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In the After #1
In the After
In debut author Demitria Lunetta's thriller, one girl must fight for her survival in a world overrun by violent, deadly creatures.
Amy Harris's life changed forever when They took over. Her parents—vanished. The government—obsolete. Societal structure—nonexistent. No one knows where They came from, but these vicious creatures have been rapidly devouring mankind since They appeared. With fierce survivor instincts, Amy manages to stay alive—and even rescues "Baby," a toddler who was left behind. After years of hiding, they are miraculously rescued and taken to New Hope. On the surface, it appears to be a safe haven for survivors. But there are dark and twisted secrets lurking beneath that could have Amy and Baby paying with not only their freedom... but also their lives.
Amy Harris's life changed forever when They took over. Her parents—vanished. The government—obsolete. Societal structure—nonexistent. No one knows where They came from, but these vicious creatures have been rapidly devouring mankind since They appeared. With fierce survivor instincts, Amy manages to stay alive—and even rescues "Baby," a toddler who was left behind. After years of hiding, they are miraculously rescued and taken to New Hope. On the surface, it appears to be a safe haven for survivors. But there are dark and twisted secrets lurking beneath that could have Amy and Baby paying with not only their freedom... but also their lives.
455 pages, Hardcover
First published June 25, 2013
About the author
Demitria Lunetta
53 books913 followersDemitria Lunetta is the author of BAD BLOOD (Delacorte Press/Random House) and the YA Sci-fi duology, IN THE AFTER and IN THE END (HarperTeen). She is also an editor and contributing author for the YA anthology, AMONG THE SHADOWS: 13 STORIES OF DARKNESS & LIGHT.
Her next novel, THE FADE, will release from Delacorte /Random House in 2018.
IN THE AFTER is an American Booksellers Association 2013 ABC Best Books for Children and an Amazon 2013 Top Twenty Teen Book.
Find her at demitrialunetta.blogspot.com, on twitter @DemitriaLunetta and on Facebook facebook/DemitriaLunettaAuthor.
Her next novel, THE FADE, will release from Delacorte /Random House in 2018.
IN THE AFTER is an American Booksellers Association 2013 ABC Best Books for Children and an Amazon 2013 Top Twenty Teen Book.
Find her at demitrialunetta.blogspot.com, on twitter @DemitriaLunetta and on Facebook facebook/DemitriaLunettaAuthor.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,678 reviews
May 20, 2013
Two stars, eh? Looks like it must be a negative review, right? In this case, though, this isn't that much of a negative review. Rather, these are the reasons why I didn't love this book and the reasons why I think a whole bunch of other people probably will. So...
There's this book you might have heard about lately. It's called The 5th Wave. I know, I know, they've been so quiet about it, really toned down the promotion to about a thousand rotating banner ads on goodreads. So, maybe you haven't heard of it. Well, I LOVED this book. For a whole bunch of reasons that you can find elsewhere if you so wish. However, as more and more people find their way towards it after the book's release date in early May, it's becoming apparent that some people really didn't like it.
Just kidding. You know me, I never waste an opportunity to drop a couple of gifs.
But because I like to ponder and philosophise on other people's reading habits and tastes and the big questions like "what is it about this book that made us view it so differently?", "If a book falls off my shelf while I'm not in the room - does it make a sound? And, more importantly, is it weird to kiss it better when I get home?", "Is there life after series completion?", "Are we human or are we reader?" and "To read or to read longer?" Perhaps I shall never know the answers. But, after reading this book, I think there's a good chance that the less you liked The 5th Wave, the more you will like In the After.
“I found Baby shortly after the world failed, when I still believed things would return to normal. I no longer hold that hope. Nothing this broken can ever be fixed.”
The reason I liked The 5th Wave and this one not so much is because I'm not the biggest fan of traditional science fiction. I feel a lack of connection with the characters and a lack of sympathy for their situation. Yancey's tale is not about aliens, but humanity. A lot of it is made up of flashbacks of the characters' lives, building up a gradual picture of who they are, why they continue to fight in a world where hope is almost non-existent, and what makes them survive against the odds. In the After, on the other hand, is an action-packed story that drops us right into the center of the action straight away.
No time is wasted on pretty words, build-up and lengthy flashbacks (though we do get a few, obviously, to explain some of what happened). The aliens are not cleverly-disguised as humans, using distrust as a weapon, these creatures are the old kind. Monstrous, rabid, driven by a crazed desire for human flesh... perfect for fans of what I keep calling traditional sci-fi because I don't know how else to explain it. However, this is part of where the book starts to lose me and why Yancey's approach will always appeal to me more. Because: what is it that separates these creatures from zombies or vampires or "insert other evil supernatural creature here"? Nothing that I can see. But if you like your villains full-stop-totally-nasty, then step this way.
Much of the basic story is similar to the one in The 5th Wave. Aliens attack, female protagonist must fend for herself, strong sibling-like relationship, parents personalities behind the reasons for certain survival skills, main characters searching for a safe place where obviously some shit is going to go down and everything is not as it first appears. Yada, yada. I saw the twists coming in both books but I think it took more away from In the After, which relied on the action and plot to drive it. But, that being said, I've read several reviews on GR by readers who were surprised.
I also know some had a problem with the writing in The 5th Wave but I loved that soft, melancholy, end-of-the-world tone which it had. I found the writing here to more simplistic - though, not necessarily in a bad way - and more focused on the action, rather than the thoughts and feelings of the characters. There were some fantastic scenes that I'm sure will get other readers' pulses racing, like the supermarket scene that reminded me so much of the kitchen scene with the velociraptors(I think) from Jurassic Park - and if you don't know what scene I'm talking about, then you clearly haven't watched it enough. That scene gave me nightmares for years.
So, to conclude, I would say that if you were disappointed by The 5th Wave and the loud hype-parade following it around, do not worry! 2013 may yet bring you the exciting, fast-paced, alien invasion read you were hoping for. Yes, this very well could be it.
April 22, 2019
3.5 Stars for In the After's Post Apocalyptic World
The book was broken into the 3 parts. I really enjoyed part 1 which detailed how The After began. We are literally immersed right into the action as things happen quickly. It pulled me right in. The post apocalyptic world was frightening. One day Amy is a normal high school student (The Before) then the world as she knows it ends and a new one begins (The After) filled with green carnivorous creatures/monsters and terror takes over. Part 1 details how Amy learns to adapt in order to survive. She survives longer than most people because she was lucky enough to live behind an electrified fence and quickly learned to be silent as the creatures are attracted to noise, even the slightest noise.
Early on in the After Amy finds a mute toddler, who she names Baby, on one of her trips to forage for food. The 2 become a family of sorts and work together to survive. I thoroughly enjoyed their relationship and how just being together was a saving grace for each of them. It was a theme that carried through the entire book and really showed the type of person Amy was - the type that wouldn't turn her back on you, the type you could trust to do the right thing, no matter what.
One day a bandit group finds its way into Amy's house with the intent to take over. This is where things go wrong for me. Just in the nick of time, Amy is picked up by a group of Guardians and taken to a sanctuary called New Hope. Parts 2 & 3 are all about Amy's time in New Hope. Even though I wasn't as captivated by Part 2, it definitely still kept me reading. I found New Hope creepy from the beginning and my instincts kicked in leaving me uneasy as I read.
"Nothing this broken can ever be fixed."
Parts 2 & 3 take a twist as Amy becomes somewhat of an unreliable character. She is in the Ward - recovering and undergoing treatment and we have no idea why or from what but you just know it can't be anything good. As some of Amy's friends work to help her (I really enjoyed Rice & Kay and the other Guardians), she begins to piece things together and we get a clearer picture of what exactly happened to her. As her memories are puzzled back together we uncover the reason behind The After, who was responsible and what happened to land her in the Ward. I won't give any of it away but I was able to piece much of it together ahead of the big reveal. Still, while it wasn't surprising, it was an interesting & solid plot.
"He thinks he’s won. He thinks he knows me, but he has no idea what I am capable of. If I can survive the After, I can survive the Ward."
This being the first book in a series, it ends in a cliffhanger and leaves us with unanswered questions. I'll definitely read on to see where things go from here. I enjoyed Amy and am invested in seeing what she does now that she is armed with all her information and her natural desire to do the right thing.
The book was broken into the 3 parts. I really enjoyed part 1 which detailed how The After began. We are literally immersed right into the action as things happen quickly. It pulled me right in. The post apocalyptic world was frightening. One day Amy is a normal high school student (The Before) then the world as she knows it ends and a new one begins (The After) filled with green carnivorous creatures/monsters and terror takes over. Part 1 details how Amy learns to adapt in order to survive. She survives longer than most people because she was lucky enough to live behind an electrified fence and quickly learned to be silent as the creatures are attracted to noise, even the slightest noise.
