Reviewed by Dale Harcombe
Scott and Sally Ryan find themselves in Yellow Zone after the world changes. Together, and with the help of some new friends, they learn to make a stand in a changed world.
It’s good to see a well presented novel coming out of a relatively new publishing company. I was looking forward to reading this book. The opening did not disappoint. It starts with a chase and a sense of danger. The reader is left to wonder who are the mysterious figures pursuing the journalist and what is the secret he has discovered. That sense of danger runs in various guises throughout the rest of the book.
The scene flashes forward two years to a Mardi Gras and the lone prophet trying to stem the tide and warn of God’s judgement, before whipping us off to Brisbane and a group of girls at the movies. Even at the movies the possible threat of terrorism hangs over the young girls, making Sally suspicious of the Middle Eastern man waiting outside the movie theatre.
From here, the story alternates for a time between Rome where eighteen year old Scott Ryan is holidaying and Brisbane where the rest of the Ryan family, including Scott’s younger sister, Sally, are. An explosion in Rome devastates the city and another that goes off in Paris has Scott’s parents and those of his cousins, Brad and Damien, concerned, as do the Black Hawk helicopters that fly over Brisbane and the terrifying reports on the TV. Anticipating further terrorist attacks Australia is put on high alert.
Attempts by the two families to contact their sons prove fruitless. Meanwhile in Rome there is talk of the end of the world, something Scott doesn’t even want to think about. Scott is trapped over the other side of the world from his family and unable to communicate with them. He doesn’t even know if they survived the series of bombs that exploded over Brisbane. To add to the confusion, Scott and Sally’s mother has disappeared and the family holds fears for her safety. Sally begins to question God, especially when Sally and the rest of her family end up being detained like refugees in Yellow Zone.
Meanwhile Scott is airlifted out of Europe and is shocked to find himself taken to Yellow Zone. While there, Scott uncovers a secret at Covenant House. The elderly and unproductive members of the community are disappearing. But what can he do, without putting his own life and those of the rest of his family at risk?
Scott and Sally, along with others under the leadership of Jack Koppel, realize they have to make a choice. If they want things to change they have to be willing to take the biggest risk to gain freedom.
The cover and title Yellow Zone are enticing and should ensure readers will pick up the book. Filled with plenty of action, as well as the budding romances that spring up between Scott and Rebekah and Sally with Ben who meet in the Yellow Zone, this novel is sure to appeal to both teenage girls and boys. There is a lot to recommend in this novel. It has an intriguing plot and a story that keeps the reader wanting to know what happens next. It’s obvious there had been a lot of thought and time put into constructing the plot and developing the characters. The characters are well defined and likeable. It also raises questions for the readers to think about after they have closed the pages of the book. I enjoyed Yellow Zone.
Given the plot line and dramatic situation raised presented this novel should have been gripping. While others may find it so, I didn’t…quite. But it is still an interesting novel and a good read that will have teenage readers and enthusiastic 11-12 year olds, turning the pages. Pace intensifies as the story reaches towards its conclusion.
The ending leaves one to suspect that the opening has been set up for a sequel or maybe a trilogy.
Yellow Zone, by Janelle Dyer
Wombat Books, 2009
This review first appeared online at Write and Read With Dale. It is reprinted here with permission.
This book can be purchased online at Fishpond. Buying through this link supports Aussiereviews.
