Saving Eden A YA Post-Apocalyptic / Dystopian Adventure

K. R. S. McEntire — 2019

Sixteen-year-old Angela and her father are the last survivors on earth. She dreams of adventure and romance but only finds it in books. In the confines of her garden paradise, she's untouched by contaminants that caused the rest of humanity to mutate into murderous beasts or die. But staying in the garden sure gets lonely. When a seventeen-year-old boy stumbles upon Angela's home with news about a thriving community, his presence upheavals everything she knew about the world. She dares to leave her garden for the first time to find a better home. In the authoritarian society that she finds the line between man and mutant is murkier than she expected. Secrets from Angela's past reemerge, and she learns life outside the garden isn't all it's cracked up to be. Her father is in danger, and the men tasked with protecting the settlement are extremely fond of murder. With their lives on the line, can Angela create one last happy ending in a hopeless world? Fans of dystopian societies, post-apocalyptic futures, diverse characters, fantasy, and coming-of-age adventures with heart will fall in love with this post-apocalyptic fairy tale.

Reviews

Julie Janis@juliejanisbooks

Aug 15, 2022

I'd give this 3.5 stars. This wasn't a bad book to read. It did take me a bit to get into it from the beginning, but it got better. The world and plot were intriguing and I really liked the main character. Angela's personality is fun, innocent, and one I wish I could see in more YA books. Though I enjoyed the story, I still feel it was lacking depth that hindered me from liking the story more. I wanted to know more about the characters back stories and see relationship development. There were also characters I was excited to get to know more but never did (ex. Zinc sounded like a fun character but we rarely saw him). I also feel one of the characters deaths in it would've been more impactful to me if I'd seen how Angela's relationship with her grew. I also think Angela and Jesse's relationship was rushed. The story is pretty fast-paced, which was nice, but I feel there could've been so much more. I wanted to know more about where the world was, more of how the mutants came to be, and learn more about the Wardens and their mission. Overall, this story has good bones but is lacking flesh. But I still enjoyed it and it's a fun, fast-paced read, and a nice break from books that have heavy plots and magic systems.