Devils Unto Dust

February 1, 2018

Gr 9 Up-This debut novel is set in an alternate history of the American West. People live in fear of "shakes," who become infected after getting sick and then feed on other humans and spread the infection. Sixteen-year-old Daisy "Willie" Wilcox and her family live in the relative safety of Glory, TX, where she cares for her three younger siblings after her mother dies. Glory, a fenced-in town, is ruled by The Judge-a much-feared figure who doesn't care that his people are struggling to pay the monthly fee for his protection. When Willie's drunk father steals money and flees, it becomes her responsibility to get the money back. This sets her off on an adventure with the Garrett brothers, shake hunters who also act as guides to track down her father. Hunters aren't known to be trustworthy, often killing the very people they were paid to protect. Dark and gritty, this dystopian novel doesn't shy away from death or danger. Berquist wonderfully balances the pace of the plot. The main characters are realistic and avoid pitfalls of instant love and abrupt personality changes; even when learning to trust one another, the protagonists stay true to themselves. Full of surprising twists and turns, this is a story of determination and perseverance as well as survival in hard times. VERDICT A great addition to any YA collection.-Rebecca Greer, Hillsborough County Public Library Cooperative, FL

Copyright 2018 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

February 15, 2018
After her father gambles the family into debt, Willie traverses a desert crawling with the undead to find him.Willie, a white teen, lives with her Pa, younger brother Micah, and 7-year-old twin siblings in Glory, a small town fenced off from the surrounding desert. Her mother passed away from the sickness that turns people into shakes--zombie analogs. Shakes roam the desert, and their disease spreads easily; only hunters and barbed wire keep them in check. One day hunters arrive at Willie's door looking for her gambling Pa--he's stolen $400, and if it's not returned, it's on Willie and her siblings. Willie's full of gumption, so it isn't long before she's decided to go after her Pa. She sets off with a couple of hunters, bluffing that she can pay their full fee. Danger comes at them from all sides--shakes, hunters, heat, and dust storms pummel them along the way. And though Willie thinks she's risking an awful lot venturing into the shake-filled desert, she has no idea of the unthinkable surprises in store. Die-hard fans of the zombie genre will find a new, carefully hewn setting to sink their teeth into and a gritty protagonist to root for. Tropes abound, but an audacious climax and Willie's nerves of steel elevate this suspenseful adventure.A refreshing genre-bender. (Western/horror. 14-18)

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Starred review from March 5, 2018
In Berquist’s blistering debut, it’s 1877, and strong-willed 17-year-old Daisy “Willie” Wilcox is struggling to support her three younger siblings in the desert town of Glory, Tex. The sickness that killed Willie’s mother has ravaged the country, creating “shakes,” the cannibalistic infected people who roam outside Glory’s protective fences. Willie’s father has run off, and when two men claim that he stole $400 from them, Willie is given a week to find and retrieve him. She reluctantly hires two shake hunters, brothers Benjamin and Curtis Garrett, to accompany her across the unforgiving desert. Willie narrates, taking readers on a harrowing journey across a searing desert filled with ghost towns and the walking dead. Exploring the bonds of loyalty, friendship, and bravery in the face of impossible odds, Berquist cleverly riffs on the work of Cormac McCarthy, blending the excitement and harsh beauty of the frontier with a straight shot of zombie terror. This wild western will delight horror and adventure fans alike. Ages 13–up. Agent: Heather Flaherty, Bent Agency.

December 1, 2017
Grades 9-12 The west Texas desert in 1877 holds harsh enough conditions without the spread of a mysterious illness that turns people into shakes, crazed flesh eaters who prey on the healthy, but that is exactly what has happened. Daisy Willie Wilcox has seen the sickness ravage her community, kill her mother, and turn her once-peaceful town into a walled prison. When her father disappears with a bounty he stole, Willie and her siblings will pay the price unless she tracks him down. With the two young shake hunters she hired for protection, she sets out across the desert to find him, battling dust storms, coyotes, and the living dead. Willie is a strong, smart girl who has seen and participated in her share of horror before the journey even begins. The plot moves at a steady pace but becomes repetitive a few times over the course of this debut novel's nearly 500 pages. Themes of family and compassion shine through the light gore, and descriptions of attacking shakes are handled with both empathy and gleeful grossness.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)