Mercy Mode

October 1, 2014

Gr 9 Up-The Contamination hit as a result of a defective protein additive in a popular weight-loss water. By the time Velvet's mother became one of the "Connies," the government had learned to treat the sickness with an electro-shock collar connected directly to the brain. Connies then became docile enough to be returned to their families. In a moment of desperation as her mother's collar went into "Mercy Mode," an extreme electrical shock capable of killing the wearer, Velvet managed to remove it. Rather than the immediate death the government claimed would occur if the contraption was removed, her mother's condition miraculously improved. For several months, Velvet has been caring for her family in their old house well outside of town with her mother, little sister, a neighbor, and Dillion, her love interest in Contaminated (Egmont USA, 2013), whom she recently married to get better rations and medical supplies. While it has been difficult, they have been able to get by, but the fear caused by the recent outbreak may soon make it impossible. Garner continues her unique take on the very popular zombie story, focusing less on the horror of being attacked by mindless hordes of the undead and more on the homesteading tale of a small group just trying to survive. While the ending takes an unexpected and not necessarily beneficial turn into more common sci-fi territory, this book is a strong follow-up, keeps the pace active, and sets up a new direction for the series.-Ryan F. Paulsen, New Rochelle High School, NY

Copyright 2014 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

June 15, 2014
ThinPro, the diet drink that unleashed the Contamination, is history; its effects-victims descend, zombielike, into mindless violence-are anything but.To contain the still-spreading outbreak, areas hardest hit-Pennsylvania, much of the Northeast and Pacific coasts, and urban centers-are designated "black zones," where healthy residents live under brutal, chaotic military quarantine and the Contaminated are rounded up and incarcerated-a one-way trip. Velvet and Dillon, who've married strictly to qualify her for benefits, struggle to maintain their fragile household: Opal, Velvet's sister; their mother, freed from her collar but ailing; and an elderly neighbor. While Dillon toils at his government-mandated job, Velvet prowls their abandoned subdivision seeking food and other necessities, sometimes making frightening discoveries. Hardship toughens her-but Dillon (and sometimes Velvet herself) worries there's a less benign explanation for her vastly increased strength, stamina and ruthless practicality. After all, Velvet herself once downed ThinPro. This violent world feels real because the violence has real-world consequences that force grim choices. Weighing the safety of loved ones against what's ethical and humane is agonizing, especially for Velvet. Tough and empathetic, hard yet vulnerable, she belongs in the front ranks of the dystopian sisterhood.Volume 2 of this smart series builds momentum and suspense, raises stakes and expands narrative scope-in short, plan on a marathon, up-all-night read. (Science fiction. 12 & up)

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January 1, 2015
When her family is suddenly split up, Velvet (Contaminated) is taken by force to a sanitarium. Her mother is one of the Contaminated (consumers of a diet drink contaminated by animal proteins that eat holes in the victims' brains, rendering them dangerously violent)--and Velvet discovers that she is a very special case herself. Velvet's complexity and thoughtfulness make her an especially interesting dystopian heroine.

(Copyright 2015 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

September 1, 2014
This sequel to Contaminated (rev. 9/13) starts out slowly but hits its stride halfway through, when protagonist Velvet becomes a subject for medical testing. Seventeen-year-old Velvet lives with her boyfriend Dillon; her eleven-year-old sister Opal; an elderly neighbor; and her mother, a "Connie," or one of the Contaminated--consumers of a diet drink contaminated by animal proteins that eat holes in the victims' brains, rendering them dangerously violent. Violet must fight viciously to get past the Connies every time she leaves the house to get supplies; but when the family is suddenly split up and she is taken by force to a sanitarium, she discovers that she is a very special case herself. Velvet's complexity and thoughtfulness make her an especially interesting dystopian heroine, and the intense and horrifying plot comes to an exciting conclusion that satisfies but provides some enticing threads to continue in the next installment. susan dove lempke

(Copyright 2014 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)