The end of the world. Doomsday. The apocalypse. Countless movies and books have been made capitalizing on our fear and curiosity about what the end times may look and feel like. This selection of novels contains an array of different scenarios, but also multiple messages of hope. Curated by Tabor Millien.
The Last Murder at the End of the World by Stuart Turton
Solve the murder to save what’s left of the world.
Outside the island there is nothing: the world was destroyed by a fog that swept the planet, killing anyone it touched.
On the island: it is idyllic. One hundred and twenty-two villagers and three scientists, living in peaceful harmony. The villagers are content to fish, farm and feast, to obey their nightly curfew, to do what they’re told by the scientists.
Until, to the horror of the islanders, one of their beloved scientists is found brutally stabbed to death. And then they learn that the murder has triggered a lowering of the security system around the island, the only thing that was keeping the fog at bay. If the murder isn’t solved within 107 hours, the fog will smother the island–and everyone on it.
But the security system has also wiped everyone’s memories of exactly what happened the night before, which means that someone on the island is a murderer–and they don’t even know it.
And the clock is ticking.
Martha Einkorn never expected to find herself working for a powerful social media mogul hell-bent on controlling everything. Now, she’s surrounded by mega-rich companies designing private weather, predictive analytics, and covert weaponry while spouting technological prophecy. Across the world, in a mall in Singapore, Lai Zhen, an internet-famous survivalist, flees from an assassin. Suddenly, a remarkable piece of software appears on her phone telling her exactly how to escape. Who made it? What do they know about the future that Zhen doesn’t?
When Martha and Zhen’s worlds collide, an explosive chain of events is set in motion. While a few billionaires assured of their own safety lead the world to destruction, Martha’s relentless drive and Zhen’s insatiable curiosity could lead to something beautiful–or it could herald the cataclysmic end of civilization.
By turns “playful, incisive, horribly relevant, and surprisingly hopeful” (Lauren Beukes, New York Times bestselling author of The Shining Girls), The Future unfolds at breakneck speed, highlighting how power corrupts the few who have it and what it means to stand up to them. The future is coming. The Future is here.
Everyone Says That at the End of the World by Owen Egerton
In Austin, Milton and Rica are expecting their first child. It’s four days and counting. Not for the baby. But for the end of the world. Evidence- Haydon Brock, a godless television star has suddenly traded his Hollywood fame for salvation. A prophetic hermit crab is embarking on an unfathomable cross-country quest. Planes are dropping from the sky. And the president and first lady disappear. No omen is too inexplicable to Milton. He’s learned for a fact that our planet is one vast asylum for the incurably insane. And its cosmic guardians are about to close down the whole thing.
Then Milton receives one more premonition- to seek out Haydon now holed up somewhere in Marfa. To what end Milton hasn’t a clue. To find out, Milton, Rica, and their best friend head west across an increasingly cataclysmic landscape of inter-dimensional time travelers, Jesus clones, sleep-deprived monks, ghosts, and angels in an epic and manic quest to outrun the last days on Earth.
Combining humor, philosophical inquiry and an unforgettable cast of characters, “this sharp-witted satire” (Booklist) “is a future classic, and people will be reading it decades from now. I know I will” (Charles Yu, How to Live Safely in a Science Fictional Universe).
Hollow Kingdom by Kira Jane Buxton
In this hilarious, “dazzling” romp, a foul-mouthed crow is humanity’s only chance to survive a zombie apocalypse-think Watership Down meets Dawn of the Dead (Mona Awad, author of Bunny).
S.T. is a bird of simple pleasures: hanging out with his human owner, Big Jim, trading insults with Seattle’s wild crows (i.e. “those idiots”), and enjoying the finest food humankind has to offer: Cheetos ®. But when Big Jim’s eyeball falls out of his head, S.T. starts to think something’s not quite right.
With no choice but to abandon his old life and venture out into a frightening new world with his trusty steed Dennis (a loyal but dimwitted dog), S.T. discovers that the neighbors are devouring one other. Humanity’s extinction has seemingly arrived, and the only one determined to save it is a cowardly crow whose only knowledge of the world comes from TV-What could possibly go wrong?
As men fall to the mist, the age of womankind begins to rise.
The world as we know it ends when an attack on the U.S. unleashes bombs that deliver fire and biological destruction. Along with sonic detonations and devastating earthquakes, the bombs have also brought the green mist. If breathed in, it is deadly to all men-but alters the body chemistry of many women, imbuing them with superhuman abilities.
A group of high school teachers heading home from a conference experience firsthand the strength of these new powers. Mercury Rhodes is the Warrior, possessing heightened physical powers. Stella Carver is the Seer, with a sixth sense about the future. Imani Andrews is the Watcher, with a rare connection to the earth. Karen Gay is the Priestess, demonstrating a special connection with Spirits. And Gemma Jenkins is the Healer, a sixteen-year-old student who joins the group after losing her parents.
