Bird Box by Josh Malerman

4 Stars

I have owned this booked for quite some time now and have yet to get around to reading it. I actually only managed to pick it up as I had read a really good review about this book on another blog I read. 

The book follows Malorie as our main character and switches between the present day where she has two children in tow and the past where it all began. The story tells of mostly Malorie's survival in a somewhat new world where there are 'creatures' whereby seeing it will cause a deadly violence and suicide. Malorie seeks refuge in a house with a few other survivors and the past parts tells of what happens in that house and their survival. The present part of the book tells of Malorie taking the two children in a row boat to seek refuge somewhere new. 

The first thing to point out in this book is that I found the ending to the story extremely abrupt. The book was around 475 pages but the story ends at around 380 (paperback format) due to there being another story by Malerman at the back. I didn't actually read the extra story after reading the premise of it - it didn't really take my fancy. So, just a bit of a warning if you plan to buy/read this book in paperback. 

Overall, I did enjoy this book. The ideas and storyline were much different to the usual dystopian/survival/horror/psychological books out there. Not knowing what was out there and the switches between past and present really kept me reading on and I do love a book which keeps me hanging throughout. The writing style was also nice and easy and flowed throughout. 

However, there were a few things that didn't give me the overall 5 star experience. Firstly, there were a few parts where Malorie is speaking in her mind which got somewhat annoying and felt that they just weren't always needed. I understand Malorie's feelings at these points but it did feel a little unnecessary. Characterisation - I didn't particularly love or hate any of the characters. To me, the characters were just part of the story and that's it. Sometimes when reading a book, you can really love or hate certain characters and this book just didn't do either. Characterisation wasn't badly done and all the characters had a purpose, I just didn't feel them. The abrupt ending as explained above was also a bit niggly. 

The book overall is certainly a good book and one for anybody who enjoys the genre will really enjoy too. Although it doesn't seem like alot happens, it really does. There is so much going on with the characters and their feelings and what to do about their situation. Definitely worth a read!

Happy reading :)