In the Afterlight
Awe-inspiring
Easy read
Emotional

In the Afterlight Book 3

The third book in the heart-stopping The Darkest Minds trilogy, by New York Times bestselling author of Passenger, for fans of Divergent and The Hunger Games. The fate of a generation lies in Ruby's hands - and one wrong move could set the world on fire. One of the few survivors of a disease which killed most of America's children, Ruby has emerged as Leader of the rebel group determined to bring the government down. Torn apart by the unbearable loss of Liam, she forms an unlikely alliance with his brother, Cole. But whatever their differences, Ruby and Cole are united by a clear mission: there are thousands like them still suffering in 'rehabilitation camps'. It's up to Ruby to set them free ... 'A riveting emotional read that kept me on the edge.' - Melissa Marr, author of Wicked Lovely Alexandra Bracken is the New York Times bestselling author of Passenger, Wayfarer and The Darkest Minds series. Visit her online at www.alexandrabracken.com and on Twitter @alexbracken.
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Reviews

Photo of Citrose
Citrose@adragonwithoutfire
2 stars
Jun 1, 2024

| 0t as good as the first and second one but still good

Photo of nina
nina @ninaisreading
4 stars
Jan 10, 2024

3.75 stars cole stewart, you will always be loved by me.

Photo of Nessa Luna
Nessa Luna@octobertune
3 stars
Jun 3, 2023

3,5. The first part of the book moved kind of slow, in my opinion, but I really wanted to keep reading because I know something had to happen. And during the last... 100 (or so?) pages, stuff went down and I couldn't stop reading. (view spoiler)[One thing I kind of hated was how quickly Cole's death happened? Like he was a pretty important character in this book and the previous, and I feel like his death was very quickly brushed over. Sure, some stuff happened right after they found out he died, but still I felt like because it happened so quickly, there would be some kind of plottwist where he didn't die (I mean I was manifesting, I guess, cuz I just didn't want to believe he was dead). (hide spoiler)] All in all, this was a good end to the series (I know there's a fourth book out (which I will read after this one), but this book was supposed to be the official end of the series, I believe).

Photo of alexandra
alexandra@twirlingpages
5 stars
May 14, 2023

9.85/10 ✩ *this entire review is spoiler-free! read my full review and discussion here: http://twirlingpages.com/2014/11/06/book-review-in-the-afterlight-alexandra-bracken/* this is, without a doubt, my favorite trilogy to ever exist. this is the highest rating i’ve ever given, and i don’t think there’ll be a book to surpass it. (i’ll explain later why i took 0.15 points off. may or may not be a spoiler for some people.) i felt like this series was one giant book split into three giant chapters. it’s hard to say how i felt about this one specific novel in the trilogy because they all contributed in some sort of way. like, i wouldn’t be as satisfied with the beginning if it weren’t for the ending, and so on and so forth. if you haven’t read anything by alexandra bracken… what are you doing with your life? this is the first book/series she’s ever written and it’s so so so good. the darkest minds centers around a captivating dystopian world: a dangerous plague has swept the united states, affecting children around the ages eight to eighteen. the citizens live in fear, but not for those who die; no, they fear those who survived. the children who survived the plague, referred to as the psi, have special powers. some have the ability to control electricity; some are telekinetic; some have the power to create flames out of nothing; some have the ability to remember everything; some have the power to control your mind. the government has decided to “help” these children by forcing them into rehabilitation camps. this is where our story begins and that’s basically the premise of the first book. alex has an extremely remarkable way of creating in-depth characters. honestly, my favorite part of these books are the characters. our main protagonist, ruby, is not a “strong female hero,” but something much more. the amount of character development is crazy good. it’s not only our main character – it’s all the characters. (yes, i mean all of them.) the plot is also extremely interesting and fits together perfectly. alex makes me attached and feel for everything, even a car. her metaphors and descriptions are on point. please please please leave and read this series. like now. i mean, now… right nOW. *whispers* gooooooo. if you’ve read the darkest minds and never fade… i’m going to assume you haven’t started this book because 1) you don’t have it yet or 2) you’re afraid. it’s alright, you can admit it. in all honesty, i would be too. do not fear! pick up the book and start it. now. i can (almost) guarantee you won’t be disappointed with how this turned out. p.s. i would recommend reading in time and sparks rise, the two novellas, before you begin. not required, but definitely recommended. there will be references to both and things will make more sense (you will also feel more feels).