Early on in the After Amy finds a mute toddler, who she names Baby, on one of her trips to forage for food. The 2 become a family of sorts and work together to survive. I thoroughly enjoyed their relationship and how just being together was a saving grace for each of them. It was a theme that carried through the entire book and really showed the type of person Amy was - the type that wouldn't turn her back on you, the type you could trust to do the right thing, no matter what.
One day a bandit group finds its way into Amy's house with the intent to take over. This is where things go wrong for me. Just in the nick of time, Amy is picked up by a group of Guardians and taken to a sanctuary called New Hope. Parts 2 & 3 are all about Amy's time in New Hope. Even though I wasn't as captivated by Part 2, it definitely still kept me reading. I found New Hope creepy from the beginning and my instincts kicked in leaving me uneasy as I read.
"Nothing this broken can ever be fixed."
Parts 2 & 3 take a twist as Amy becomes somewhat of an unreliable character. She is in the Ward - recovering and undergoing treatment and we have no idea why or from what but you just know it can't be anything good. As some of Amy's friends work to help her (I really enjoyed Rice & Kay and the other Guardians), she begins to piece things together and we get a clearer picture of what exactly happened to her. As her memories are puzzled back together we uncover the reason behind The After, who was responsible and what happened to land her in the Ward. I won't give any of it away but I was able to piece much of it together ahead of the big reveal. Still, while it wasn't surprising, it was an interesting & solid plot.
"He thinks he’s won. He thinks he knows me, but he has no idea what I am capable of. If I can survive the After, I can survive the Ward."
This being the first book in a series, it ends in a cliffhanger and leaves us with unanswered questions. I'll definitely read on to see where things go from here. I enjoyed Amy and am invested in seeing what she does now that she is armed with all her information and her natural desire to do the right thing.
July 9, 2013
A stronger first half than the second, but overall this is a highly entertaining post apocalyptic book! I mean: zombie aliens!
The world in In the After has just been attacked by an alien species who are terrifyingly similar to zombies. These creatures eat humans, they're dumb, and they're relentless (they keep trying to get at you no matter how painful it may be to them). It is a tad reminiscent of The 5th Wave, although that book philosophizes more on what it means to be human and the consequences of such an event on humanity as a whole, whereas In the After concentrates on the main characters' direct survival story. It's fascinating to see the adaptive capacity of human beings. This book is Amy and Baby's story, and a great example of why love this genre.
Amy was just a little girl when the aliens came. We're initially introduced to her 3 years after, so her complete story is told with the help of flashbacks during her early days when she was clueless - she finds it a miracle she even survived. What I found the most interesting in those sequences were her discoveries regarding the aliens - their ways and habits. They're quite the fascinating creatures. Amy's past is also where we meet Baby, the other main character of the story. Baby, a fantastic addition to the story, was only a toddler when Amy found her. This child stole my heart from the first time we saw her stuffing her face with fruit, somehow still alive. Surviving in this world depends on stealth. If you can be quiet and blend in your surroundings, you've got a chance, and baby astounded me by how intelligent she was. This could easily have been unrealistic - being the mother of a hyper toddler and all - but I grew to believe in her instincts, and you also get an inkling that she's not just an ordinary child. These two quickly form a bond like no other, a bond that I could feel in the deepest pits of my heart. There is nothing like the relationship between two people living a catastrophe, I think Lunetta did a fabulous job at making this the essence of the story. While this bond grows, so do Amy and Baby. We see them develop their own language, learn how to get by with bare essentials, and mature - especially Amy - into strong, capable, and intelligent survivors.
Halfway through, this book turns from apocalyptic to a dystopia when they're brought to a survivor camp that soon has Amy unsettled with the controlling way it's governed - forced gestation for one. This is when the book becomes a little less… everything; less exciting, less chilling (though we still have our moments), less characterization, and we lose the intimate relationship we had with two lone characters that has now grown to include a full blown cast. Fortunately the main characters were already well developed and my connection with them formed; it's the characters we meet in the compound that don't particularly stand out. I was reluctant to let them in my Amy/Baby niche. I also wasn't a fan of the boring romance that blooms. I mostly found it distracting, as if it was maybe added to the book due to the annoying belief that every book needs romance. We do learn some interesting details, however, about the creatures and the current world situation. So while this second half didn't take away what I liked about the book as a whole, it prevented it from a possible 5-star.
Perfect for fans of zombie and apocalyptic novels, In the After is an engaging read that surrounds with the fear of the unknown, leads us to the beginnings of a dystopia, and ends with the promise of a thrilling sequel.
--
An advance copy was provided by the publisher for review.
For more of my reviews, visit my blog at Xpresso Reads
The world in In the After has just been attacked by an alien species who are terrifyingly similar to zombies. These creatures eat humans, they're dumb, and they're relentless (they keep trying to get at you no matter how painful it may be to them). It is a tad reminiscent of The 5th Wave, although that book philosophizes more on what it means to be human and the consequences of such an event on humanity as a whole, whereas In the After concentrates on the main characters' direct survival story. It's fascinating to see the adaptive capacity of human beings. This book is Amy and Baby's story, and a great example of why love this genre.
Amy was just a little girl when the aliens came. We're initially introduced to her 3 years after, so her complete story is told with the help of flashbacks during her early days when she was clueless - she finds it a miracle she even survived. What I found the most interesting in those sequences were her discoveries regarding the aliens - their ways and habits. They're quite the fascinating creatures. Amy's past is also where we meet Baby, the other main character of the story. Baby, a fantastic addition to the story, was only a toddler when Amy found her. This child stole my heart from the first time we saw her stuffing her face with fruit, somehow still alive. Surviving in this world depends on stealth. If you can be quiet and blend in your surroundings, you've got a chance, and baby astounded me by how intelligent she was. This could easily have been unrealistic - being the mother of a hyper toddler and all - but I grew to believe in her instincts, and you also get an inkling that she's not just an ordinary child. These two quickly form a bond like no other, a bond that I could feel in the deepest pits of my heart. There is nothing like the relationship between two people living a catastrophe, I think Lunetta did a fabulous job at making this the essence of the story. While this bond grows, so do Amy and Baby. We see them develop their own language, learn how to get by with bare essentials, and mature - especially Amy - into strong, capable, and intelligent survivors.
Halfway through, this book turns from apocalyptic to a dystopia when they're brought to a survivor camp that soon has Amy unsettled with the controlling way it's governed - forced gestation for one. This is when the book becomes a little less… everything; less exciting, less chilling (though we still have our moments), less characterization, and we lose the intimate relationship we had with two lone characters that has now grown to include a full blown cast. Fortunately the main characters were already well developed and my connection with them formed; it's the characters we meet in the compound that don't particularly stand out. I was reluctant to let them in my Amy/Baby niche. I also wasn't a fan of the boring romance that blooms. I mostly found it distracting, as if it was maybe added to the book due to the annoying belief that every book needs romance. We do learn some interesting details, however, about the creatures and the current world situation. So while this second half didn't take away what I liked about the book as a whole, it prevented it from a possible 5-star.
Perfect for fans of zombie and apocalyptic novels, In the After is an engaging read that surrounds with the fear of the unknown, leads us to the beginnings of a dystopia, and ends with the promise of a thrilling sequel.
--
An advance copy was provided by the publisher for review.
For more of my reviews, visit my blog at Xpresso Reads
March 21, 2013
I liked the first half of this book so much--it was pretty much a survivalist I Am Legend type story, with zombie-like aliens as the creatures in a post-apocalyptic setting. I also liked the choice to make the creatures day-dwellers, instead of the usual nocturnal animals.
Once Amy and Baby are taken to the compound, however, the array of unmemorable secondary characters, somewhat limp romance, and over-prolonged mystery (there's a twist that's fairly easy to guess) weren't nearly as engaging as they could have been. As a result, the somewhat underdeveloped world-building became more apparent--and unfortunately for the book, the lab/testing/experimentation scenes will feel very familiar to anyone who has read a lot of YA science fiction.
Still, the twist is interesting, and I liked some of the descriptive action scenes and the beginning of the book enough to try another book by this author. I don't know if it will be the inevitable sequel to this one, though.
An advance copy was provided by the publisher for this review.
Once Amy and Baby are taken to the compound, however, the array of unmemorable secondary characters, somewhat limp romance, and over-prolonged mystery (there's a twist that's fairly easy to guess) weren't nearly as engaging as they could have been. As a result, the somewhat underdeveloped world-building became more apparent--and unfortunately for the book, the lab/testing/experimentation scenes will feel very familiar to anyone who has read a lot of YA science fiction.
Still, the twist is interesting, and I liked some of the descriptive action scenes and the beginning of the book enough to try another book by this author. I don't know if it will be the inevitable sequel to this one, though.
An advance copy was provided by the publisher for this review.
