Most Anticipated of 2015: Until The Beginning

I wanted to talk about the books I'm dying to have, but since I don't do the WoW weekly feature I don't really have somewhere to talk about those books. So these posts were born. It'll be a series of 6-10 posts, since I haven't decided how many I want to talk about, and they should be up every Friday as a temporary feature.

Today I'm going to talk about

Until The Beginning by Amy Plum

expected May 5th

When Juneau's clan disappeared, she lost so much more than her friends and family. She soon discovered everything she thought she knew about her life was a lie. Her people's gifts were actually secret abilities that others wanted, desperately enough to kidnap an entire village.

Juneau and her new companion Miles's cross-country journey to find her clan has led them to a game preserve in New Mexico. Now Juneau's people are finally within reach, and she will stop at nothing to save them. But she has a target on her back too, because unbeknownst to her she is the key to unlocking everything. To rescue her people - and herself - Juneau must discover what she, and her abilities, are truly capable of.

I LOVED After The End. A perfect blend of magic, conspiracy, and thriller. 
But THAT ENDING??? Killer. I need this sequel ASAP.

After The End (ARC Review)

After The End: After The End | Amy Plum

Published by: HarperTeen, May 6th 2014

Genre: YA, Thriller, Paranormal, with a dash of Science fiction toward the end

Pages: 352

Format: Ebook

Source: HarperTeen via Edelweiss

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.

Let me start by saying what the hell was that ending? Not cool, Plum, not cool.

Also don't trust the blurb, or the cover. Think this is a post apocalyptic novel? Wrong. Think it's dystopia? Also wrong. This is a contemporary thriller with a kickass lady of colour main character, a pretty little rich boy, wonderfully original fantasy abilities, and a high stakes manhunt for reasons unknown.

In a word: AWESOME.

I loved this from the first chapter. I did not, in any way, expect Juneau, the MC, to be part of a tribe. I didn't expect her to connect to the earth - the Yara - and be able to control it in a way that was both unique and familiar. I loved Juneau instantly. She's everything I admire and love to read in a main character. She's feisty, she's assertive, she knows exactly how to get what she wants, and she has an absolute heart of gold. And Miles? The sheltered son of a rich CEO (or something along those lines) who wants for nothing, being thrown into the wilderness and forced to confront his problems, all the while convincing himself he isn't developing feelings for Juneau? Yes. I like.

I loved absolutely everything about After The End. It was unexpectedly magical and thrilling in every way.

Characters ★★★★☆

Setting/world building ★★★★★

Writing Style ★★★★☆