After The Ending

By: Lindsey Fairleigh, Lindsey Pogue

Narrated by: Natalie Duke

Length: 18 hrs and 10 mins

Publisher's Summary

The best-selling first audiobook in the emotionally charged post-apocalyptic romance series, The Ending Series.

The virus spread. Billions died. The ending began. We may have survived the apocalypse, but the virus changed us.

When people started getting sick, they thought it was just the flu. My roommate, my boyfriend, my family ...they're all gone now. I got sick too. I should have died with them - with the rest of the world - but I didn't. I thought witnessing the human population almost disappear off the face of the earth was the craziest thing I'd ever experience. I was so wrong. My name is Dani O'Connor, I'm twenty-six-years-old, and I survived the ending.

The virus changed everything. The world I knew is gone, and life is backwards. We've all had to start over. I've been stripped of my home, my dreams ...all that is me. I'm someone else now-broken and changed. Other survivors' memories and emotions haunt me. They invade my mind until I can no longer separate them from my own. I won't let them consume me. I can't. My name is Zoe Cartwright, I'm twenty-six-years-old, and I survived the ending.

We've been inseparable for most of our lives, and now our friendship is all we have left. The aftermath of the virus has stranded us on opposite sides of the United States. Trusting strangers, making sacrifices, killing - we'll do anything to reach one another. Fear and pain may be unavoidable, but we're strong ...we're survivors. But to continue surviving in this unfamiliar world plagued by crazies and strange new abilities, we have to adapt. We have to evolve.

And more than anything, we have to find each other.

This audiobook contains some adult content and language.

The Ending Series:

Book 1: After The Ending

Book 2: Into The Fire

Book 3: Out Of The Ashes (coming in 2014)

©2013 Lindsey Fairleigh and Lindsey Pogue (P)2014 Lindsey Fairleigh and Lindsey Pogue

Like watching the Orange County Housewifes.

Would you try another book from Lindsey Fairleigh and Lindsey Pogue and/or Natalie Duke?

I admire that these young women wrote a book, it is really hard to write a book, so I give them a pat on the back for that...but it wasn't an enjoyable book. It was like a soap opera. The male characters were all sleazy and the girls were superficial. You never connect to any of the characters. It is a long book and I actually listened to about 7 hours hoping it would go somewhere, but it didn't, and I decided I really don't care about the characters or the plot.

What do you think your next listen will be?

I'm listening to Angle Fall right now. It wasn't my first choice but it was offered at a good price and so far I am enjoying very much.

Would you be willing to try another one of Natalie Duke’s performances?

No, I didn't like the voices she gave her characters, they were whiny or sleazy.

What reaction did this book spark in you? Anger, sadness, disappointment?

My reaction was seriously like watching The Bachelor or the Housewives. Terrible shows but you are hooked sort of like a train wreck.

9 of 9 people found this review helpful

Capital D-R-A-M-A

Well, well, well before I begin I know that for a fact that everyone loves a little drama. This book caught me by surprise, in more ways than one. There was a lot to like and I, for one love a good cross country apocalyptic roadtrip. Throw in some love, a dash of the supernatural, some humour and a big chunk of drama and you got me hooked. I really liked the dual point of views and how they rotated back and forth. I have to admit that I did find myself liking one point of view a little better than the other but I will keep that to myself as to not sway anyone's opinion. The author does a good job of building and making the main characters realistic. I know many will disagree with that but for me I found that the ages and mannerisms of the girls were on par with the real world. Even down to the occupations. The male characters were a little less realistic than I would have liked but were on par with other post apocalyptic characters I have encountered. A colony... there is always a colony so that is all I will say about that lol. I really thought after reading the reviews of the narration that I would not enjoy it, but on the contrary I thought she did a really admirable job. It is not only about the character's voices. There are quite a few other qualities and attributes that I look for in a narrator such as pacing, tone and sound level among others. I think there had to be some difficult and "descriptive" scenes to narrate in this story (cough cough) and I thought they were done quite well. Now, this is not to say the book is perfect, sure there are some things it could do without and it takes some disbelief from reality but what story doesn't. Go read some non-fiction if that is what you are looking for. There were a few spots that I thought the scenes would or should end but other than that a job well done. I have the second installment already cued up. I am looking forward to seeing how the sophomore story plays out and where it takes the series.

6 of 6 people found this review helpful

Everyone whines and girls are bitches

This book wasn’t for you, but who do you think might enjoy it more?

Anyone who thinks the Real Housewives are adults. (Spoiler: they aren't)

What was most disappointing about Lindsey Fairleigh and Lindsey Pogue ’s story?

