'Til the World Ends by Julie Kagawa, Ann Aguirre, Karen Duvall

Summary: Dawn of Eden by Julie Kagawa

Before The Immortal Rules, there was the Red Lung, a relentless virus determined to take out all in its path. For Kylie, the miracle of her survival is also her burden-as a doctor at one of the clinics for the infected, she is forced to witness endless suffering. What's worse, strange things are happening to the remains of the dead, and by the time she befriends Ben Archer, she's beginning to wonder if a global pandemic is the least of her problems...

Thistle & Thorne by Ann Aguirre

After a catastrophic spill turns the country into a vast chemical wasteland, those who could afford it retreated to fortresses, self-contained communities run by powerful corporations. But for Mari Thistle, life on the outside-in the Red Zone-is a constant struggle. To protect her family, Mari teams up with the mysterious Thorne Goodman. Together, they'll face an evil plot in both the underworld of the Red Zone and the society inside the fortresses that could destroy those on the outside...for good.

Sun Storm by Karen Duvall

Sarah Daggot has been chasing storms since she was a child. But after the biggest solar flares in history nearly destroy the planet, she becomes a Kinetic, endowed by her exposure to extreme radiation with the power to sense coming storms-in the cosmos and beyond. And she's not the only one. Sarah believes the Kinetics are destined to join forces and halt the final onslaught of the sun. She'll vow to keep trying to convince the one missing link in their chain of defense, the enigmatic Ian Matthews, up until the world ends. 

Review: Typically I am not into anthologies unless they relate to something bigger I am interested in and I’ve been curious about Julie Kagawa’s Blood of Eden trilogy so I figured it was worth a chance. 

Dawn of Eden – 4/5 Diamonds

I enjoyed this story for the most part I liked how it set up the world of Blood of Eden introducing the way the world came to be. I liked how the main character was a doctor who was just trying to give people a more peaceful end and do what little she could. Kylie was an interesting character, although a little one dimensional at times, occasionally bordering on boring. I enjoyed the relationship between her and Ben but at times it seemed to be a little clichéd. The characters do not come up in The Immortal Rules, from what I understand so the ending is let open but hopeful. However, with danger lurking nearby the hope might be short lived. Overall an interesting and enjoyable story that sets up the end of the world. 

Thistle & Thorne – 5/5 Diamonds

This was my favorite story, I loved it! The world building was awesome and I would have loved to learn more about it. Both characters were complexly interesting with complicated histories and living in a moral grey area because they are forced to due to the world they live in, my favorite kind of character. I especially liked that Mari the female character, never took on a man twice her size in hand-to-hand combat and won, which is something that drives me nuts in other books instead she used her small size to her advantage and knew her limitations (a small nitpick I know). The relationship between them is all business, but the ending is left open but there is room for so much more. Their hesitant intimacy made the relationship more interesting. I really, really, really (emphasis on really) hope that the author is going to write more about these two and the fascinating world she’s created. 

Sun Storm – 2/5 Diamonds

This story was…less enthralling than the other two. The world building was a little too out there for my tastes and the main character was less interesting then Kylie or Mari. Also the pace of this story was dragging and I kept waiting for more to happen. The love interest, Ian, was grating to say the least and the relationship seemed rushed and a bit quick for my taste. Sarah got on my nerve with her judgmental nature and how she could not seem to keep to one opinion, it got a little tiring after awhile. Overall, the story was okay and the world was somewhat interesting but the characters lacked the complexity of those that had come before and the relationship between them was much less compelling. 

Reviewed by: Jennifer