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wolfblade's review against another edition
3.0
I can't decide if I liked this book or not. I'm still thinking about the book, which I suppose is a good thing. However the book has left me feeling a little unsatisfied.
Edgar is kind of an arsehole. He has disengaged from everything, and so the beginning of the book is a bit disjointed as we only see what Edgar cares to notice - which isn't a lot. From a reader's point of view this was a little confusing at times, but I felt it was really well done.
He doesn't give a shit about the potential meteor strike, and hasn't bothered to prepare. He's the world's least hands on father and husband. He's lazy and he complains and he doesn't really like anyone. He was kind of a stand in for the reader, and I thought this was clever.
Almost everyone in this book is selfish, and it's shockingly confronting. At one point two men are trying to barricade themselves in their family run store, and Edgar kicks in the door to get some water and supplies. The store is then picked clean by looters, which means the family in the store have nothing on which to survive. That was also well done I thought.
However the characters were quite thin. I only really liked Harvey and Grimes. However Grimes, one of the main female characters, was fairly cardboard and perhaps only there to create romantic tension. Another character, Richard, was so thin that I actually kept forgetting who he was. Jacob was a bit of an arsehole. Edgar was the only one who really had a character arc - by the end he was a much better person. He was weak and selfish, but as I said before, he represented the reader - to show how unprepared we'd be in the same situation.
The ending is where this all fell apart for me. There was basically no conclusion. A lot of the characters died, which I know is realistic but which I think is a lazy way of dealing with a character. Other characters just disappeared, another convenient and lazy way of dealing with them. And I felt like nothing was achieved by the end - if Edgar had decided to stay put in Edinburgh the story would have had the same conclusion, though less character growth I suppose.
Overall I liked this story for the character growth, the setting, and the apocalypse, but I didn't like the ending, which made me feel like I wasted time reading the book. Well, that's a bit strong. I feel like I could have not read the book and still feel just as satisfied. It started off really strongly, with some good writing, but I think Adrian Walker rushed the ending and didn't take time to wrap up the characters properly.
Edgar is kind of an arsehole. He has disengaged from everything, and so the beginning of the book is a bit disjointed as we only see what Edgar cares to notice - which isn't a lot. From a reader's point of view this was a little confusing at times, but I felt it was really well done.
He doesn't give a shit about the potential meteor strike, and hasn't bothered to prepare. He's the world's least hands on father and husband. He's lazy and he complains and he doesn't really like anyone. He was kind of a stand in for the reader, and I thought this was clever.
Almost everyone in this book is selfish, and it's shockingly confronting. At one point two men are trying to barricade themselves in their family run store, and Edgar kicks in the door to get some water and supplies. The store is then picked clean by looters, which means the family in the store have nothing on which to survive. That was also well done I thought.
However the characters were quite thin. I only really liked Harvey and Grimes. However Grimes, one of the main female characters, was fairly cardboard and perhaps only there to create romantic tension. Another character, Richard, was so thin that I actually kept forgetting who he was. Jacob was a bit of an arsehole. Edgar was the only one who really had a character arc - by the end he was a much better person. He was weak and selfish, but as I said before, he represented the reader - to show how unprepared we'd be in the same situation.
The ending is where this all fell apart for me. There was basically no conclusion. A lot of the characters died, which I know is realistic but which I think is a lazy way of dealing with a character. Other characters just disappeared, another convenient and lazy way of dealing with them. And I felt like nothing was achieved by the end - if Edgar had decided to stay put in Edinburgh the story would have had the same conclusion, though less character growth I suppose.
Overall I liked this story for the character growth, the setting, and the apocalypse, but I didn't like the ending, which made me feel like I wasted time reading the book. Well, that's a bit strong. I feel like I could have not read the book and still feel just as satisfied. It started off really strongly, with some good writing, but I think Adrian Walker rushed the ending and didn't take time to wrap up the characters properly.
bkbailey8521's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
lindsaylhunter's review against another edition
I aspire to never read another novel centred around a whiny man baby ever again. How one-dimensional do you have to make your female character for her to stay with such a useless sack of a man?
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
david_agranoff's review against another edition
5.0
In Jan 2021 I interviewed the author and talked at length about this book.
Check it out:
https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/pfdw-35-interview-adrian-j-walker-author-human-son/id1524359471?i=1000508190278
https://youtu.be/KEc_1lq0Yug
There are certain books that when I read them I know long before it is finished that I reading something that will be there at the end of the year when I make my top ten of the year. This is not a little deal. I hit my reading goal of the year with 70 books with this one. The End of the World Running Club is a masterful epic of post apocalyptic fiction. This is my favorite sub-genre of horror in fiction and is my favorite I have read since Brian Evenson's Immobility. The best British end of the world novel since One by Conrad Williams. In a tradition of novel that includes the Stand and Swan Song, it should be noted The author of both those books have now blurbed this book. Infact it was this tweet that lead me to read it:
@StephenKing
THE END OF THE WORLD RUNNING CLUB, by Adrian J. Walker. This one's a real find. I got a copy in Toronto. Might not be published in the US.
