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kagedbooks's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZT86ESeDh/
The September read in @Joshuas_Space’s SciFi Fanatics book club was The Never Ending End of the World by Ann Christy.
Long review short, I loved it. It’s a unique take on an apocalypse that is pretty deep and insightful for a book that is really easy to read (or listening to in my case) it’s sort of A Quiet Place mixed with Revolution.
So I guess this would be a post-apocalyptic story maybe mid-apocalyptic
Basically the majority of the world is frozen into loops where they just keep repeating the same actions. Loop lengths vary from person to person could be a second, or several hours.
The catch is if the loop is disturbed by something it breaks and the looper goes feral and tries to attack everything before
presumably dying and disappearing.
This book takes place over several decades following the event that caused the loops, but the time progression doesn’t feel rushed or inorganic. You’ll still have plenty of time to connect with the characters.
The story is mostly told through the eyes of Coco Wells, a young woman who has been living in solitude for years, before realizing she’s now alone in the world.
As resources and infrastructure start to fail the unlooped face a difficult choices not only about how to live in this world but how plan for the future.
I am left with a few questions at the end but I don’t mind that and the story kept me engaged throughout.
The book explores themes of survival, hope, love, and legacy.
While this is largely considered sci-fi I think it could appeal to a larger audience because it’s more about the human element than the science.
The audiobook has two narrators:
Therese Plummer and Ari Fliakos these are both new narrators for me but they did a great job of bringing life and emotion into this story.
Thanks to NetGalley and Campfire publishing for the chance to listen to this book early. Receiving the ALC does not affect my review and thoughts on the story are my own
The September read in @Joshuas_Space’s SciFi Fanatics book club was The Never Ending End of the World by Ann Christy.
Long review short, I loved it. It’s a unique take on an apocalypse that is pretty deep and insightful for a book that is really easy to read (or listening to in my case) it’s sort of A Quiet Place mixed with Revolution.
So I guess this would be a post-apocalyptic story maybe mid-apocalyptic
Basically the majority of the world is frozen into loops where they just keep repeating the same actions. Loop lengths vary from person to person could be a second, or several hours.
The catch is if the loop is disturbed by something it breaks and the looper goes feral and tries to attack everything before
presumably dying and disappearing.
This book takes place over several decades following the event that caused the loops, but the time progression doesn’t feel rushed or inorganic. You’ll still have plenty of time to connect with the characters.
The story is mostly told through the eyes of Coco Wells, a young woman who has been living in solitude for years, before realizing she’s now alone in the world.
As resources and infrastructure start to fail the unlooped face a difficult choices not only about how to live in this world but how plan for the future.
I am left with a few questions at the end but I don’t mind that and the story kept me engaged throughout.
The book explores themes of survival, hope, love, and legacy.
While this is largely considered sci-fi I think it could appeal to a larger audience because it’s more about the human element than the science.
The audiobook has two narrators:
Therese Plummer and Ari Fliakos these are both new narrators for me but they did a great job of bringing life and emotion into this story.
Thanks to NetGalley and Campfire publishing for the chance to listen to this book early. Receiving the ALC does not affect my review and thoughts on the story are my own
booknallnight's review against another edition
medium-paced
4.0
I haven't read a good dystopian Sci-Fi in a while. I really enjoyed this one. It's a lot to wrap my head around but that is part of the fun.
I couldn't imagine being in this type of situation. I think the author does a great job with the story and characters. Parts of this gave me a Walking Dead vibe and I loved that. This would make a fantastic movie.
Definitely a good one for Sci-Fi fans. I sincerely appreciate the publisher and NetGalley for the review copy. All opinions expressed are my own.
I couldn't imagine being in this type of situation. I think the author does a great job with the story and characters. Parts of this gave me a Walking Dead vibe and I loved that. This would make a fantastic movie.