July 5, 2013
I'm not quite sure if I liked this book or not, so I'm going to give it a default "average" rating. It was an enjoyable read, the sci-fi and dystopian part were considerably more well-executed than so many other YA books out there, but I just didn't like it very much overall. Even if the world is well-fleshed out, and the idea of Them is certainly a different spin, there were still holes and contradictions concerning the characters, their behavior, and the lack of dimensionality.
The concept: Them. Florae-sapiens. Well, that's something I haven't heard of before. A zombie apocalypse? Vampire apocalypse? All done before. The concept of these new creatures are certainly interesting, and I really enjoyed reading about them and their behavior. Flesh-eating aliens. Whoo! Their behavior was well-described, their scent, their actions, their methods of attack. Certainly not zombies in the traditional sense, but considerably more intriguing as a species in their biology and origin. And bloody. Oh so bloody!
"They were faster than I’d thought possible, a blur of green, the color of pea soup. Glowing yellow eyes sometimes caught the light and flashed gold. The creatures pounced, not bothering to kill their prey before feeding. They ripped skin and flesh from their victims, who screeched in agony. The cries always brought more of Them, eager for their next meal."
Amy: I am torn on my opinion of Amy. I feel like she should be a much more likeable, sympathetic character given what she's gone through, given the strength she's had to have to survive almost on her own all this long, but no...I feel...nothing towards her. I think she is too contradictory of a character to be real. I give a certain wiggle room for character development when reading YA fiction. Teenagers, actually, humans in general, are not predictable creatures. Throw them into a panic-filled, post-apocalyptic scenario and behavior becomes more unpredictable still. With that in mind, I do give my YA dystopian MCs some flexibility regarding their actions, and the character of Amy certainly stretches all my boundaries of what I consider acceptable with the character as she is written. Amy is supposed to be tough, skilled, adaptable. She is that. However, at times, she also exhibits certain behaviors that can only be described as TSTL. During the initial attacks, at night, what does she do?
"The fourth night, I turned on all the lights in the house. My block was dark, except for our home, my home. No one else had electricity, but I still did...I didn’t know then that They were drawn to the lights, like moths to a flame."
No shit, Sherlock. It doesn't take a genius to figure out that light draws attention. Not just from aliens, in general. Keep your head down, don't draw attention to yourself. Turning on the lights was a supremely stupid move, one of many Amy makes. For someone who claims to be battle-toughened and steeled for survival, and not soft-hearted in any way, Amy sure doesn't act like it. She follows a man home alone, and thankfully lives to regret it, adopts a toddler, who is another mouth to feed, another life to care for, then later on, adopts yet another stray who is a moron of the very highest order.
"Suddenly Amber shrieks.
I turn to the closet, my heart pounding. Is one of Them in there with her?
Something moves in the closet and I brace myself for a disgusting green head and glowing yellow eyes. Instead, Amber appears in the doorway, her face jubilant. She holds up a bag.
“Prada,” she says with a grin, not bothering to whisper."
I'm amazed Amy manages to live so long, given her choices. Although, admittedly she does learn from her mistakes, but it stretches the imagination that Amy could have survived for as long as she did. Things are also made easy for her, too easy. She's got running water, her dad was into solar power so her house has electricity. Her mom was paranoid so they had a pre-installed electric fence. All these help in her survival, but they don't make for a very believable story given the many happy coincidences that just so happen to help with her survival in the After.
I also found her relationship with Baby, and the character of Baby to be unbelievable. Amy starts off barely knowing sign language, Baby starts off as a 3 or 4 year old toddler, and Amy manages to somehow teach them both to communicate in fluent ASL as well as nonverbal hand signals à la Helen Keller? No. Not believable. Baby also speaks and communicates far too succinctly and too intelligently for a 6/7 years old character. Given her lack of education, given their constant battle for survival, Baby's nonverbal speech and intelligence as characterized in the book is a far stretch.
The book is in three parts. The first is simple enough, a description and retelling of their survival in Chicago in the After world. The second part was where things got truly annoying. Amy's character turns from practical, survival-minded into a petulant teenager determined to believe all authority figures are evil, sinister, phony. The bad guys walk around with an evil glint in their eyes, pretty much. She rebels against the system set up to ensure the survival and profligation of mankind. Fine, some ideas are pretty stupid, I wouldn't want a genetically-selected pre-planned pregnancy either, but she was rebelling waaaaaaaaaaay before she found out the batshit craziness of New Hope.
The second is where things got messy. The flashbacks (flash-forwards?) drove me nuts. The narrative style was messy, things jumped all over the place. The pacing was too fast, things were thrown at us too quickly, and it got very confusing. The New Hope colony is an interesting premise, although I felt that was a bit of a stretch. It felt too organized to be established in such a short time. The systems set in place, the high level of organization, the rules...it feels more like an established system that's been in place rather than something thrown together haphazardly after a post-apocalyptic event.
Although I'm happy that there was no insta-love, the romance feels kind of forced. I am glad that Amy recognizes Rice's faults and blindness, and didn't fall for him right away. She's even horrified by his beliefs.
"'He's a brilliant man. It's like he can see into the core of people, determine what we’re made of. He did it to me. He saw a lost, young orphan in me and decided I had the potential to be more,' Rice told me passionately. 'He's the one who recommended that Hutsen-Prime take me under their wing. He's the one who has checked on me over the years, made sure I had the best education, the best chance to succeed. And now he's molding New Hope. We have the ability to rebuild the world and make it better.'
I looked at Rice, horrified. After the propaganda speech, I didn’t think I could stand to hear any more of the party line, even from someone I trusted."
Ok...got it. So why fall for him at all? It feels like a forced romance just for the sake of having a romance plotline in the story. The two of them together do not ring true to me at all.
Overall good read, didn't give me too much of a headache, and a lot better than some of the recent attempts at YA dystopia, even if it was by no means a great attempt. I'm still interested enough to read the next book when it is released.
The concept: Them. Florae-sapiens. Well, that's something I haven't heard of before. A zombie apocalypse? Vampire apocalypse? All done before. The concept of these new creatures are certainly interesting, and I really enjoyed reading about them and their behavior. Flesh-eating aliens. Whoo! Their behavior was well-described, their scent, their actions, their methods of attack. Certainly not zombies in the traditional sense, but considerably more intriguing as a species in their biology and origin. And bloody. Oh so bloody!
"They were faster than I’d thought possible, a blur of green, the color of pea soup. Glowing yellow eyes sometimes caught the light and flashed gold. The creatures pounced, not bothering to kill their prey before feeding. They ripped skin and flesh from their victims, who screeched in agony. The cries always brought more of Them, eager for their next meal."
Amy: I am torn on my opinion of Amy. I feel like she should be a much more likeable, sympathetic character given what she's gone through, given the strength she's had to have to survive almost on her own all this long, but no...I feel...nothing towards her. I think she is too contradictory of a character to be real. I give a certain wiggle room for character development when reading YA fiction. Teenagers, actually, humans in general, are not predictable creatures. Throw them into a panic-filled, post-apocalyptic scenario and behavior becomes more unpredictable still. With that in mind, I do give my YA dystopian MCs some flexibility regarding their actions, and the character of Amy certainly stretches all my boundaries of what I consider acceptable with the character as she is written. Amy is supposed to be tough, skilled, adaptable. She is that. However, at times, she also exhibits certain behaviors that can only be described as TSTL. During the initial attacks, at night, what does she do?
"The fourth night, I turned on all the lights in the house. My block was dark, except for our home, my home. No one else had electricity, but I still did...I didn’t know then that They were drawn to the lights, like moths to a flame."
No shit, Sherlock. It doesn't take a genius to figure out that light draws attention. Not just from aliens, in general. Keep your head down, don't draw attention to yourself. Turning on the lights was a supremely stupid move, one of many Amy makes. For someone who claims to be battle-toughened and steeled for survival, and not soft-hearted in any way, Amy sure doesn't act like it. She follows a man home alone, and thankfully lives to regret it, adopts a toddler, who is another mouth to feed, another life to care for, then later on, adopts yet another stray who is a moron of the very highest order.
"Suddenly Amber shrieks.
I turn to the closet, my heart pounding. Is one of Them in there with her?
Something moves in the closet and I brace myself for a disgusting green head and glowing yellow eyes. Instead, Amber appears in the doorway, her face jubilant. She holds up a bag.
“Prada,” she says with a grin, not bothering to whisper."
I'm amazed Amy manages to live so long, given her choices. Although, admittedly she does learn from her mistakes, but it stretches the imagination that Amy could have survived for as long as she did. Things are also made easy for her, too easy. She's got running water, her dad was into solar power so her house has electricity. Her mom was paranoid so they had a pre-installed electric fence. All these help in her survival, but they don't make for a very believable story given the many happy coincidences that just so happen to help with her survival in the After.
