After the Flood Blog Tour: Review

After the FloodAuthor: Kassandra Montag
Genre: Adult Science Fiction/Dystopia/Post-Apocalyptic
Release Date: September 3, 2019
Publisher: William Morrow
Hardcover: 432 pages

Description:

An inventive and riveting epic saga, After the Flood signals the arrival of an extraordinary new talent. 

A little more than a century from now, our world has been utterly transformed. After years of slowly overtaking the continent, rising floodwaters have obliterated America’s great coastal cities and then its heartland, leaving nothing but an archipelago of mountaintop colonies surrounded by a deep expanse of open water. 

Stubbornly independent Myra and her precocious seven-year-old daughter, Pearl, fish from their small boat, the Bird, visiting dry land only to trade for supplies and information in the few remaining outposts of civilization. For seven years, Myra has grieved the loss of her oldest daughter, Row, who was stolen by her father after a monstrous deluge overtook their home in Nebraska. Then, in a violent confrontation with a stranger, Myra suddenly discovers that Row was last seen in a far-off encampment near the Artic Circle. Throwing aside her usual caution, Myra and Pearl embark on a perilous voyage into the icy northern seas, hoping against hope that Row will still be there. 

On their journey, Myra and Pearl join forces with a larger ship and Myra finds herself bonding with her fellow seekers who hope to build a safe haven together in this dangerous new world. But secrets, lust, and betrayals threaten their dream, and after their fortunes take a shocking—and bloody—turn, Myra can no longer ignore the question of whether saving Row is worth endangering Pearl and her fellow travelers. 

A compulsively readable novel of dark despair and soaring hope, After the Flood is a magnificent, action packed, and sometimes frightening odyssey laced with wonder—an affecting and wholly original saga both redemptive and astonishing. 

 

Purchase Links: HarperCollins | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

After the Flood is an engaging experience that will leave readers with the question of what would they do in order to save someone they loved? I feel like the genre labels for this book are a little misleading in a way. Don't get me wrong - it's definitely post-apocalyptic and dystopian - but I felt that the true heart of the story is centered around Myra and her journey through this brutal landscape trying to find her lost daughter while also keeping her younger daughter safe from all of the imposing threats. It feels a lot more like a character study of Myra and her journey while also forcing the reader to ask themselves the very same questions that she must face. The post-apocalyptic dystopian landscape is secondary to the true heart of the story, but does make for a very interesting setting and helps make Myra's journey into a brutal harsh reality.

Myra is an amazing main character. She's so incredibly realistic that by the end of the book I felt like I'd known her for years. She has so many wonderful qualities and strengths, but she also has her flaws and mistakes too - just like everyone else. She's just trying to find her lost daughter while also trying to survive with her younger daughter Pearl. She's so strong, brave, courageous, loving and determined. We see her go through a lot of different scenarios throughout the book. Some of these she finds her way through easily enough. Other times it's a fight for her life (and her daughters') and she has to fight and survive the only way she can. One major positive point for me was the writing style of the book. The author chose to write this in the first person point of view, from Myra's perspective. First person POV is by far my favorite writing style because I believe it allows the reader to really bond with the narrator in a way other styles can't. I love that we see the story through Myra's eyes and get to know her every thought, hopes, fears, dreams, memories, struggles, and every emotion in between. I mentioned before that I felt like this book was actually a character study of Myra, and with the first person POV the reader really gets to know her. We sympathize and empathize with her. We fear for her, hurt for her, cheer for her, cry for her. We ask ourselves the same hard questions about life, love, and family that she must ask herself time and again. I think we get a deep and truly honest knowledge of this woman while looking inside of ourselves at the same time.

The last thing I want to really talk about was the writing itself. It was amazingly well done and had me caught up in Myra's life and world from the Prologue until the very end. The author brings this dystopian landscape and new world to life right in front of our eyes, and the scary part is that it feels so real and possible. Like it could actually happen in our future. There's such amazing attention to detail and vivid imagery that I could close my eyes and be beside Myra in her world without having to try. What I couldn't believe, and never would have if I hadn't read it myself, was that this was the author's debut. There's no way in a million years I would have guessed. The writing brings you into Myra's world and her life and doesn't let you go until the final words have been read. This is only capable (at least for me) by a very talented storyteller and writer. If this is just the author's first novel - then I can't wait to see what she'll come out with next. Very highly recommended for fans of science fiction, dystopian fiction, post-apocalytpic fiction, action and adventure, and those looking for a deep look inside the heartrending story of a mother desperately trying to find her daughter.

Kassandra Montag is a poet and novelist. Her work has appeared in Mystery Weekly Magazine, Midwestern Gothic, and Prairie Schooner, among other literary journals. She has won the Plainsongs Award, New Year's Poet Award, and 1877 Award. Find out more about Kassandra at her website, and connect with her on Facebook and Instagram.

Photo by Nancy Kohler