  | Full Text Reviews: School Library Journal - 02/01/2015 Gr 9 Up—Previously, in The Living (Delacorte, 2013), Shy Espinoza's cushy summer job aboard a cruise ship was short-lived. A tsunami sunk the luxury liner, and Shy survived harrowing moments at sea, after learning that some of the passengers were working for Laso Tech, an evil biotech company responsible for Romero's Disease, a deadly contagion ravaging Southern California. In this episode, Shy and three friends survive in a dinghy for a month with some stolen vials of the precious Romero's vaccine, only to wash ashore and see the California coast devastated. Leveled by earthquakes, Los Angeles is an apocalyptic wasteland of rotting corpses and fearful survivors unable to contain Romero's epidemic. Vigilantes patrol the streets looking for the ill to kill, and the healthy have few places to isolate themselves. Shy's friends Marcus, Carmen, and Shoeshine hope to make their way to Arizona where scientists can duplicate the vaccine samples and save the masses. It is a race against time as they dodge Laso Tech's henchmen and desperate citizens willing to kill to survive—occasionally helped by a mysterious stranger on a motorcycle. Readers will be drawn to the raw and gritty setting, fast-moving plot, and diverse characters worth rooting for, such as Carmen, Shy's feisty Mexican coworker and romantic interest, and the philosophical Shoeshine, an older black man who sees Shy as more than just a resilient and steadfast kid, but a larger-than-life hero. VERDICT A more focused and linear sequel for fans of YA survival novels.—Vicki Reutter, State University of New York at Cortland - Copyright 2015 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission. Booklist - 04/01/2015 More than a month after they set sail in a busted dinghy at the end of The Living (2013), Shy, Marcus, Carmen, and Shoeshine finally arrive at the California coast, only to discover incredible devastation wrought both by the earthquake and fever-pitch panic over Romero disease. Condemned buildings hold stacks of untouched rotting bodies, safety is prohibitively expensive, and roving gangs patrol the streets with the directive to shoot anyone trying to travel, which is bad news for Shy and his friends, who are determined to make it to Arizona with the remaining vaccines. De la Peña keeps up the frantic pace he set in The Living as the foursome treks through ruined towns and tries to outrun the mysterious SUVs on their tail. And all the while, in an effortlessly slang-inflected tone, Shy weighs his responsibilities, worries about whether he is brave enough, and considers what makes a hero. With a careful balance between fast-paced plot and meaningful, diverse character development, this is a great crossover for fans of both thrillers and more character-driven novels. - Copyright 2015 Booklist. Loading...
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