Virals - the dead can no longer talk

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Virals - the dead can no longer talk (original title: Virals ) is the first book for young people by the American author Kathy Reichs , which she wrote together with her son Brendan Reichs. It was published in 2010 by Razorbill Verlag. The German translation by Knut Krüger was published by cbj-Verlag in 2011 . In contrast to the other novels by Kathy Reichs about the forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan, to which this book is an offshoot, virals - dead people can no longer talk science fiction - and fantasy elements.

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After her mother was killed in a car accident, 14-year-old Tory Brennan, Temperance Brennan's great-niece, lives with her father, Christopher "Kit" Howard on Morris Island , a small island outside of Charleston , South Carolina. Morris is inhabited almost exclusively by employees of the Loggerhead Island Research Institute (LIRI); a research institute that is located on Loggerhead Island, a small island near Morris, and whose mission is to study primates and other animals.

Tory quickly becomes friends with Shelton, Hi and Ben, whose parents are also employed by LIRI and therefore also live on Morris. During a trip to Loggerhead, which the four youngsters take with Ben's boat, Tory finds an old identification tag of a US soldier whose name is no longer legible. Out of curiosity, the four secretly sneak into one of the LIRI laboratories to clean the brand. In doing so, however, they notice that a puppy is locked in one of the neighboring laboratories - which should actually be out of order. A sign on his cage says that Cooper - the puppy - was infected with a mutated version of the parvovirus . Suspecting an illegal experiment, Tory and her friends free Cooper, assuming Parvo is safe for humans. Back on Morris they hide Cooper in an old military bunker to nurse him back to health.

The four of them investigate the soldier who once owned the dog tag (and whose name is now legible) and find out that his daughter Katherine Heaton has been missing since 1969. Since their father died in the Vietnam War , they assume that the dog tag they found must have been in their possession. In fact, a little later, Tory and her friends discover Katherine Heaton's body, buried on Loggerhead. Moments later they are followed and almost shot by masked men. When they return the next morning with the police and their parents, Katherine's bones have disappeared and replaced with monkey bones. In addition, since there is no evidence of the gunshots, the four are not believed.

Tory, Ben, Hi and Shelton are looking for Heaton's killer, as the masked men were likely sent by him to cover up the crime. However, this plan does not work at first because they all suddenly get sick. They quickly realize that they must have contracted Cooper after all. In addition to the usual flu-like symptoms, they also have strange "flare-ups" in which their eyes change to yellow and their senses become superhumanly good. The attacks are also associated with increased endurance, speed and strength, but also cravings for raw meat. Even after they all - including Cooper - have overcome their illness, their superpowers - which they can only partially control - remain.

Dr. Karsten, head of LIRI and head of the illegal experiment on Cooper, finds out that they freed the dog. He follows them to their bunker and confronts them. They confess everything to him and report on their skills, whereupon Dr. Karsten explains that the virus introduced wolf DNA into their DNA and that they therefore have their physical abilities. Shortly afterwards, masked men reappear to kill them. Tory and her friends manage to escape because Karsten is holding up the men. He is shot himself.

Tory and her friends, who now call themselves "Virals," eventually find out that Katherine Heaton was killed by Hollis Claybourne, a wealthy and influential businessman, when she discovered bald eagles on an island he was planning to build a factory on . Since these are an endangered species, that would have prevented the million dollar deal. The Virals break into Claybourne's property to seek incriminating evidence against him. They are initially stopped by Chance Claybourne, a classmate of the Virals and son of Hollis Claybourne. But when Hollis's henchmen try to kill her, he takes her side. With the help of their skills, Tory, Ben, Hi and Shelton manage to overpower the henchmen. Hollis and his helpers are arrested, and Chance, traumatized by the fight, is sent to a mental health facility. The virals decide to keep their superpowers to themselves and go on with their normal lives.

characters

  • Victoria "Tory" Brennan
  • Hiram "Hi" Stolowitsky
  • Shelton Devers
  • Ben Blue
  • Dr. Christopher "Kit" Howard
  • Dr. Marcus E. Karsten
  • Claybourne chance
  • Jason Taylor
  • Hannah Wythe
  • Whitney Dubois
  • Madison Dark
  • Ashley Bodford
  • Courtney Holt
  • Hollis Claybourne

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