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stories's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
Only rich white mrn would throw a party at the end of the world.
It was fine. Very much more apocalyptic than the blurb implied, and heavy-handed at times in its messaging & representation. Moved at a ready pace with some engaging twists, turns and betrayals.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Panic attacks/disorders, Death, Drug use, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Violence, Ableism, Bullying, Murder, Blood, Alcohol, Chronic illness, and Racism
Minor: Police brutality and Fire/Fire injury
* Minor depiction of cult * Majordogoodwithbooks's review
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I would like to thank NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing me with a free e-ARC of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.
Personally, I have mixed feelings about this book.
Waverly never expected to end up at the infamous Webber Academy Masquerade… especially disguised as somebody else. But she agrees to it after one of the most popular girls at Webber Academy asks her to go as her as well as finding out that Ash Webber, her secret ex-girlfriend and daughter of Webber Academy’s dean who her and her family rely on for their generous scholarship. However, as the night goes on, things take a devious turn and nothing is what it seems.
I guess the main thing that bugged me about this book is that it dragged on in the beginning. A lot. Of course, I appreciate Wilde’s efforts to fully dive into each of the main characters to understand their backstories and motivations. However, there’s not really anything to keep you in until you’re almost 50% into the book. While I dabble in the thriller genre from time to time, I feel that you need to have something to keep people engaged until you get to the thriller aspect.
Though, once you’re able to get through the beginning, Wilde’s plot gets a lot more interesting. A unique perspective on the dystopian subgenre, you get to see female empowerment as they take on the end of the world as they know it. This book is full of twists and turns, and even the thorough beginning makes more sense as well as come full circle at the conclusion. On the other hand, this book can be intense at times and it’s made clear that this book is not for the faint of heart.
Now, I absolutely loved the autistic rep in this book. As an #ActuallyAutistic book reviewer, I love being able to see autistic folks as the MCs in the books I read and I love it even more when they are written by disabled authors. I feel that Wilde does a great job portraying Waverly and her Autistic experience. Seeing Waverly fight against a system that wants to eliminate anyone who doesn’t align with Webber Academy’s elite, her journey in this book has me feel inspired despite all the blood and gore that comes with it.
Overall, this is one of the times where I wished GoodReads would allow half-star ratings. However, I decided to round this book up because of the autistic rep and Wilde’s storytelling. If you’re able to push through some of the mundane aspects of the beginning, you can expect an excellent read in This is the Way the World Ends.
My advice for any reader that wants to read This is the Way the World Ends? If you want a jump-scare novel with dystopian horror vibes, you’re going to like this book. If you want an Autistic MC written by a disabled author, you came to the right place. If you’re the type of person who’s squeamish around blood and don’t like books with a lot of deaths, you might want to avoid this title.
Personally, I have mixed feelings about this book.
Waverly never expected to end up at the infamous Webber Academy Masquerade… especially disguised as somebody else. But she agrees to it after one of the most popular girls at Webber Academy asks her to go as her as well as finding out that Ash Webber, her secret ex-girlfriend and daughter of Webber Academy’s dean who her and her family rely on for their generous scholarship. However, as the night goes on, things take a devious turn and nothing is what it seems.
I guess the main thing that bugged me about this book is that it dragged on in the beginning. A lot. Of course, I appreciate Wilde’s efforts to fully dive into each of the main characters to understand their backstories and motivations. However, there’s not really anything to keep you in until you’re almost 50% into the book. While I dabble in the thriller genre from time to time, I feel that you need to have something to keep people engaged until you get to the thriller aspect.
Though, once you’re able to get through the beginning, Wilde’s plot gets a lot more interesting. A unique perspective on the dystopian subgenre, you get to see female empowerment as they take on the end of the world as they know it. This book is full of twists and turns, and even the thorough beginning makes more sense as well as come full circle at the conclusion. On the other hand, this book can be intense at times and it’s made clear that this book is not for the faint of heart.
Now, I absolutely loved the autistic rep in this book. As an #ActuallyAutistic book reviewer, I love being able to see autistic folks as the MCs in the books I read and I love it even more when they are written by disabled authors. I feel that Wilde does a great job portraying Waverly and her Autistic experience. Seeing Waverly fight against a system that wants to eliminate anyone who doesn’t align with Webber Academy’s elite, her journey in this book has me feel inspired despite all the blood and gore that comes with it.
Overall, this is one of the times where I wished GoodReads would allow half-star ratings. However, I decided to round this book up because of the autistic rep and Wilde’s storytelling. If you’re able to push through some of the mundane aspects of the beginning, you can expect an excellent read in This is the Way the World Ends.