I also found her relationship with Baby, and the character of Baby to be unbelievable. Amy starts off barely knowing sign language, Baby starts off as a 3 or 4 year old toddler, and Amy manages to somehow teach them both to communicate in fluent ASL as well as nonverbal hand signals à la Helen Keller? No. Not believable. Baby also speaks and communicates far too succinctly and too intelligently for a 6/7 years old character. Given her lack of education, given their constant battle for survival, Baby's nonverbal speech and intelligence as characterized in the book is a far stretch.
The book is in three parts. The first is simple enough, a description and retelling of their survival in Chicago in the After world. The second part was where things got truly annoying. Amy's character turns from practical, survival-minded into a petulant teenager determined to believe all authority figures are evil, sinister, phony. The bad guys walk around with an evil glint in their eyes, pretty much. She rebels against the system set up to ensure the survival and profligation of mankind. Fine, some ideas are pretty stupid, I wouldn't want a genetically-selected pre-planned pregnancy either, but she was rebelling waaaaaaaaaaay before she found out the batshit craziness of New Hope.
The second is where things got messy. The flashbacks (flash-forwards?) drove me nuts. The narrative style was messy, things jumped all over the place. The pacing was too fast, things were thrown at us too quickly, and it got very confusing. The New Hope colony is an interesting premise, although I felt that was a bit of a stretch. It felt too organized to be established in such a short time. The systems set in place, the high level of organization, the rules...it feels more like an established system that's been in place rather than something thrown together haphazardly after a post-apocalyptic event.
Although I'm happy that there was no insta-love, the romance feels kind of forced. I am glad that Amy recognizes Rice's faults and blindness, and didn't fall for him right away. She's even horrified by his beliefs.
"'He's a brilliant man. It's like he can see into the core of people, determine what we’re made of. He did it to me. He saw a lost, young orphan in me and decided I had the potential to be more,' Rice told me passionately. 'He's the one who recommended that Hutsen-Prime take me under their wing. He's the one who has checked on me over the years, made sure I had the best education, the best chance to succeed. And now he's molding New Hope. We have the ability to rebuild the world and make it better.'
I looked at Rice, horrified. After the propaganda speech, I didn’t think I could stand to hear any more of the party line, even from someone I trusted."
Ok...got it. So why fall for him at all? It feels like a forced romance just for the sake of having a romance plotline in the story. The two of them together do not ring true to me at all.
Overall good read, didn't give me too much of a headache, and a lot better than some of the recent attempts at YA dystopia, even if it was by no means a great attempt. I'm still interested enough to read the next book when it is released.
March 9, 2018
Really enjoyed this! A fast paced read that keeps you on your toes. I'd definitely recommend it if you love the post apocalyptic genre! This starts out in a way that felt a lot like The 5th Wave so you'd definitely like it if you liked that. I'm going to jump right into the sequel because I need MORE.
Audiobook review: This is the 3rd series I've listened to that is narrated by Julia Whelan and it's my favorite of hers. I enjoyed the story in this format.
Audiobook review: This is the 3rd series I've listened to that is narrated by Julia Whelan and it's my favorite of hers. I enjoyed the story in this format.
March 7, 2021
UPDATE 07/03/2021 - Quick reread before I read book 2!
Well I thoroughly enjoyed this book! I was totally blindsided at one point which, to me, is a reflection of how absorbed I was in this post apocalyptic story. My jaw literally dropped and I actually said out loud "Well. I did not see that coming". I know, I have a way with words.
The first part of the book is filled with a quiet tension...(if you've read the book you will appreciate that little joke). Flesh eating aliens have decimated the population and Amy is in full survival mode. Yes, it's all very convenient that she is rich and lives in a house that is surrounded by an electric fence and her parents had a gun in the house etc. Don't dwell too much on that stuff and just go with the flow I say. I like that her survival instincts are quite strong which results in a couple of dark little scenes where she uses the aliens to her advantage. She finds Baby and together they forge a rough but contented existence in this new world. Their connection felt real and I loved them.
The story takes a turn in pace when they are 'rescued". What happens from here is told in two different time lines as Amy tries to make sense of where she is and what their new lives will look like. For this reason the story does slow down as they adjust to having other people in their lives. To me the writer captured Amy's state of confusion incredibly well as she becomes more of an unreliable narrator. I felt a bit lost and didn't know what was happening. This was a good thing because that is exactly how Amy felt. I like it when an author subjects us to this type of immersive experience because as clarity comes for Amy, we share in her discovery.
A totally engaging book and I will definitely be following the series through.
Well I thoroughly enjoyed this book! I was totally blindsided at one point which, to me, is a reflection of how absorbed I was in this post apocalyptic story. My jaw literally dropped and I actually said out loud "Well. I did not see that coming". I know, I have a way with words.
The first part of the book is filled with a quiet tension...(if you've read the book you will appreciate that little joke). Flesh eating aliens have decimated the population and Amy is in full survival mode. Yes, it's all very convenient that she is rich and lives in a house that is surrounded by an electric fence and her parents had a gun in the house etc. Don't dwell too much on that stuff and just go with the flow I say. I like that her survival instincts are quite strong which results in a couple of dark little scenes where she uses the aliens to her advantage. She finds Baby and together they forge a rough but contented existence in this new world. Their connection felt real and I loved them.
The story takes a turn in pace when they are 'rescued". What happens from here is told in two different time lines as Amy tries to make sense of where she is and what their new lives will look like. For this reason the story does slow down as they adjust to having other people in their lives. To me the writer captured Amy's state of confusion incredibly well as she becomes more of an unreliable narrator. I felt a bit lost and didn't know what was happening. This was a good thing because that is exactly how Amy felt. I like it when an author subjects us to this type of immersive experience because as clarity comes for Amy, we share in her discovery.
A totally engaging book and I will definitely be following the series through.
July 4, 2013
As a person who loves zombies and post-apocalyptic fiction so much, it's not rocket science to think I was expecting a lot from this book. I tend to do that a lot to books with awesome blurbs and covers, because as they say, first impression lasts, right? Unfortunately, this book was a case of, "It was good" and "it was meh" at the same time and right now my feelings are a bit messy and mixed up. But I'll try my best as usual to explain what I liked and what I absolutely detested, so buckle up! Here we go!
For the "zombie" aspect, I think it was pretty cool. Sure, they're not exactly traditional zombies in a sense that they're not slow at all... the flesh-eating abominations in this book can run fast as hell. They're also not nocturnals, so they hide by night and roam by day, which is a pretty interesting change. I do think the "twist" revealed near the end regarding their origins was predictable... I was actually already considering it at the beginning, but even if I didn't foresee it early on, it wasn't really that shocking. Not the book's fault, though... I've just read too many zombie novels and other related themes that the twist was already old news to me. Needless to say, I did feel it could've used a little more originality.
I liked Part 1 a lot. I loved how short the chapters were, how intense they felt, how they gave us an overview of how Amy was doing and coping and enduring not only the dangers of the zombies, but also of the surviving humans. I loved how it focused on survival with very little unnecessary drama. It reminded me of a lot of the zombie books that I loved reading early last year, giving me waves and waves of nostalgia. Her relationship with Baby was so real and genuine, too. It was very refreshing to see two characters understand each other in such a level that you don't need words to get messages across, how they can simply know what the other's talking about in a simple glance or gesture. I admit, though, that there were times I got annoyed by Amy's giving in to Baby's tantrums just to please her, but in the end, I kind of understand why she has done what she did.
THEN they get rescued by some humans who've made a sort of sanctuary led by scientists and everything pretty much went downhill after that...
Part 2... was weird. It felt like I was reading a different book altogether. At this point, it started feeling like any other YA science fiction post-apocalyptic story, but in the usual unappealing way. A lot of side characters were introduced but they didn't really feel well-rounded to me. Bad guys were shown here who were bad because they take advantage of anarchy and they want to wreck havoc for the heck of it, and crazy mad scientists who do what they do because they want to make the "perfect" world according to their own ideas... This part, unfortunately, felt very dragging to me. It also started telling the story in two POVs... one in the present, and one that happened in the past (or present and future, however angle you want to see it). It felt very weird to me at first, and I don't deny it made me feel very uncomfortable and confused, but when it did merge together as one near the end of Part 3, everything finally made sense. I do wish it was more subtle, though, because gah! The migraines!
Also, I have a problem with the romance. I hate how forced it was. Her sudden relationship (who she instantly felt a connection to when they first met... lots of blushing and faces becoming beet red here, folks!) with Rice felt absolutely random and contrived, like it was very out of place. I didn't think the romance was even necessary here... There were a lot of girls around his age in New Hope and then Amy came and he's suddenly all over her? Huh. I do think it could have worked better if they were simply friends here first. I guess it's inevitable in YA. I do appreciate though that the romance was not central in this book. It was more of a side dish than anything, but still. Cringe-worthy is cringe-worthy.
I did enjoy this far more than The 5th Wave, although their only similarity that I can see is their being post-apocalyptic. I just think this one showcased the genre much more, and I think it gave us a better understanding of what society would become if social order collapses.
