The Fervor by Alma Katsu

 

From the acclaimed and award-winning author of The Hunger and The Deep comes a new psychological and supernatural twist on the horrors of the Japanese American internment camps in World War II.

1944: As World War II rages on, the threat has come to the home front. In a remote corner of Idaho, Meiko Briggs and her daughter, Aiko, are desperate to return home. Following Meiko's husband's enlistment as an air force pilot in the Pacific months prior, Meiko and Aiko were taken from their home in Seattle and sent to one of the internment camps in the Midwest. It didn’t matter that Aiko was American-born: They were Japanese, and therefore considered a threat by the American government.

Mother and daughter attempt to hold on to elements of their old life in the camp when a mysterious disease begins to spread among those interned. What starts as a minor cold quickly becomes spontaneous fits of violence and aggression, even death. And when a disconcerting team of doctors arrive, nearly more threatening than the illness itself, Meiko and her daughter team up with a newspaper reporter and widowed missionary to investigate, and it becomes clear to them that something more sinister is afoot, a demon from the stories of Meiko’s childhood, hell-bent on infiltrating their already strange world.

Inspired by the Japanese yokai and the jorogumo spider demon, The Fervor explores a supernatural threat beyond what anyone saw coming; the danger of demonization, a mysterious contagion, and the search to stop its spread before it’s too late.

Japanese folklore and American history combine in this historical horror fiction set during World War II when President Roosevelt had people of Japanese descent, most of whom were American citizens taken from their homes and incarcerated in internment camps. The fear mongering and ignorance that breed hate groups and racism are accurately portrayed.

The story is told from alternating points of view and mainly follows Meiko and her daughter who are forced to live in one such camp when a mysterious illness begins to spread, Fran, a newspaper reporter who will risk her life to get to the truth, and Archie, the minister who is too easily swayed by his wife. 

The horror aspect has only a minor role in this novel so for that reason I would be more inclined to recommend it to fans of historical fiction. I would have liked more of the jorogumo, which is the shape shifting spider demon that makes a brief appearance. It was still a compelling story with lots of action and loads of suspense.

4 out of 5 stars

I received an advance copy.

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