Book Review ~ "Inhuman" by Kat Falls

Inhuman by Kat Falls
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Source: Netgalley ~ Received to Review
Genre: Sci-Fi/Dystopian YA

Book Description: In a world ravaged by mutation, a teenage girl must travel into the forbidden Savage Zone to recover lost artifacts or her father’s life is forfeit.

America has been ravaged by a war that has left the eastern half of the country riddled with mutation. Many of the people there exhibit varying degrees of animal traits. Even the plantlife has gone feral.

Crossing from west to east is supposed to be forbidden, but sometimes it’s necessary. Some enter the Savage Zone to provide humanitarian relief. Sixteen-year-old Lane’s father goes there to retrieve lost artifacts—he is a Fetch. It’s a dangerous life, but rewarding—until he’s caught.

Desperate to save her father, Lane agrees to complete his latest job. That means leaving behind her life of comfort and risking life and limb—and her very DNA—in the Savage Zone. But she’s not alone. In order to complete her objective, Lane strikes a deal with handsome, roguish Rafe. In exchange for his help as a guide, Lane is supposed to sneak him back west. But though Rafe doesn’t exhibit any signs of “manimal” mutation, he’s hardly civilized . . . and he may not be trustworthy.


My thoughts: Inhuman is a creative story about the world when science has gone too far.

Lane lives behind a gigantic wall. The other side of the wall is where the human/animal hybrids live. One bite from an infected manimal will infect a person, dooming them to a life in between two animal kingdoms.

Lane is forced to complete a mission venturing through the manimal side of the wall. She must retrieve (fetch) an item for a corrupt government official to save her father. She is better prepared than she originally imagined, her father has been crossing the wall and telling her bedtime stories about the hybrid kingdom. He has trained her, claiming it was for self defense, to be prepared in times of peril or crisis.

I enjoyed the underlying message of what makes a person human. Because someone has contracted a disease, are they any less human?

The book has a little bit of a love triangle. Everson and Rafe are both great characters. At first, Rafe rubbed me wrong. He is sarcastic and self centered. As the story progressed, I could see where he was coming from and the reasons behind his behavior. Everson also has reason behind his drive to find a cure and help Lane on her journey.

I enjoyed this book. There were times when it seemed to lag, but getting to the ending was worth it.

Amazon * Barnes & Noble * Book Depository