Definitely a good one for Sci-Fi fans. I sincerely appreciate the publisher and NetGalley for the review copy. All opinions expressed are my own.
siena_j_p's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
This is such a clever premise for a book. It’s entirely different from any dystopian/apocalypse story I’ve ever seen, and it manages to be surprisingly horrifying in a way that lets it compete with any zombie apocalypse. That being said, the execution was a bit odd. There wasn’t as much tension as it felt like the story warranted? The stakes were clearly high, and a fascinating sort of political intrigue gets laid out across the book, but the actual tension was missing for me for a lot of the book. In the scenes where it worked, it really worked, but so many crucial moments got told in the form of a diary entry that a lot of the tension and drama got lost. Also, the story spanned a really long time. Which is fine because it gave it a very unique structure and, I think, allowed a story of parenthood and what we owe the world to be told that would be really challenging to tell if it didn’t span a lifetime. Unfortunately, it also meant that a lot of relationships sort of got pushed to the side because they got told, not shown. For instance, it felt like Coco and Jorge’s relationship just sort of got thrown in as an aside by Coco, but never really played out. And none of the side characters were really distinct in any way or given any page time. So this was a perfectly decent book with a really cool premise, but I think the structure needed to be tightened up a little.
willie_g's review against another edition
3.0
Wow...ok..... This was quite a story. I really liked the concept and thought that the character development throughout was wonderful. You are really able to connect with the characters and CoCo really grew on me. That being said, honestly, this book just wasn't for me. While I liked the idea behind the story I just couldn't get all the way in. The only reason I kept reading is because I wanted to know how it ended. Not because I was enjoying the book. I just couldn't wrap my head around most of it. Not the author's fault really. This just isn't my normal genre. I don't seem to have the imagination for this subject matter.
However, if you are into SciFi and time loops then I do believe this is the book for you.
It was a nice change of "scenery" and I appreciated the new post-apocalyptic theme. Something different from zombies and radiation.
I bumped my star rating up to a 3 because I don't feel it would be fair to the author to rate it any lower knowing that I went into this halfheartedly based on the premise of the book.
Overall, a great story for SciFi fans with a good imagination and open mind.
Thank you NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review and for the opportunity and push to expand my reading borders.
However, if you are into SciFi and time loops then I do believe this is the book for you.
It was a nice change of "scenery" and I appreciated the new post-apocalyptic theme. Something different from zombies and radiation.
I bumped my star rating up to a 3 because I don't feel it would be fair to the author to rate it any lower knowing that I went into this halfheartedly based on the premise of the book.
Overall, a great story for SciFi fans with a good imagination and open mind.
Thank you NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review and for the opportunity and push to expand my reading borders.
orangeliger7's review against another edition
4.0
Full thoughts here: https://youtu.be/Vbzn2S5aicM
Overall a really great fast-paced read. I would easily recommend this to most people.
Very light spoilers below:
So what I liked:
The world
The pacing
The mystery
The characters and how different they are and how they aren't at the same time
Seeing the world change
Didn't like:
Some of the relationships that happened i didn't really love
The two groups I feel like one would be much larger than the other
Some of the emotional moments that occur are off-screen or fleeting
The final conflict
Overall a really great fast-paced read. I would easily recommend this to most people.
Very light spoilers below:
So what I liked:
The world
The pacing
The mystery
The characters and how different they are and how they aren't at the same time
Seeing the world change
Didn't like:
Some of the relationships that happened i didn't really love
The two groups I feel like one would be much larger than the other
Some of the emotional moments that occur are off-screen or fleeting
The final conflict
ante_k's review
4.0
The world stops, or rather repeats it self in small loops over and over again. Each person with their personal loop. The concept is amazing, the execution striking! The first half of this book was truly a 10/10 imo, and I'm a picky reader!
The main characters are fleshed out and were both young when the apocalypse happened. Following them growing up and evolving is a nice ride.
