New Review! Far From Home (Far Series #1) by Kate L. Mary 5 Cranky Stars

Far from Home by Kate L. Mary
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

5 Cranky stars


"We figure out a way to survive in this world. It's all we can do."

Rowan is a typical 20 year old college student at the University of Phoenix. She has lived a sheltered life, never wanting for anything, protected by her doting parents. When a deadly virus attacks, Rowan's mother tells her to stay in Phoenix, far away from the worst of the outbreak in NYC. However, Rowan is determined to make her way cross country to her parents in Ohio.


Since she can't imagine making the trip by herself, she searches for others wanting to go East. Soon, she is joined by a bookish, quiet girl named Kiaya and a boy named Kyle. As the trio starts their journey, they soon learn that the virus isn't just attacking people "back East", but has arrived much closer to them. A bathroom stop exposes them to the virus and they soon find themselves stuck in a motel room with one of them dying from the virus.


They meet up with a cop named Devon who is also stranded in the small town of Vega, Texas and decide that the best option is to join forces and travel together. "Traveling across a zombie-infested country is the dumbest thing I've ever heard." They soon find out that not only is there a virus that is killing 85% of the population, but those who die from the virus don't stay dead. "The world has turned into a horror movie."


"Amarillo. Shit. This could be bad." I found this quote to be especially funny since I lived in Amarillo for two years. The author does a good job in describing the journey along Route 66 and you could almost see the things she mentioned along the Route. The group is saved in Amarillo by a boy named Hank who thought he was all alone in the world.

They soon arrive in Shamrock and meet up with another group of survivors, including a (supposed) Army Corporal, a nurse, a slightly mentally handicapped man and his young niece and nephew. After several close calls with zombies, the group again hits the road toward Ohio. "At this point, I'm going to assume anything is possible."


At first, Rowan thinks that Devon is an arrogant ass, but soon finds herself attracted to him. "The idea of a post-apocalyptic romance seemed absurd." But, who knows what might happen when the world as you know it is coming to an end?

They finally arrive in Indianapolis, where Kiaya hopes to find her sister, then travel to Rowan's home in Troy, Ohio. But, will they find their loved ones alive and well or turned into one of the walking undead? "This world, this new reality, was just too painful." There is plenty of emotion and sadness as they learn the truth.


I enjoyed the fact that the author intertwined this book with her other series, "Broken World" when Rowan meets one of the characters from that book. It just added another element of enjoyment to an already wonderful book.

The characters were well-written and believable and the author does a good job with slowly introducing them to each other and to the reader. The book had plenty of action and tension for the diehard zombie lover and plenty of human interaction for the rest of us. By the end of the book, I was emotionally exhausted and deeply saddened by the events of the story. But, I also felt hope that life would continue, even in the face of a zombie apocalypse. I look forward to continuing this series and hope that the author keeps writing for a long, long time.


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