The Fever by Megan Abbott

The Fever

by Megan Abbott

Her hands flying up, she grabbed her throat, her body jolting to one side.

Then, in one swoop, her desk overturned, clattering to the floor.

And with it Lise. Her head twisting, slamming into the tiles, her bright red face turned up, mouth teeming with froth.

"Lise," sighed Mrs. Chalmers, too far in front to see. "What is your problem?"

The Nashes are a close-knit family. Tom, a popular teacher, is father to the handsome, roguish Eli and his younger sister Deenie, serious and sweet. But their seeming stability is thrown into chaos when two of Deenie's friends become violently ill, and rumours of a dangerous outbreak sweep through the whole community.

As hysteria swells and as more girls succumb, tightly held secrets emerge that threaten to unravel the world Tom has built for his kids, and destroy friendships, families, and the town's fragile idea of security.

The Fever is a chilling story about guilt, family secrets, and the lethal power of desire.

Reviewed by adarkershadeofrosie on

2 of 5 stars

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→ DISLIKED: Time passed agonizingly slowly in the book. • Just about every chapter had a cliffhanger. • I could not get the character's names straight. If the character wasn't a main character in the book, I had to go back and figure out who they were because I couldn't remember where I'd seen their name before. • I finished The Fever with a feeling of incompleteness. One girl's sickness was solved, but with all of the others, I didn't feel satisfied with the answer at all.

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Reading updates

  • Started reading
  • 30 August, 2014: Finished reading
  • 30 August, 2014: Reviewed