The Never-Ending End of the World by Ann Christy ~ a Review

by Donna Huber

Most of the people in the U.S. (maybe the world) are stuck in a time loop - repeating the same the same movements over and over. There are just a few, like Coco, who do not live in a loop and time moves on as usual. Just a teenager, she must learn to survive in New York City. The food, just like the people, is stuck in these loops but like Coco, there are small gaps in the loops and that is where she finds edible food. But can she survive the loneliness of being the only one outside of a loop?

Amazon affiliate links are used on this site. A free audiobook was provided for an honest review.

August 2023; Campfire Publishing; 9781736040676
audio (13h 30m), ebook, print; post-apocalyptic

I requested an advance copy of Never-Ending End of the World because I was looking for books to suggest to my post-apocalyptic book club. Had this book come out before August, I would have recommended that we read it but we set the calendar in July. I will be recommending it next year.

While Coco is a teenager when the book starts, the story spans decades so she is actually an adult for most of the book. I wouldn't classify this as young adult, though I'm sure teens would enjoy the story. And at times the novel did feel like I was reading a young adult dystopian novel due to some of the tropes used.

The world was pretty normal before whatever caused the time loops happened, but after this apocalypse what society remains is somewhat dystopian but they are attempting to create a utopia (at least one faction of people). I like seeing societies rebuild after an apocalypse so I really enjoyed the descriptions of the various societies.

I liked the characters and the plot. I felt that it was different from what I usually read in the post-apocalyptic genre (I'll admit that I don't read much outside of what my book club selects). I'm not sure how I feel about the ending. I don't want to give too much away but I was happy and sad at the same time.

There is some science fiction woven in as the characters try to explain the time loops and what caused them. It had to do with physics and I was kind of able to just let it float over my head without diminishing my enjoyment of the story. It helps that the characters that do understand it admit that there isn't really a way to explain it so that a person who has had little formal education (Coco was 12 when the looping started) could understand it - that even some of the highly educated people can't understand it either. 

I think the book would make for a good discussion. The characters themselves ask big questions about themselves as individuals and societies that we can pose to ourselves. 

The audiobook was really well done. The narrators did a good job and the story was easy to follow.

Buy The Never-Ending End of the World at Amazon

Donna Huber is an avid reader and natural encourager. She is the founder of Girl Who Reads and the author of how-to marketing book Secrets to a Successful Blog Tour. 

Enjoyed this post? Never miss out on future posts by following us. Get even more book news in your inbox, sign up for our newsletter today! Or Follow Girl Who Reads with Bloglovin. Girl Who Reads is an Amazon advertising affiliate; a small commission is earned when purchases are made at Amazon using any Amazon links on this site. Thank you for supporting Girl Who Reads.