This is Not a Test by Courtney Summers

Buy the book at

Amazon / Barnes & Noble / The Book Depository

Author's

Website / Blog / Twitter

Book summary:

It’s the end of the world. Six students have taken cover in Cortege High but shelter is little comfort when the dead outside won’t stop pounding on the doors. One bite is all it takes to kill a person and bring them back as a monstrous version of their former self. To Sloane Price, that doesn’t sound so bad. Six months ago, her world collapsed and since then, she’s failed to find a reason to keep going. Now seems like the perfect time to give up. As Sloane eagerly waits for the barricades to fall, she’s forced to witness the apocalypse through the eyes of five people who actually wantto live. But as the days crawl by, the motivations for survival change in startling ways and soon the group’s fate is determined less and less by what’s happening outside and more and more by the unpredictable and violent bids for life—and death—inside. When everything is gone, what do you hold on to?

      It's not a big secret that I'm fan of dystopian stories. Somehow I enjoy them a lot and I always gladly read them, mostly cause they bring something new. This one really was something new. I've read few dystopian books but this one was creepy in a good way.

      Zombies aren't something I often read about and even when I do that's nothing special. Somehow I always end up with description of zombies and reading only about them. Here the story is really different cause zombies aren't in the focus. Our focus is the girl, Sloane, who with other five students is trying to survive in Cortege High but that's not so easy when you have dead who are always around. It follows their story and their attempts to escape and find the refuge cause world collapsed. The things are even harder for Sloane cause she lost only person she ever needed, her sister. She left her and that broke her. But she hasn't lost her hope that one day her sister would come back to her. That's why she has to make a really hard decision when she suddenly discovers something. How will others react? They all did things they're not proud off and guilt follows their every step. Some decisions they have to make even though they're too young for that. I won't even start talking about the end of the book.

     I loved this book, mostly cause it focused on psychological aspect of those who survived. Seeing them growing up to early and facing the end of world without someone to guide them was touching. I couldn't help but wonder what would I do, how would I act. Would I let the guilt to eat me alive or would I stand and fight. I really don't know but I'd try to do the best, same as Sloane.

Until the next time,

***Thank you Jen over at Jen Ryland/YA Romantics for this book!