The Dead Tossed Waves

Title: The Dead Tossed Waves
Author: Carrie Ryan
Genre: YA Fantasy
Page Count: 404
Why I read it: 2nd in a series
Grade: A

Synopsis:
Gabry lives a quiet life. As safe a life as is possible in a town trapped between a forest and the ocean, in a world teeming with the dead, who constantly hunger for those still living. She’s content on her side of the Barrier, happy to let her friends dream of the Dark City up the coast while she watches from the top of her lighthouse. But there are threats the Barrier cannot hold back. Threats like the secrets Gabry’s mother thought she left behind when she escaped from the Sisterhood and the Forest of Hands and Teeth. Like the cult of religious zealots who worship the dead. Like the stranger from the forest who seems to know Gabry. And suddenly, everything is changing. One reckless moment, and half of Gabry’s generation is dead, the other half imprisoned. Now Gabry only knows one thing: she must face the forest of her mother’s past in order to save herself and the one she loves.

My review:
When I found out The Dead Tossed Waves wasn't a direct sequel to The Forest of Hands and Teeth, I was disappointed.  I felt that the ending of the first book was a bit abrupt, and thought that a sequel should continue from there.  Even as I started reading The Dead Tossed Waves, I wasn't feeling it.  It seemed slow, and I had a hard time getting into it.

I would honestly say it took me about halfway through to start getting excited about it.  That's when the story really took off, and oh boy, it got intense!  And what I really ended up loving about this one was the heart, and how there was still so much love and hope in the midst of probably the most depressing world ever imagined.  Take this example from the book:

My mother places her palm flat against mine.  "It's never been a perfect world.  It's never going to be.  It's going to be hard and scary and, if you're lucky, wonderful and awe-inspiring.  But you have to push through the bad parts to get to the good."

"What if there aren't good parts?"  I ask her, the tears creeping back up my throat.  "What if I've already lived the good parts and there's nothing left?"

She laughs, throaty and deep.  "Trust me when I tell you that there is plenty left," she says.  "You just have to take the risk sometimes in order to find them.  Step outside what's comfortable and safe."

This was just one of many parts that I absolutely loved.  I really cared about these characters, and was incredibly emotionally invested.  I cannot wait for the next book to come out.  I would highly recommend this book, and The Forest of Hands and Teeth.  You don't need to have read the first book to read this one--you won't be lost, but they're both such good books that I wouldn't skip either one.   

 

The Forest of Hands and Teeth

Title: The Forest of Hands and Teeth
Author: Carrie Ryan
Genre: YA Fantasy
Page Count: 308
Why I read it: Kept hearing about it
Grade: A

Synopsis:
In Mary's world there are simple truths. The Sisterhood always knows best. The Guardians will protect and serve. The Unconsecrated will never relent. And you must always mind the fence that surrounds the village; the fence that protects the village from the Forest of Hands and Teeth.
But, slowly, Mary's truths are failing her. She's learning things she never wanted to know about the Sisterhood and its secrets, and the Guardians and their power, and about the Unconsecrated and their relentlessness. When the fence is breached and her world is thrown into chaos, she must choose between her village and her future - between the one she loves and the one who loves her. And she must face the truth about the Forest of Hands and Teeth. Could there be life outside a world surrounded in so much death? 

My review:
When I finished this book, I felt like I wanted to have a good, long cry.  The story is so heartbreaking, and yet I never felt like it lost hope.  That's a tricky balance, but Carrie Ryan pulled it off beautifully.

Mary, the main character was at times selfish and annoying, but also showed depth and a strength that was admirable.  I would have liked to see the other characters a little more fleshed out, instead of just being in the story as they related to Mary.  But the more I've thought about the book, the more I've realized, as one of the characters said at one point in the story, it's all about Mary.  The story is her journey, and if the other characters aren't fully realized, it was the author's intention.

The plot was fast-paced, and kept me up late reading last night until I couldn't keep my eyes open anymore.  Then I read every spare moment, until I finished it this morning.  I love books that I can't wait to get back to, instead of ones where I have to force myself to read.  As I read, I kept hoping that there would be another book, because I was nearing the end and I felt like the story wasn't told yet.  So I looked it up, and it looks like there is.  I will continue reading, and will definitely be keeping my eye out for more books by Carrie Ryan in the future.