The Well's End by Seth Fishman

The Well's End by Seth Fishman
Genre: YA Science Fiction
Expected Publication: February 25th, 2014
Publisher: Putnam Juvenile
Page Count: 352
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A deadly virus and an impossible discovery unite in one enthralling can’t-miss read...

Sixteen-year-old Mia Kish has always been afraid of the dark. After all, she’s baby Mia, the one who fell down a well. That was years ago, though the darkness still haunts her. But when her classmates and teachers at ritzy Westbrook Academy start dying of old age from a bizarre and frightening virus that ages its victims years in a matter of hours, Mia becomes haunted by a lot more than the dark. Their deaths are gruesome and Mia worries she and her friends may be next. In order to survive, Mia and her small crew must break quarantine and outrun armed soldiers in hazmat suits who shoot first and ask questions later.

And there’s only one place to go—the Cave, aka Fenton Electronics. Mia knows it’s somehow connected and hopes her dad, Director of Fenton Electronics, who has always been strangely secretive about his work, has the answers she needs, and more importantly a cure to save everyone before the whole town succumbs to the mysterious virus. Unfortunately, it’s not answers Mia discovers, but something far more treacherous and impossible than even the virus itself.

A high-stakes, fast-paced adventure with imagination and heart.

*An advanced copy was provided for this review*

I think I had somehow caught wind of this novel months ago--August, maybe--and then I had this urge to just want to read it. It is only after I felt the feeling of desire did I discover that this baby wouldn't be coming out onto shelves for another seven months or so. Can you imagine my disappointment? I believe you can. So, it was quite the coincidence when I looked at my holy New York Comic Con schedule and saw that Seth Fishman, author of said coveted book, would be signing advanced copies while I was free on time. I can assure you I made sure I was there at that signing.

Starting off the review, I will say that I thought Mia was pretty cool. Her single relationship status didn't come across as pathetic (which is good because it should not ever be conveyed as something pathetic) and she was a true leader. Mind you, she wasn't always confident, and who would be considering that her entire school is on this militant quarantine and people around her are being infected left and right with this unknown and deadly virus. But I loved that she always followed her gut instinct, no matter what others thought of her. I really loved how she kicked all female teenage archetypes in the ass, because--shocker--she does have fears, she can't solve everything, and she is actually a teenager and not a mutant warrior. She also has fantastic character growth, so yay her.

Ooooh, boy, does this plot just suck you in. I don't think I've read much of this kind of stuff, neither does it usually hold my attention because sometimes they all sound the same, but this one knocked me for a doozy. Call me stupid, but for the most part, I am terrible at predicting accurately future events or outcomes of a story. So, no matter how hard I reflected and tried to figure out the mystery of this beauty, I couldn't. And I needed to keep reading. Because I needed to know. Now. I tried to hold in my surprise and play it off as 'Nah, I had a slight inkling that this would happen.' But I couldn't really convince myself this time. And the novel itself is at such a quick and action-packed pace that you can just fly through the pages.

Also, what really made me enjoy this novel was the fact that anyone can be a hero. That's fact, right? But when do you ever see that really happen equally in a story? All praise and attention is usually on the one hero/ine and that's it, maybe with a few great sidekick moments. But in The Well's End, every one of Mia's friends and peers showed both great strengths and weaknesses. Everyone had some type of attribute that would help them throughout their mystery solving and due praise and attention was given to them; not all of it was put on Mia. And this is just great because it creates dynamic characters, besides the main ones!

Alright, so positive ranty rant time is over. Would I suggest you to read this novel? Yes. It's fresh and unpredictable. I felt like I was in the Antarctic, snow-covered, mystery-riddled town along with Mia and Gang. Fishman is great at creating dynamics and symbology, so kudos to him. Also, with an ending like that, I'll be making sure I keep an eye out on this new author.

4.5 Splashes