My advice for any reader that wants to read This is the Way the World Ends? If you want a jump-scare novel with dystopian horror vibes, you’re going to like this book. If you want an Autistic MC written by a disabled author, you came to the right place. If you’re the type of person who’s squeamish around blood and don’t like books with a lot of deaths, you might want to avoid this title.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Gore, Body horror, Vomit, Fire/Fire injury, Murder, Ableism, and Blood
Moderate: Death of parent
Minor: Chronic illness
imstephtacular's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Classism, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Death, and Murder
Moderate: Grief, Cursing, Bullying, Child death, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Gore, Medical content, Panic attacks/disorders, Alcohol, Chronic illness, Emotional abuse, Racism, Xenophobia, and Ableism
Minor: Death of parent, Sexism, Homophobia, Medical trauma, Infidelity, Misogyny, and War
bookishmillennial's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
disclaimer if you’ve read other reviews by me and are noticing a pattern: You’re correct that I don’t really give starred reviews, I feel like a peasant and don’t like leaving them and most often, I will only leave them if I vehemently despised a book. I enjoy most books for what they are, & I extract lessons from them all. Everyone’s reading experiences are subjective, so I hope my reviews provide enough information to let you know if a book is for you or not, regardless if I add stars or not. Find me on Instagram: @bookish.millennial or tiktok: @bookishmillennial
*read via the Libby app through my library membership*
This book may be short but it packs a punch! I really enjoyed the first-person narration of Waverly — she felt like someone I would’ve wanted to be friends with in high school, and her motivations to attend the masquerade were so understandable. The desire to “fit in” doesn’t stop in high school, so yes, my 31-year-old ass still feels this sometimes 😅
I enjoy teenage main characters because so much of the underlying messaging is unabashedly to the point. There’s no guessing what systems of oppression are keeping the othered kids down, & there’s also clear, indisputable examples of the way these -isms operate in daily interactions.
Though this book takes place in the span of one night and there’s no panacea to essentially saving the world, I adored the choices Waverly & her friends made when it came down to who or what was worth fighting for.
This was the first book I’ve read by Jen & I’m so impressed by her😭 I will absolutely continue to read whatever they write!
*read via the Libby app through my library membership*
This book may be short but it packs a punch! I really enjoyed the first-person narration of Waverly — she felt like someone I would’ve wanted to be friends with in high school, and her motivations to attend the masquerade were so understandable. The desire to “fit in” doesn’t stop in high school, so yes, my 31-year-old ass still feels this sometimes 😅
I enjoy teenage main characters because so much of the underlying messaging is unabashedly to the point. There’s no guessing what systems of oppression are keeping the othered kids down, & there’s also clear, indisputable examples of the way these -isms operate in daily interactions.
Though this book takes place in the span of one night and there’s no panacea to essentially saving the world, I adored the choices Waverly & her friends made when it came down to who or what was worth fighting for.
This was the first book I’ve read by Jen & I’m so impressed by her😭 I will absolutely continue to read whatever they write!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Ableism, Classism, Homophobia, Racism, Violence, and Murder
Minor: Chronic illness
avidreaderandgeekgirl's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
I really enjoyed this book; it wasn't predictable for the most part. I never did trust Jack, but I doubt any reader would. I loved Max, Pari, Waverly, and Caroline. Ashley, I'm on the fence about her. I wish we'd gotten more of the book after the disaster. Maybe a sequel? Overall, a good and not super predictable edge-of-your-seat thriller.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Blood, Toxic relationship, Injury/Injury detail, Sexism, Murder, Chronic illness, Death, Alcohol, Classism, Violence, Panic attacks/disorders, and Misogyny
Moderate: Cursing, Infidelity, Homophobia, Bullying, Racism, Vomit, and Ableism
Minor: Death of parent
All the racism/ableism/homophobia/misogyny/sexism was from the bad guys and parts of their evil plot.sarahsbookss's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Child death, Cursing, Drug use, Ableism, Alcohol, Classism, Kidnapping, Chronic illness, Death, Death of parent, Biphobia, Homophobia, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Vomit, and Injury/Injury detail
sophiesmallhands's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder and Classism
Moderate: Misogyny, Gore, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, Sexism, Death, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Alcohol and Ableism
huntress's review
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Chronic illness, Classism, Alcohol, Ableism, Murder, and Death
bookcheshirecat's review
challenging
dark
tense
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
“But when you spend every day being surrounded by people who have so much more than you, it’s easy to feel like you’re not good enough.”
Thank you to Netgalley and Wednesday Books for providing me with a digital copy in exchange for an honest review! The quotes are taken from the Arc and are subject to changes!
➽ I loved our main character: Waverly. She’s only able to attend the prestigious Webber Academy because of a scholarship and the generous help of the founder. Waverly is determined to use her chance to get into a good college and become a doctor who helps anyone who needs care. She’s grown up with a chronically ill mother and in a loving, but poor family – some Waverly sees firsthand how the greed of corporations exploits and harms people like her. It was easy to emphasize with Waverly, as she’s trying to do her best to succeed, even when she’s surrounded by people who have more power and privilege than is good for them. She’s also autistic and a lesbian, so Waverly is aware how vicious society can be against her. When Caroline offers to switch with her, so she can attend the ball in her place, Waverly isn’t too sure about it. In the end, it’s her only chance to come, as she wasn’t formally invited!
