A BEGINNING AT THE END offers something I haven’t seen from post-apocalyptic fiction before: the point at which society begins to rebuild, when people must move forward, try to cultivate a new sense of normalcy, all while living with the lingering trauma of everything they lost when their world collapsed. This book does an excellent job exploring the struggles of that kind of life, but what I really admire is that most of the characters’ biggest challenges are ones that we’ve all faced, flu-ridd...

Final review, first posted on FantasyLiterature.com:A Beginning at the End is set in a near-future world where, in 2019, a deadly worldwide pandemic kills some five billion people, including seventy percent of the U.S. population. Johanna Moira Hatfield, a teenage pop music star known as Mojo, tired of being browbeaten by her stage father, Evan, uses the sudden panic at her Madison Square Garden concert to disappear into the crowd in search of a new life.Six years later, in San Francisco in 2025...

Instagram || Twitter || Facebook || Amazon || PinterestDNF @ p. 121I think if I stuck with this it could maybe wrest another pity star from me, but I'm really not feeling the book right now. On the one hand, I do appreciate what Mike Chen is trying to do with A BEGINNING AT THE END, a dystopian set in San Francisco after a plague has wiped out 70% of the population. I have read a lot of dystopians and pandemics are a favorite way to kill all the humans in these sorts of books. Rather than fo

This is a story about what happens after the “end of the world”. We follow four characters and their intertwining stories: Moira (or MoJo) an ex pop star trying to escape her past and stay hidden from her father, Rob, a widower figuring out how to move on with life after the tragic passing of his wife, Krista, a woman trying to make something of herself and forget her terrible childhood, and Sunny, Rob’s daughter, a kid growing up in a post apocalyptic world.The story started fairly strong. I li...

As in his debut novel, Here and Now and Then, Mike Chen brings a refreshing new emotionalism to science fiction with his latest work, A Beginning at the End. This is a refreshing take on post-apocalyptic sci-fi. A flu pandemic devastates the world population—and takes with it the world economy and infrastructure—bringing an end to the world as we know it. As a physician, I found that aspect both realistic and terrifying. Chen does a great job in his near-future world-building, showing the after-...

Loved this book! A spectacular follow up to Mike Chen's Here And Now And Then. I loved the concept from the moment I heard it, and the author didn't disappoint. The characters are fantastic and the tension keeps you turning pages long after you told yourself you were going to stop. Definitely recommend (and if you haven't already, seek out Here And Now And Then).

Update: This book is out now!!I received an ARC from the author.This book was such a treat. It was simultaneously charming, endearing, heart-warming AND horrifying, heart-breaking, and suspenseful. The apocalypse has come and maybe not completely gone, but everyone left has to keep on living. It's a great character study in perseverance and love, especially in how vulnerable we must be to connect with others. I read it so fast; I forced myself to pace it and only read one "part" a day, but I cou...

This is Chen's brilliant follow-up to his previous wonderful Debut time-travel tale: Here And Now And Then. This gem was devoured in two gulps … unfortunately I had to go to work in between. This amazing yarn highlights the notion than mankind will not be stopped and obliterated by such a "little thing" as post-viral apocalypse that claims over 5 billion souls. A vivid portrait of what truly is most important in life … family, friendship and getting involved in diverse relationships. This novel

***Note: I received a copy curtesy of Netgalley and HARLEQUIN - MIRA in exchange for an honest review. This is, at least in theory, a dystopia set in San Francisco, after a flu epidemic has wiped out about two thirds of the population. However, it's a big stretch to call it a post-apocalyptic novel, as its real focus are individual stories of a runaway pop-star, a father and his daughter and a wedding planner. I found it odd that, even if most of the population was wiped out by this plague, s

A fresh, and dare I say charming?, take on post-apocalyptic fiction! At first glance you may not think that end-of-the-world-as-we-know-it and heartwarming tale can exist in the same story to a satisfying end, but rest assured that they do! This book strikes the perfect balance of dystopian collapse from major medical event (who doesn't love rubbernecking at that train wreck?), and a fresh start for humanity. Fans of Station Eleven will really enjoy Chen's masterful vision of what real people (w...

First I would like to say that I LOVED Here Now And Then and was SUPER excited to be approved for this Arc from Edelweiss. Thank you! This is not another time travel book. This is an end of the world disease where the end is on pause. There is mad max stuff happening and government controlled "regular life" where the rules are almost Handmaid's Tale. You get three people to read about with pretty cool backgrounds, popstar, alcoholic parent, and dead wife. This is a very unique end of the world b...

A Beginning at the End by Mike Chen is a post apocalyptic science fiction fantasy. This story follows a few of the survivors left in the world after a plague wiped out several billion people in the world by changing the point of view between them.When the world was first battling a virus that was quickly spreading throughout the world and taking many people Moira was a young teen pop star that had spent her life controlled by her father. One night as she’s performing the crowd becomes chaotic as...

Longer review to come later.**review copy sent to me by the publisher but all opinions are my own

3.5 stars but close to 4 for the hopeful feeling that drives this story.I really like rebuilding stories generally, and while this one wasn't my favourite, I did enjoy it. I liked all three of the main characters, and the way their stories intertwined seemed natural and realistic. The story of the characters' growth was also enough for me, and I didn't think it needed anything more dramatic than Sunny's escapade to keep it moving.I did find the writing just a bit rough at times. There were certa...

I RECEIVED A DRC FROM THE PUBLISHER VIA NETGALLEY. THANK YOU.My Review: First, read this:“See, relations are people with the same blood. But family, that's different. Family is about who gives you hope, who gets involved. And earns the right for forgiveness. Or at least starts down the path.”–and–As a community, we still emphasized the importance of familial ties but finally understood that the definition of family wasn't about blood or even who or what you'd lost. It was about what gave you hop...

Six years after a flu epidemic wiped out 70% of the world’s population (wow, timely!) people are living behind breathing masks, marriage is now about safety not love, and a pop star’s father is obsessively trying to find her (you read that one right.) This was my second Mike Chen book and an interesting departure from the first one. I found myself most captivated by the psychological toll the flu epidemic would have taken on society, and this book focuses in on a small cast of characters as a fa...

I was lucky enough to read an early copy of this book, and it is AMAZING. Full review to come...

I adored this book. A BEGINNING AT THE END is very different from any other Post-Apocalyptic novel that I've read in recent years. There are no life or death struggles, no toppling of governments. Rather, the action is intimate and personal. It's the kind of science fiction that gives you hope for the future.The story is told through the POVs of four very different characters, all fighting through their personal traumas to create new lives in the aftermath of a flu pandemic. Though each has thei...

Absolutely top shelf. One of the best books of this genre that I've ever read, up there with Earth Abides by George R Stewart. My only complaint was the length. I wanted more. It would have been interesting to get more of Moira's backstory, and that's all I can say without spoilers. This book is a great read. Although it won't be released until 2020, it's one of my favorite pieces of fiction read in 2019. Looking forward to his other book.

3.5 stars, and I can't decide if I should round up or down.What I appreciate a lot with Mike Chen is his take on utterly realistic characters who are trying to do the right thing and acting quite stupidly along the way, so that the reader wants to reach out and give them a good shake. But that is always because the reader has the necessary distance and more knowledge. Here again I was delighted by the group of characters Chen has created: A father who wants to prevent his daughter from suffering...