The Dead-Tossed Waves by Carrie Ryan

Gabry lives a quiet life. As safe a life as is possible in a town trapped between a forest and the ocean, in a world teeming with the dead, who constantly hunger for those still living. She’s content on her side of the Barrier, happy to let her friends dream of the Dark City up the coast while she watches from the top of her lighthouse. But there are threats the Barrier cannot hold back. Threats like the secrets Gabry’s mother thought she left behind when she escaped from the Sisterhood and the Forest of Hands and Teeth. Like the cult of religious zealots who worship the dead. Like the stranger from the forest who seems to know Gabry. And suddenly, everything is changing. One reckless moment, and half of Gabry’s generation is dead, the other half imprisoned. Now Gabry only knows one thing: she must face the forest of her mother’s past in order to save herself and the one she loves.

Last year I read The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan and loved it! It made my best of list at the end of the year. Ever since finishing it I have been impatiently waiting for the companion novel. I pre-ordered it and then for some unknown reason it didn't ship, so I wound up having to buy it. Then, I was nervous about reading it because I was in a bit of a reading slump and didn't want my mood to ruin the book for me. It turned out to be just what I needed!

I am doing a buddy review with Amy from Amy Reads. She saw that I had the book and was worried about reading it and said that she could probably read it first. Having a goal in mind I pushed aside my anxiety and read it. Now, we are going to review it together in an interview of sorts.

1. What were your thoughts on Dead-Tossed Waves compared to Forest of Hands and Teeth - do you have a favorite?
I have to say that while I enjoyed both books, I liked The Forest of Hands and Teeth better. I think I got caught up in the characters more and got caught up in the story better. I also liked the ending way better! It's the sort of ending that if there was not another book it wouldn't be a terrible thing, where The Dead-Tossed Waves has the promise of more to come. It could be the mood thing, though. If I had read it at a different time it might have easily been my favourite.

2. Did you like Gabry as a character?
Not in the beginning. When I first started the book, actually, I was really worried that my annoyance with Gabry was going to destroy the book for me. She grew on me as the story progressed and I liked her by the end, but it was a struggle in the beginning. Once I started to like her the pace of the novel picked up for me and I wound up enjoying it.

3. Catcher or Elias - who would you choose?
I never know what to say to these questions. It seems like a lot of popular teen fiction has people asking these questions in the end. Normally, I just sit on the fence and don't answer or I have the unpopular answer. In this instance, I think I would choose Elias, but only because Catcher changes so much during the course of the book. If he had stayed the same I probably would have liked him better, but then if he had stayed the same there wouldn't be a love triangle at all.

4. What was your favourite scene in the book?
The fact that here we have a book set in a post-apocalyptic setting and the author still manages to work Shakespeare in. She works him in brilliantly, though, I must say. I am one of those people that appreciates Shakespeare, but wish that people understood there are other authors that deserve just as much attention, so to say he is part of one of my favourite scenes in the book is a big deal for me!

5. Without giving anything away, what did you think of the ending?
Like I said above, I liked the ending to her previous book better. The ending clears a few things up, but there is still a lot of unanswered questions and I hate endings like that. It's a bit strange that she made the second book a companion book to book one, but you would think that book three is going to be a direct sequel or I think people are going to be mad. It's a weird way to do a series!

6. Will you be reading the next book?
Of course! I have to know how everything plays out!

To read Amy's answers to the same questions, head on over to her blog! Thanks for reviewing the book with me, Amy. I look forward to another buddy review in the future!