REVIEW: What Once We Feared by: Carrie Ryan

Title: What Once We Feared
Author: Carrie Ryan
Publisher:Random House Children's Book
Release Date: May 14, 2013

Synopsis:

When the zombie apocalypse hits and the dead begin to rise, Jonah and his friends are on a class field trip downtown. Panicked they make a split second decision to seek shelter in the Overlook, an apartment complex built like a fortress on the edge of town. But as the begin to face the realities of what it will take to survive, the realize that while making the decision of where to run was easy, living out the consequences of that decision may be impossible. From Carrie Ryan, the New York bestselling author of the Forest of Hands and Teeth books, What Once We Feared is an original digital short story about facing a world that is forever changed and in which survival means more than merely escaping the undead.  

Review:

Carrie Ryan has given us a small glimpse into the world when the zombie apocalypse first started, when the use of the word zombie to describe actual people seems almost absurd. What Once We Feared is a short story that goes along with the Forest of Hands and Teeth trilogy, but Carrie Ryan has managed to pack so much information and detail into it. She made me want to know more about what is was like for the people of that time. 

The story is told through Jonah's POV. Jonah, Nicky, Gregor, Felipe, and Beatrice are all friends that are on a school trip to Discovery Place when the zombie apocalypse hits their east coast town. Before they even know what's going on they're smack in the middle of all the mayhem, and they have to make a quick decision. 

I really would love to see this short story be developed into a larger work of art, because Carrie Ryan , like always, has managed to grab my attention with her ability to tell a story with such clarity, detail, and amazing imagination. I want to know in a more detailed and lengthier book the different situations and obstacles Jonah and the rest of his friends had to overcome, and what triumphs they were able to accomplish.

I recommend this short story for anyone who likes zombies, post-apocalyptic worlds or situations, and the Forest of Hands and Teeth trilogy. What Once We Feared will have you begging for more. 

(c) 2015 Andrea Hatfield All Rights Reserved