Photo of Olivia
Olivia@livbckr
5 stars
Jan 15, 2023

My head is a jumbled mess so there is no way I can review this properly but can I just say OH MY GOD. It was so good and that ending? Wow just wow, such a perfect way to end this trilogy. I am so overcome with feels

Photo of aisha
aisha@aishas
5 stars
Jan 4, 2023

crying sobbing all of it throughout this book holy shit

Photo of tina
tina@folklorde
3 stars
Dec 19, 2022

honestly, this was a little too underwhelming. it mightve been bc i was expecting more. other than that, this was also REALLY slow and felt dragging at times. bracken wrapped this up well but not enough to blow me away. probably wouldve rated this higher if i read this three years ago, but ive read far too many fantastic final books that completely outshined this one. slightly disappointed tbh ://

Photo of Sandra Tammaru
Sandra Tammaru@streads
5 stars
Aug 15, 2022

Interesting end to a fantastic series! I think it was my least favourite of fhe three but still a gripping fast read that I enjoyed.

Photo of Ela
Ela@thequeerbookish
5 stars
Aug 12, 2022

Sadly everything has come to an end. If you have read my other reviews you know how much I love this series and Ruby's character. This doesn't change. She still is very realistic and I love how she is not defined by her relationship with Liam. And guess what? She even maintains friendships with other guys! But not only Ruby is a very complex and understandable character, the others are too. The thing I noticed the most is, how... childlike the children are. Your usual twelve year old doesn't jump head first into battle and kills everything in sight. And not everything has to be handled violently.

Photo of Beckah brooks
Beckah brooks@becks_reads
5 stars
Aug 12, 2022

The darkest minds Never fade in the afterlight. • Wow oh wow! These books just better and better! I was captivated the entire time, needing to finish it but also needing to devour every word! I even went back and reread a few paragraphs because they were so good I needed to hear them again. As soon as I closed this book, I realized I want to write a book as good as this one day. • This book closes out Ruby’s story, and I the most beautiful way I could think of! Most of the time when you read a series it feels as if the ending is sloppy and there are still loose ends, not this one! And the world of the darkest minds isn’t over yet, just Ruby got her ending in this one.

Photo of Jaclyn
Jaclyn@romancebookbubble
5 stars
Apr 24, 2022

Wow! I am so emotional right now! What an ending...I am so speechless and beyond grateful at the way Alexandra Bracken choose to end the series..Although there wasn't as much action as there was in the other books this was still a phenomenal conclusion. I am so attached to everyone and my heart feels so heavy leaving this series because I love Liam, Ruby, Chubs, Vida, and Zu, and everyone else so so much that its hard to say goodbye! I absolutely LOVED every minute of this book and this whole series and its by far, one of my favorite trilogies..even though I wish there was more. The development was so INCREDIBLE and I loved seeing how far everyone came since the beginning. Ruby and Liam were amazing as usual and I loved how their relationship grew in the end and just ahhhhh LIAM LIAM LIAM can you be more PERFECT!? Oh and then we have Cole who, of course, I loved! I loved how much we got of him in this book and his friendship with Ruby was beautiful to watch. I loved the throw back moments to the first book and all of the song references that we got throughout all three books, especially this one! I cried, I laughed, I screamed, I yelled, I loved Clancy, I hated Clancy, I cried, I was breathless after that heart stopping ending...then I cried again just so WONDERFUL and I can't wait to read more of Alexandra Brackens books..Thank you so much for bringing these FANTASTIC characters to life and actually ending this complicated world in the PERFECT way! These are friends that I will always carry with me always. What a beautiful beautiful series. Thanks for showing us how to carpe the hell out of this diem. "As bad as everything seems, I think at its heart, life is good. It doesn't throw anything at us that we can't handle-and even if it takes time, it turns everything right side up again."

Photo of Jo Young
Jo Young@missjosie
4 stars
Mar 10, 2022

This is a seriously amazing book. If you haven't read The Darkest Minds yet you should!!!! :)

Photo of Julie D.
Julie D.@luxurists
5 stars
Mar 8, 2022

awffrgthyjk i'm so happy and i'm so sad and i need more

Photo of Flavia Louise
Flavia Louise@flaviaaalouise
4 stars
Mar 7, 2022

4 stars Definitely my favorite book in the series though I was a bit disappointed how it wrapped up.

Photo of Noémie Etienne
Noémie Etienne@noemie
5 stars
Mar 2, 2022

😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍

Photo of Madelynn snobl
Madelynn snobl@msnobl
5 stars
Feb 28, 2022

5/5 stars. This book ended the trilogy phenomenally, I absolutely love the story line, the characters, everything! Definitely top favorite trilogies, definitely.

Photo of daniela garcia
daniela garcia@dfgarcia
5 stars
Feb 26, 2022

this saga has broke me and put me back together so many times i can’t even count them. but it was until this book that i knew i had never experienced this kind of pain, grief, sadness, pity, and every emotion you can imagine in a book and still loved it. because the end so good that you forget everything you went through wile reading it and be so damn happy for them. this is a wonderful book that takes you through a roller coaster of emotions that in the end are worth it. on another point: i actually don’t think I want to read the last one, after what this book make me go through i’m just going to stay with this end hahahahaha.

