Ratings74
Average rating3.9
A decadent rock star. A deeply religious radio host. A disgraced scientist. And a teenage girl who may be the world’s last hope. From the mind of Chuck Wendig comes an astonishing tapestry of humanity that Harlan Coben calls “a suspenseful, twisty, satisfying, surprising, thought-provoking epic.” Shana wakes up one morning to discover her little sister in the grip of a strange malady. She appears to be sleepwalking. She cannot talk and cannot be woken up. And she is heading with inexorable determination to a destination that only she knows. But Shana and her sister are not alone. Soon they are joined by a flock of sleepwalkers from across America, on the same mysterious journey. And, like Shana, there are other “shepherds” who follow the flock to protect their friends and family on the long dark road ahead. For on their journey, they will discover an America convulsed with terror and violence, where this apocalyptic epidemic proves less dangerous than the fear of it. As the rest of society collapses all around them—and an ultraviolent militia threatens to exterminate them—the fate of the sleepwalkers depends on unraveling the mystery behind the epidemic. The terrifying secret will either tear the nation apart—or bring the survivors together to remake a shattered world.
Featured Series
2 primary books3 released booksWanderers is a 3-book series with 2 primary works first released in 2019 with contributions by Chuck Wendig and James Murdo.
Reviews with the most likes.
Unsettling to read during the coronavirus outbreak but this book was so well written (and well-read in the audiobook)! I was especially taken with the variety of characters and their diverse voices.
Ugh. What a drag.
Wendig tries to follow the steps of Stephen King but fails so miserably. I'm not sure I would have finished it if it wasn't because I got this as part of a gifted book subscription. Nothing happens for the first 500 pages, not even character development and after 800 the author was still unable to write a decent arc for any of the characters. Each one of their stories seems just like stereotypes that have been used a thousand times before (only probably better than here).
This read like it was written with the intention of becoming a film/TV show and it kinda tracks given the fact that it ended on a cliff-hanger that leads to a second book (equally long) which I will not be reading.
I could have done without the racial and homophobic slurs, without the rape scene that did not really add anything to the plot and without the sexism (not just from the nasty characters but also from those that are described as the heroes).
Minor point and probably not the author's fault, but the edition of the book was also dreadful – there were numerous printing errors, and words being combined when it didn't seem like that was the intention of the author.
As a personal note, if you have anything remotely close to trypophobia – don't read this book. It will trigger you.