Interior: Classroom:
As a teacher drones on and on about something, his students watch the clock and focus their attention elsewhere. For Shur, this means looking outside, which is normally a safe and uncomplicated thing to do. However, on this early September day, something is amiss outdoors. On the nearby roof of the school lays a butterfly, but not a regular butterfly or even a rare monarch. No, this butterfly is massive. It’s much, much bigger than average. Cue panic.
After an outdoor gym class is cut short, announcements are made. Students are not to panic, but should all make their way to the gym in orderly fashion. The school is going into lockdown. However, despite being told not to go outside, either, Shur, her brother Keene and their friends, Nathan and Jenny, decide to risk it. They run out the doors, head for Keene’s beater and drive away. First, they must stop and pick up their young brother, Shawn (aka. Little) from daycare in order to help their mom. Then, they can rush home to presumed safety. The thing is, they’re not prepared for what they see while en route, including massive butterflies swooping down and eating someone’s arm.
It seems like this new species isn’t here to befriend us.
Above resides the premise of a soon-to-be-released novel by author Jennifer D. Lyle, which is appropriately titled Swarm. It’s expected to hit bookstore and library shelves on the seventh of November, but we were able to get an early copy to read through.
As you’ve surely surmised from reading the above, Swarm is a book about several characters attempting to survive something unexpected, which could very well be the beginning of the end. With little knowledge of what to expect, the five lock themselves up inside a farmhouse and attempt to wait things out. They do what they need to, including cooking, laundry, etc. and try not to think about what’s going on outside. It’s tough, though, because Little misses the outdoors and doesn’t understand what’s happening. Furthermore, Shur and Keene’s mom is stuck at work and cannot get home to help them or look after things. All the while, unpredictable patriots drive up and down the street, firing assault rifles at the giant butterflies without worrying about where the stray bullets end up.
This is a really interesting premise, but the book doesn’t take things as far as I had hoped it would. I’ve read books like this before, and was hoping for something different. That said, Swarm is a good novel, and one I definitely recommend to those with interest in its subject matter. I liked its characters, thought the writing was good, and enjoyed my hours spent with it. If there was a sequel, I’d read that too. It’s just not as original as I’d hoped it’d be, outside of the killer butterflies. Then again, I read a lot of horror books, including numerous ones where characters are trying to survive the unknown or the end of the world.
Another thing that you should be aware of, though I don’t think it’s a criticism against this book, is the fact that it’s a young adult read. Thus, it’s tailored for an audience younger than myself, which I was fine with. I read interesting sounding YA books because there are a lot of good ones, and I’m not one to pass on a good or interesting book because it’s for teenagers.
If you’re looking for a good read this winter, Swarm by Jennifer D. Lyle should definitely be on your radar. That is, provided you enjoy stories of survival, where characters are up against bad odds and must deal with the unknown. It’s got some horror to it, too, which is good.
This review is based on a copy of the book that we were provided with.