All in all, it was a decent read. It wasn't exactly a phenomenal experience, but it has kept me interested enough to want to know what happens next. I have this grand feeling that the second book is where the epic-ness will finally start. I am definitely looking forward to that.
Final Verdict: 3.5 STARS
May 7, 2020
In the After is divided into 3 parts. If I could rank them out, The Part I was the best; Part II was the good; and Part III was the better. But as a whole, I loved this book since it was a page-turner, compelling and it made me think and gave me the creeps. Even the world is fleshed-out and the characters aren't annoying. And there's no insta-love.
Part I was pure survival. I liked it best because well, survivals give me heart attacks (not the fatal one) and take me to the edge of my seat. Which is a good thing because it is an indication that I'm enjoying reading the book. It is also admiring to read how the characters grow and learn as an individual and be wiser along the way just to survive.
Part II was a sort of a letdown because I'm expecting something else but I was dragged to a generic setup after an apocalypse. In this book, it comes to a name as New Hope. A community that is trying to save and restore humanity and have set of rules (rules are important, of course) that didn't abide by the main character because she wanted answers. (And because she is the main character and she needs to step-up and oppose the leader or the ruling people for the conflict. Lol. Just kidding. Of course, if you're smelling something fishy, you started asking questions and eager to know everything.) Nevertheless, this part was still intriguing. Amy was experiencing trauma and panic after she settled in New Hope. She became jumpy and paranoid and always in attack mode. And as I've said above, she smelled something fishy, something dark in this controlled environment. So am I. This part also has two narratives of Amy. It's kinda confusing yet it was also fascinating.
Part III is where I proved that there is something fishy going on. Ha! (Thank the gods, if not, I will be pissed) I felt a pang of disappointment however, because these are not the answers and explanations I'm expecting. Anyway, I already moved on about that and accepted what I've got. At least, I got answers.
The best-est for me about In the After is the sisterly love between Amy and Baby. I loved these two. I liked their connection and harmony with each other.
Part I was pure survival. I liked it best because well, survivals give me heart attacks (not the fatal one) and take me to the edge of my seat. Which is a good thing because it is an indication that I'm enjoying reading the book. It is also admiring to read how the characters grow and learn as an individual and be wiser along the way just to survive.
Part II was a sort of a letdown because I'm expecting something else but I was dragged to a generic setup after an apocalypse. In this book, it comes to a name as New Hope. A community that is trying to save and restore humanity and have set of rules (rules are important, of course) that didn't abide by the main character because she wanted answers. (And because she is the main character and she needs to step-up and oppose the leader or the ruling people for the conflict. Lol. Just kidding. Of course, if you're smelling something fishy, you started asking questions and eager to know everything.) Nevertheless, this part was still intriguing. Amy was experiencing trauma and panic after she settled in New Hope. She became jumpy and paranoid and always in attack mode. And as I've said above, she smelled something fishy, something dark in this controlled environment. So am I. This part also has two narratives of Amy. It's kinda confusing yet it was also fascinating.
Part III is where I proved that there is something fishy going on. Ha! (Thank the gods, if not, I will be pissed) I felt a pang of disappointment however, because these are not the answers and explanations I'm expecting. Anyway, I already moved on about that and accepted what I've got. At least, I got answers.
The best-est for me about In the After is the sisterly love between Amy and Baby. I loved these two. I liked their connection and harmony with each other.
May 10, 2015
**3.5 Baby Stars**
I should have paid more attention to the other reviews because I agree that the first half of the book was great but it slowed down considerably from 49-75% but then picked back up again.
I think I'm going to stop at this book especially since I already read the spoilers for the next one! A love triangle? Nah...I think I'll pass.
I should have paid more attention to the other reviews because I agree that the first half of the book was great but it slowed down considerably from 49-75% but then picked back up again.
I think I'm going to stop at this book especially since I already read the spoilers for the next one! A love triangle? Nah...I think I'll pass.
Want to read
November 3, 2012Whoever wrote that blurb deserves a gold star. This sounds awesome!
October 31, 2021
My thoughts in a nutshell
Oh that was very good!
It's been sitting on my waiting list for a long time, and now it's finally the right time to read it. I've never read such a good apocalyptic teen book.
I loved the main characters, I cared about what would happen to them.
I liked the dual timelines, I was always excited to see what would happen.
I had the twist figured out ahead of time, but it didn't detract from my reading experience.
The end of the book was interesting, I may continue to read the series, but I didn't hear good things about the second part.
I highly recommend it if you're in the mood for a teen dystopia.
4 stars!
November 28, 2017
This book does not get nearly as much attention as it deserves! It's certainly one of the best YA science fiction stories I've read in a long time. Amy was an awesome main character, so smart, bad ass, and resilient, and her relationship with Baby was what kept me reaching for my iPod, eager to listen to my library book every chance I got. The narrator did a great job and I recommend audiobook format.
In many of the reviews I read prior to starting the book I saw a lot of people who were unhappy about how the tone of the book changed so much after Part 1. The story starts out as a survival horror story, then turns more standard dystopian as Amy and Baby arrive at New Hope. I did find the beginning more intriguing, but I still really enjoyed the rest of the book and discovering the truth about New Hope alongside Amy. I loved the flash forwards too, knowing that something fishy was going on and anticipating when the timelines will connect and everything will be revealed. I was more than pleased with the reality behind the aliens and I am so excited to dive into book two after that ending!
In many of the reviews I read prior to starting the book I saw a lot of people who were unhappy about how the tone of the book changed so much after Part 1. The story starts out as a survival horror story, then turns more standard dystopian as Amy and Baby arrive at New Hope. I did find the beginning more intriguing, but I still really enjoyed the rest of the book and discovering the truth about New Hope alongside Amy. I loved the flash forwards too, knowing that something fishy was going on and anticipating when the timelines will connect and everything will be revealed. I was more than pleased with the reality behind the aliens and I am so excited to dive into book two after that ending!
October 1, 2017
They hear the most silent of footsteps.
They are faster than anything you've ever seen.
And They won't stop chasing you...until you are dead.
I was really glued to In the After during the first part of the book when it was sort of like reading a mash up of I am Legend and Falling Skies. Amy is left on her own after everyone around her has been killed by "Them". The news has reported that they are aliens who have landed to take over the earth. Soon there is no more news and as far as Amy can tell no other people. She observes how the aliens behave and figure out how to hide from them and get around them. I thought it was different that they were day time creatures instead of night time creatures and I liked that about the story.
One day while scavenging for food in a grocery store Amy finds a 3 or 4 year old child who she names Baby. There is never an explanation as to how Baby got there in the first place, although we learn some other important things about her later. I kind of thought this was a hole in the story. I loved Amy and Baby and I think their relationship is one thing that made the book work so well. However, in part two the post-apocalyptic survival story turned into a dystopian society story. From then on I thought it lacked something. The interaction between Amy and Baby became sparse and we are introduced to a lot of other characters that I really didn't care about.
Amy was mostly pretty smart while she was living on her own, but after she was brought to New Hope I thought she kind of stopped being smart and started doing some really stupid things. Knowing that the doctor didn't trust her and had his eye on her, you would think she would have been quieter about her suspicions and rebel in a more covert manner. Unfortunately she makes stupid mistake after stupid mistake for the whole rest of the book.
While I liked this book ok, I wish it had ended with this one instead of being a duology. At this time I feel like one book is enough so I'm not planning on reading the next one.
Review also posted at Writings of a Reader
They are faster than anything you've ever seen.
And They won't stop chasing you...until you are dead.
I was really glued to In the After during the first part of the book when it was sort of like reading a mash up of I am Legend and Falling Skies. Amy is left on her own after everyone around her has been killed by "Them". The news has reported that they are aliens who have landed to take over the earth. Soon there is no more news and as far as Amy can tell no other people. She observes how the aliens behave and figure out how to hide from them and get around them. I thought it was different that they were day time creatures instead of night time creatures and I liked that about the story.
One day while scavenging for food in a grocery store Amy finds a 3 or 4 year old child who she names Baby. There is never an explanation as to how Baby got there in the first place, although we learn some other important things about her later. I kind of thought this was a hole in the story. I loved Amy and Baby and I think their relationship is one thing that made the book work so well. However, in part two the post-apocalyptic survival story turned into a dystopian society story. From then on I thought it lacked something. The interaction between Amy and Baby became sparse and we are introduced to a lot of other characters that I really didn't care about.
Amy was mostly pretty smart while she was living on her own, but after she was brought to New Hope I thought she kind of stopped being smart and started doing some really stupid things. Knowing that the doctor didn't trust her and had his eye on her, you would think she would have been quieter about her suspicions and rebel in a more covert manner. Unfortunately she makes stupid mistake after stupid mistake for the whole rest of the book.
While I liked this book ok, I wish it had ended with this one instead of being a duology. At this time I feel like one book is enough so I'm not planning on reading the next one.
