Review: The Enemy by Charlie Higson

The Plot

The Enemy by Charlie Higson is a young adult, dystopian fiction novel about four days in the life of a group of children surviving in post-apocalyptic London.  Approximately 18 months prior to the novel a disease had spread through the UK, infecting and killing nearly all the over-14 year-olds. Or...turning them into zombies.  All children below 14 still live.  But, the parents, grand-parents or older siblings that once loved them now look towards the country’s youth for their next meal.

The plot begins with Arran and his team of Waitrose youths who experience yet another tough day of scavenging which turns into disastrously fighting the ‘grown-ups.’  On their way home they are greeted by their rival Morrison’s group.  The groups decide to unite and together they attempt to find a new home, with the help of newcomer, Jester, who fills them with the hope and ambition of a new prosperous and secure lifestyle (away from the danger of the ‘grown ups’).  He leads them to, perhaps, the most famous and prestigious house in the world (let alone in London) where royalty once lived, and where, he says, a prosperous community of youths is situated.  Surely this will guarantee them safety... 

Good points 

Now, I love all things zombie.  The Walking Dead, 28 Days Later, and World War Z are all fiction gold, in my mind.  Therefore, in order to receive my ‘good fiction’ acknowledgments, zombie stories always need something original, since the subject has been done so many times.  And The Enemy did exactly that.  The zombies are slightly more intelligent than the usual lot and can learn, they are a little faster and they have a mob culture going on which is quite interesting.  Despite the subject matter there are snippets of brilliant humour integrated throughout the novel which really did make me laugh on many an occasion – something that I think one always needs to lighten up a novel in which the world has come to an end!  Additionally, the novel is set in present-day London, which makes a change, and there are many references to pop culture which engages the reader and makes them feel a little less isolated from the plotline and the characters.  I also appreciated the ages that Higson chose for his characters.  They are all 15 years-old or younger – compared to the usual 16 to 18 year-olds in young adult fiction – which means that frustrating, dramatic lovesickness amongst the characters is kept to a minimum.  I also found it fascinating to see how the characters coped with the disaster.  The reader often forgets that the majority characters are barely teenagers in this novel as they have all had to grow up very quickly in order to deal with the ‘disaster’ and be strong models for the younger ones.  This makes it all the more powerful when some characters occasionally have some emotional moments where the responsibility becomes too much and they just want to be kids again. 

Bad points 

My only complaint would be that the main female character, Maxie, is a little annoying in places.  She occasionally acts slightly over the top and her priorities are a bit all over the place; she often forgets that, in this situation, survival is key.  Secondly, the novel is written in the third person from many characters point of view throughout.  And, it is occasionally difficult to remember who’s in whose group.   This might put some people off; however, this wasn’t a major problem, for me, as Higson structured it all rather well. 

Summary  

The Enemy was an enjoyable novel with well-written characters and with a refreshing twist on the famous zombie genre.

Rating = 4

Additional points 

• The Enemy is also a series (planned for seven novels) and the second, third, fourth and fifth have also been published.
• Please make it into a movie!