The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan

Summary:
In Mary's world, there are simple truths.

The Sisterhood always knows best.

The Guardians will protect and serve.

The Unconsecrated will never relent.

And you must always mind the fence that surrounds the village. The fence that protects the village from the Forest of Hands and Teeth.

But slowly, Mary's truths are failing her. She's learning things she never wanted to know about the Sisterhood and its secrets, and the Guardians and their power. And, when the fence is breached and her world is thrown into chaos, about the Unconsecrated and their relentlessness.

Now she must choose between her village and her future, between the one she loves and the one who loves her. And she must face the truth about the Forest of Hands and Teeth. Could there be life outside a world surrounded by so much death?

My Review: The Forest of Hands and Teeth engrossed me from the first line, and didn't let me go -- I couldn't get enough of this story. I keep telling people it's like M. Night Shyamalan's THE VILLAGE meets 28 DAYS LATER, only better. I'm a terrible reviewer -- I'm so anti-spoiler that I can barely even write about WHY I like a character, because I don't want to spoil the story. But Mary's character is strong and smart, proactive and a real heroine. I loved this book because it's even more character driven than action-zombie-bugaboo-driven. But the zombies are terrifying and integral, not incidental, either.

Zombies + plot + strong prose + realistic characters = ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE BOOK FOR THE WIN.

Can't wait for the movie, can't wait for THE DEAD-TOSSED WAVES. Oh, and look! Here's an awesome book trailer!