Review also posted at Writings of a Reader
June 4, 2015
Ce premier tome m'a beaucoup plu. La première partie qui sert de mise en place dévoile un monde post-apocalyptique dur et dangereux, peuplé de créatures amatrices de chair fraîche. Les deux parties qui suivent amènent un autre genre de stress tout en gardant en fond de toile ce qu'on découvre dans la première partie. Au final chacune apporte quelque chose de différent et ajoute sa pièce à l'édifice. La lecture est aisée et addictive, l'envie d'avoir des réponses, de comprendre certains éléments de l'histoire pousse à avancer. Si j'avais deviné un gros point de l'intrigue ça ne m'a pas empêché d'adorer ma lecture et de trouver certains éléments bien fichus. Et en plus, on rencontre un duo de personnages principaux à croquer, deux rôles attachants et attrayants. C'est rare que ça m'arrive, mais si j'avais eu la suite sous la main, elle n'aurait pas fait long feu.
Ma chronique complète : http://bloggalleane.blogspot.fr/2015/...
Ma chronique complète : http://bloggalleane.blogspot.fr/2015/...
June 26, 2013
If I had to choose one word for this book it would be Intense.
When I first gotten read the summery I was under the impression that this was a zombie book. Little did I know that it was about aliens. I have never read a book with aliens because it isn't a topic that I usually like to come across. So reading this kind of book is a first for me. My first thoughts when reading this book was a little conflicting because I'm not into alien books or anything alien really. I would've put the book down if it wasn't for the action and the suspense of what going to happen next. So I had to put aside my negativeness against aliens and get through.
I loved the writing and how everything went smoothly. It was descriptive enough for me to get a picture of how things may have been and it wasn't over the top. (Meaning that some authors like to describe every single detail straying away from the story stretching it out unnecessarily making it dull, this book wasn't the case.)
The readers get to see from day one what happened to Amy and how everything progressed with her survival meanwhile everyone in the area was nearly gone. Amy is a smart girl who quickly learns to grow up and adapt to everything that happens in order to survive. At the ending of the part one I nearly fell over in shock and thought to myself thank goodness that wasn't the end or I would go crazy. Amy is not the type of person who can easily be fooled and questions everything and anything, even when she was in a place that was considered safe. She trusted her gut feeling and did something about it. I loved this book.
This book was unpredictable, normally I find a trend in most YA novels and there is no way I could pin this book to it.
You ever get those moment where you finally figure out what is going on a little before the big reveal? Yea I got one of those moments with this book. I couldn't even believe I guessed right.
This book had captured me and wouldn't let go until the very end. Highly Recommend to anyone. If you love post-apoplectic, zombies, aliens books your gonna want to get this book. Soon as the book comes out in store you must get it, your not going to want to pass up this great book. Be sure to write this book on your TBR list.
When I first gotten read the summery I was under the impression that this was a zombie book. Little did I know that it was about aliens. I have never read a book with aliens because it isn't a topic that I usually like to come across. So reading this kind of book is a first for me. My first thoughts when reading this book was a little conflicting because I'm not into alien books or anything alien really. I would've put the book down if it wasn't for the action and the suspense of what going to happen next. So I had to put aside my negativeness against aliens and get through.
I loved the writing and how everything went smoothly. It was descriptive enough for me to get a picture of how things may have been and it wasn't over the top. (Meaning that some authors like to describe every single detail straying away from the story stretching it out unnecessarily making it dull, this book wasn't the case.)
The readers get to see from day one what happened to Amy and how everything progressed with her survival meanwhile everyone in the area was nearly gone. Amy is a smart girl who quickly learns to grow up and adapt to everything that happens in order to survive. At the ending of the part one I nearly fell over in shock and thought to myself thank goodness that wasn't the end or I would go crazy. Amy is not the type of person who can easily be fooled and questions everything and anything, even when she was in a place that was considered safe. She trusted her gut feeling and did something about it. I loved this book.
This book was unpredictable, normally I find a trend in most YA novels and there is no way I could pin this book to it.
You ever get those moment where you finally figure out what is going on a little before the big reveal? Yea I got one of those moments with this book. I couldn't even believe I guessed right.
This book had captured me and wouldn't let go until the very end. Highly Recommend to anyone. If you love post-apoplectic, zombies, aliens books your gonna want to get this book. Soon as the book comes out in store you must get it, your not going to want to pass up this great book. Be sure to write this book on your TBR list.
August 26, 2016
''I only go out at night.''
I bought this one on a whim and didn't have high expectations at all, so in the end I was pleasently surprised!
I do have to say that I abosutely loved the beginning, but towards the end my enthusiasm faded. Unfortunately. However, I'm still excited to see how everything concludes in its sequel.
In this world the human race is almost extinguished, because of extraterrestrial creatures. I loved the take on aliens in this book.
They are not ''more intelligent'' than humans and have the intention to take over the world.
They are simply hungry beasts and humans are their snack.
Creepy. Suspenseful. Thrilling.
That's how I'd describe the first half of the book.
The second part and the actual revelation in the end, however, were quite underwhelming and predictable.
All in all I truly enjoyed this book and I can't wait how everything turns out in In the End!
I bought this one on a whim and didn't have high expectations at all, so in the end I was pleasently surprised!
I do have to say that I abosutely loved the beginning, but towards the end my enthusiasm faded. Unfortunately. However, I'm still excited to see how everything concludes in its sequel.
In this world the human race is almost extinguished, because of extraterrestrial creatures. I loved the take on aliens in this book.
They are not ''more intelligent'' than humans and have the intention to take over the world.
They are simply hungry beasts and humans are their snack.
Creepy. Suspenseful. Thrilling.
That's how I'd describe the first half of the book.
The second part and the actual revelation in the end, however, were quite underwhelming and predictable.
All in all I truly enjoyed this book and I can't wait how everything turns out in In the End!
July 19, 2013
Love it! Based on reviews, you either love it or you don't and I happen to love it. I will not go into any more details about what happened in the book as there have already been quite a number of reviews out there that will clue you in. I will however base this short review on other reviews, a comparison of sorts of what I think to what other people say about this book. So, here goes.
1. The first half is better than the second.
I didn't think so. For me, the last half is just as engrossing as the first, if not even more so. Here, you find answers to questions, you get a glimpse of what happens next. How can it be any less gripping?
2. Some parts are dragging.
Well, yes, there might have been some parts where my heart didn't skip a beat. But overall, I think the story is nicely paced and plot-driven.
3. Second half is confusing.
I didn't think it was hard to follow but I do get why some people find the flashbacks and flash-forwards a little disorienting.
4. Predictable.
I don't know, it might just be me, but I honestly didn't see the twist coming.
5. Similar to Rick Yancey's The 5th Wave.
I wasn't too crazy about The 5th Wave. It was way over-hyped but in my opinion, failed to deliver. Aliens, kick-ass heroine, and survivalist theme, those are about as far as the similarities go I think.
All in all, for a debut novel, I think it's great.
Seen on Eat Read Shop.
1. The first half is better than the second.
I didn't think so. For me, the last half is just as engrossing as the first, if not even more so. Here, you find answers to questions, you get a glimpse of what happens next. How can it be any less gripping?
2. Some parts are dragging.
Well, yes, there might have been some parts where my heart didn't skip a beat. But overall, I think the story is nicely paced and plot-driven.
3. Second half is confusing.
I didn't think it was hard to follow but I do get why some people find the flashbacks and flash-forwards a little disorienting.
4. Predictable.
I don't know, it might just be me, but I honestly didn't see the twist coming.
5. Similar to Rick Yancey's The 5th Wave.
I wasn't too crazy about The 5th Wave. It was way over-hyped but in my opinion, failed to deliver. Aliens, kick-ass heroine, and survivalist theme, those are about as far as the similarities go I think.
All in all, for a debut novel, I think it's great.
Seen on Eat Read Shop.
November 27, 2012
I read the ARC (advanced reader copy).
I got this book at a time when I was very busy. There are nearly 500 pages, and I thought that I didn't have time to get through it timely. Then I read the first page. Slurp! I was sucked in. It's a page-turner on steroids. It's the kind of book that makes you mad when you have to put it down to eat or sleep or talk to people.
Amy, the heroine, is kickass. Sure, there are a lot of them out there, but at some point, many of them become whiney. Amy doesn't.
Other stories it reminds me of:
I AM THE CHEESE by Robert Cormier
HUNGER GAMES by Suzanne Collins
I AM LEGEND (Will Smith movie)
WALKING DEAD (TV show)
If you like those stories, put a countdown app on your phone and get this book the day it comes out, which is June 25, 2013.
I got this book at a time when I was very busy. There are nearly 500 pages, and I thought that I didn't have time to get through it timely. Then I read the first page. Slurp! I was sucked in. It's a page-turner on steroids. It's the kind of book that makes you mad when you have to put it down to eat or sleep or talk to people.
