Author: Kassandra Montag
Genre: Dystopian/Cli-Fi
Publisher: William Morrow
Published: September 3, 2019
Book Description: A little more than a century from now, our world has been utterly transformed. After years of slowly overtaking the continent, rising floodwaters have obliterated America’s great coastal cities and then its heartland, leaving nothing but an archipelago of mountaintop colonies surrounded by a deep expanse of open water.
Stubbornly independent Myra and her precocious seven-year-old daughter, Pearl, fish from their small boat, the Bird, visiting dry land only to trade for supplies and information in the few remaining outposts of civilization. For seven years, Myra has grieved the loss of her oldest daughter, Row, who was stolen by her father after a monstrous deluge overtook their home in Nebraska. Then, in a violent confrontation with a stranger, Myra suddenly discovers that Row was last seen in a far-off encampment near the Artic Circle. Throwing aside her usual caution, Myra and Pearl embark on a perilous voyage into the icy northern seas, hoping against hope that Row will still be there.
On their journey, Myra and Pearl join forces with a larger ship and Myra finds herself bonding with her fellow seekers who hope to build a safe haven together in this dangerous new world. But secrets, lust, and betrayals threaten their dream, and after their fortunes take a shocking—and bloody—turn, Myra can no longer ignore the question of whether saving Row is worth endangering Pearl and her fellow travelers.
A compulsively readable novel of dark despair and soaring hope, After the Flood is a magnificent, action packed, and sometimes frightening odyssey laced with wonder—an affecting and wholly original saga both redemptive and astonishing.
Rating: 3 Stars
Review: I was very excited to receive an ARC of this book. The first thing I saw was that After the Flood was compared to Station Eleven, and lets face it who doesn’t love that book. When I read the first chapter I said, finally this book was going to do it, however, it started to fall short of that comparison quickly.
The book is set approximately 100 years in the feature, and The world is in the middle of a six year flood. Myra is pregnant with her second child when her husband takes off with their oldest daughter nowhere to be found. That sounds really good, right? The book fast forward 7 years later and she is raising her daughter Pearl. She hears word that her oldest daughter Row is alive and what starts is an adventure story.
I really liked how the author kept the chapters shorter, it really made the story flow and read very fast. It was a solid book, with characters you will love and hate. Montag gave this a great ending, that I did not see coming.
Overall, it was a solid read, but I was looking for Station Eleven, so that left me a little disappointed. I know why publishers throw those comparisons out there for books but that book has too high of standard to try to compare. I believe there is a place in the dystopian category for this book, and people will love it, just be careful of that comparison.
Thank you NetGalley and William Morrow for an Advanced Reader’s Copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Obsessed Bookaholic 