Book Review: Virals by Kathy Reichs

 
Virals by Kathy Reichs

Publisher: Razorbill

Publish Date: November 2, 2010

Hardcover, 304 pages

My Review:
Why I read this:  Kathy Reichs, need I say more?  I've been working on catching up on her Tempe Brennan series and then I see she has a new YA novel coming out.  So I jumped on the chance when Book It Forward Tours put it up for tour.

How is the novel driven: Plot, with nice character development for what I hope will be a series.

My thoughts:
Fast moving, full of suspense and great characters as well.  I really enjoyed Ms. Reichs first foray into young adult books.  Take the suspense of her adult books without the gruesomeness that is there at times (I mean Tempe deals with decomposing bodies) and you have a great YA suspense book.

I enjoyed getting to know Tory, Ben, Hi and  Shelton, each one a very different teenager.  The main thing holding them together is the fact that they live on a compound together for other researchers on one of the islands off of the SC coast and they go across the harbor to school in Charleston.  But this is enough of a bond to seal them together as close friends who explore together, get in trouble together and just generally watch each others' backs.

When the four of them find a dead body and other clues that lead to a decades-old murder they band together stronger to try and solve this murder and stay on the run from the bad guys.  I had a slight clue to who was behind it all but didn't really figure it out completely until it was spelled out for me in the book.

While a little out there at times, it is fiction and it is very enjoyable fiction.  The suspense area of young adult is a little smaller than other genres so this is a nice addition.  I look forward to more stories involving these four characters and more from Ms. Reichs in both the adult and young adult market.


Well worth your reading time whether  you are a young adult or an older adult. Virals has suspense, good characters and a plot that will keep you turning pages until the end.

My Rating:  4.5/5.0

About the Book:

Tory Brennan, niece of acclaimed forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan (of the Bones novels and hit TV show), is the leader of a ragtag band of teenage sci-philes who live on a secluded island off the coast of South Carolina. When the group rescues a dog caged for medical testing on a nearby island, they are exposed to an experimental strain of canine parvovirus that changes their lives forever.

As the friends discover their heightened senses and animal-quick reflexes, they must combine their scientific curiosity with their new found physical gifts to solve a cold-case murder that has suddenly become very hot they can stay alive long enough to catch the killer's scent.

Fortunately, they are now more than friends they're a pack. They are Virals.

About the Author:
Kathy Reichs is a forensic anthropologist, like her character Temperance Brennan, and creator of the Fox television hit Bones, now in its fifth season. Reichs has written twelve books in the Bones series, all New York Times bestsellers. She lives in Charlotte, North Carolina. Virals is her first novel for young readers.

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FTC Information: I received this book through Book It  Forward Tours for review.  I have Amazon links on my review pages but I do not make any money from these because of NC laws.  I put them solely for people to check out the books on a retail site.