Amy, the heroine, is kickass. Sure, there are a lot of them out there, but at some point, many of them become whiney. Amy doesn't.
Other stories it reminds me of:
I AM THE CHEESE by Robert Cormier
HUNGER GAMES by Suzanne Collins
I AM LEGEND (Will Smith movie)
WALKING DEAD (TV show)
If you like those stories, put a countdown app on your phone and get this book the day it comes out, which is June 25, 2013.
December 26, 2012
I was lucky enough to get hold of an ARC of IN THE AFTER, and read it in one sitting. This. Book. Is. Incredible. It's so well written and plotted – there isn't one bit of the story where I felt as if I knew what was coming, and the worldbuilding is incredibly well-done. Amy and Baby are amazing characters. I was really sorry to finish it! If you're a fan of THE PASSAGE or THE STAND, you will love IN THE AFTER.
February 27, 2017
Amy is watching tv, when the president pops up and alerts everyone to an alien attack happening. The world is a mess. Everybody is dying. In a few days the population is wiped. Luckily Amy's mom put up an electric fence in the Before so They wont come in. But Amy is home alone when it happened so surely her parents are dead. But Amy cant live on the things in her house her whole life, she has to get food when she runs out. They are super fast, like unnaturally fast, and they have amazing hearing. But at night Their senses aren't that good. While Amy is scavenging one day in a local store, she finds a little toddler and takes her in. Amy called her Baby. Amy and Baby have survived years, only living on the things they get at night. Baby is unnaturally quiet, even when Amy found her. They develope a sign language, a tweak in the ASL. One day they find a girl in the local store, but she is really loud. How did she last this long in the After? But Baby likes her, so they take her with them. One day they are scavenging through an old house, where Amber makes a lot of noise and Amy gets mad at her to find the next morning she is gone. Baby is devistated. They see people with guns at their fence one day, and Amy gets scared that they will hurt them. So Amy and Baby go out in the wild, and stop by the ocean. They get captured by this "space ship" and think they are going to die. But they come to this community of survivors that are trying to rebuild the human population. She finds out many secrets about Them, her family, and the future.
I really liked In The After Because it is action-packed, a little scary, and I love how it was written. I could not put it down! It mad me feel sorry for her, because she lost everything, and pumped up because of the action. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes a scary story. There are two books in this series, and I am exited to read the second. Demitria Lunetta is a great author, because she wrote this story amazingly!
I really liked In The After Because it is action-packed, a little scary, and I love how it was written. I could not put it down! It mad me feel sorry for her, because she lost everything, and pumped up because of the action. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes a scary story. There are two books in this series, and I am exited to read the second. Demitria Lunetta is a great author, because she wrote this story amazingly!
July 13, 2023
•Read half way through and decided to stop. Won't pick it back up, don't care to keep reading and am glad to leave it.
•It was really annoying and none of it worked for me.
•My updates while reading the book show all of my frustrations, and boy were there a lot.
•A giant one that really ground my gears was the use of "fan" as an abbreviation for fantastic. ... No.
•It was really annoying and none of it worked for me.
•My updates while reading the book show all of my frustrations, and boy were there a lot.
•A giant one that really ground my gears was the use of "fan" as an abbreviation for fantastic. ... No.
February 8, 2013
finished in 2 days. loved it! super cool plot, fans of THE WALKING DEAD or ALIEN will eat this book up.
December 24, 2012
How I spent my Christmas Eve: Devouring IN THE AFTER. Once I started this book, it was impossible to put down. Clever world-building, likeable characters, so many twists and turns. Wow. Simply, wow.
December 19, 2012
CONSUMING!!! LOVED it! Highly, highly rec!!
July 1, 2013
3.5
Part One: Cool
Part Two: Awful
Part Three: Good
This is my problem with the rating system. I can't, in good conscience, give this book more than three stars but then, I think of all the books worse than this one that I've given better ratings to.
Yeah, but that's the thing: I read them before this one. Anyways, this 3-star review is actually a positive one.
If you have been around the YA post apocalyptic corner, you gotta know there's a certain formula they follow:
World ends, Girl* survives. [Sometime later] Girl runs away(from rehab camps, isolation, facility, society blah di dah). Girl manages to encounter another flesh of civilization, Girl integrates into society, Girl finds the government controlling society evil. Evil people find their evilness discovered and about to be unleashed, Shit hits the fan, Girl plans to burn 'em all.
*'Cause they're all mostly girls, yeah?
If you haven't been around, well, whoops! minorly spoilerly. My bad.
And of course, there are a few personality traits, the most important being the utmost devotion to a little kid/sibling. That will make your MC automatically popular. Not that there's anything wrong with that; I used to be a fan of those characters myself until recent times. No relationship that I've encountered is as smooth as these people portray, especially sibling-hood. I think it's okay to say that I'm SICK TO DEATH of these; I just want a sisterhood akin to Saba and Emmi's from Blood Red Road. Why can't we have more of that?
Moving on, Cheeses, I have read so many of these books and yet I love, and love to follow, these books to the end. There's something about people overthrowing governments that appeals to my very sensibilities.
Nothing ever really stands out in In The After. It's partly about survival in the mad, mad world with the big, bad wolves out there and then the bigger wolves, aka fellow humans, come into play and it's all human depravity and iniquity.
It's a question that's been bugging me a lot lately. Why do humans always turn out to be the biggest monster? It's as if we have to assert our supremacy in everything, even evilness: WE ARE THE WORST FUCKERS AROUND, THE GREATEST EVIL CREATED! BEWARE OF US!
But at the end of the day, it's a survivalist novel and who doesn't love those, even if they have nothing new to offer?
The whole plot of In the After comes down to a major reveal at the end, albeit it's a bit obvious before that. I especially liked the missing pieces that Lunetta sets in the beginning and ties it all very nicely towards the end. Most of it reeks of generic conformity, with the inclusion and set-up of ignorant and beaten-up society, and nothing here truly sets apart this book from many others. Except the technique and full realization of something called 'shock factors', for which, kudos to Lunetta! The story isn't actually predictable, even while it follows the aforementioned outline.
My favorite part of the book cannot be mentioned for fear of spoilers. Suffice it to say, that I absolutely got Amy's desolation in the latter half of the book. I truly hurt for her as stuff kept happening, and everything she lost. After that I loved how instantly indignant and wary of the society Amy becomes, somewhat like how I would have reacted. Most MC's take such long periods of time before coming to such conclusions. This is what sets apart In the After for me. And the romance.
It's probably very hard to create a realistic romance in an end-of-the-world setting, is what I've gathered over the years of books. The romance mainly becomes the downfall of novels, case in point: The 5th Wave. It can make or break you characters as well as the whole book. But Demitria Lunetta's book doesn't converge on romance and it's very light. The romantic interest is different and he actually is a believer and follower of the evil society that the MC will have to overthrow. He's constantly getting irritated with her for not seeing things his way. There isn't much build-up, nor is there any mushiness. I don't necessarily like him, but I don't like any of them these days. What the fuck is happening to me, is a good question to ask.
May be this
Or mayhap
Whatevs
For comparisonists, far as I'm concerned, this is better than The 5th Wave, although I gave that one a higher rating. The characters are much more realistic and likable, the pacing is significantly better and the sci-fi aspect is handled with more precision. There are a lot of similarities between the two, but one's gotta trump the other, no?
So no, this is not a Guilty Crown fiasco, capitalizing on the fame of the mecha genre, awesomely as it started. But that is another quarrel for another time. In the After doesn't have any new contributions but that's not always why we read or love a book, is it? Sometimes, it's because no matter how rote, it's still SO DAMN FUN! Case in point: Supernatural TV show. And now I'm adding this gif because it's FUN!
Cross-posted on Books behind Dam{n}s
Part One: Cool
Part Two: Awful
Part Three: Good
This is my problem with the rating system. I can't, in good conscience, give this book more than three stars but then, I think of all the books worse than this one that I've given better ratings to.
Yeah, but that's the thing: I read them before this one. Anyways, this 3-star review is actually a positive one.
If you have been around the YA post apocalyptic corner, you gotta know there's a certain formula they follow:
World ends, Girl* survives. [Sometime later] Girl runs away(from rehab camps, isolation, facility, society blah di dah). Girl manages to encounter another flesh of civilization, Girl integrates into society, Girl finds the government controlling society evil. Evil people find their evilness discovered and about to be unleashed, Shit hits the fan, Girl plans to burn 'em all.
*'Cause they're all mostly girls, yeah?
If you haven't been around, well, whoops! minorly spoilerly. My bad.
And of course, there are a few personality traits, the most important being the utmost devotion to a little kid/sibling. That will make your MC automatically popular. Not that there's anything wrong with that; I used to be a fan of those characters myself until recent times. No relationship that I've encountered is as smooth as these people portray, especially sibling-hood. I think it's okay to say that I'm SICK TO DEATH of these; I just want a sisterhood akin to Saba and Emmi's from Blood Red Road. Why can't we have more of that?