As they cross the Pacific Northwest, trying to find a safe place to ride out the apocalypse, the women soon learn they can’t trust anyone, and with fresh danger around every corner, it will take all their powers to save themselves-and possibly the world.
With timely commentary on power and community, Into the Mist delivers a thrilling and fantastical future that is equal parts a feminist commentary and an amazing, witty adventure filled with wine and women- as only P.C. Cast’s brilliant storytelling can bring to life.
Dead Things Are Closer Than They Appear by Robin Wasley
A painfully average teen’s life is upended by a magical apocalypse in this “thrilling, moving, and fantastical” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review) novel perfect for fans of The Raven Boys, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and The Rest of Us Just Live Here.
High school is hard enough to survive without an apocalypse to navigate.
Sid Spencer has always been the most normal girl in her abnormal hometown, a tourist trap built over one of the fault lines that seal magic away from the world. Meanwhile, all Sid has to deal with is hair-ruining humidity, painful awkwardness, being one of four Asians in town, and her friends dumping her when they start dating each other–just days after one of the most humiliating romantic rejections faced by anyone, ever, in all of history.
Then someone kills one of the Guardians who protect the seal. The earth rips open and unleashes the magic trapped inside. Monsters crawl from the ground, no one can enter or leave, and the man behind it all is roaming the streets with a gang of violent vigilantes. Suddenly, Sid’s life becomes a lot less ordinary. When she finds out her missing brother is involved, she joins the remaining Guardians, desperate to find him and close the fault line for good.
Fighting through hordes of living corpses and uncontrollable growths of forest, Sid and a ragtag crew of would-be heroes are the only thing standing between their town and the end of the world as they know it. Between magic, murderers, and burgeoning crushes, Sid must survive being a perfectly normal girl caught in a perfectly abnormal apocalypse.
Only–how can someone so ordinary make it in such an extraordinary world?
The Apocalypse of Elena Mendoza by Shaun David Hutchinson
From the critically acclaimed author of We Are the Ants and At the Edge of the Universe comes a mind-bending, riveting novel about a teen who was born to a virgin mother and realizes she has the power to heal–but that power comes at a huge cost.
Sixteen-year-old Elena Mendoza is the product of a virgin birth.
This can be scientifically explained (it’s called parthenogenesis), but what can’t be explained is how Elena is able to heal Freddie, the girl she’s had a crush on for years, from a gunshot wound in a Starbucks parking lot. Or why the boy who shot Freddie, David Combs, disappeared from the same parking lot minutes later after getting sucked up into the clouds. What also can’t be explained is the talking girl on the front of a tampon box, or the reasons that David Combs shot Freddie in the first place.
As more unbelievable things occur, and Elena continues to perform miracles, the only remaining explanation is the least logical of all–that the world is actually coming to an end, and Elena is possibly the only one who can do something about it.
As if Alexandra Lucas’ anxiety disorder isn’t enough, mysterious holograms suddenly appear from the sky, heralding the end of the world. They bring an ultimatum: heed the warning and step through a portal-like vertex to safety or stay and be destroyed by a comet they say is on a collision course with earth. How’s that for senior year stress?
The holograms, claiming to be humans from the future, bring the promise of safety. But without the ability to verify their story, Alex is forced to consider what is best for her friends, her family, and herself.
To stay or to go. A decision must be made.
With the deadline of the holograms’ prophecy fast approaching, Alex feels as though she is living on a ticking time bom, until she discovers it is much, much worse.
The Incredible Adventures of Cinnamon Girl by Melissa Keil
Alba loves her life just as it is. She loves living behind the bakery and waking up in a cloud of sugar and cinnamon. She loves drawing comics and watching bad TV with her friends.
The only problem is she’s overlooked a few teeny details:
Like, the guy she thought long gone has unexpectedly reappeared.
And the boy who has been her best friend since forever has suddenly gone off the rails.
And even her latest comic-book creation is misbehaving.
Also, the world might be ending – which is proving to be awkward.
As Doomsday enthusiasts flock to idyllic Eden Valley, Alba’s life is thrown into chaos. Whatever happens next, it’s the end of the world as she knows it. But when it comes to figuring out her heart, Armageddon might turn out to be the least of her problems.
Come November by Katrin van Dam
It’s not the end of the world, but for Rooney Harris it’s starting to feel that way. It’s the beginning of senior year and her mom just lost her job. Even worse, she isn’t planning to get another one. Instead, she’s spending every waking moment with a group called the Next World Society, whose members are convinced they’ll be leaving Earth behind on November 17. It sounds crazy to Rooney, but to her mother and younger brother it sounds like salvation. As her mom’s obsession threatens to tear their lives apart, Rooney is scrambling to hold it all together. But will saving her family mean sacrificing her dreams—or theirs?
Shelf Analysis 