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    Fever
    Fever
    Fever
    Audiobook19 hours

    Fever

    Written by Deon Meyer

    Narrated by Will Damron

    4/5

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    About this audiobook

    Nico Storm and his father, Willem, drive a truck filled with essential supplies through a desolate land. They are among the few in the world, as far as they know, to have survived a devastating virus that has swept over the planet. Their lives turned upside down, Nico realizes that his superb marksmanship and cool head mean he is destined to be his father's protector, even though he is still only a boy.

    Willem Storm, though not a fighter, is both a thinker and a leader, a wise and compassionate man with a vision for a new community that survivors will rebuild from the ruins. And so Amanzi is founded, drawing Storm's "homeless and tempest-tost"-starting with Melinda Swanevelder, whom they rescue from brutal thugs; Hennie Fly, with his vital Cessna plane; Beryl Fortuin and her ragtag group of orphans; and Domingo, the man with the tattooed hand, whom Nico immediately recognizes as someone you want on your side. And then Sofia Bergman arrives, the most beautiful girl Nico has ever seen, who changes everything.

    So the community grows, and with each step forward, as resources increase, so do the challenges they must face-not just from the attacks of biker brigands, but also from within. Nico undergoes an extraordinary rite of passage in this brand-new world, testing his loyalty to the limits.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHighbridge Company
    Release dateDec 14, 2017
    ISBN9781681689678
    Author

    Deon Meyer

    Internasionaal bekende skrywer Deon Meyer woon op Stellenbosch. Sy publikasies sluit in dertien misdaadromans (onder meer Spoor, 2010, 7 Dae, 2011, Kobra, 2013, Ikarus, 2015, Koors, 2016, Prooi, 2018, en Donkerdrif, 2020). Orion, Proteus en Infanta is met die ATKV-prosaprys bekroon en Prooi met die ATKV-prys vir Spanningsfiksie.

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    Reviews for Fever

    4/5

    82 ratings9 reviews

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    • 5/5
      A very complete and wonderful story. I thoroughly enjoyed it, even during the second reading!
    • 2/5
      This post apocalyptic fiction was very slow paced. The narrative was told in disjointed fashion by journal entries and interviews. It turns out that community building is very boring to read about. I don't know whether the book ever gets beyond this because I gave up at the 25% point. I received a free copy of this book from the publisher.
    • 4/5
      Many have read books with a similar basic premise, but of those I've read this story is the more well-rounded, insightful, and informative. The post apocalyptic suspense/thriller/mystery plot-line wasn't what impressed me, especially the ending which I generally foresaw. What impressed me was the realistic human behaviors, and the insightful natural world effects of the catastrophic event.

      As but a simple example relative to the few remaining trying to survive:

      "Yes, . . . all the drama started by all those companies who genetically engineered seeds. It’s not as if they thought, hang on, what happens in case of a global catastrophe, what happens in a post-apocalyptic world? They modified their seeds so that you could only harvest once. Then you had to eat them, because you couldn’t plant the seed from the first crop, they were programmed to fail. You had to buy new seed. Beautiful business model, but then all those companies were gone with the wind, but the seeds remained."

      Reading parts like that I thought of all the blind corporate chicanery where the top executives and investors are so intent on lining their pockets in the short term they couldn't care less about John Q. Public.

      And some thoughts about biodiversity and ecology that sustains our environment:

      "Then Meklein said he thought the Fever came because people were hurting the earth so badly. He said, with a coughing fit for every sentence, ‘Vytjie, when last did you see a gompou?’ He was talking about the kori bustard, that’s what we called it, a gompou. He said, ‘It’s been years, but we used to see a lot more of those big birds long ago. Remember the black eagles, when we were young? There were so many. Remember the bakoortjies, how often we saw them in the old days? Those little bat-eared foxes are termite eaters, scorpion eaters, but the people thought they caught lambs. They never did. You don’t see them any more. So many things you don’t see any more. The old people hurt the earth, a lot."

      Oh, and loads of character types:

      "The pastor is an opportunist, like all good politicians and preachers. And this was the perfect opportunity. If we’d been paying attention, we would have seen this coming. . . . ‘Einstein said: “Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I’m not sure about the universe.” Now I understand what he meant."
      . . .
      "Yeah, of course I hated too. Facebook most of all, if you have to know. Facebook. Hated it. For me that was the epitome of what was wrong with society. ’Cause why, you’ve got all these friends, but they’re not real friends, just people you can post photos for, of your breakfast and your lunch and your cute kitty. I ask you. Like they really cared. They only cared because they needed you as an audience. Facebook friends were an audience, that’s all."

