⇒ PDF Free The Reapers Are the Angels A Novel eBook Alden Bell

The Reapers Are the Angels A Novel eBook Alden Bell

Download As PDF : The Reapers Are the Angels A Novel eBook Alden Bell

The Reapers Are the Angels A Novel eBook Alden Bell

I was recently exposed to a series of top (insert # here) list of apocalyptic novels, and I was extremely upset not to find The Reapers Are the Angels did not appear on a single one, which amazed me. Not to denigrate the books that do appear on those lists, very few of them can even hold a candle to The Reapers Are the Angels. Then I realized that while this is my favorite post-apocalyptic novel of the last 20 years, I had never reviewed it and thus was partially contributory to the neglect of this excellent book. I can't give it a proper place on any of these so-called "best of" lists, but I can at least add my voice to the acclaim from those who have read it.

This is a post-apocalyptic story, but set apart from the norm of the genre as it is not told from the point-of-view of a survivor, or of a group of people trying to undo or escape from what has occurred. Instead, it is told from the POV of a young woman born after the apocalypse and who is perfectly adapted to, and appreciative of, the world in which she lives. This creates the chilling, yet beautiful, nature of this book. The main character is not civilized as we might view civilization, and she (and kindred characters) can be brutal and chilling. But at the same time she has a spirituality and appreciation of beauty and life that comes from actually living in her world, however imperfect from our perspective. Bell is excellent at showing her strength, even as the harsh world draws an inescapable net around her. Don't pity Temple, Bell shows us. Pity those people who haven't been able to let go of what was in order to live in what is; pockets of regret and fear shrinking in on themselves and surviving only in a physical sense in a world that has left them behind. Yes, there's probably a message lurking in there for modern America, but it's subtle and never overwhelms the story or the characters.

Alden Bell also infuses the story with a modern languid Southern Gothic voice that perfectly compliments this new world. Harsh, unforgiving, filled with principled characters that are neither good nor evil, as the zombies are neither good nor evil, the poetry and imagery will stay with you long after you set it down. A zombie story that is as much or more about the triumph of life as it is death or undeath. This is a rare book that may polarize or scandalize, but only because of its undeniable emotional and intellectual impact. And that is a rare feat, to appeal to both the head and the heart in equal measure. In short, this is a book worth reading.


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The Reapers Are the Angels A Novel eBook Alden Bell Reviews

The prose of this novel is wonderful, something I rarely come across in the zombie genre. The world is a dark place but there is such light and life in thoughts and dialogue much in the way Cormac McCarthy surprises you. Linguistic anthropologists believe if there is a sudden decline in civilzation the people would revert back to Creole languages, that is, basic and simple speak of plain folk. The author takes pains to show this phenomena in the younger people who were born without the advantages experienced by the older survivors or those who were born into wealth. This is a unique time and place to visit.
The zombies are basically just a McGuffin here to set the plot spinning, so don't think of this as a "zombie novel". This novel packs both an emotional and intellectual punch that far outweighs its modest length. In the end it's a people novel, a novel about living in the world as it is, not as we wish it to be, and a novel about a certain kind of person in the world that was made. The ending is somewhat brutal... but then, so is the reality of the book. And our reality beneath the veneer, for that matter.

There are few novels that will make me just sit back and say, "Whoa. That was something special." This is one of them, one of I think it's a half dozen novels now out of the thousands of novels I've read in my lifetime that I'd give six stars if it were possible.
The main character was born around after the time of the Zombie Apocalypse (ZA) and did not know of any other life.
An unusual aspect of the dialog was that it is not in quotes, instead almost looking like thoughts. I don’t believe that I have seen this before and I liked it. Since the ZA had happened some years previously the grammar is poorer. This was the first depiction that I’ve seen of life well after the ZA and the inevitable erosion or even disappearance of structured education. The result of this would include some no longer being able to read or write for example.

I did find that some infrastructure elements like water, power, some gasoline stations and vehicles still operating were unexpected given the passage of time. I don’t believe that the original cause was discussed which I appreciated because that is covered excessively in most other books on the subject. Not to include any spoilers, I only mention that the Z and some survivor depictions also included differences that I have not seen before that added to the interest.

If you are looking for ZAF that is thought provoking and different this is an excellent example and I recommend it.
Absolutely fantastic read. I was quite surprised at how much I enjoyed this book. First, it's a dystopian fantasy involving zombies. What fun! Second, the writing is very different and I was a bit taken aback by the fact that quotation marks were not used to mark dialog. This is the second book I've come across that skipped quotation marks and the first time I put the book back on the shelf. I didn't realize this book was written that way until I was already into it a bit but this time, it didn't slow me down or confuse me at all. The main character is a 15yo girl who is on her own in this frightening new world. She has grown up knowing nothing else and is a product of this new world, illiterate, a wanderer, a philosopher, tough but damaged by all she's experienced. She has found a bit of a refuge in a lighthouse off the coast of Florida, but the "slugs" have found her and it's time to move on once again. As she travels north, she discovers a small oasis of civilization that a few have carved out of the devastation. A brief stay proves to change the course of her life and she inadvertently gains an enemy who will not stop hunting her until he's gotten his revenge. However, he's never met a girl quite like her and knows that they are the same, they understand each other, down to the marrow. But that doesn't mean she shouldn't die.
I was recently exposed to a series of top (insert # here) list of apocalyptic novels, and I was extremely upset not to find The Reapers Are the Angels did not appear on a single one, which amazed me. Not to denigrate the books that do appear on those lists, very few of them can even hold a candle to The Reapers Are the Angels. Then I realized that while this is my favorite post-apocalyptic novel of the last 20 years, I had never reviewed it and thus was partially contributory to the neglect of this excellent book. I can't give it a proper place on any of these so-called "best of" lists, but I can at least add my voice to the acclaim from those who have read it.

This is a post-apocalyptic story, but set apart from the norm of the genre as it is not told from the point-of-view of a survivor, or of a group of people trying to undo or escape from what has occurred. Instead, it is told from the POV of a young woman born after the apocalypse and who is perfectly adapted to, and appreciative of, the world in which she lives. This creates the chilling, yet beautiful, nature of this book. The main character is not civilized as we might view civilization, and she (and kindred characters) can be brutal and chilling. But at the same time she has a spirituality and appreciation of beauty and life that comes from actually living in her world, however imperfect from our perspective. Bell is excellent at showing her strength, even as the harsh world draws an inescapable net around her. Don't pity Temple, Bell shows us. Pity those people who haven't been able to let go of what was in order to live in what is; pockets of regret and fear shrinking in on themselves and surviving only in a physical sense in a world that has left them behind. Yes, there's probably a message lurking in there for modern America, but it's subtle and never overwhelms the story or the characters.

Alden Bell also infuses the story with a modern languid Southern Gothic voice that perfectly compliments this new world. Harsh, unforgiving, filled with principled characters that are neither good nor evil, as the zombies are neither good nor evil, the poetry and imagery will stay with you long after you set it down. A zombie story that is as much or more about the triumph of life as it is death or undeath. This is a rare book that may polarize or scandalize, but only because of its undeniable emotional and intellectual impact. And that is a rare feat, to appeal to both the head and the heart in equal measure. In short, this is a book worth reading.