The Lives We Lost by Megan Crewe

Genre: YA Dystopia
Series: Fallen World #2
Publication Date: 12th February 2012
Pages: 288
Book Source: Disney Book Group & NetGalley

Synopsis: First, the virus took Kaelyn’s friends. Then, her family. Now it’s taken away her home.

But she can't look back—the life she once had is gone forever.

A deadly virus has destroyed Kaelyn’s small island community and spread beyond the quarantine. No one is safe. But when Kaelyn finds samples of a vaccine in her father's abandoned lab, she knows there must be someone, somewhere, who can replicate it. As Kaelyn and her friends head to the mainland, they encounter a world beyond recognition. It’s not only the “friendly flu” that’s a killer—there are people who will stop at nothing to get their hands on the vaccine. How much will Kaelyn risk for an unproven cure, when the search could either destroy those she loves or save the human race?

Megan Crewe's second volume in the Fallen World trilogy is an action-packed journey that explores the resilience of friendship, the ache of lost love, and Kaelyn’s enduring hope in the face of the sacrifices she must make to stay alive.

My Thoughts:

I love a 'good' deadly virus story, probably because it's not too far removed from reality, nothing like a dose of paranoia and fear to get a germ-o-phobe's heart racing. The Lives We Lost is told as a regular narrative unlike the diary entry - letter format of the 1st book and I have to say it added a different dimension - heightened suspense and action.

Kaelyn, Meredith, Gav, and Tessa leave their decimated island community for the mainland and learn as they travel across Canada that the virus has left no area untouched and the lives they once knew are gone forever. Some characters play a lesser role this time round but new character Tobias was a welcome addition to the cast and after reading quite a bit about Leo in The Way We Fall I enjoyed him being present in this book. 

The Lives We Lost is a great 2nd installment, I enjoyed it just as much as The Way We Fall. It demonstrates the continued unraveling of a society annihilated by fear and a deadly virus and magnifies peoples' motivation on self preservation. While hope exists, no matter how slim the thread, there will always be courageous people willing to make difficult choices and fight for the greater good. 

Can't wait to see who's still alive come the final book in the trilogy :)

Visit Megan Crewe's website or blog to find out more.

See my review of book 1 - The Way We Fall