THE ENEMY by Charlie Higson

        The Enemy by Charlie Higson is an amazing dystopian fiction book filled with nonstop action and tons of surprises waiting around every corner. This book is a nonstop thrill ride with tons of twists.

    This book is about a disease that hits the Earth and it has turned everyone over 16 into zombies. It takes place about a year after the infection hit in London, England. Some kids have managed to survive by seeking shelter in a grocery store, but when a new kid shows up saying there’s a safe place at Buckingham Palace, the kids decide to risk it all and go. On the trip they lose many people but when they arrive everything is not as it appears. The kid who is in control of the palace has his own agenda. He doesn’t care about the well-being of his people all he really wants to do is control all of London.

           The characters are really well rounded. They seem like they could be real people. They were tough from a year of fighting for their life and from scavenging food.  They were not sissies but they had a soft spot, which I think really helped shape the story. For example, some kids wanted just to stay alive but others want to take control of all of London for themselves. This new kid that showed up is named Jester when one of the kids dies he doesn’t really care and just wants to make it back to Buckingham Palace.

“They’ve rested enough,” said Jester. “We were hours in Camden waiting for Arran to die.””That’s cold man,” said Blue. “What do you think we should have done? Finished him off ourselves?”” Of course not,” said Jester. “But it was obvious he was going to die.” “We did what we did man,” said Blue. “Couldn’t have done it no other way.””I know,” said Jester.

            I love the way the author switched people every chapter and told how they were surviving. It is organized really well, so whenever it was switching people you did not confuse them with another character.

            Overall I would rate this book an 8.5 out of 10 for the heart pounding action. If you liked this book I would recommend Maze Runner or The Roar. 

Reviewed by Jacob Duncan

8th Grade