      Who knows, maybe something in this book will spark a questioning thought in the heads of those reading the book simply for entertainment and titillation :-)
    • 3/5
      Deon Meyer is the South African author of a well-regarded crime series I heard about recently here on LT. When I was investigating on Amazon, I came across this stand-alone novel about rebuilding society after a pandemic has decimated much of the world's population. The price was right, so I picked it up, and have now completed it.It's the story of a young boy Nico coming of age in a vastly changed world, and of the conflicts with his father Wilhelm. Welhelm has a philosophical bent, and has founded a new society, hoping for it to progress along Utopian ideals. Nico, on the other hand, is becoming a man of action, and in the new world, full of danger, and people unfettered from society's strictures, is an expert marksman, able and willing to fight for their new community. Much of the story is about how the new community Amanzi develops, and tries to re-establish a civilization, about the technology, science, medicine, and agriculture that must be redeveloped, but it is also about how the community needs "protectors," an army willing to kill to protect what they've built.This was an interesting book, and a lot more philosophical than other post-apocalyptic books I've read. It did go on rather long, and there was a plot twist at the end that I think was pretty much unwarranted. Nevertheless, I think that if you're a fan of this genre, you might like this book.2 1/2 stars
    • 4/5
      To Quote: Fear gives you wings. Rage is a powerful engine.

      Customer review from the Amazon Vine Programme
      I am reviewing Fever by Deon Meyer. Here are my thoughts:

      ^^ Fever, is a stonking great big book, where we look into the lives of several characters after a virus has swept through the country. This starts off with a boy and his dad with a mission to build a community, to rebuild life. It's told from his teenage son's point of view with references to his dad's record keeping notes.

      ^^ But what if protecting your community from Marauders mean s thinking like them? Can you really build a calm oasis in a world where it's kill or be killed? Is the virus the only silent enemy?

      ^^ Deon Meyer is the bestselling crime writer in South Africa. Initially, having not read this author before (pulls a shameful face), I did wonder if I’d “get it”, as with some translations there is often something that is lost when you can’t get the correct colloquial phrases and meanings from the translated work. Despite the original language being Afrikaana, I have no problems reading this at all, and connecting to the characters was just as easy. In fact, I think it’s a very cleverly written book, and the author is making really good use of one of the character’s need to write everything down.

      ^^ Meyer is one of those authors, like Deaver, who feeds a lot of information into his books via his characters and their specialities. I like that in a book. You know, when a character explains their passions and the rea der learns something new.

      ^^ This book made me think how odd it would be surviving in a world where the usual sources of affection have been removed. Imagine, no wife or husband, kids, family. Just strangers. Add that to going back to a simple way of life, without the pressure of a busy working week, and gadgets all vying for your attention. It's no wonder the people in Amanzi start to miss the old world less and less. Oh, I could pinpoint so much out of this novel that made me think. What if...

      ^^ I must add how it also made me ponder how we've created an unnatural world that truly wouldn't help us survive in a post apocalyptic life. If it ever happened, and this book was found, we'd not only be learning from it, but we'd say, "damn, Meyer was right!"

      ^^ This was separated into parts and many of the chapters started with the Chinese Calendar- I think this was so we could understand in time, where they were at, although I'm not really sure it add ed anything to the story and I feel these could have been left out.

      ^^ If I were to compare this epic thriller to anything it would a be a huge mix of Deaver like crime, Andy McNab military skills and the community building efforts of The Stand, The Dome and The Walking Dead (without zombies, of course).

      ^^ The ending, well, let's just say it's worth the wait. I never expected what happened, and I was shocked, saddened and happily optimistic for those involved. Tremendous!

