Karyn Langhorne Folan

Nester’s Mistake is book 2 in The Doomsday Kids series. It’s a good idea to read book 1 Liam’s Promise to fully comprehend what the children have been through to reach the Mountain Place.

I loved how Liam’s character evolved in the first book. Remembering his father’s survival lessons and leading the group. Now with Liam too ill to help its Nester’s turn to pick up the lead and show that he can do much more than he would ever believe.
” They wanted me to do magic and make Liam show more all better – and I’m not magic. I’m just plain old Nester Bartlett, a fifteen-year-old dork with a big brain and bad eyes.”

I really felt the anxiety as the group battled one problem after another. There was a lot of quarrelling and fighting but the group always came around to supporting each other.

Fast paced with non stop action and a smattering of humour, delivered by Nate’s ghost, amongst the angst. I found it hard to put this book down.

It’s a wonderful idea to continue the story from a different character’s POV and as the series continues the reader will obtain more insight into each of the characters.

Looking forward to Doomsday Kids #3 Amaranth Returns! show less

As in the previous two books, Amaranth’s Return was written from Amaranth’s point of view. This book has a very grim feel to it as Amaranth accompanies Rod on his last journey to ground zero in his search for his parents. Along the way they see the horrors of what other survivors have chosen to do in order to survive.

Amaranth’s Return pulls no punches. There are some pretty grim images contained within the pages of this book. I believe that it is plausible that it could happen however. show more As history has shown, man will do whatever man has to do to survive.

The author helps us to gain a great deal of insight into Amaranth and Rod in their journey. We learn more of their history and watch their character’s change and grow. It was hard not to empathize with Amaranth as we got to know her better.

Throughout the story there was plenty of action and suspense. The pacing of the book kept the tension high and there were enough plot twists to keep you off balance and wondering what was going to happen next.

I empathized with Rod in his suffering from the radiation poisoning and wished there was something I could do to help relieve him of his suffering. I can’t imagine what it would have actually been like to be there with a real person in such agony.

Amaranth’s Return was an excellent look at a post-nuclear war society. I would highly recommend this book. I gave it 5 stars out of 5.

Thank you to the author who provided a copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. A positive opinion was not required. All thoughts are my own.

This review was published on my blog Shelf Full of Books http://kathrynsshelffullofbooks.blogspot.com/2014/12/book-review-doomsday-kids-3... show less

It was a little slow sometimes for my taste, but the conflict resolution was great. Sometimes I think in our culture of action movies and sports we come to expect constant adrenaline rush even from the books that we read. Not that there is anything wrong with a good fast paced book, but sometimes I think a good slow release can be even more powerful in the long run.

Pretty Ugly deals with themes such as teen bullying and sibling rivalry and teaches young adults that sometimes it is important show more to stand up for what's right no matter WHAT it costs. show less

Nester’s Mistake starts off exactly where Liam’s Promise left off. The kids have reached the Mountain Place. The thing is, Liam’s dad isn’t there and Lilly is dead. There are also two strangers living in the place. When Liam is wounded by one of them, that leaves Nester as the healthiest and strongest one of the group and it’s up to him to take the place as leader.

But Nester has issues of his own. He keeps seeing his brother. How can he make the life and death decisions that this show more holocaust situation has left them in when he can’t even deal with his own brother’s death? Throughout this book we really get to see Nester’s character grow. I really enjoyed getting to see his perspective on things and how he handles remedying the errors that he makes.

I liked the pace of the book. Some may find it slow but I thought it gave the readers time to get to know the additional characters in the story and finding more about preparations for a nuclear winter was very interesting as well. I also think that Amaranth’s use of alcohol will play into the next book as part of her character as well.

As for action, yes, there was action. The kids have to decide what kind of world they are living in now. “Shoot first and ask questions later” or “Ask questions first and risk everything”. You’ll have to read the book to see if Nester is up to the task of making the tough decisions.

I thought Nester’s Mistake was well-written and believable. I would highly recommend it for middle-school and teen readers and anyone else who enjoys apocalyptic fiction. I gave this book 4 stars out of 5. I’ll be on the lookout for book 3.

Thank you to the author who provided a copy of the book in exchange for a fair and honest review. A positive opinion was not required. All thoughts are my own.

This review is published on my blog Shelf Full of Books http://kathrynsshelffullofbooks.blogspot.com/2014/09/book-review-nesters-mistake... show less