All the women were awful to each other. The two main girls had about 3 redeeming characteristics between them, but I gave up at the point that one of them asserted that another women "had to be bad because she was so ugly". Seriously?! And this person is supposed to be 24?! Oh F Off.

If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from After The Ending?

So many. I lost count.

Any additional comments?

One of the main characters spends a third of her time whining about her dead boyfriend, a third mooning over her high school crush, and the other third whining about how bad she feels about mooning over her crush right after 'the love of her life' dies. Oh, and any time not spent in one of those three obnoxious thought patterns is spent thinking about how awful all the other women she encounters are.

The other protagonist is slightly less obnoxious...but not by much. And she also spends a ridiculous amount of time worried about who she'll bang now that civilization has ended.

I had such high hopes for this book as I LOVE apocalyptic fiction and was really interested in seeing how the powers played out. But I just couldn't handle these bitchy women long enough to finish. I think I got just barely half way through, but I had to stop it and try again a number of times.

Not worth the credit.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

No! Just No!!

like previous reviewer said, I would kill myself too if I was stuck with these two!! Wimpy, whiney, and pathetic. I know the author said that the girls were over 25...how about you take that down a decade. I haven't been on here to give a review in a while, but I hate wasting my credits.......this was a waste.
I listened to about 6 hours...smh

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Great read & I'm ready for the next one!

Dani & Zoe are best friends separated after the apocalypse! The entire book is about getting them reunited. (There's some love & lust along the way)
There are elements that remind me of Heroes or any number of shows like that. Still the story is original. You get excited when they do. You try to figure out their abilities right alone with them. Dani's ability is the best & one I'd love to have.... but I'm not going to tell you what it is. You'll have to read the book to find out!
Can't wait for book 2 to reveal more about MG!

I was voluntarily provided this review copy at no charge by the author, publisher and or narrator. "

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

An Interesting Dystopian without the Zombies Story

In After the Ending Book 1, most of the worlds population dies due to a virus like so many other dystopian or zombie apocalypse books but thats where the similarities end. The virus does alter everyone who is left on the planet giving them special gifts or alternately making them insane. This is a refreshing story line following the lives of our two main protagonists, Zoe and Dani, the chapters alternate between their own POV's.

The story did draw me in but I have to say the characters maturity seems more like teenage girls then 26 year old women. That said, I liked the story and found as the book went on the story got much better and intriguing. I am now at the end of Book 2, "Into the Fire" that has been very good and takes place over one week. We learn alot about the colony in book 2. In Book 1, the characters are trying to reach each other from opposite sides of the U.S. coasts meeting in Colorado. It is their stories of what goes on the first months following the virus.

A minor peeve, the first half of the book they kept emailing each other while the internet was still up and I have to admit I didn't have to keep hearing the "TO Zoe," blah blah, "From Dani", blah blah. I think we all knew after the first couple of emails who they were to and this could have been simplified.

There is a love story for both Zoe and Dani which I did like hearing. It wasn't overly graphic with the sex and I like a little romance in a book like this when everything else is so awful.

The narrator, Natalie Duke was very good and I easily could distinguish between most of the voices. Zoe comes across as mature and more her age of 26 but Dani comes across very teenager like like a lot of the time. The funny thing is I don't know if thats because of the voice used for her in this series or if she is written that way......

Definitely worth the credit for an enjoyable, easy listen and a good story. Will be downloading Book 3 tonight!

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Entertaining, yet disappointedly missing post-apocalyptic flair. This is a ROMANCE! No survival issues at all.

A strange perspective stance in a post-apocalyptic world novel.

If you are looking for a survival end of the world novel, this isn’t it!

This is a ROMANCE novel with an end of the world sub-genre, and by sub-genre, I mean little tiny pieces of post-apocalyptic nuances thrown in to support new budding relationships and biological changes. All survival resources are easily obtained and pose no struggle. And everyone constantly drinks tea and alcohol without fear of dehydration.

It really bothered me that people barely expressed any real emotion other than what new partner they had their eye on or who had betrayed them. When nearly 90% of humans die it seems there would be a little more personal growth and a lot less stupid drama. Women were either evil or inherently good, but still fought over guys no matter which group they belonged to.

There were a couple things that became very annoying—the passing out and the dreams. Every time another wave of difficulty intercepted the a main character in the real world, the author made them pass out instead of experiencing the actual event that everyone else had to fight. Then the character would wake up from unnecessary dreams to find they were miraculously saved by their love interest. The dreams were important to a degree, but the majority consisted of irrelevant gobbledygook that made no sense and did nothing to contribute to the story.

