Wanderers

I think in these pandemic times the idea of apocalyptic plague takes on fresh horror and meaning. That being said, I haven't found what I would call a perfect rendition of this yet. Wanderers does come closer than some in having a believable plague with an interesting exploration in the corresponding collapse in society. The super AI guiding humanity to safety was however a weak point for me in that the required suspension of disbelief was too high - how could humans walk for weeks on end without any sustenance? It just does not work for me. However the story was epic enough to get passed these hurdles and the denouement was satisfying.

It is hard to avoid discussing this book without talking about the elephant in the room that is Stephen King's The Stand. I read The Stand earlier this year and found the quasi-mysticism of the ending very underwhelming. Wanderers treads similar pathways but is more satisfying for taking a slightly more sciencey approach. It is still quite a long way from a perfect plague book for me - the super AI theme felt very forced - but the overall story structure was definitely better than its better known King cousin. These books are similar in many ways but for me Wendig stuck the landing better.