The basic plot is a variation on Bird Box but instead of weird creatures , it's humans- specifically the eyes- that send people into their murderous and suicidal rages.
The story starts a couple of years after the madness took hold. Riley is living in the secluded house by a lake where her grandparents slaughtered each other. She hasn't seen a human in as long as she can think.
The time is the near future where it seems deliveries and food production have been automated. Deliveries are becoming more sporadic and more expensive, but they are still somehow happening. The electricity supply is still on as is the internet to allow her to order.
Why there's no reference to growing her own food, I'm not sure. This is the least self-sufficient apocalypse survivor I think I've read for some time.
That's not a major fault though, since the book is rather brilliantly written. The observations I just made did not occur to me in the slightest while I was reading it.
A new neighbour moves into a house down the road, throwing Riley's life into chaos. This is an exploration of grief, survivor guilt and loneliness. With some evil crows thrown in for good measure.
The biggest flaw with this book is that, despite the trips up the garden path on the way there, it did finish almost exactly as I thought it would. Is that inevitability or predictability? In this case, since I did enjoy the journey as much as I did, I'll be generous and say it's more inevitable.
The prose is fluid and Riley is a great creation. She makes a fully sympathetic and relatable protagonist.
Another great read in my October horror marathon.
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