Author TJ Hapney

Description/Blurb:

“I guess it was inevitable – the end of the world we know – the end of humanity.

Finding out early was a gift, surviving impact night was a miracle, living to tell the tale, well, that was the price I will pay, forever.

There’s no going back now.”

Review 4 of 5 Stars

I received a copy of this book from the author in July 2014 in exchange for an honest review. I’ve mentioned here that I’ve been trying to clear out my backlog and this was one of the books that I kept from that list because I liked the writer’s voice from the bit I had read when deciding what to review later.

There was so much that liked about this book that I’m going to start with the bad part. The only complaint I have about this book (Specifically, the copy I have because I don’t know if changes have been made since.) was proofing errors, wrong word usage, typos, etc. It could have used some editing and I deducted a point for that. Other than that I really enjoyed the story.

The story was perfect for the journal format that the author chose.  Adelaide is one of the few places in Australia that I have actually traveled to so I was more than a little surprised (and somewhat pleased) to be visiting there again, despite the troubles our main character encounters. Jack Baldwin is a young man in Adelaide, South Australia when a comet hits the earth causing the total breakdown of life as we know it in First World countries. Jack is ripped from his life of weekend gaming parties and other youthful pursuits and is thrust into the aftermath of survival post-rock as he describes it.

I don’t want to go into too much detail because what makes this book so enjoyable is reading about Jack’s daily experiences and the ways he goes about solving his problems; the loneliness, the hopelessness, the simple quest for food and the overwhelming will to survive despite it all. I can easily say that I enjoyed this book more than I thought I would. It was a pleasant surprise and I’m glad I finally got around to it. The author did an excellent job of researching his topic and I was able to stay in the story, aside from a few small things that probably only someone who grew up in a cold weather climate would notice. Nevertheless, those small items weren’t enough to detract from my enjoyment.

Matt Pike’s post-rock world is an easily believable version of what might happen following a disaster of this scale. His characters were likewise believable and real. I’m glad I took the time to read this story (even if it did take me forever) and will probably be checking out some of Mr. Pike’s other works.