➽ The secondary cast is amazing as well! Waverly’s best friends at school are Pari and Frank, some of the only people who don’t come across as arrogant and elitist. Pari is from a wealthy family, but she’s not like the other rich kids and a good friend to Waverly. She’s chronically ill and uses a cane as a mobility aid. Frank is another scholarship kid and a real genius, but he’s also super caring and always there for his friend. An unlikely ally comes in the form of Caroline, the daughter of Webber’s closest associate. You might expect her to be the typical mean girl, but Caroline is a nice person who Waverly thinks might even become a friend. And then there’s Ashley … Webber’s daughter and Waverly’s secret girlfriend who left without a word and broke her heart. When she appears at the party, Waverly is determined to get some closure, even though her heart is still hung up on her …
"This is why I don’t let myself get my hopes up about things. It always ends in disappointment.”
➽ The blend between Thriller and Apocalypse was amazing! Not only does the masquerade ball reveal sinister secrets about Webber Academy and its wealthy contributors, but there’s also a massive world-altering event! Not saying more because of spoilers, but there’s an apocalyptic atmosphere, as the world as we know it changes in an instant. There are also many great discussions about privilege, power and how the elites create a world that serves them and excludes everyone who is different. Waverly has first-hand experience with that as a lesbian, autistic teen whose family is barely scraping by. While the Academy serves her with opportunities she never could have gotten otherwise, she’s still an outsider and the elites will always protect their own power and preserve the skewed system because it serves them. I almost wish the book was longer/we had a sequel because I would love to see more of the fallout of the event that happens 👀
"The world isn’t ending with a bang or a whimper, but with the pop of champagne.”
IN CONCLUSION. ➽ This is the Way the World Ends is a fantastic blend between thriller, party and a truly apocalyptic event! The story was suspenseful and fast-paced from start to finish, so I was on the edge of my seat the entire time! I loved the main character Waverly and her friends, as they race to make it out of the masquerade ball alive!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Death, Murder, Classism, and Violence
Moderate: Homophobia, Kidnapping, Gaslighting, and Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Chronic illness and Sexism
womanwill's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Wow, this book was a ride! I didn't realize it was a thriller/science fiction-y until I started reading it. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the free e-ARC.
Set mostly at an elite private school's fundraiser and private gala, Waverly and her friends stumble upon murder and a high-level power scheme after a dystopian event.
In this short and fast-paced novel, you'll find an amazing cast of characters and tropes:
- Waverly- our MC - a lesbian scholarship student with Autism
- MS & chronic pain rep in Waverly's mom & how disability impacts their family and income earning abilities
- Pari- Waverly's bad ass mized South Asian best friend who is bisexual and has EDS & chronic; she also often uses a cane & has quite the collection
- sapphic longing
- dark academia meets tech dystopian science fiction
- found family
- lots of death and murder
- mannequins
- a horror maze
My favorite thing about this book was the disability and queer rep. At its core is a queer and disabled centric core friend group/found family & love for blood family. Though the characters did face some discrimination and comments from the able bodied and minded and cisheternormative side characters. So CW for that.
I found the story to be a bit unbelievable at times and a bit uneven in plotting. But I think it's aimed for a relatively young YA age, and overall, I thought some of the twists on dark academia were quite fun.
Set mostly at an elite private school's fundraiser and private gala, Waverly and her friends stumble upon murder and a high-level power scheme after a dystopian event.
In this short and fast-paced novel, you'll find an amazing cast of characters and tropes:
- Waverly- our MC - a lesbian scholarship student with Autism
- MS & chronic pain rep in Waverly's mom & how disability impacts their family and income earning abilities
- Pari- Waverly's bad ass mized South Asian best friend who is bisexual and has EDS & chronic; she also often uses a cane & has quite the collection
- sapphic longing
- dark academia meets tech dystopian science fiction
- found family
- lots of death and murder
- mannequins
- a horror maze
My favorite thing about this book was the disability and queer rep. At its core is a queer and disabled centric core friend group/found family & love for blood family. Though the characters did face some discrimination and comments from the able bodied and minded and cisheternormative side characters. So CW for that.
I found the story to be a bit unbelievable at times and a bit uneven in plotting. But I think it's aimed for a relatively young YA age, and overall, I thought some of the twists on dark academia were quite fun.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Racism, Ableism, Chronic illness, Classism, Death of parent, Bullying, Colonisation, and Murder
Moderate: Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Panic attacks/disorders, Stalking, Toxic friendship, Religious bigotry, and Violence