Delinquent Teens vs The Plague

*ARC (Advance review copy) received via Netgalley.

3.5 out of 5 Stars – Good but not great.

At the End of Everything is a book about a group of teen who reside in a juvenile detention rehabilitation center. When a plague breaks out in the world they find themselves abandoned by the employees for the center. It goes on to detail the events that unfold once they find out they are free.

The story focuses on three main characters but there are several brought to the forefront of the story as well. I feel that the back stories for the main characters could have been more developed. Why is Logan considered fragile and “special” by so many Is it simply because she is mute or is it more than that? And why is she mute? It seems to be selective but it never goes into the why. Then there is Emerson who is nonbinary, meaning they don’t identify as either male or female, but it doesn’t go into any detail about it. Grace is the final main character, the one that steps up and really shines. I would have liked to have learned more details to her backstory and the events that brought her to the center.

Overall, At the End of Everything was a good story. It held my attention and I found it to be interesting. I just felt it needed more depth of character and perhaps more focus on some of the relationships between the teens as they struggle to handle their new reality.