This is the story of surviving an plague. Not many do and they band together in small groups with like values. The groups clash and fight over supplies and food. The book blurb explains the setup.
Addison Longwood survived the plague that struck down almost everyone around her. She survived the hazardous trek into the countryside to find shelter within a group of like-minded individuals led by a man she can actually respect. Settled and contributing, she allows herself a sense of hope.
From the remaining military, Captain Jesse Forbes is charged with locating survivors in order to rebuild the country. His initial impression of Addison’s band isn’t positive and he sets his sights on the young woman in order to infiltrate, and assess her leader—the end justifying the means, or so he assures himself.
But there are far greater dangers lurking, threatening the very existence of the survivors. Alliances are forged—and tested. Betrayal cuts deep, lives are lost and others changed forever.
Who are the good guys anyhow?

At first I thought this was a book for teen readers but I changed my mind as it it pretty sensual and some violence. This is book 1 in a three book series. I received a copy of this ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Book 1 starts off well, A quick start that kicks up the tension right off the bat. Thats good, gets the blood flowing right away and has us drawn in before we even meet all the players. I enjoyed this novel quite a bit actually. Very well done characters, likable if not deeply fleshed out. Never-the-less, they never feel "thin" or incomplete. You may find our main character the exception to that, but, not in a way that detracts. There is a clearly a trauma in her past that is never explored, however is referenced enough to get the gist of it and come to your own conclusions. It still works, we know she's damaged and thats all thats important in terms of her motivations and driving factor. Now, this is a Post Apocalyptic adventure, but, doesn't always feel that way. Its not neccessaryly a bad thing, but, we join the tale in the 'Post" part where all the inhabitants have already established they're home base and are in the process of building and maintaining theyre Shelter. Along comes the challenges to that haven and we are along for the ride. Its good, just don't expect the Stand or the Postman type story. Its more protecting and eliminating threats than searching for the why and how of the Event. And no zombies, thank goodness. Just survivors, good and bad, maneuvering.

Shelter is an intense story of survival set in a world that simultaneously reminds the reader of the real world while making us glad we don’t live there. Chills and suspense work well in this tale.

Shelter:part one: the beginning by Alyson Young and Peri Elizabeth Scott.
Addison Longwood survived the plague that struck down almost everyone around her. She survived the hazardous trek into the countryside to find shelter within a group of like-minded individuals led by a man she can actually respect. Settled and contributing, she allows herself a sense of hope. 
From the remaining military, Captain Jesse Forbes is charged with locating survivors in order to rebuild the country. His initial impression of Addison’s band isn’t positive and he sets his sights on the young woman in order to infiltrate, and assess her leader—the end justifying the means, or so he assures himself.
But there are far greater dangers lurking, threatening the very existence of the survivors. Alliances are forged—and tested. Betrayal cuts deep, lives are lost and others changed forever.
Who are the good guys anyhow?
This was a good read. Some characters I liked some I didn't. Little slow in places. But I read it. 4*.

It's been a while since I've read a post-apocalyptic book and I'm happy to say that I really enjoyed reading this one! However, if you're looking for zombies, this isn't the book for you since there aren't any. ;)

It took me a couple chapters to get into the story but after that, I was intrigued and I wanted to know what was going to happen. Addy was an interesting character even though I feel like we don't know a lot about her. She mostly keeps to herself and I like her. I really enjoyed the romance aspect and I'm probably going to read the next book once I can get myself a copy.

This can be an enjoyable, entertaining read for those who enjoy post-apocalyptics settings! (Don't expect too much gore or violence though)

Apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction is not my go to gene. These 3 books presented as a series appealed to me in there concept where a combined 600 page novel would appear to great a challenge.
Part One is about the existence of a community of individuals joined together in co-operation to stay alive. The Shelter is just that a place of safety, shared resources and impressively hot showers.
A teenager growing up in the 70s in Britain not then enjoying reading but open to this type of sci-fi entertainment must thank the BBC for great TV.
Doomwatch and a few years later Survivors covered this ground remarkably well and perhaps set a benchmark for future literature as well.
Rarely then perhaps because of the Cold War the decimation of population has often been a flu like virus rather than ballistic missiles.
So it is in time of The Shelter those who lived on were immune to the strain of flu that devastated counties across the globe killing most whether old, young, fit or wealthy. However, the military losing control appear to have fired a few warheads.
The plot is very well constructed. The people have gravitated to a mountain side that can be defended, under the leadership of Mitchell Stone. His deputy is a bloke called Gabe and they arrived at the same time as Addison, Addy who is one of the main characters of the novel. It is her story we follow and it is fascinating to learn snippets from the time before disease overran populations, society broke down and how a woman survived. The scars she carried, the weakness implied why many kids, young women and the less independent.
The depth of Addy’s character and her youth make her role and revelations incredibly interesting. Especially as we learn there may be a person within their number out to destroy the community. It appears groups have formed around the country, resources are not just limited and have to be looted or scavenged. People too are a valuable commodity and in a parable of today’s view of border control and vetting immigration Addy’s group have a defensive line. Happy to accept anyone who wants to peacefully live with them but ready to defend against intruders or anyone who would raid their camp and take what they want. A tribal mentality and with many societies in the world.
The story is about a group of trained men who approach one day; keen to join? Spies? To support or take what they want. Rumours abound about one group close by are ruthless and the new settled life Addy is finally embracing could be devastated once more. Fool that she is, she should know better to survive she needs the skills she has honed in the past few months. Addy’s guard falls but what will be the consequences for her and The Shelter as a whole?

The cover grabbed my attention and the setting drew me in but I really fell for the characters. Addy is tough and resourceful but struggles to form relationships and sets herself apart. Jesse is a sweetheart, I was head over heels for him.

It's a romance book but the background of the post-apocalyptic future where most of humanity has been killed off by flu is given the attention it needs to feel real. There is an interesting story and the author doesn't ignore that in favour of the romance plot. There's a nice balance between the two.

I felt it ended very abruptly, almost in the middle of a scene. It's not an overly long book so I'm not sure why it's been cut off like this in favour of starting a new one. Saying that though, I instantly downloaded the next book to carry on reading!

A very enjoyable read, I liked the romance and the sci-fi sides equally. I'm already on with the next book in the series!

SHELTER: THE BEGINNING is the first book in a series and at only 170 pages, is a quick, easy read. Allyson Young is a talented Canadian Author and has written a great number of books, some written under her own name and others under her own name: Elizabeth Scott.

Set in a post-apocalyptic version of the United States, Addison Longwood is one of the lucky ones who survived the flu-like plague that killed an estimated 90% of the world's population.

The back story is not described in detail, but readers are given enough information to comprehend the seriousness of what happened.

Instead of focusing on the immediate aftermath of the plague, this story begins when Addison has reached a camp that is set-up extremely well and is in a defensible location.

Unfortunately, humans being what they are, there is always someone who wants what other people have and who would rather take it by force, than put in the work themselves.

Focusing mostly on Addy's story, the author deftly manoeuvres the action and the romance elements to have equal time.

If you are looking for a great beach read, look no further, SHELTER is it.

Due to the graphic nature of some of the content, this book is not suitable for readers under the age of eighteen.

I rate SHELTER: THE BEGINNING as 4 out of 5 Stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐ and I highly recommend purchasing the next book in the series immediately since Book One ends on a cliffhanger.

*Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a free copy of this book.*

I stumbled on this in the Read now section of netgalley, the apocalyptic book is one of my favorite genres, especially aftermath of it, so I had to have it.

It was a pretty easy read, easy to follow, a bit of action and romance. My biggest regret is that the lead female character ended up being all loveswoony. just stop it, be a badass! I love strong chicks. She was strong, she was a good character, but she ended up always needing protection a lot , and she didn't seem like she put up much of a fight in resisting. I just feel if she made it this far, there should be a bit more toughness.. On the flip side, I was also happy to see that she didn't excel in every little thing, she did have a weakness in knives. I know, i'm a contradiction.

Definitely going to continue on with the second one.

I liked this story.
Addy is the main character in the story. There are a lot of other secondary characters but Jesse is the Hero.
The story is told mainly from Addy's POV but we do get odd glimpses from Jesse.
The author has built a whole world around mankind facing extinction from a flu like virus, followed by other problems that mean Addy is a member of a camp of survivors.
There is a lot of mystery and intrigue, we don't know much about Addy's past, she is not very social and there are hints at the history to that.
Jesse is a bit mysterious, he and his 'men' have arrived at the camp but it is not clear of his intentions or motives.
There is not much violence for an end of the world book, no zombies etc, but there are people they meet who are not part of the camp who can pose a danger.
The book end on a bit of a cliffhanger, each book would need to be read in order to complete the story.