A review by ed_d
The Fireman, by Joe Hill
4.0
Joe Hill lists some inspirations at the beginning of this novel, among them several authors: [a:J. K. Rowling|15753927|J. K. Rowling|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png], [a:P.L. Travers|6872556|P.L. Travers|https://d2arxad8u2l0g7.cloudfront.net/authors/1391347103p2/6872556.jpg], [a:Ray Bradbury|1630|Ray Bradbury|https://d2arxad8u2l0g7.cloudfront.net/authors/1445955959p2/1630.jpg] ("from whom I stole my title"), and of course "my father, from whom I stole all the rest". One can see why Hill would chose to forgo his famous surname when he set out as an author -- to establish his own reputation out of the immense shadow cast by his dad ([a:Stephen King|3389|Stephen King|https://d2arxad8u2l0g7.cloudfront.net/authors/1362814142p2/3389.jpg]). His paternity is evident, though his voice is his own (this is his fourth distinctive novel, not to mention a well-regarded comic series and a collection of stories); he shares his father's gift for drawing vivid characters and making his readers care about them, and that's more than half the battle in writing.
The Fireman is a post-apocalyptic story, but it's rendered on a smaller scale than the usual examples of the trope; though we get glimpses of the wider range and consequence of the apocalypse (caused by an infection cleverly named Draco Incendia Trychophyton and even more cleverly nicknamed Dragonscale), the focus is on a small band of "survivors"struggling to make a haven for themselves at a summer camp in the New Hampshire wilderness. Among them is the Fireman himself, of course, but he's not the main character. Our protagonist is Harper, who begins the novel as a conscientious nurse with a Mary Poppins fixation dealing with the early victims of Dragonscale and finds herself falling in with the band of campers trying to survive.
Dragonscale has physiological and psychological effects that are both explored plausibly; the infection causes spontaneous human combustion and is highly contagious, so the response, both medically and socially, is swift and sometimes terrible. Harper and her newfound companions must deal not only with the evolving threat of the infection, but the devolving society that surrounds them. Even at more than 700 pages, I found it a quick read with a satisfying conclusion. (There's even an "easter egg" coda hidden on the copyright page at the end of the book.)
The Fireman is a post-apocalyptic story, but it's rendered on a smaller scale than the usual examples of the trope; though we get glimpses of the wider range and consequence of the apocalypse (caused by an infection cleverly named Draco Incendia Trychophyton and even more cleverly nicknamed Dragonscale), the focus is on a small band of "survivors"struggling to make a haven for themselves at a summer camp in the New Hampshire wilderness. Among them is the Fireman himself, of course, but he's not the main character. Our protagonist is Harper, who begins the novel as a conscientious nurse with a Mary Poppins fixation dealing with the early victims of Dragonscale and finds herself falling in with the band of campers trying to survive.
Dragonscale has physiological and psychological effects that are both explored plausibly; the infection causes spontaneous human combustion and is highly contagious, so the response, both medically and socially, is swift and sometimes terrible. Harper and her newfound companions must deal not only with the evolving threat of the infection, but the devolving society that surrounds them. Even at more than 700 pages, I found it a quick read with a satisfying conclusion. (There's even an "easter egg" coda hidden on the copyright page at the end of the book.)