REVIEW: DARK INSIDE by Jeyn Roberts

 

To read Dark Inside is to step fully into an exploration of terror and the will to survive. It begins with an earthquake that quickly tears the world apart. Barely recovering from this society changes and morphs into a fear filled world. The Baggers arise, they of the black eyes and singular focus: to kill. Our guides through this new world are four teens and one mysterious narrator Nothing.

Aries, Michael, Clementine and Mason. These two teen boys and girls are on the front lines witnessing the destruction and constantly on the run for their lives. In the beginning the Baggers have an almost Zombie like presence. They see and they kill. Mason and Clementine however are unfortunate enough to experience more personal interactions with them, one that shows the true nature of the murderers. They are us. Something has come to reflect their barely hidden desires and free them from the restraints of civilized society.

Jeyn's narrative style is straight forward  and evocative. I felt myself glued to the narrative, various emotions traveling through me , barely able to catch a breath before turning the next page. Their are hints at what the true cause of the Darkness stems from but there is no cure . Instead those uninfected must fight to survive in groups or individually. Aries especially finds her self changed into a leader and embracing all the tough choices that entails. A chilling read with the potential for sequels.

THIS ONE THING

There has been some concerns raised recently about violence in YA books. There are some truly terrifying scenes in this book but there is no glorification of it. The focus is the teens and there struggle to survive. I would say the violence might be a little to much for a middle grade reader but not for teens in general.

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