The Lives We Lost (Fallen World Trilogy #2)

by Megan Crewe

Overview

First, the virus took Kaelyn's friends, then her family, and now it's spread beyond her island. No one is safe. But when Kaelyn finds samples of a vaccine hidden in her father's abandoned laboratory, she knows there's only one option: seek out someone who can replicate it.

As Kaelyn and her friends head to the mainland they face greater challenges than they ever could have imagined. Not everyone they meet wants Kaelyn to succeed-and many simply want her dead and the vaccine for themselves. With the chance of finding help slipping away, will Kaelyn be forced to sacrifice those she loves in order to rescue the human race?

Megan Crewe's second installment in this powerful and gripping YA series tackles self-preservation, first love, and hope. This heart-wrenching story of one girl's bravery and unbeatable spirit will leave readers fervently awaiting the final book in this suspenseful and action-packed trilogy.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781423146322
Publisher:	Disney-Hyperion
Publication date:	01/14/2014
Series:	Collins-Burke #08 , #2
Pages:	304
Product dimensions:	5.00(w) x 7.90(h) x 0.90(d)
Age Range:	12 - 17 Years

About the Author

Megan Crewe (www.megancrewe.com) finds writing about herself much more difficult than making things up. A few definite facts: she lives in Toronto, Canada, with her husband and three cats (and does on occasion say "eh"); she tutors teens with special needs; and-thankfully-the worst virus she's caught so far is the garden variety flu. She is also the author of Give Up the Ghost.

Editorial Reviews

At first encouraged by the return of her friend Leo, Kaelyn is devastated to learn that the virus that decimated her island home also swept through the Canadian mainland, in spite of the government's quarantine of the island. When Kaelyn finds her late father's research notes and six vials of vaccine, she and four friends depart for the mainland to find a research lab that can refine the vaccine and make it available to the general population. Heading for Toronto, they are accosted by militants who disable their truck when they find out about the vaccine. The group then treks on foot, hiding in abandoned homes. Whenever the militants show up, they make it clear that they are willing to kill for the vaccine. But the militants have a network of spies and headquarters across Canada, and even when the teens get to Toronto, after many harrowing escapes, they are still threatened. After finding every lab abandoned, their best chance is to head for Atlanta, where they hope someone still works at the CDC. Throughout the story, Kaelyn's resolve is often tested by the others' desire to stay somewhere safe from the militants and the virus. The idea that people would kill others to save themselves, and the fact that the government has abandoned its own population, weigh heavily on all of these teens, who are consumed by guilt that they could not do more to save their friends and family. Each character has changed as a result of the virus and the horrors they have faced during their journey (providing a double meaning for the title). Crewe does not supply much background from the first book, so readers would be advised to read The Way We Fall first, and to hope that the wait for the final book is a short one. Reviewer: Magi Evans

Children's Literature - Magi Evans

Gr 7 Up—Except for her younger cousin, 17-year-old Kaelyn's family is gone. When her best friend, Leo, arrives to tell her that the quarantine of their tiny island off the south coast of Nova Scotia didn't work and that the virus has become a global pandemic, it seems as if all hope is lost. Then Kaelyn discovers that her father developed a vaccine; she's determined to get it into the hands of someone who can replicate it and save the world. She and her friends begin a long winter trek toward Ottawa and hope. But hope is hard to find in this new world ravaged by disease, and their journey soon becomes a struggle for survival. The first chapter of this sequel is a continuation of Kaelyn's journal that made up the content of The Way We Fall (Hyperion, 2012), but the rest of the story unfolds in a straightforward, first-person narrative. The storytelling is choppily episodic as Kaelyn and her friends encounter those who have risen to power as well as people who are willing to help them. The characters are distinct, and many of them experience nuanced soul-wrestling as the story unfolds. The author has made some convenient choices in order to direct the plot, but on the whole this is a readable tale about courage and heroism in the face of a world that is falling apart.—Heather M. Campbell, formerly at Philip S. Miller Library, Castle Rock, CO

School Library Journal

The disease from The Way We Fall (2012) has reached the mainland, but so has Kaelyn, carrying a potential vaccine. Kaelyn finally accesses her dead father's laboratory and finds that he created an untested vaccine for the deadly flu before he was murdered. With the island no longer under quarantine, Kaelyn knows she must get the notes and samples to mainland scientists who can recreate it, if humanity is to have any hope of survival. But the mainland is more devastated than she imagined. The novel's title can refer both to the mass deaths and, more poignantly, to the pre-flu world Kaelyn mourns--the desire to return civilization to what was lost pushes her ever forward and strengthens her resolve. Since Kaelyn is immune, the virus is less of a threat than other people; a highly organized band of survivors wishes to get the vaccine for themselves. But Kaelyn spends more time worrying about the state of her friendship with Leo than considering them. Although the prose is no longer a diary, it's still related in the first-person--sometimes a bit too unevenly, as side characters get lost in the background although they are ostensibly present and active. The ending sets up the next book instead of offering any resolution. Kaelyn's grim determination and character growth offer readers a reprieve from bleakness, leaving them ready for the next installment. (Science fiction. 12 & up)

Kirkus Reviews