When I saw that David Moody was working on more books in the Hater Series, I nearly peed my pants – not really, but I was exceptionally stoked. It has been a few years since I read Them or Us. This was the series that made me question: Can it be a zombie if it’s not dead? And, does it really matter how or why it happened or just what we do with it?
Now, let’s get down to some Hater business for anyone who hasn’t read anything in the series. Books one, two and three must be read in order. One of Us Will Be Dead by Morning (book four) is a new storyline within the Hater world. You can read and enjoy it without having read the previous books. This book goes back to the beginning and runs concurrently with book one, Hater.
In Hater, David Moody revealed himself to be a master of human relation dysfunction. Danny McCoyne’s interactions with his family was so realistic, we have all had those moments where we just wanted to hide away from our kids. With One of Us Will Be Dead by Morning, David Moody has attacked the workplace dysfunction. One group is on a team building getaway, while the second group consists of the employees who work on the island. The story is filled with the realities of workplace relationships, those we get along with and those we don’t. I saw myself and my coworkers. The two groups and the cliques within the groups; this book started off with a them and us attitude that was made fluid by the Haters, their them and us is so much more concrete.
David Moody has a knack for making me feel like a fly on the wall, right there amongst the action but not noticed by the players. One of Us Will Be Dead by Morning brought me within a hair of the Haters and their violence, while I remained nothing but an observer. I felt like I was right there with the people who were isolated on Skek. I felt their paranoia, distrust and hope that maybe somehow everyone could get out of this okay.
Moody has built an incredible cast of characters, each one unique and real; I think that any reader can identify with someone and recognize people that they know in the other characters. This brings a closeness and familiarity to the characters and the story.
The Hater world of David Moody is a dark, disturbing place, where it’s not survival of the fittest, but of the luckiest. It’s a world that I can come back to again and again to ask myself: How would I have reacted? Could I survive?
*5 Stars
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