END GAME
by Ginger Booth
I purchased this book on Amazon. I will add this to the list of books I have read which I think belong in the 'young adult' section. Does Amazon have a 'young adult' section? I don't know!
End Game is listed in one of my favorite categories - post apocalyptic/dystopian future. Although, it is the first book in a three part series and only covers events leading up to the end of civilization as we know it. I have also seen it listed as sci-fi, but the only sci-fi I could find is 'global warming' and much like in real life, there is no how or why the phenomenon is occurring.
The setting is New England in the near future. The protagonist is Dee Baker who lives in Connecticut. Dee is an IT professional and team leader of a group responsible for fake news. She has some access to what is really happening out there, but the 'Calm Act' passed by the government would make sharing that information illegal. Disasters, death tolls and plagues are occurring frequently, but the government does not want to populace to devolve into anarchy and chaos.
The author frequently elaborates on Dee's meals and attire. Dedicating more time to the strange weather phenomena and it's consequences would have served better. The role of the government was vague also. The book fails to explain what capacity it was functioning, if at all. Bartering and trade replaced currency at some point in the story, though Dee still showed up for work. O.K., I'm lost. I should have stopped reading the book at this point. There are no excuses.
There is a love triangle in the story and both men seem to take it in stride. Needless to say, spoiler alert - they both die. Dee is involved with her third man by the end of the book. The fact that they die in no spectacular way discounts the events as a plot twist. It led me to think more about the author's thought process.
Arks are mentioned throughout the story, which are supposed to carry a very limited number of people to somewhere? Again, the book falls short. Dee may or may not have a berth on an ark and I'm not sure if she even got to decide. Trust me, it's not worth going into. Not an original idea regardless, remember the movie 2012?
End Game may have received many 5 star reviews, but I call heifer dust!
I rate it 4 pairs of reading glasses out of 10.
