The Cleansing by Sam Kates

  The Cleansing by Sam Kates was so absolutely magnificent that when I finished it, I had to go back and reread the last few paragraphs over and over again until I was satisfied with all of the details. I couldn't get enough of The Cleansing and Sam's characters. Even after I was finished, I was still craving more of the story.
  The Cleansing starts with an email. One email that has been sent out to 5,000 living beings all around the Earth who have been given a signal, and that signal is, "It's time." Soon after receiving the emails- almost immediately after for some recipients- these beings start to distribute a sort of shimmery powder all around public places. Public door handles, park benches, playgrounds, restaurant tables, and everything else humans touch every day on a regular basis are now coated just enough for the powder to get onto their hands...and into their system.
  Soon humans all over the world are contracting a deadly flu, and there are no survivors aside from the original 5,000...that we know of.
  This book caught my interest right away. The beginning had enough mystery to keep you interested, the middle (the "meatier" part of the story) gets you attached and...tragically and unfortunately unattached to some of the characters, and the ending has you positively begging for more!
  Shortly after finishing The Cleansing, I talked to a friend of mine and she said that I should, in fact, "fangirl" a bit, so here goes.
  Oh. My. Gosh. The Cleansing is absolutely one of the BEST books I've ever read. Not in a, "Oh, I really, really liked it and became attached to the story" sense, but in a, "I cannot continue living until I either get a sequel or reread this book." (And I rarely, and I mean rarely ever reread books.) The Cleansing (and Sam Kates specifically) is amazing. Absolutely, incredibly, positively, and all things magnificently amazing.
  Please...for the love of all that is good and pure in the literary world, READ THIS BOOK. I have to talk about this book with someone soon or I swear I will spontaneously combust.
  I even had to go out to dinner last night with my parents for my mother's birthday, and all I could comprehend when told I had to leave was, "Oh, please no, let me just finish this book!"
  You will not want to put The Cleansing down.
  I don't know what else to say except, "Please, please, PLEASE read this book, and join in on my fangirling excitement."

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