The global outbreak of a new strain of virus wiped out over 99% of the population. The lone hope rests on the slim, unready shoulders of Dr. Justin Kaes and a small team of specialists from the Center for Disease Control. The researchers have discovered a cure for the plague in the blood of a cantankerous 102 year old. But there’s one minor problem: the old man couldn’t care less whether humanity lives or dies. And he most certainly doesn’t feel like going on a road trip to sunny California.
On the way to the coast lie murderous tribes, cults, voracious animals, and the toxic remains of civilization. They face a world gone backwards, technology and industry reduced to rusting garbage. Their mission seems doomed… But there are a few decent souls still out there, citizens of Plaguesville, USA.
PLAGUESVILLE USA by Jim Lavigne is a post-apocalyptic saga, with both inspiring and frightening plague survivors. Several times, the scientific mission is likened to the Wizard of Oz by some of the main characters. While there are some similarities, this trek is far more brutal and deadly.
The plot goes something like this: a group of scientists with the key to a vaccine are trying to get from point A to point B, when something goes wrong, people die, but they catch a lucky break, and they're on their way again...then something goes wrong, people die, they catch a break, and they continue with the mission...then something goes wrong - well, you get the idea. This formula of events continues for a good 3/4 of the story. The first time I read this story, I was a little put off by the repetitive nature, but after reading the book more than once, I now appreciate the determination of Kaes to complete his task of delivering Lambert to California.
However, I kept reading because I love the survivors. LaVigne could have expanded a bit more on the interactions with the various groups of people, but the author did a fabulous job creating some of the most polarizing characters I've read in a long time...similar to The Stand (Stephen King), with survivors intrinsically involved in the fate of the world, whether they realize it or not.
In the last 1/4 of the story, LaVigne releases a powerful storm of intrigue, tragedy, battles and horror, with a Lovecraft touch to the details, and I can't help but wonder if the author chose this change in the writing style to make readers feel like they were the ones on a hopeless mission to save humanity, rewarding those who make it to the end of the book.
While the epilogue is a nice touch, the author skips showing us the final moments of the quest to create the vaccine. After the long journey with the characters, the time jump is somewhat anticlimactic. However, I still recommend this story to fans of Mad Max (1979) or The Omega Man (1971).
As always,
AstraDaemon
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