7:17 PM - 12 Oct 2017
EOTWRC is a novel that pushes almost of my buttons. The story is set in Scotland and follows Edgar Hill, he is not going to win father or husband of the year awards. He avoids home by overworking. He forced into survival mode by the end of the world, over night the north hemisphere is hit by hundreds of asteroids. They survive this event by huddling in a cellar. Weeks later they hear a helicopter that takes them to a base where survivors are gathered. While out collecting supplies Edgar and a small group of survivors miss a series of helicopters that are taking survivors to southern England to meet rescue ships. These ships are leaving around Christmas Day in Cornwall will take the survivors to unaffected South Africa.
After waiting a few days they realize no rescue is coming back for them. They have a month to get 550 miles, the problem is the roads are destroyed. Cars, bikes, none of it will work. And despite the fact that Edgar has never been into fitness they have one choice. Run. Pretty much a marathon a day, across the wasteland and through the weather.
What follows is a nerve-racking suspense filled novel that feels like a journey for the reader as much as the characters. The Running part doesn't even start until almost 200 pages in. No matter the building of the characters and universe are done with amazing skill. As a reader generally who doesn't like first person narrative, this in no way held me back from enjoying the story it was so well told.
That is not to say the early moments of the book are a slow build. One of the most harrowing moments of the novel was on page 46 shortly after the asteroids fell. Walker used tried and true methods of suspense building to make the possibility of someone on the other side of the cellar door terrifying. There were several moments in the book that worked well enough that I dog-eared the pages.
There are moments where Walker checks the boxes and hits us with some very trope heavy aspects of the post Apocalypse novel. The camps with the new world tyrants and the like. This doesn't distract from the over all product. Each of these detours from the run at the heart of the novel help deepen the narrative. It gives the journey higher stakes at every turn. By the end of the run we are fully invested.
Certainly I felt a kinship with Ed. I don't like to run, but force myself to do it. He doesn't want to run, but when he is left behind he finally realizes what his family is worth to him. Through the pain and hardship his need to see his family grows. There is a chapter in the book where he highlights the moment where his body excepts the running. When his body gives in and he figures out why people do it. It is a powerful moment in a book filled with them.
I don't use the word masterpiece lightly, but hot damn this book is. There is one scene (page 361) that I didn't feel was earned when a character had a random item they needed to escape a situation that I don't remember being mentioned earlier. It was the only moment I rolled my eyes at. I felt that was a little cheap and forced. A minor thing consider how powerful the book was over all. At the same time there were moments of horror done so well (like page 384) that used setting, sound and atmosphere to such wonderful effect, that is what I will remember.
Oh yes I should mention, I decided this year to only read books released in 2017/16 basically new releases. I understand a version of this novel was self-published in 2014. I suspect this edition is a new edit, and basically a new book. So it fits.
The book is almost 500 pages but it is quick read as the story cooks. Once the main characters take off on their run, the journey not only explores survival, themes of family but the limits of endurance. If you like end of the world fiction you MUST read this novel, if you just like a good story then you probably should read it. I think it was amazing.
Check it out:
https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/pfdw-35-interview-adrian-j-walker-author-human-son/id1524359471?i=1000508190278
https://youtu.be/KEc_1lq0Yug
There are certain books that when I read them I know long before it is finished that I reading something that will be there at the end of the year when I make my top ten of the year. This is not a little deal. I hit my reading goal of the year with 70 books with this one. The End of the World Running Club is a masterful epic of post apocalyptic fiction. This is my favorite sub-genre of horror in fiction and is my favorite I have read since Brian Evenson's Immobility. The best British end of the world novel since One by Conrad Williams. In a tradition of novel that includes the Stand and Swan Song, it should be noted The author of both those books have now blurbed this book. Infact it was this tweet that lead me to read it:
@StephenKing
THE END OF THE WORLD RUNNING CLUB, by Adrian J. Walker. This one's a real find. I got a copy in Toronto. Might not be published in the US.
7:17 PM - 12 Oct 2017
EOTWRC is a novel that pushes almost of my buttons. The story is set in Scotland and follows Edgar Hill, he is not going to win father or husband of the year awards. He avoids home by overworking. He forced into survival mode by the end of the world, over night the north hemisphere is hit by hundreds of asteroids. They survive this event by huddling in a cellar. Weeks later they hear a helicopter that takes them to a base where survivors are gathered. While out collecting supplies Edgar and a small group of survivors miss a series of helicopters that are taking survivors to southern England to meet rescue ships. These ships are leaving around Christmas Day in Cornwall will take the survivors to unaffected South Africa.
