The Fever

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Something odd is happening to the teenage girls in the town of Dryden. The town itself seems a bit other-worldly, its dead lake fenced off and bright with glowing algae; its weather shocking, hot-to-cold in the blink of an eye; its rain almost heavy and almost acidic, shredding raincoats to pieces. The girls who attend the town’s high school begin dropping like flies. Literally dropping, their desks and chairs pitching to the side as they seize and jerk and ramble incoherently. Journalists arrive. The hospital overflows. An event, it seems, is occurring. The Fever, Megan Abbott’s new novel, contains more than just the literal kind. There is also the frenzied burst from adolescent upwards into adulthood, making the book’s high school setting a veritable hothouse of blooming sexuality and judgement, all bright colored tights and miniskirts, testosterone and swoon. The agony and ecstasy of adolescence seems to be Abbott’s expertise, as her first novel Dare Me focused on the heartless steeliness it takes to make it on a high school cheerleading squad. As with any high school saga, The Fever‘s story wouldn’t be complete without nearly maniacal parents, losing their daughters to a mystery illness. Could it be the HPV vaccine, which the school recommended? Could it be that mysterious lake, fenced off and smelling odd, forbidden and beautiful? Could there be a haunting in Dryden, or perhaps, something much more sinister but more simply human? High school seen through Abbott’s eyes isn’t a place you go and get educated, but a world unto itself. Anyone who was young once, who grew up awkward and gangly and full of hormones, knows this to be all too true. A place where everything is known by everyone simultaneously, like magic. A place where there are multiple languages, spoken in glances and movements and jangly bracelets tousled on wrists. And a place where once things start going wrong, everyone is a suspect, and no one is safe.

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In an interview with the National Post, Megan Abbott states that “Shakespeare would be writing about high school if he were writing now.” Known as a noir writer, she continues, “high school is the most noir landscape there is.” After reading THE FEVER, yeah, I can see her point. Take for instance Wikipedia’s definition of noir stating drams that “emphasize cynical attitudes and sexual motivations”, and compare it to the high school experience…it fits. THE FEVER takes the promiscuous rumors and experimental secrets of a high school and enshrouds it all with a cloak of dark mystery. Seizures and near-death experiences strike a group of girls. No one else is affected: the boys, teachers, or people of the town. Each of the girls are from troubled families; each of them are friends with one another. Some think it is a vaccine’s reaction; some think it is from a contaminated lake. The result comes as a surprise that also offers a critique. More an accurate exposition of modern High School life versus a fast-moving contagion mystery, Abbott weaves her tale well. Dark topics are explored, as well as the usual expectations of a small-town society. The emotions surrounding coming of age are detailed, including the “sexual debut” (as interestingly described in the book) of its young teenage subjects. Each family has their own histories and secrets, which leads to an interesting mix of story. This book will appeal to a wide range of readers: mystery, noir, young adult, crime, and literary. The perception is that this will be a quick YA read or light mass-infection book, but it goes much beyond that. You’ll find yourself flipping the pages with interest. The pacing is captivating, save for between the 50 and 70 percent marks (the mystery hovers, versus moving forward with as much detail as at the beginning). Thank you to Little, Brown and Company for providing me with an electronic review copy of this book for review.