It's been awhile since I've written a book review. Bogged down from work and moving to the Midwest gave me no choice but to slack on blogging and even leisure reading. Now that I am about three months unemployed (and still searching), I have had the pleasure of picking up some interesting reads including this thriller, Enclave by Ann Aguirre.
First of all, I am a huge dystopian novel fan. While this hits on a little dystopian, it mostly focuses on the post-apocalyptic world. With zombie-inspired creatures, you wonder if there's any sign of hope for the people surviving in underground tunnels, the enclave.
This isn't a zombie book, but when I started reading about the "Freaks" who are hungry and part human, I couldn't help but think of them as zombies. However, these Freaks seem a little more scary. They seem powerfully strong and will kill anything for some meat. Over time, these Freaks show they have adapted to the new world and are beginning to become more smart. This means that they figure out how to attack an entire population of people. Will they attack the surviving enclaves where men, women, and children occupy?
The main character, Deuce, is a huntress who has trained to kill anything that serves as a threat to her enclave in order to redeem food for her people. She comes of age to begin her life as a huntress putting behind her life as a "brat." You see, down here life expectancy is low, and you only earn a name if you turn 15 years old. Otherwise, you are simply known as "Brat16" or "Brat30." Something to live for then, huh? Deuce gets partnered with a guy name Fade who was actually taken in from the enclave and lived "Topside" for some time. Topside is exactly how it sounds- above the underground subway tunnels. Deuce and Fade make a rash decision to protect another person and are thereby banned from the enclave.
Therefore, this is the story of two partners who weather the storm of Freaks, dangerous gang members who survive the city streets of NYC, and starvation. Where will they go? How will they avoid death? Quite unpredictable, I recommend this story to anyone looking for a fast-paced and exciting journey.
On a last note, I found it intriguing that the author, Ann Aguirre, was inspired to write this story based off of research of "mole people." Mole people are said to be homeless who live underground NYC in subway, flood, and sewage tunnels. Jennifer Toth, a journalist from the 1990's, wrote a book called "The Mole People." She claims to have received firsthand accounts from these people and takes it upon herself to tell us "what they have to say about their lives and the "topside" world they've left behind."
What do you think, is there such a thing as people who live underground?
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