Aftertime (Aftertime Series #1)

This is a terrific post apocalyptic science fiction thriller

She is the first known human to survive an assault by the flesh eating beaters without converting into one of these zombie-like beasts. Although she remains mortal and alive, Cass Dollar suffered immensely during her ordeal and afterwards; she remained hurt with many scars on her battered body. Her lack of memory of her trauma frightens her, but not because of what the Beaters did to her. Her beloved daughter Ruthie is missing and Cass has no idea what happened to her cherished offspring.

However, in spite of her agony, Cass has one objective and that is to find her missing daughter Ruthie lost somewhere in the biologically bombed California wasteland. Smoke an outlaw accompanies Cass on her quest while the militia, scientists and a female sect pursue her for diverse reasons.

This is a terrific post apocalyptic science fiction thriller starring a beleaguered lioness with one obsessed thought: finding and rescuing her Ruthie. Courageous Cass is impressive as she remains resolute in her quest while musing she is in her "third" life. The harsh California landscape adds to the eerie atmospheric aftermath of the pandemic catastrophe as the heroine continues her trek. Mindful of the Charlton Heston science fiction films, Aftertime is a strong opening act with.

Harriet Klausner

3 out of 5 people found this review helpful.

Pretty good

I liked the story and the determination of Cass to find her daughter, but I'm taking away a star because the editorial mistakes really bother me. There were random < in the middle of sentences, missing beginning or end quotes, and inconsistensies. Two I can think of are when Cass says she hasn't seen her father since she was eight years old then a few pages later she says she learned how to shoot from him at ten and Monica saying she was an only child then saying she had neices and nephews. For me, mistakes like these take away from my experience, but I really did enjoy the story.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Aftertime by Sophie Littlefield

Anyone who has read my book review blog for long knows that I really enjoy a good post-apocalyptic zombie story every once in a while (actually find them hard to resist) and that's exactly what Aftertime by Sophie Littlefield is, a very good zombie book. Forget the Beaters (zombies) for a moment and why they've changed into crazed flesh-eaters. Put aside the fact that the world has pretty much come to an abrupt and disappointing end. What carries this narrative is the character development and quest motif. Littlefield's characters are fully fleshed out (no pun intended) and real. Some are mysterious, others evil and self-serving, most are flawed and a few even resemble people I know. Which is what makes them so compelling. Everyone who's ever loved a child will understand the motive driving the main character. That it occurs in a savage, wasted land makes it that much more interesting. There's nothing inherently unique about this particular zombie story but because it reads so quickly and the plot is so compelling you won't want to put it down. An enjoyable time away from the mundane this novel is a recommended for all the zombie and post-apocalyptic fans out there. (You know who you are!)

4 out of 5 stars

The Alternative
Southeast Wisconsin

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Take the time to read this book!

Aftertime is a post-apocalyptic world, a desert of destruction, where disease has run rampant, and houses, towns, and cities have been ransacked. In this world, nighttime is man's best friend and Zombies "Beaters" outnumber human survivors. Aside from starvation, unbelievably unsanitary conditions, and the constant threat of losing your mind, being attacked and torn to pieces by a Beater is a survivor's biggest fear. After a bite, a victim's eyes glow, followed by extreme fever, followed by an emptiness that fills their entire being until the inevitable.they become one of them.the enemy.


But Cass Dollar is an anomaly. She's been attacked, suffered the excruciating symptoms of the venomous Beater bite and survived, even healed from the severe wounds left behind. How did Cass survive and is she now a carrier of the lethal virus? Cass begins a journey across California Aftertime searching for answers and something precious separated from her during her attack.


When I initially read the synopsis of Aftertime I was leery that it may be too far outside my comfort zone, first, because on the surface there looked to be no heavy romance involved, and second, because Zombies give me nightmares. But guess what? I was so wrong about both.


I've enjoyed this book so much. Maybe it's because I am fascinated by the dark side of human survival when faced with adversity. I'm not sure, but regardless I loved the story. The sex was hot, but the story was so strong it would have been able to stand up without it. Of course, I prefer with. I read pieces of this story again and again, savoring the words and visualizing Sophie Littlefield's post-apocalyptic world.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

I loved it

Smoke is sexy...cass is relatable w her imperfections and fears intact but w a pursuing need of a parents love to recover her child in a world where priorities are set a little differently for some people. Filled w a few suprises but overall well written and hard to put down. Loved it.

Great Take on Zombie Tale

Great read and a pleasure to read a zombie series that centers around a female lead who is strong but not perfect!

It would be good if not for all the huggsies/alcoholism and promiscousness

Post apocalyptic meets an Oprah book. I found reading thru this book that it was very interesting to read if not for all the hoopla. A women who survived a zombie like disease...then it just got boring. The plot moves along slowly only because the author keeps going back to the main characters past alcoholism and promiscuousity ...over and over and over...and over. The author kept going back to these so much that I actually verbally groaned after awhile and made myself read faster just to get thru these parts. Not to mention that the main character keeps getting hugged by people and then she cries, and cries...and cries. It made me wonder if the author had written this book to get some of her own problems off her chest and if she did you can actually read why she never got over any of them. Just read the first book of the series. Yer an alcoholic, you were promiscous in your youth, you couldn't take care of your kid and you survived a zombie-esque attack...got it. Now can we get to the story already....without so many huggsies. I'm not saying the author has to be more visceral, I don't need need non stop blood and guts...a good story that goes somewhere would be good enough, Just stop backtracking on your story so much and this would be a great read.

Awesome

I'm a big fan of Sophie Littlefield, particularly her short fiction and her BAD DAY FOR... series of mystery novels. She writes great, fun, readable books. I'd picked this one up when it came out, but was under the (mistaken) impression that it was the first in her series of YA novels. I was wrong.

This is a post-apocalyptic story that also includes, essentially, a zombie plague. And I loved it. Great characters, some chilling horror bits, some excellent action bits, and even some boots-knocking. What's not to love? I can't believe I waited so long to read it, and I can't wait to read book two.

Good read.

Enjoyed the journey.

Could have done more

Could be better. Interesting storyline and subject, but it would have been better with more character developement. Hope #2 is better!

If u liked The Passage u'll love Aftertime!

It was amazing and tragic and brutal and loving and so many other describing words. Littlefield writes a great story and I can't wait to start the second book!

Dont+waste+your+time

From+KB%0AGross%2C+disgusting%2C+disturbing-cant+imagine+that+anyone+would+find+enjoyment+in+reading+a+book+like+%27Aftertime%27

0 out of 6 people found this review helpful.

Not real impressed...

I was sorely disappointed in this book. The build up is not there and the character development is very thin. The only relationship between characters that can be related to is with the mother/daughter bond. The other relationships are very thin. Then, at the end of the book you are lead to believe there is a very tight bond between the lead character and her secondary which left me shaking my head. I think if Littlefield had taken this book to the next level and worked on the character relationships a little more it could have been a really fun read. As it is, the attention getting story is just not there.

I love apocalyptic YA and this is the best.

I love zombies. I love dystropic YA. I love this book. Cass Dollar is a flawed heroine and you root for her the whole way. She has been to Hell and back and her only mission in life is to find her daughter, Ruth. An excellent YA novel

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