this book's blending of lovecraftian cosmic horror, body horror, plague horror (zombie tropes), and feminist themes seem almost like it was custom crafted precisely for my tastes.

the story is presented as a triptych, tied together at the end rather deftly. one critique: overall pacing was an issue for me. namely, we spend too much time at the start focused on Erin and too little time in part three on Mareva. i'm gauging "too much" and "too little" here on each character's importance to the overall plot. because of how the story is structured, i only noticed the pacing issues until late in the book. if i recall correctly, part 1 is about 50% of the length of the book. that the ending feels abrupt was less of a problem for me. cosmic horror can just end: no happy ending or resolution required. that said, part 3 is about 75% silly, but i can appreciate how fine the distinctions between the grotesque and the absurd often are.

beyond that, the ideas on offer were highly enjoyable. i especially appreciated the way that Snyder injected the cosmic into the story, as a sci-fi reveal near the end of the book. when i learned in chapter 23 from whence the PVG virus originated, it came as a clever surprise to me. it does not have quite the reach of a Shyamalanesque twist, but that's good because it means the book's success does not hinge entirely on that twist. it was a pleasant little, "oh damn, that's cool," moment for me. and it managed to put a new spin on how "the old ones" might inflict their will upon the earth.