Moving on, Cheeses, I have read so many of these books and yet I love, and love to follow, these books to the end. There's something about people overthrowing governments that appeals to my very sensibilities.
Nothing ever really stands out in In The After. It's partly about survival in the mad, mad world with the big, bad wolves out there and then the bigger wolves, aka fellow humans, come into play and it's all human depravity and iniquity.
It's a question that's been bugging me a lot lately. Why do humans always turn out to be the biggest monster? It's as if we have to assert our supremacy in everything, even evilness: WE ARE THE WORST FUCKERS AROUND, THE GREATEST EVIL CREATED! BEWARE OF US!
But at the end of the day, it's a survivalist novel and who doesn't love those, even if they have nothing new to offer?
The whole plot of In the After comes down to a major reveal at the end, albeit it's a bit obvious before that. I especially liked the missing pieces that Lunetta sets in the beginning and ties it all very nicely towards the end. Most of it reeks of generic conformity, with the inclusion and set-up of ignorant and beaten-up society, and nothing here truly sets apart this book from many others. Except the technique and full realization of something called 'shock factors', for which, kudos to Lunetta! The story isn't actually predictable, even while it follows the aforementioned outline.
My favorite part of the book cannot be mentioned for fear of spoilers. Suffice it to say, that I absolutely got Amy's desolation in the latter half of the book. I truly hurt for her as stuff kept happening, and everything she lost. After that I loved how instantly indignant and wary of the society Amy becomes, somewhat like how I would have reacted. Most MC's take such long periods of time before coming to such conclusions. This is what sets apart In the After for me. And the romance.
It's probably very hard to create a realistic romance in an end-of-the-world setting, is what I've gathered over the years of books. The romance mainly becomes the downfall of novels, case in point: The 5th Wave. It can make or break you characters as well as the whole book. But Demitria Lunetta's book doesn't converge on romance and it's very light. The romantic interest is different and he actually is a believer and follower of the evil society that the MC will have to overthrow. He's constantly getting irritated with her for not seeing things his way. There isn't much build-up, nor is there any mushiness. I don't necessarily like him, but I don't like any of them these days. What the fuck is happening to me, is a good question to ask.
May be this
Or mayhap
Whatevs
For comparisonists, far as I'm concerned, this is better than The 5th Wave, although I gave that one a higher rating. The characters are much more realistic and likable, the pacing is significantly better and the sci-fi aspect is handled with more precision. There are a lot of similarities between the two, but one's gotta trump the other, no?
So no, this is not a Guilty Crown fiasco, capitalizing on the fame of the mecha genre, awesomely as it started. But that is another quarrel for another time. In the After doesn't have any new contributions but that's not always why we read or love a book, is it? Sometimes, it's because no matter how rote, it's still SO DAMN FUN! Case in point: Supernatural TV show. And now I'm adding this gif because it's FUN!
Cross-posted on Books behind Dam{n}s
October 5, 2013
I'd been eyeing In the After ever since I saw it in the HarperTeen catalogue. Even the blurb had an air of mystery about it - who are They? And considering They are the catalyst for an apocalypse, I was all over it like a cheap suit (I've always wanted to say that).
In the After jumps straight into the action as Amy finds herself in a world that has been brutally invaded by creatures that no one seems to have any knowledge about. She does get lucky in that her house is heavily protected due to her mother's job, and her hippy father has had a hand in making it almost completely self-sufficient, but otherwise she is pretty much on her own.
I liked Amy quite a bit - from a girl who seemingly should have been alien food from the beginning, she develops into a tough, dedicated girl who will do anything to keep Baby safe and adapts quickly to her changed environment. I loved the relationship she developed with Baby, the way that they depended on each other for survival whilst still providing a close companionship that kept them both safe and sane during the years after the invasion.
It was only when Amy and Baby ended up in the colony of New Hope that things went a little off the rails for me. The remainder of the story is told in flashbacks, which I can normally deal with, but the flashes were so short that I started to feel like I was being yanked back and forth rather than gliding in and out of them. It seems like it was written this way to keep the pacing at the same level, which it does, but for me it could have worked just as well with a bit of a slow-down in the middle.
There are action scenes, relationship-building, a bit of a flirtation and mystery all of which I really enjoyed, and I feel that Ms. Lunetta has put a quite unique spin on the YA apocalyptic genre. The ending is left open for the possibility of another book, and if that book does happen I'd more than happily grab a copy as it feels there is still a lot left to explore.
Read more of my reviews at The Aussie Zombie
In the After jumps straight into the action as Amy finds herself in a world that has been brutally invaded by creatures that no one seems to have any knowledge about. She does get lucky in that her house is heavily protected due to her mother's job, and her hippy father has had a hand in making it almost completely self-sufficient, but otherwise she is pretty much on her own.
I liked Amy quite a bit - from a girl who seemingly should have been alien food from the beginning, she develops into a tough, dedicated girl who will do anything to keep Baby safe and adapts quickly to her changed environment. I loved the relationship she developed with Baby, the way that they depended on each other for survival whilst still providing a close companionship that kept them both safe and sane during the years after the invasion.
It was only when Amy and Baby ended up in the colony of New Hope that things went a little off the rails for me. The remainder of the story is told in flashbacks, which I can normally deal with, but the flashes were so short that I started to feel like I was being yanked back and forth rather than gliding in and out of them. It seems like it was written this way to keep the pacing at the same level, which it does, but for me it could have worked just as well with a bit of a slow-down in the middle.
There are action scenes, relationship-building, a bit of a flirtation and mystery all of which I really enjoyed, and I feel that Ms. Lunetta has put a quite unique spin on the YA apocalyptic genre. The ending is left open for the possibility of another book, and if that book does happen I'd more than happily grab a copy as it feels there is still a lot left to explore.
Read more of my reviews at The Aussie Zombie
April 21, 2016
The first part was the survival training and keeping herself alive. I thought it was wonderful having a home that was environmentally powered which is why they had all the luxuries of electricity and water. This all changes as you read more into the story.
The second part has Amy and Baby in a community filled with people living together. At first glance it's too good to be true. But once Amy starts asking questions, she alerts the powers that be and gets into trouble. That's when the questions really start to get dangerous and I was vying for more.
I love the story and where it was going. I love the clues that were dropped in random moments and then made sense later on.
By the end of the book, I was left with a need for more and once a book does that to me, I just know that I'll be one of those bloggers either waiting for an ARC or buying the sequel on release day. I can't help it.. I need to know more!
I'm not thoroughly impressed with the two viewpoints from the past and the present in this part of the book. It felt unnecessary and I would have liked it to be one continuous story. Since it felt so disconnected, it would have been better once it was all in the present.
The second part has Amy and Baby in a community filled with people living together. At first glance it's too good to be true. But once Amy starts asking questions, she alerts the powers that be and gets into trouble. That's when the questions really start to get dangerous and I was vying for more.
I love the story and where it was going. I love the clues that were dropped in random moments and then made sense later on.
By the end of the book, I was left with a need for more and once a book does that to me, I just know that I'll be one of those bloggers either waiting for an ARC or buying the sequel on release day. I can't help it.. I need to know more!
I'm not thoroughly impressed with the two viewpoints from the past and the present in this part of the book. It felt unnecessary and I would have liked it to be one continuous story. Since it felt so disconnected, it would have been better once it was all in the present.
May 5, 2018
I did have this as a 2-star but I think I'm gonna raise it to 3.5 stars, just cuz I've read more disappointing books than this and I did enjoy the book overall and that I read it so fast. 3.5 stars rounded down.
I loved the beginning. I had tons of fun following Amy's and Baby's journey in the After. Amy was a great heroine! And I loved Baby :)
Unfortunately, it went downhill once they were 'saved' and got to New Hope. I agreed with Amy, I hated the stuffy little town and couldn't get around to liking any of the characters, plus the plotline seemed to go much slower. (There was also a future-and-past type alternating POV, it didn't bother me but I'm pointing it out for future readers.)
The last bit was engaging enough to not turn me off completely from the second book. I'll probably check it out soon!
I loved the beginning. I had tons of fun following Amy's and Baby's journey in the After. Amy was a great heroine! And I loved Baby :)
Unfortunately, it went downhill once they were 'saved' and got to New Hope. I agreed with Amy, I hated the stuffy little town and couldn't get around to liking any of the characters, plus the plotline seemed to go much slower. (There was also a future-and-past type alternating POV, it didn't bother me but I'm pointing it out for future readers.)
The last bit was engaging enough to not turn me off completely from the second book. I'll probably check it out soon!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 22, 2014
This book was AMAZING. I can't get over how good it was! The voice was incredible. The story sucked me in. The characters were real and likeable and smart. The action and conflict pulled me along every step of the way, and it left me dying for the next book.
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