The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan

The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan

Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers

Released: March 10, 2009

Age Group: Young Adult

Pages: 320 (Hardcover)

Source: Library

Seven generations after the Return, Mary lives in a village surrounded by the Forest of Hands and Teeth. Beyond the fences are the Unconsecrated, virally infected undead who feed on human flesh. Mary's world is ruled by a religious order called the Sisterhood. The Sisterhood controls all aspects of life to protect the village's existence. While most are content with life in the village, Mary dreams of the ocean and stories her mother told her of life before the Return. Mary soon loses her family and is forced to join the Sisterhood where she learns that there are secrets being kept from the village - secrets that shock her.

I really really liked this book. Think The Village meets I Am Legend. This was another book I picked up without really knowing what it was about. I kept seeing it (and its sequel) popping up on other book blogs, but I hadn't really read the reviews. Needless to say, while I was pretty skeptical after the first few pages, I was pleasantly surprised after a couple of chapters. Who knew I liked zombies?! Who would've thought dystopian would be my new favorite genre?! (I'm still pretty excited about this book in case you couldn't tell.) I thought the story was original, the writing was fantastic, and overall it was a very captivating read. My one *almost* complaint was the ending. Had I not known this was the first of a series, I would have been pretty peeved, but now I'm just anxious for the sequel. The Dead Tossed Waves just came out in March and is actually in my library pile - score!