After waiting a few days they realize no rescue is coming back for them. They have a month to get 550 miles, the problem is the roads are destroyed. Cars, bikes, none of it will work. And despite the fact that Edgar has never been into fitness they have one choice. Run. Pretty much a marathon a day, across the wasteland and through the weather.
What follows is a nerve-racking suspense filled novel that feels like a journey for the reader as much as the characters. The Running part doesn't even start until almost 200 pages in. No matter the building of the characters and universe are done with amazing skill. As a reader generally who doesn't like first person narrative, this in no way held me back from enjoying the story it was so well told.
That is not to say the early moments of the book are a slow build. One of the most harrowing moments of the novel was on page 46 shortly after the asteroids fell. Walker used tried and true methods of suspense building to make the possibility of someone on the other side of the cellar door terrifying. There were several moments in the book that worked well enough that I dog-eared the pages.
There are moments where Walker checks the boxes and hits us with some very trope heavy aspects of the post Apocalypse novel. The camps with the new world tyrants and the like. This doesn't distract from the over all product. Each of these detours from the run at the heart of the novel help deepen the narrative. It gives the journey higher stakes at every turn. By the end of the run we are fully invested.
Certainly I felt a kinship with Ed. I don't like to run, but force myself to do it. He doesn't want to run, but when he is left behind he finally realizes what his family is worth to him. Through the pain and hardship his need to see his family grows. There is a chapter in the book where he highlights the moment where his body excepts the running. When his body gives in and he figures out why people do it. It is a powerful moment in a book filled with them.
I don't use the word masterpiece lightly, but hot damn this book is. There is one scene (page 361) that I didn't feel was earned when a character had a random item they needed to escape a situation that I don't remember being mentioned earlier. It was the only moment I rolled my eyes at. I felt that was a little cheap and forced. A minor thing consider how powerful the book was over all. At the same time there were moments of horror done so well (like page 384) that used setting, sound and atmosphere to such wonderful effect, that is what I will remember.
Oh yes I should mention, I decided this year to only read books released in 2017/16 basically new releases. I understand a version of this novel was self-published in 2014. I suspect this edition is a new edit, and basically a new book. So it fits.
The book is almost 500 pages but it is quick read as the story cooks. Once the main characters take off on their run, the journey not only explores survival, themes of family but the limits of endurance. If you like end of the world fiction you MUST read this novel, if you just like a good story then you probably should read it. I think it was amazing.
endangeredmooseknuckle's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
pixiestyx22's review against another edition
4.0
I really enjoyed this one, but of course I did. Post-apocalyptic is my favorite genre. I loved how every group of people that they met in this book were intriguing enough that they would have made a great spin-off. You would think that post-apocalyptic would be the most depressing genre of all, and there are always groups of people who take advantage of the chaos to become evil jerks. But it also brings out the best part of humanity- when people need to work together to survive. The audio of this is also amazing and I waver a bit between 4-4.5. Good stuff.
patriciajoan's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
hopeful
inspiring
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
wordsandtrainers's review against another edition
5.0
I loved this book, full stop. Surprising, emotional, intelligent, insightful, with a cast of characters that were really well thought out! I only wish Harvey could have stayed on till the end. Definitely will recommend it and read it again! Actually I'm kinda hoping they'll make it a movie, too :o)
kateinoz's review against another edition
4.0
Thank you to NetGalley for giving me this copy in return for an honest review.
Actually 4.5 stars.
I loved this book. I am not a runner and never will be, but this isn't a book about running so much as it is about the will to survive the end of the world. I really liked the main character Ed. He is not someone who is transformed into a hero by the end of the world, he still has all the same character flaws and it isn't until he loses his family that he finds the will to make changes. He actually reminds me of Ed, the sidekick from Shaun of the Dead - lovable, but a bit useless. There are some great passages in this book. One of my favourites is "the living would run through the dust of the dead, just as they always had done". It really sums up the feelings of hopelessness and hopefulness that pervade the whole novel. This will be one of those books whose characters are going to be with me for a while.
Highly recommended.
Actually 4.5 stars.
I loved this book. I am not a runner and never will be, but this isn't a book about running so much as it is about the will to survive the end of the world. I really liked the main character Ed. He is not someone who is transformed into a hero by the end of the world, he still has all the same character flaws and it isn't until he loses his family that he finds the will to make changes. He actually reminds me of Ed, the sidekick from Shaun of the Dead - lovable, but a bit useless. There are some great passages in this book. One of my favourites is "the living would run through the dust of the dead, just as they always had done". It really sums up the feelings of hopelessness and hopefulness that pervade the whole novel. This will be one of those books whose characters are going to be with me for a while.
Highly recommended.