ARC Review: Stung

Title: Stung
Author: Bethany Wiggins
Category/Genre: YA, Post-Apocalyptic, Sci-Fi, Dystopia
Release Date: April 2nd


See it at Goodreads



There is no cure for being stung.

Fiona doesn’t remember going to sleep. But when she opens her eyes, she discovers her entire world has been altered—her house is abandoned and broken, and the entire neighborhood is barren and dead. Even stranger is the tattoo on her right hand—a black oval with five marks on either side—that she doesn’t remember getting but somehow knows she must cover at any cost. She’s right.

Those bearing the tattoo have turned into mindless, violent beasts that roam the streets and sewers, preying upon the unbranded while a select few live protected inside a fortress-like wall, their lives devoted to rebuilding society and killing all who bear the mark.

Now Fiona has awakened branded, alone—and on the wrong side of the wall.



The action in Stung started immediately from the first page and I found myself glued to the story until the end. This was a compulsive and exciting read, with action and an interesting concept.

The world of Stung creates a scenario in which bees have gone extinct, causing scientists to genetically create new bees. Something goes wrong though during this process, and when the newly modified bees sting humans, a deathly virus is spread. To add further problems with the “Bee Flu”, the scientists try to create a cure for it, only to make it worse. The patients that received the vaccine become crazy, zombie-like beasts and the world is soon thrown into chaos. When Fiona is put into a coma and then wakes up, the world has been severely altered for her and she’s confused and lost. Of course, this leaves the reader with the same sense for some length of time, too. I was curious throughout, waiting to learn what exactly what was going on, but enjoyed how the story played out by the end.

I wasn’t attached to the romance entirely, feeling it happened a bit too fast, and found Arrin/Arris’s character often a little over dramatic at times when coming into the scene (though, brutally honest and helped explain at times what I wanted to know to move the story along). Some instances felt only briefly touched on where I would have liked more detail and information.

But by the end, I can say that I was never bored. I enjoyed it. I really quite liked the idea. And the ending seemed to have left it open for a sequel--one that I would definitely pick up to find out what happens next.