Review: Aftershock

Aftershock by Jill Sorenson

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



This is a surprisingly good book. I absolutely love Jill Sorenson since the first time I read "Crash into Me" and follow on her books faithfully. However, I admit I do not like her subsequent books as much as Crash into me. It seems that book becomes the benchmark for everything Ms. Sorenson write afterward.

Frankly I do not really like the premise of the story. I read the blurb and do not find it interesting. But after the first chapter, I find myself cannot put down the book. It is very much like seeing the action movie. Once it begins, everything flows.

The story starts with the mega earthquake in San Diego, the incident so huge that left survivors trapped under the collapse freeway with no hope for help from the outsider. A group of survivors emerge, gather together and try to do their best. That make me think about "The Walking Dead" with an almost dystopia situation but with a twist because we all know that eventually they will be rescue and the bad thing will end. The situation forces people from different background to live together, some are selfless and some so selfish.

I enjoy the storyline and appreciated Ms. Sorenson for giving the various types of characters. Lauren, the heroine is the paramedic, Garrett, a mysterious man who suddenly appears and becomes the leader, and of course the escape convicted prisoners who run loose.

The plot is about how to survivor when the worst happened but at the same time create the situation that all characters have to be the best as they can in order to survive. As already said, I do not expect to enjoy this type of plot but after reading this book, I completely change my mind. I can see the appeal of limited space/ do or die situation.

However, I do not quite engage into the love story between Lauren and Garrett. I like their interaction and how their relationship has been developed. I like the detail the author put into the story (how he do not want to touch her when his hand is dirty and the first sex scene happened after the rain -- cleanliness). But I do not think I feel disconnect because of the writing but due to my fascination of the younger couple.

Ms. Sorenson write the best teens. I know Owen is in the twentieth but I still think of him as another kid. I am so invested into Penny and Owen's storyline. Not just about their love life but about who they are. Penny, a privilege girl with only one mistake in her life resulting in pregnancy and alternates her from family. Owen, a boy who destines to be a bad guy. He only in his early twenty but already in jail. Those two should never meet but they are and they are changed for the better.

I am now looking forward to read the third book in this series (Penny & Owen) and see how they are growing up.

But seriously I think Ms. Sorenson should consider write New Adult genre.



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