ARC Review--After the End by Amy Plum

She’s searching for answers to her past. They’re hunting her to save their future.

World War III has left the world ravaged by nuclear radiation. A lucky few escaped to the Alaskan wilderness. They've survived for the last thirty years by living off the land, being one with nature, and hiding from whoever else might still be out there.

At least, this is what Juneau has been told her entire life.

When Juneau returns from a hunting trip to discover that everyone in her clan has vanished, she sets off to find them. Leaving the boundaries of their land for the very first time, she learns something horrifying: There never was a war. Cities were never destroyed. The world is intact. Everything was a lie.

Now Juneau is adrift in a modern-day world she never knew existed. But while she's trying to find a way to rescue her friends and family, someone else is looking for her. Someone who knows the extraordinary truth about the secrets of her past.

I borrowed this ARC from a fellow blogger friend, I was in no way compensated for this review.


Amy Plum's After the End was definitely a different kind of read for me. It definitely has a dystopic kind of feel to it, but I am not 100% certain calling it a dystopian is accurate. Maybe somewhat. 

Juneau and her clan have lived their lives in the wilds of Alaska, having taken refuge there after World War 3 in 1984, they have lived sheltered, but good lives. One day, after hunting, Juneau returns and finds everybody gone. Juneau isn't your ordinary girl. She has a set of unique abilities. Using these abilities, she learns that her people were taken by men dressed in black and flying in helicopters.

She quickly learns that World War 3 never happened. That there never was a war, she and her clan had been living in the wild outbacks for seemingly no divine reason. She wants to find her clan--including her father--most of all. And she soon learns that in order to do that, she's going to need help from a very special person.

Miles is not your boy next door kind of guy. He's gotten into trouble a bit and now he wants to make it up to his dad by finding the girl he's looking for. Miles thinks that is he can deliver this mysterious teenage girl to his father that he might finally gain his approval.

Soon Juneau and Miles cross paths and learn that they need one another to accomplish their goals. Only their goals are kind of the opposite. It's a struggle for each of them to get the other to do what they want. But there are more people after Juneau and soon long held secrets start to come to the front.

After the End definitely had a mysterious vibe going on. Why is Juneau such a hot commodity? What's so special about her? It gets revealed somewhat, but I have a feeling there's still a lot we don't know. But Amy does give us a decent taste of the first why.

Juneau and Miles were quite the characters. The novel is told through dual points of view and we always know who's talking since they each own a chapter. For awhile in the beginning, it wasn't real clear what role Miles would be playing, until he learns that his father is looking for Juneau and he decides to help out.

There's a bit of paranormal thrown in and that comes with Juneau's powers and abilities. It's magical! Juneau makes some interesting discoveries in the "modern" world, as she thought there was nothing but devastation to be found. Her reactions to things was quite enjoyable. There would be astonishment and then other times she's quite resourceful. Especially when she takes Miles "camping" and Miles is definitely a city boy.

There was some romance happening between Miles and Juneau. Nothing major, just sparks flying a kiss or two! They have formed a connection with one another and it was quite sweet.

The ending to this one was pretty shocking. We are constantly learning more tidbits of the mystery behind Juneau's lifestyle and just when there might be a resolution of some kind, we are diverted to action and a cliffhanger. Not one that is agonizing, because in some ways, I feel like we already know the answer to it from a hint towards the mid-end of the book. After the End was definitely a curious read and I might be persuaded to read further into this series!


Overall Rating 3.75/5 stars (yes another awkward rating, I liked it, but didn't totally love it, but it's definitely worthier of more than 3.5 but yet not quite a 4 for me)