The Warning by Kristy Acevedo

The end is coming. There's no escape...or is there? The first in a compelling YA dystopian series for anyone who's ever felt like their life-their world-is on the brink of destruction.

Alexandra Lucas' anxiety disorder was enough to deal with before then mysterious holographic doors suddenly appeared throughout the world, heralding the end of the earth. The holograms claim to be humans from the future offering the promise of safety. A recording plays on loop: heed the warning and step through a portal-like vertex to safety...or stay and be destroyed by a comet that is on a collision course with the planet. But without the ability to verify their story, Alex is forced to consider what is best for her friends, her family, and herself.

Stay or go: everyone must make their own choice. With the deadline of the hologram's prophecy fast approaching, Alex feels as though she's living on a ticking time bomb. But the truth is much, much worse. And every decision comes at a price.

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BE AWARE: this novel was originally published under the title Consider in 2016.

 

I was lucky enough to get both books in this series, so I was able to read them one straight after the other, which doesn't often happen with series. I'm reviewing them as their own things, though, as I think the tone is quite different from one to the next. Even within this volume, the tone shifted quite a bit from one section to another.

First: it's an amazing representation of anxiety. Alex's attacks made me feel nervous, and I was only reading about them - I can't imagine going through them on a regular basis! Her thoughts at the end that, while everyone around her was panicking and didn't know how to deal with it, but she was practised at this, hit me very hard. I had to set the book aside and think about that. (but not for too long as I wanted to see what happened!)

I'm glad I had the second book to hand, as that cliffhanger ending is cruel.

There were a few spots I felt the pace dragged, and Alex seemed to have odd priorities...I can excuse it as a form of wilful blindness, considering what was going on, but it was odd to go from 'GIANT EARTH KILLING ASTEROID' to 'which college are we going to? (none they'll all be destroyed shush)' in the same chapter. It didn't put me off reading, though, I really enjoyed these.

On to the second book now!

The Warning publishes on the 6th July, 2023. I received a free copy and am giving an honest review.