1) I love that the author begins with a breaking-in-and-stair-climbing scene. She is building suspense in the same way Alfred Hitchcock (and his screenwriter Joe Stefano) built suspense when . Stair climbing is an activity that lends itself well to suspense…you can’t know what is above you and any attacker has the high ground.
2) The use of the Converse brand is interesting. This is a post-Apocalyptic novel. One of the bits of exposition that we’ll be curious about is how far in the future we are. We’ll also be curious about how different their society is from ours. The details an author chooses in these situations are important.
3) I love how the author gives us hooks that allow us to imagine the three people who have surprised Drake. Those simple adjectives (black-haired, skinny, blonde, pimply, brown-haired) are really all we need to picture the scene. The economy of these details also keep the narrative moving swiftly.
The author’s web site is very helpful to writers. Please check it out and buy her book!