The powers were interesting, but difficult to fully understand during the audiobook since telepathic communication was used so often.

Funny to say, but I’m going to listen to the next book and see what happens. Now I know what to expect since this is really only a strange romance novel.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

If I had to live in a world with these 2 girls after the apocalypse I would off myself.

Do yourself a favor and don't subject yourself to this book. The two main characters might be the two stupidest, most boring, annoying girls on earth and unfortunately they are the survivors of the apocalypse. And the narrators. They spend the end of the world whining about boys and hair and mean girls. The best character in the whole book is the dog. It's painful. Don't do it.

3 of 4 people found this review helpful

Very unique and enjoyable

Very unique and enjoyable. I had fun and could enjoy the narrator quite a bit. there were a few times I felt that the characters were written in to especially dumb, because they never seemed to learn.
overall was well word the listen.

3 of 4 people found this review helpful

After the ending

Great book to listen to. Very suspenseful. I highly recommend reading this book. You will enjoy it.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Terrible

What disappointed you about After The Ending?

Almost everything about this book disappointed me. I think if I had read the reviews maybe I would have had a warning but the scores made it seems a reasonable risk. I can't comment on the whole book as despite my best efforts I couldn't finish it. It made me want to scream. I don't know if this is 'chic lit' being sold under the aegis of science fiction/fantasy but it was truly toe curling.

What could Lindsey Fairleigh and Lindsey Pogue have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?

Unfortunately the only thing they could have done would have been never to embark upon the project. The narrator's whining voice was marginally less offensive than the puerile story line and pathetic plot.

Would you be willing to try another one of Natalie Duke’s performances?

Absolutely not - her voice would set my teeth on edge. Most audible books are reasonably well narrated - but not this one.

You didn’t love this book--but did it have any redeeming qualities?

It had no redeeming qualities at all. If it had been shorter it would have been less painful, perhaps, but I don't see how anybody could stand more than a few chapters.

3 of 3 people found this review helpful

Post viral apocalypse creates lovesick survivors.

If this book wasn’t for you, who do you think might enjoy it more?

Someone who likes Mills and Boon romances would probably like this.

Would you ever listen to anything by Lindsey Fairleigh and Lindsey Pogue again?

No

Did the narration match the pace of the story?

The narration was probably appropriate to a young fiction novel but I found it difficult to take seriously in the context of a post viral apocalypse.

You didn’t love this book--but did it have any redeeming qualities?

The non-romance based ideas were quite good but I felt they were not adequately developed.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

I only just made it to the end!!

If this book wasn’t for you, who do you think might enjoy it more?

A girl of 10 - 16 years of age that loves cute, pink and fluffy.

What was most disappointing about Lindsey Fairleigh and Lindsey Pogue ’s story?

It was sold on a epocoliptic storyline yet it's more about a sickly girlie journey that's completely unrealistic using terms like 'babygirl'. It makes me shudder thinking that I actually finished this book and then to find it doesn't end and there's more books!! No way am I going to pay a penny more to listen to this ridiculousness teenage dribble.

What didn’t you like about Natalie Duke’s performance?

The high pitched whining voice went perfectly with this book.

What reaction did this book spark in you? Anger, sadness, disappointment?

Anger at my wasting money, sadness at wasting my time and finally disappointment in myself for not turning it off after the first minute.

Any additional comments?

Find another book unless your a teenage girl then this is perfect!!

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Part 1 trilogy and the other books are not here

What made the experience of listening to After The Ending the most enjoyable?

Enjoyed this book written from two people's accounts. Has a cliffhanging ending then discover other two books are not available. Would not have bought this if I knew this.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Both girls but sometimes I got them muddled up.

2 of 3 people found this review helpful

the most annoying book ever

the narrator is probably very good, but the whiny voices she puts on to distinguish between the teenage angst ridden cardboard cutouts characters probably does little to raise it the quality of this dreadful book

Gripping start to a series

What made the experience of listening to After The Ending the most enjoyable?

Fantastic narrator who changed voices for each of the characters

Who was your favorite character and why?

Zoe and Danni equally as they are both paramount to the story. Completely different tales but good how you get the others perspective on what is happening

What does Natalie Duke bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?

Brings the characters to life

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Quite a few but I don't want to mention as they would spoil the story. Needless to say some of the things that happen are not all predictable which was good.

Any additional comments?

Deffinately worth a listen and the follow on book too.

1 of 2 people found this review helpful