I have never read this author before but the subject matter was so spot on that I had to read it.

I have been reading, for years, about pandemics and never really thought it would ever happen in "real life" I was clearly wrong and this plotline, while scary gave me a slight tight of my stomach.

The description of the events and the gradual incline towards a worldwide issue is so well done. Yes, the characters are important, but having just lived through COVID, the main subject and the way the author writes about it just chilled me

Love the writing style.

Child Zero is a fast-paced, thrilling look at what would happen if the antibiotics we so often rely on no longer worked. I was invested in the main characters' story from the very beginning. My only complaint is that there could have been more needing out on science in the book but I know that's not everyone's particular taste! If you love thrillers especially science based thrillers in the vein of Michael Chricton or Blake Crouch you will love this book.

This was a wild ride that felt more than realistic. After all, could we be nearing a point of complete antibiotic resistance? It definitely seems so, and this book highlights all the problems that could cause. It also takes a look at how far some people would be willing to go to protect - or kill - a person who is immune to the hundreds of diseases ravaging New York.

Well-written and thought out. Recommended!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing an ARC. This review contains my honest, unbiased opinion.

Child Zero

[Blurb goes here]

I was amazed at the bio facts the author used in this story, that is, until I read that he had background in molecular biology. This is one of those "must read" stories. The fast paced action, the unrelenting tension, the fast moving story.

Don't miss out, this one is well worth your time.

Thank you for the free copy!

Chris Holm writes a lean and fresh narrative that feels too terrifyingly real in the post COVID surge era. Child Zero is a book you can’t bring yourself to put down once you’ve turned the first page.

Chris Holm paints a grim picture of the world after mutated bacterial infections cause havoc all over the globe, rendering all antibiotics useless against diseases. New York City has been split apart into quarantined shantytowns with heightened surveillance after a deadly biological attack. When a mass-murder brings Detectives Jacob Gibson and Amira Hassan into a collision course with a mysterious young boy chased by armored mercenaries, there are questions that need answering and mysteries that need solving.

Chris Holm’s stunning creativity dazzles and mesmerizes with wonderfully relatable and somber characters paired with fascinatingly dark concepts of modern day big-brother surveillance in a blend of fast-paced storytelling and hard-hitting action. The thought-provokingly vivid protagonists and antagonists naturally steer you to invest strong emotional ties and stakes as the story meanders through excitingly unpredictable twists and turns, keeping you on the edge of your seat wondering if the next move might be your favorite character’s last.

Child Zero had been on my radar for quite a while and it was worth every bit of the wait. If you’re like me and can’t get enough of grounded and profoundly impacting stories with memorable characters and gut-wrenching emotional punches, Child Zero needs to go in your pre-order list the moment you finish reading this review.

Full review will be posted with blurb image on: https://www.bestthrillerbooks.com

This book is quite the achievement! It's incredibly tense (like seriously unrelenting tension) and it's also dealing with things I only have a cursory understanding of, but everything was explained well enough that I could follow but not so well that it was a distraction from the story. It's a very hard line to walk and I'm not sure other authors could do it with anything approaching this level of skill. (Chris Holm was a molecular biologist and is also excellent at writing thriller/suspense novels.)

This story unfolds at a breakneck pace and is an early contender for book of the year.