Photo of Bec Drayton
Bec Drayton@bookworm_reviews
5 stars
Dec 15, 2021

Overview: this book was written exceptionally, the characters were amazing and real, the plot twists were very well thought out, then written and portrayed beautifully. Alexandra Bracken is a truly talented author. This book was AMAZING!! There was a crazy stream of pulling at my heart strings and I cried so many times. I knew Vida and Chubs were going to get together but I still felt so happy when they did! I loved it when Ruby found Zu and her group of kids, Zu is so wonderful and endearing, I missed her character. I was in awe when Zu had an interview AND STARTING TALKING! The whole series she was writing instead of talking (because she felt that her words weren't strong enough to make a difference). I just felt so proud of her for overcoming this. I also love that Ruby and Liam had sex, it was so intimate and sweet, I'm glad that Alexandra didn't do a sex scene, she kept it close and personal. Which makes the moment more meaningful to me personally. I felt relieved and happy that Ruby returned so many lost memories, including Sam's. It was really sweet and lovely seeing Ruby and Sam together again. I also really liked that Cate was alive and well, Nico and Vida wouldn't have handled the loss of her as well as Jude. The biggest heartbreaking moment was when Cole died, it felt so unfair that Laim lost both of his siblings especially after finding out that Cole is a Red. The ending of this book was exceptional and beautiful!

This review contains a spoiler
+5
Photo of Tânia Borges
Tânia Borges@taniab
4 stars
Dec 13, 2021

3.5 stars.

Photo of laura
laura@booksandpops400
5 stars
Nov 20, 2021

** spoiler alert ** In the Afterlight: Spoiler Review I really loved this book! I gave it five stars. It was a strong ending to this series and left limited loose ends. I will always want more from this story because I was so captured by the world but overall I loved the book.   I loved seeing the new group dynamics and also seeing how the story ended. I loved seeing the end and how the truth about the illness was shown. I also enjoyed seeing most of the characters have some type of ending with their parents because I have been waiting for that since book one. It was really important for me to have ruby have that.   I loved seeing how complex Liam and Ruby relationship and how his brother really acted as wedge in that relationship. i loved the last 50 pages of the book and seeing old characters again. The book has been become one of my fav series and can't wait to read more by this author.  I still love Chubs and Liam so much and really grew to like all the other characters in the book. I loved the last scene of this book and also can't help hoping for more from this world!   Afterlight Spoiler review: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0E8Bj...   Series non- Spolier review  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q7Dk5...

Photo of Barbara Rosas
Barbara Rosas@coy173
4 stars
Oct 24, 2021

** spoiler alert ** It took me a WHOLE book to understand that Jude is dead, dead, COLE IS DEAD TOO HOW IS THIS F***ING POSSIBLE???? I loved that end ;-; Jude

Photo of Zi
Zi@zwchng
4 stars
Oct 17, 2021

I'm not sure. I mean I did love it, but I didn't love it as much as the first book. I loved Ruby's character development. She grew into this fierce and strong lady and I couldn't be prouder. I loved hers and Liam's relationship. It was something real, ya know? It didn't feel forced nor fake. And God, I loved hers and Cole's relationship. What bothered me about this novel was how I couldn't seem to get into the plot as quickly as with the first two books. It took me almost half the book for it to finally grip me and then I just couldn't put it down. Somehow, I don't know, but I'm not that set on that cause of IAAN. I kinda expected something way grander? (Is that even a word?) But whatever. At least my children are finally safe and happy. (Sadly, not all of them.) Can I just say that Clancy is such a difficult character. I'm not sure if I love him or I hate him. He reminds me so much of Warner from the Shatter Me series, whom I loved. I was really determined not to fall in love with him, but at the end of the day I still have a soft spot for him. Alexandra Bracken's writing style is beautiful. Gosh, just beautiful. I loved reading through Ruby's thoughts and I could easily follow what was going on in her head, why she was doing what she was doing. I think Ruby just might be one of my favourite female characters of all time. She's strong, fierce, selfless and she loves with all of her heart. I would love to have her as my friend. I'm so happy I finally read The Darkest Minds. Please do go and read it. You will not regret it.

Photo of Jadyn Post
Jadyn Post@jadynreads03
4 stars
Sep 30, 2021

It took me FOREVER to read this book but that does not it wasn’t absolutely amazing!! I hate long chapped in books, but I can see why Alexandra does it; there is just so much detail in every scene! I could literally make a movie with every page because of how descriptive it is. And it ended soooo perfectly. I love it.

Photo of Cecilia Giordano
Cecilia Giordano@ccgio0987
5 stars
Sep 24, 2021

100% cried