Review:The Last Survivors trilogy book 2 and 3

Book Review: The Dead & The Gone and This World We Live in, book 2 and 3 of The Last Survivors trilogy, by Susan Beth Pfeffer

Book Description of Book 2 from amazon.com: Susan Beth Pfeffer's Life as We Knew It enthralled and devastated readers with its brutal but hopeful look at an apocalyptic event--an asteroid hitting the moon, setting off a tailspin of horrific climate changes. Now this harrowing companion novel examines the same events as they unfold in New York City, revealed through the eyes of seventeen-year-old Puerto Rican Alex Morales. When Alex's parents disappear in the aftermath of tidal waves, he must care for his two younger sisters, even as Manhattan becomes a deadly wasteland, and food and aid dwindle.

The Dead & The Gone, sequel to Life As We Knew It, follows Alex's, son of a migrant family, struggle to keep himself and his two younger sisters alive in New York City after both his parents disappeared during the disastrous incident of the moon being knocked closer to the Earth.  

As a whole, I found it a welcomed change for the location to shift to New York City, it creates more room for readers to see how things go in the urban area, how social order slowly but steadily falls apart under pressure of mayhem and shortage of resources. The world around Alex seemed to be a harsher, more dangerous one than Miranda's world in book 1. Alex lost his parents' protection right from the start and is forced to become the caretaker of his sisters--which is a great responsibility for a boy his age. How the siblings react to the lose of their parents is also finely described: the vanishing of hope, denial, then comes the unbearable sense of lose which is difficult to overlook. It actually makes you think: What would you do when you're in the same position?

The author also tells there're suicides, murders, food riot and death happening in the city, I found many of the events which are unfolded after the disaster and how different people react to them to be realistic, although I must admit from time to time the events might still be a little too tamed. (I mean, how come no one seems to even think about or practice cannibalism when food runs out?)

The characters are also solidly built, the author did a fine job building Alex as the responsible kid who was matured by his upbringing. But some of the things Alex had done are not agreeable. For example, he sent his sister Bri away to stay with a bunch of nuns, but he only informs the girl about his agreement with the priests and the nuns in the last minute. He gives his sister no choice in the matter, didn't bother taking time talking to her so she might know what is to come beforehand. Of course Alex thinks he's doing what is best for Bri, but I think it's quite overbearing.

Among supporting characters, I like Alex's friend Kevin the best, his sense of bitter humor helps to lighten things up a lot throughout the story. On the other hand, Alex's sister, Bri's blind faith is unsettling at times--She fully believes that their parents are still alive months after their disappearance, she also believes that Virgin Mary is gonna save them all--good example for false belief. Eventually I think some of her actions are so irrational that, as cold-blooded as it might sound, I came to think that she is too stupid to live, frankly.

Though, when Bri's condition is getting worse, the author successfully captures the mental struggle Alex and his remaining sister had gone through: They know Bri can't last long, her suffering pains them, when tragedy finally takes place, their sorrow is mixed with a guilty ridden sense of relief. That's quite honest.

The Dead & The Gone is a YA novel that I enjoy, and the same like book 1, I'd recommend people to read it.

So now we moved onto the final book of the trilogy, This World We Live In, the story shifts once again back to Miranda's small town. At the beginning, Miranda's older brother Matt suddenly announces his marriage to Sly, a total stranger to his mother and siblings, creates undercurrent within the family. Plus Alex and his remaining sister from book 2, along with Miranda's estranged father and his new family has also arrived to town. The mixing of the new and old family members creates tensions as the two groups try to work together for survival when there is still no improvement for their situation in sight.

I'd still recommend this book, I like how the author described ordinary people holding onto their dignity and hope despite how hopeless the situation is--without being too optimistic or giving the characters easy solutions to solve the massive problems they're having. But comparing with the first two books, book 3 of the trilogy looks a bit weak in several places. For starter, I found many of the small details fail to add up. First Miranda's brothers are able to catch fishes in the river when the season is right. Really? After so many earthquakes and the seawater cooling down or freezing over due to the lack of sunlight which is caused by volcanic ashes covering up the entire sky, how could the fishes survive for that long!?

Matt's sudden marriage to Sly is also pretty weak, it is quite out of character for Matt to suddenly take a wife. And why Miranda's mother, who was so very upset by the possibility of Miranda getting untimely pregnant, but now she suddenly accepts Matt's marriage? It's also a shame that we never get to know Sly well as a character although it's hinted that she had been on her own for a long time and she sometime must whore herself for survival in the past. What bothers me is that Sly's loyalty to her husband and the family has hardly been tested in the story, so when Miranda, out of anger, accuses Sly for pretending to love Matt in order to get his food, I can't help thinking that the girl might have her point. It's not that I think Sly is evil or selfish by nature, but the whole marriage thingy is just too unnatural, and Sly needs more explaining and building for her character to make sense.

Another weak relationship in the story is Miranda's romance with Alex. Although I'm glad that the author didn't spend too many time grossing over the romance, still I must say I don't see on what base the romance in question is supposed to be standing. The whole thing looks like Miranda takes an interest in Alex only because he is the only suitable boy left. That's just it.

There'er still a few loosed ends which the author never bothers to  tie up. For example, I wonder what has happened to Brandon, the teenage spot star whom Miranda had a crush on and met in the flesh by the lake for one time after the disaster? We never heard from Brandon again after this one encounter. So why let him show up in Life As We Knew It if we are never going to see him again in the story?

Many readers seem to dislike how This World We Live In ends, but in fact I found that for the ending, I can forgive all of the flaws I'd mentioned above.  Yes, there's still no promise for Miranda's family survival, their future and their chance of survival is still looking grim, Miranda also does something highly controversial--I can't say too much without spoiling the ending so I will leave this part of the story for you to find out for yourself.

But you know what? I actually like neither Miranda nor Alex manage to save the day in the end, I like that Miranda isn't the purest snowflake who can do no wrong. I also like that the author didn't give us any false hope, instead she realistically tells us when apocalypse strikes, only the riches and the powerful would be protected, while the rest of the world would more or less be left to fend for themselves, though she still reminds us, hope and will power might be your greatest resources to help you to survive. Plus if nothing else, reading The Last Survivors trilogy can at least make us feel grateful that there's food on our table everyday, our family members are here with us. Also electricity, clean water and other natural resources are all us for the taking on a daily basis, all of the things mentioned above are actually something NOT shared by a lot of less fortunate people out there.