A YA semi-zombie science fiction horror story about a future in which SymboGen, a large biotech company, has convinced most of the world to ingest genetically engineered tapeworms to control allergies, auto-immune disorders, and even birth control. The company’s poster child, previously known as Sally, suffered a terrible car accident and subsequent coma, but was miraculously revived by the power of her tapeworm implant. Now, Sal, as she prefers to be called, is struggling to live a normal life six years after having to relearn English and basic societal slang and norms. When regular people start turning into zombies and then seemingly come after Sal, she decides to find answers.
Unfortunately, the characters weren’t very interesting, including Sal herself. The story suffered from small world syndrome, in which everyone of importance is related to someone introduced in the first chapter. Even though this book has been classified as a mystery, I guessed what was going to happen from the beginning, and some of the mysterious elements (zombies saying Sah-lee and ominously moving towards her) were never directly explained.
Despite the foreseen plot twists and ending, this was a fun frivolous read that I quite enjoyed. The biology was fun if a bit far-fetched, and the political drama of the SymboGen founders played out through autobiographical quotes was intriguing and effective.
Recommended for a weekend or vacation read for any science fiction zombie fan. More silly than suspenseful, but amusing and light.