One Yellow Eye was an impressively strong debut novel with a unique take on the zombie apocalypse, strongly centred around grief.
This has such an interesting slant on the apocalypse – what happens when the dust has settled a little and the world is starting to rebuild? How do you live through something that life-altering and then return to a job? Here, Radford dives headfirst into that conundrum as Kesta is pulled into a shadowy government search for a cure to the zombie virus that ravaged everything she knew. The catch is that she is particularly desperate as she is hiding her undead husband in her flat. That concept is instantly gripping and opens up the door for plenty of insightful conversations. It is murky moral territory that forces you to confront the choices that you would make. From there, you are in for a wild ride as the stakes keep escalating and actions set in motion a devastating sequence of events.
Kesta is a wonderfully three-dimensional protagonist. She is incredibly smart, loyal and loving, as shown through her increasing acts of desperation. She has been pushed to the brink by the events she has lived through and she refuses to ‘let go’. As an aside, the way Radford talks about the language of grief in this book is astounding and impactful. She says the quiet parts out loud and that takes real guts. Kesta is nowhere near perfect – taking incredibly selfish actions in order to keep the spark of happiness. We can all wish for more time with those we love, making you empathise with her even as she risks everything and everyone for just one more day. Radford’s writing is rich and almost languid at times, keeping you in the same stasis Kesta’s life has fallen into since Tim was bitten. For me, it felt so authentic and raw – like a festering wound starting to open again.
Through this speculative lens, Radford captures that aching gap of grief in such a compelling and truthful way. It is dark but there is a powerful truth in there that will resonate with readers. This is a heart-wrenching ode to grief and guilt – an extreme survivor’s guilt and examination of the way trauma continues to reverberate through your life. Throughout the narrative, Radford weaves in the story of Tim and Kesta throughout the book – a poignant and beautiful story that you are desperate will turn out different this time even as you know the tragedy it is hurtling towards. It twists the knife a little more and your heart aches for the countless other tragedies in the background of this narrative. There’s these little moments that speak to stories we don’t hear – the fabric of this entire world is loss.
Radford contrasts this aching essence of humanity with the cold, clinical studies of this research. There are plenty of political allusions that feel extremely timely around capitalism and those seen as expendable for ‘the greater good’. It is biting and angry. Kesta’s scientific prowess is her shield trying to ground her in unshakeable facts as her world falls apart. That contrast between science and emotion is a core interplay in the book, but Radford allows more nuance than polarised sides of the debate. Kesta is desperate and that may drive her into darker and darker territory. At the same time, there is plenty of bleak humour which I adored. It is jolting at times but also feels like a natural aspect of a world trying to live with the unimaginable. Comedy is a coping mechanism and it is deployed to great effect here.
Radford weaves an emotionally rich and compelling story full of humanity and science, often undermining expectations. It moved me to tears.
One Yellow Eye is available from July 17th.
Will you be picking up One Yellow Eye? Tell us in the comments below!
Synopsis | Goodreads
In this heartrending spin on the zombie mythos, a brilliant scientist desperately searches for a cure after a devastating epidemic while also hiding a monumental secret—her undead husband.
Having always preferred the company of microbes, British scientist Kesta Shelley has spent her life peering through a microscope rather than cultivating personal relationships. That changed when Kesta met Tim—her cheerleader, her best friend, her absolute everything. So when he was one of the last people in London to be infected with a perplexing virus that left the city ravaged, Kesta went into triage mode.
Although the government rounded up and disposed of all the infected, Kesta is able to keep her husband (un)alive—and hidden—with resources from the hospital where she works. She spends her days reviewing biopsy slides and her evenings caring for him, but he’s clearly declining. The sedatives aren’t working like they used to, and his violent outbursts are becoming more frequent. As Kesta races against the clock, her colleagues start noticing changes in her behavior and appearance. Her care for Tim has spiraled into absolute obsession. Whispers circulate that a top-secret lab is working on a cure, and Kesta clings to the possibility of being recruited, but can she save her husband before he is discovered?