Sadly I'm not a fan of the way this story went after a while. I also find it a bit funny how these characters are on such high horses of morality. They truly read as Americans. Not only in the way they are convinced the looped humans are alive but also the family situation that happens in the story.
Up until the next to last chapter I would probably still have given the story a 5/5 but the ending really hit all the wring spots for me. It was super touching in parts, but the way it concluded and resolved was such a disappointment for me.
This has still been one of my most enjoyable reads of 2023 so far and I dont regret reading it.
The language is easy, effective and expressive. It might have help the visualisation if I would know what an American city looks like.
The main characters are fleshed out and were both young when the apocalypse happened. Following them growing up and evolving is a nice ride.
Sadly I'm not a fan of the way this story went after a while. I also find it a bit funny how these characters are on such high horses of morality. They truly read as Americans. Not only in the way they are convinced the looped humans are alive but also the family situation that happens in the story.
Up until the next to last chapter I would probably still have given the story a 5/5 but the ending really hit all the wring spots for me. It was super touching in parts, but the way it concluded and resolved was such a disappointment for me.
This has still been one of my most enjoyable reads of 2023 so far and I dont regret reading it.
The language is easy, effective and expressive. It might have help the visualisation if I would know what an American city looks like.
aurigae's review
4.0
In this thought-provoking work of post-apocalyptic science fiction, 12-year-old Coco is one of the few survivors of an unknown event that left most of the world's living creatures stuck in short time loops. Coco must battle the elements to find other survivors, and as the years pass she and the other survivors must balance rebuilding the world with living their own lives.
The Never-Ending End of the World did many things well, combining an engrossing survival story with an intriguing science-fiction mystery and, near the end, elements of suspense. I enjoyed reading about the new society that the survivors built, and the author's exploration of the different ideologies in this fictional world was detailed and compelling.
What I did not find compelling was the nature of the apocalypse itself: individual time loops of widely varying durations, which when disturbed result in flashes of irrational violence and then death. This seemed designed purely to horrify both characters and readers, and I almost didn't get past the first handful of pages because of it. The rest of the book is written in a much more thoughtful and subtle way, and I'm very glad I kept reading, but I lowered my rating because this issue nagged at me throughout the book.
[I received a complimentary ARC from NetGalley. Opinions are my own.]
The Never-Ending End of the World did many things well, combining an engrossing survival story with an intriguing science-fiction mystery and, near the end, elements of suspense. I enjoyed reading about the new society that the survivors built, and the author's exploration of the different ideologies in this fictional world was detailed and compelling.
What I did not find compelling was the nature of the apocalypse itself: individual time loops of widely varying durations, which when disturbed result in flashes of irrational violence and then death. This seemed designed purely to horrify both characters and readers, and I almost didn't get past the first handful of pages because of it. The rest of the book is written in a much more thoughtful and subtle way, and I'm very glad I kept reading, but I lowered my rating because this issue nagged at me throughout the book.
[I received a complimentary ARC from NetGalley. Opinions are my own.]
naomilee's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-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? No
5.0
momankara's review
3.0
Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.
I really liked the premise that the supercollider at Brookhaven broke time. Coco is a likeable character. I wish there had been more explanation of the theoretical physics that led to what happened, and that there had been more world-building for the post-apocalyptic world. Similar concepts are repeated throughout the narrative but deeper and more descriptive passages would have helped me identify with the characters and the setting. The characters beyond Coco and Forrest were thinly described. Forrest seems to disappear at the end, so that thread is lost after half the book is told from his POV.
I really liked the premise that the supercollider at Brookhaven broke time. Coco is a likeable character. I wish there had been more explanation of the theoretical physics that led to what happened, and that there had been more world-building for the post-apocalyptic world. Similar concepts are repeated throughout the narrative but deeper and more descriptive passages would have helped me identify with the characters and the setting. The characters beyond Coco and Forrest were thinly described. Forrest seems to disappear at the end, so that thread is lost after half the book is told from his POV.