Review of Call Me Adam

[Margarita Alexandrou]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Call Me Adam" by Jo McCarty.]

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5 out of 5 stars

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Call Me Adam by Jo McCarty is a dystopian novel with a romantic edge. The story begins with Louie, a loner living in Michigan. He tries to kill himself by robbing a bank with the hope that the police will shoot him. Louie has attempted to kill himself many times before, and technically, he succeeds. But the problem is, every time he dies, he keeps coming back to life—and this infuriates him. While Louie wants to die but can’t, most other people on the planet are in the opposite predicament. A flu pandemic takes over, and very quickly, the majority are dead. The story also follows Katherine, a career-focused woman living in New York, who buries herself in her work and distances herself from others. Louie and Katherine both love being alone, having a strict routine, and saying exactly what they think. They also both hate germs. As the pandemic rages, fate urges them to meet, and they discover they have even more in common than first meets the eye. In the end, Louie and Katherine help each other to survive in more ways than one.

I rate this book 5 out of 5 stars. I was gripped as soon as I read the prologue, which was full of intrigue, mystery, and dark humour. Dark humour is expertly used throughout, which I hugely enjoyed. However, if you're easily triggered or offended by this, especially when regarding topics such as suicide, then this is not the book for you! The author also made perfect use of voice and characterisation. Each character had a distinct personality; they were all fully fleshed-out characters with positive attributes, flaws, hopes, likes, dislikes, habits, thought patterns, behaviours and everything else that makes humans humans. Although a dystopian novel, the story had aspects of adventure, mystery, romance, comedy, drama, and more. It was thrilling, original and thought-provoking. It appears to be professionally edited, making the story flow easily. There was nothing I disliked about the book. I suspect it will linger in my mind for a long time.

I recommend this book to readers of dystopian or apocalyptic novels and those who like an eclectic mix of weird and wonderful.

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Call Me Adam
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