teen Callie might have been one of the first to survive the disease, but unfortunately she didn't survive the so-called treatment. She was kidnapped and experimented upon at a secret lab, one that works with antimatter. When she breaks free of her prison, she unleashes a wave of destruction. Meanwhile her older brother Kai is looking for her, along with his smart new friend Shay, who was the last to see Callie alive. Amid the chaos of the spreading epidemic, the teens must find the source of disease. Could Callie have been part of an experiment in biological warfare? Who is behind the research? And more importantly, is there a cure?

Contagion

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