      Overall: Meyer highlights how devastation not only ruins lives, but changes them. Some for the best. Some for the worst. This is a statement about the human condition; what it means to be human in a world that shows signs of normalising with constrictions of a life of mere survival. Life is the calm after the storm. After the virus has hit. Life goes on, anyway it can. And so does the virus. An enjoyable epic read!
    • 5/5
      Opening with the lines, “I want to tell you about my father’s murder. I want to tell you who killed him and why,” this noted South African author takes a good long while to get to the actual killing of Willem Storm, but he uses the time well.The world has been devastated by the Fever—a new infectious disease that spreads rapidly and catastrophically. A few people have a genetic quirk that saves them, but 95 percent of the world’s population has died. Willem and his son Nico, hiding out in a remote South African cave, survive. The big challenge is “now what?”Willem has a vision for what should come next. He and his son fill a tractor-trailer with useful items they find as they traverse the countryside. They aren’t the only survivors, of course, and food becomes increasingly hard to find. With a pre-Fever population of approximately 56 million, South Africa alone would have a residual population of 2.8 million. How people react in such a desperate situation reveals their fundamental values. Willem Storm envisions a new egalitarian society built on democratic principles. He finds a suitable location, and he and Nico drive the countryside, leaving posters asking people of good will to come. Gradually, they do, and they name their new community Amanzi, “water.”Teenage Nico is torn between his father’s idealism and the aggressive values of a new arrival in the community, Domingo. He has a past he won’t talk about, works with military precision, and an affinity for weapons. He consistently argues for more security precautions, because the threats are real—packs of wild dogs, marauding motorcycle gangs, and murderous thieves. “People are animals,” Domingo says. Amanzi’s creation is an amazing adventure story. The book may be 530 pages long, but it is very hard (truly, almost impossible) to put down—at least for someone like me who is interesting in how things work, or don’t. Nico narrates most of it, though a great many other residents recount their experiences both before Amanzi and in the community, gradually building up a “360-degree” perspective on Willem, Domingo, Nico, and Amanzi. Only in the last 20 pages are the most horrifying crimes of the novel revealed, and these are the least satisfying pages of all.If you are intrigued by the situations and challenges presented in post-apocalyptic thrillers like Cormac McCarthy’s The Road or Stephen King’s The Stand, this novel is sure to get you thinking.
    • 4/5
      A mysterious illness swept across the world, killing off 95% of the population. Months after the disaster peaked, 13 year old Nico Storm and his father, Willem, drive across the blighted landscape of South Africa, trying to survive in a new and terrifying world. Coming to a small town with hydroelectric power equipment still intact, Nico’s father dreams of creating an ideal, rational society out of the ashes of the old world. The community grows and so do its enemies. Loyalty, honor, and optimism must wage a war against fascism, zealotry, and violence.This is an epic book, as the post-apocalyptic genre lends itself to. The book spans years, from Nico and Willem’s first days scavenging, through to the development and success of the community that they establish. The book’s true focus is not necessarily on the post apocalyptic world, but rather on the nature of humankind itself. The book is written from Nico’s perspective, and focuses on the defining moment of his life: the murder of his father. By unwinding the story of the post-fever world and the development of a utopian community, we unravel the events which led to Willem Storm’s assassination.This is a very human novel. There are no monsters or mutants here to provide danger, simply people. In that regard, the book strongly reminds me of Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel. The tension and suspense come not from creepy-crawlies out to eat our protagonists, but the very very scary question about what will triumph in a global catastrophe. Will “the better angels of our nature” win the day, or will they fall to the petty evilness that lurks in the human psyche? I think it is this question which makes the post-apocalyptic genre so compelling. Can we put our faith in human nature?This book was well written and grand in scale. The South African setting provided a new point of view for me over here in the United States. Anyone with a love for post-apocalyptic tales should check out this book.An advance copy of this book was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
    • 2/5
      Deon Meyer has written five Benny Griessel novels, a series about a Cape Town, South Africaa, police inspector; he has also written six stand-alone novels. All of his ten books prior to "Fever(FV)" have dealt with crime. I am a huge Meyer fan, have read all of his books, and rated his most recent Benny, "Icarus", 5 stars. I am very disappointed with FV, and annoyed that I spent so much time on this 530 page book.Most readers by now are familiar with the basic plot of FV - the globe has been decimated by an extremely, never seen before virus. Ninety-five plus percent of the population have died. Food is scarce, wild packs of dogs attack humans, and humans are attacking humans. Thirteen year old Nico and has father Willem have survived but Mom Amelia is dead. They roam, discover a deserted town and Willem decides to build a community there.At first I expected a survival novel, ala "The Road". But fairly early on FV morphs more into a tale of re-building the world as modeled by their new town which they name Amanzi. Slowly people come and occupy buildings. Organize, plan for the future, choose leaders, deal with unforeseen issues. The chapters are brief, there are many interesting stories, the novel moves along at a brisk pace. Then some bad guys surface, and soon there are battles, then war. And the book becomes an adventure/action/war novel. I didn't care for the change in direction.Much of the story is told from Nico's perspective and his trials over the next four years. Nico has some special physical skills but he is no more mature than your next door neighbor's teenager. He's annoying; I never got to a point where I cared for him nor for his issues. The story goes on and on and then with about 20 pages to go we get The Big Explanation. The Big Twist. I didn't like it all, I thought it was a bit silly.I also had some nit problems with FV. There's a two page map but it's rather worthless. It would have been nice to have an inset or separate map showing all the detail around Amanzi. And where are all the bodies? Hey, six billion people died. Yes, there are some references to remains here and there and even a mass grave description but we're talking 6,000,000,000 here.I skimmed the afterword and noted that Meyer says he researched this for four years. As I was writing this review a horrible thought came to mind - there could be a sequel! I hope not; I'd like to see that energy poured into another Benny novel.
    • 4/5
      This is a very interesting post apocalyptic story, told from the point of view of a teen-aged boy and the recounting of history by his adult contemporary survivors. It is also a coming-of-age story and therefore I think better than the average doomsday book. Set in South Africa it requires understanding that while many things are similar to those in the United States there are significant and important differences in the governmental and societal influences impacting daily life. Consequently, there is concern for things which do not register on the average American's radar, and would not be deemed significant or relevant there. This made the story all the more interesting as far as I was concerned but may be a problem for some readers. It is a long, detailed read but well worth the effort, as it is much better than the norm for this genre.