Book review: The Aftermath, by Jen Alexander

The Aftermath by Jen Alexander

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I'm not a gamer, and this book is clearly designed to appeal to gamers. And yet, I found myself sucked in right from the start. The writing is solid--it's hard to believe this is a debut novel. The plotting and very capable story-telling keep you turning the pages. There's a lot of action, as you might expect for the genre, and the pacing is generally taut, except perhaps for a slight sagging in the middle. I would have liked some more character development, although I suspect that most readers wouldn't want that to happen at the expense of the action.

Perhaps the best part of Alexander's achievement is the world-building. At times, it had an almost Gibsonesque feel, and again something even a non-gamer could appreciate. I must also praise Alexander for writing this novel in first-person present. I've heard, so many times, how YA readers are turned off by this particular POV and tense combination, but it happens to be one of my favorites (thank you, Suzanne Collins) and Alexander once again proves that it works.

I'm not a big fan of cliff-hanger endings. However, this one had the desired effect: I'm definitely looking forward to reading the next book in the series.

Note: I received a free advance review copy of this book from the publisher.




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