LitPick Review
The Garden of Darkness is a book about a girl named Clare. She becomes an orphan because of a mysterious illness called "Pest." Pest is a disease that is killing all of the adults and most of the children in the world. Only a small portion of children will survive, and even they will die of "Pest" in time. Clare is one of these survivors. She knows she is close to the age where “Pest” will set in anyway (16 - 18), but because of mysterious broadcasts, she knows she has a chance. One adult has survived “Pest” and he isn’t a Cured either (one who is saved by the 'cure' but goes crazy because of it). The adult is broadcasting over the radio saying, “I am the Master-of-the-Situation. I have a real cure that I am willing to give to anyone who comes to me.” He also goes on to explain exactly where he is. Knowing that, Clare decides to try and make it to where the Master-of-the-Situation lives. Along the way, Clare makes new friends in other “Pest” survivors, such as Jem, Mirri, and Sarai. Will Clare and her friends make it to the Master-of-the-Situation in time, or will "Pest" kill them before they reach him? Find out in The Garden of Darkness!
Opinion:
I think The Garden of Darkness was a good book full of suspense and mystery. The author, Gillian Murray Kendall, wrote a reasonably believable story about a post-apocalyptic world. One of the things I liked about it was that the characters felt like they could easily be real. An instance that I liked from the book was when Clare found Jem, Mirri, and Sarai. Together they scavenged a bunch of cool items from the city and discovered some useful information along the way. One thing I didn't like, though, was that it was pretty confusing at the beginning and ending, which at times made it really tough to understand. It is also slightly creepy with mention of cults and a serial killer. I would recommend this book to ages thirteen through seventeen because of the content's maturity level.
