The Fear (The Enemy #3) Review

The Fear (The Enemy #3)

- Charlie Higson

Publisher: Puffin

HE DOESN’T KNOW IT BUT DOG NUT IS ABOUT TO SET OFF A CHAIN OF EVENTS THAT WILL AFFECT EVERY KID IN THE CITY.
The sickness struck everyone over the age of fourteen.
Mothers and fathers, older brothers, sisters and best friends. No one escaped its touch. And now children across London are being hunted by ferocious grown-ups . . .
They’re hungry. They’re bloodthirsty. And they aren’t giving up.
Dog Nut and the rest of his crew want to find their lost friends, and set off on a deadly mission from the Tower of London to Buckingham Palace and beyond, as the sickos lie in wait. But who are their friends and who is the enemy in this changed world?

This is the third book in this phenomenal YA series. Honestly, if you like some action and heart stopping, unpredictability you can’t do better than this. Even better for those who like romance, there is more a hint in this book than in others as the teenagers left are growing up. The premise is simple – a year ago everyone over the age of 14 grew sick and either died or became mindless cannibals, feasting on the flesh of children. The children that survived have grouped together in various London landmarks and are struggling to build some sort of life for themselves.

The previous two books have been very focused on survival and holding onto what makes you human in order to carry on – the tough choices that are forced on you. This book (which actually starts five days before The Enemy and crosses over into the events described there, but from a different perspective) starts asking the bigger questions, like what sort of world do you want to live in. A number of different systems are explored from democracy to royalist, military to science. When the whole world has gone to hell and you have to start again, where do you start? Despite these deep questions, there is still plenty of exciting action as the sickos attack randomly and without warning. The fight scenes are very realistic and intense, made even more so by the relationship between the characters. You care about them so when they are hurt, injured or killed it leaves a lump in your throat.

There are some extremely creepy scenes – the Collector is one disturbing character who adds layers to what happens when the adult sicken with the disease. And St George’s actions will leave you chilled and worried for the kids will have to face soon. Overall, this book finishes about the same time as The Enemy, but leaves you with a much wider appreciation of the world of these teens have inherited. Again I caution you, that not all characters will reach the back page in on piece and this sense of danger, that anyone can be killed is one of the reasons I love this series so much!

Recommended for fans of Jonathan Maberry and Will Hill. 9 out of 10.