The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan

The Forest of Hands and Teeth:
In Mary's world there are simple truths. The Sisterhood always knows best. The Guardians will protect and serve. The Unconsecrated will never relent. And you must always mind the fence that surrounds the village; the fence that protects the village from the Forest of Hands and Teeth. But, slowly, Mary’s truths are failing her. She’s learning things she never wanted to know about the Sisterhood and its secrets, and the Guardians and their power, and about the Unconsecrated and their relentlessness. When the fence is breached and her world is thrown into chaos, she must choose between her village and her future—between the one she loves and the one who loves her. And she must face the truth about the Forest of Hands and Teeth. Could there be life outside a world surrounded in so much death?

When I first bought this book I had no real idea of what it was about, but I bought it on the recommendation of another book blogger and I have to say The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan was very unlike any other book I have ever read. I have never read a zombie book before -- I have seen plenty of movies (which honestly just make me laugh rather than cower with fright), but never actually picked up a book and took the time to read a zombie story. Carrie's book was unlike my previous conceptions I had of zombie lore. Although it is not clearly stated what brought about the infection causing the creation of the "unconsecrated", I thoroughly enjoyed the emotional journey we are taken on as we follow Mary and her friends' daring escape when their small village becomes over-run by zombies when the protective fences around the village are breached. Mary has grown up on the stories her mother told her about the ocean and it's vastness and she desperately believes that it is out there, past the zombie infested Forest of Hands and Teeth, just waiting for her to discover the truth of her mother's words. Her friends are more skeptical, but left with no other choice, they follow her as she leads them down a path the village elders have kept secret from everyone and deep into the forest, where their journey begins.