You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.24 AVERAGE
3.24 AVERAGE
DNF @ 54%. I am so bored and Billie’s chapters are so frustrating to read and there is no real plot direction and I’m not connected with anyone. Real cool idea, very poor execution.
I received this book as an ARC. To be honest I had a really hard time getting through this book. The storyline was interesting, but the book fell flat for me. I would think that a dystopian novel would have more excitement than what I found in this book. It was a very slow read and at times I had a hard time getting through the story.
Afterland follows a South African woman named Cole and her young son Miles, who is one of the few boys and men immune to an aggressive viral prostate cancer that has almost wiped the planet clean of people who are capable of contracting it. After escaping from a government facility where the immune boys and men were kept under lock and key, the two of them go on a desperate cross-country run to return home.
The speculative fiction subgenre of the gender apocalypse is nothing new, and likewise Afterland brings nothing new to the table. My problems with the book can be summed up into three main gripes: the bloated length, the annoying point of view, and the fact that the side characters were for the most part much more interesting than our main ones.
1. This book could have been condensed by at least a hundred pages and not suffered in the least. I did appreciate the way that the cross-country trip frames how different people in different places across the United States have responded to the plague, but there were also points where I had to reject the urge to skim to get to the next plot beat. That's not a good thing. If more care had been put into the dystopian aspects of the world building aside from a few scenes used for shock value, it would have been a lot more engaging.
2. Our primary point of view is Cole, Miles' mom. The problem with this is that she's a fairly insufferable person, especially when it comes to listening to her son. As the reader, being subject to her constant anxiety and refusal to respect her son's autonomy as a person puts my teeth on edge in a bad way. There's a climactic point towards the ending that could have been entirely avoided if she was a better parent, for pete's sake!
3. This also ties into the previous point, but I don't think that Cole or her sister were the correct choice to be the primary narrators of the story. I would have much preferred Miles' perspective on things, because he's the one with the most unique position.
All in all, I managed to tolerate it, but I won't pick it back up again. 2/5 stars.
The speculative fiction subgenre of the gender apocalypse is nothing new, and likewise Afterland brings nothing new to the table. My problems with the book can be summed up into three main gripes: the bloated length, the annoying point of view, and the fact that the side characters were for the most part much more interesting than our main ones.
1. This book could have been condensed by at least a hundred pages and not suffered in the least. I did appreciate the way that the cross-country trip frames how different people in different places across the United States have responded to the plague, but there were also points where I had to reject the urge to skim to get to the next plot beat. That's not a good thing. If more care had been put into the dystopian aspects of the world building aside from a few scenes used for shock value, it would have been a lot more engaging.
2. Our primary point of view is Cole, Miles' mom. The problem with this is that she's a fairly insufferable person, especially when it comes to listening to her son. As the reader, being subject to her constant anxiety and refusal to respect her son's autonomy as a person puts my teeth on edge in a bad way. There's a climactic point towards the ending that could have been entirely avoided if she was a better parent, for pete's sake!
3. This also ties into the previous point, but I don't think that Cole or her sister were the correct choice to be the primary narrators of the story. I would have much preferred Miles' perspective on things, because he's the one with the most unique position.
All in all, I managed to tolerate it, but I won't pick it back up again. 2/5 stars.
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
funny
medium-paced
slow-paced
Terrible. I loved the shinning girls and I really wanted to like this but it was strange and boring and long winded. I didn’t get the point.
So, off the bat: If you have ANY PTS from the COVID pandemic, this would probably be a hard read. It deals with mass death and uncertainty that was very reminiscent of the pandemic. It also tackles a very important question: In a world that has been designed for men and their success (hello, misogyny), what happens when they die off? There were multiple moments in the book where my thinking and internalised misogyny was challenged eg. When there was reference to people who positions that were traditionally occupied by men, I had to remind myself “oh yeah, this is a world with very few men and this is actually a woman”. It was a challenge that I welcomed but, not going to lie, I was upset with myself that the thought-process existed in the first place.
That being said, if there is one thing about this book that keeps you reading, it’s the storyline. You want to know how it ends. You want to know if Cole and Miles ever stop running. You want to know if Billie ever stops being an a-hole. You want to know if anyone figures out that Miles is not actually Mila (the intensity of thinking “will this be the convo where his voice breaks”). The storyline is what keeps you reading.
However, there were a number of cons. Firstly, the writing style. I’m not sure if this is just me but I REALLY struggle to read books where people over-use cultural references, especially when I feel they are misplaced eg. The overuse of the term “boo”. I also found that the overuse of similes in almost every conversation or internal dialogue quite annoying. The writing style played into my second annoyance: the pacing. Jumping between three characters, PLUS doing some time jumps felt a bit scattered. Moving from that point to some very slow-paced writing, and then suddenly the last few chapters flew so fast- it all felt very displaced. There were moments I would have cut out as they added nothing to the storyline.
I felt the story had a “happy ending”, or at least it ended as well as it could. I like not knowing what will happen to then beyond the boat. I just hated that there were so many moments where I just wanted the book to end, especially as I had heard amazing things about the author. I’d definitely give her another chance some time in the future.
That being said, if there is one thing about this book that keeps you reading, it’s the storyline. You want to know how it ends. You want to know if Cole and Miles ever stop running. You want to know if Billie ever stops being an a-hole. You want to know if anyone figures out that Miles is not actually Mila (the intensity of thinking “will this be the convo where his voice breaks”). The storyline is what keeps you reading.
However, there were a number of cons. Firstly, the writing style. I’m not sure if this is just me but I REALLY struggle to read books where people over-use cultural references, especially when I feel they are misplaced eg. The overuse of the term “boo”. I also found that the overuse of similes in almost every conversation or internal dialogue quite annoying. The writing style played into my second annoyance: the pacing. Jumping between three characters, PLUS doing some time jumps felt a bit scattered. Moving from that point to some very slow-paced writing, and then suddenly the last few chapters flew so fast- it all felt very displaced. There were moments I would have cut out as they added nothing to the storyline.
I felt the story had a “happy ending”, or at least it ended as well as it could. I like not knowing what will happen to then beyond the boat. I just hated that there were so many moments where I just wanted the book to end, especially as I had heard amazing things about the author. I’d definitely give her another chance some time in the future.
Lmfao this is the worst book I’ve read this year jesus I try so hard to be nice in these reviews about books I didn’t like because like the authors obviously worked hard on it but holy crap I can’t be nice this is horrible I had to fight to finish it ok goodbye
medium-paced
I was so bored reading this. Nothing really happens. Forced my way through it just to finish it.