I finished this book with a big smile on my face. Here, for the first time ever, was a MC who is gay and autistic, just like me! And her particular representation of being autistic is very close to mine, too!

To be honest, I didn’t read the description past the word “autistic.” I simply decided to act, and I’m so glad I did.

The first third or so of the book was based around teenage concerns, which was kind of interesting. But the book truly picks up once it gets around to explaining its title — This Is The Way the World Ends. I don’t want to say too much, but this is a highly entertaining, stakes-driven, “eat the rich” type of novel. And it’s wonderful!

Some readers may find some of the lessons to be a bit heavy-handed. To me, though, saying them out loud gives them even more strength. Even though the MC messed up a few times, she kept pushing forward for what she felt was right.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an ARC. This review contains my honest, unbiased opinion. And a huge thank you to the author, who made me feel truly seen in literature for the first time. :)

Thank you Wednesday Books and Netgalley for the eARC, these opinions are my own. I enjoyed this book a lot! The development of the characters was great! I loved that the protagonist is a queer autistic girl who's attending a private school where she's the outsider because she's on scholarship! I loved the disability representation and that it felt realistic. I was intrigued it moved quickly and it was fun and mysterious! I highly enjoyed this book, can't wait to read it again!

This story was full of twist and turns and I definitely didn’t see the ending coming. I wasn’t expecting that to happen

Really enjoyed everything about this book. The characters were well developed and from diverse backgrounds and life experiences.
The setting is an elite school masquerade gala. The popular girl is having boyfriend problems and decides to let someone else go in her place. No one will know.
But the people who set the gala up know a secret and have a very different plan for some of those at the gala.
As the secret is revealed the student much find away to survive and get out.

Friends, trust and loyalty are all string in this book. I couldn’t help but root for this group.

Thank you Netgalley for the advanced readers copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This is the Way the World Ends stars Waverly, a scholarship student at an elite private high school. Waverly has managed to find her place at Webber, tutoring the rich kids who can't be bothered to study and hanging with her friend group, Pari and Frank, who are also outcasts.

Caroline, a rich girl that Waverly tutors, gives her the opportunity to attend the school's exclusive annual banquet in a kind of "Cinderella" moment, posing as Caroline. This is where everything starts to go wrong. The party is full of dark secrets and Waverly and her friends discover that outside the party, the world is "ending".

This book was very fast-paced, and I think it will grab reluctant readers. It gave off Gossip Girl, Pretty Little Liars, dark academia vibes. To me, it felt a bit rushed and had believability issues; however, I think it will appeal to teen readers. I also loved the band of badass chicks that try to save the day.

Thanks to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, and Wednesday Books for the eARC!

i have absolutely no clue what the plot of this book was. it felt very mixed and jumbled together, while simultaneously bringing up modern-day buzzwords/trending topics on twitter.

as an autistic person, i was so excited to read about a canonically autistic person, but miss girl literally mentioned her autism (not traits, to be clear, but just literally saying she “is autistic”) like every other page that i was tired by the end of chapter 1. there was a very good depiction of the main character getting overstimulated about halfway through tho.

beyond this tho, there was just so much plotwise that didnt make sense or wasn’t wrapped up at all. we know why frank got a ticket but wdym he didn’t know how smart he was and was going to run gateway? what happens to the world? what is any of this “tech” that blocks the solar flare? this feels like the start of a group discussion, i’m sorry, i just have too many questions.

overall? not the worst book i’ve read. got an extra star for the autism rep even if it was shoved into my face. probably would not recommend to a friend.

This is a YA mystery thriller that takes a dystopian turn! It was a quick read of the high school haves and have nots with loads of representation: autism, chronic illness, LGBTQ+, racial diversity. Recommended for fans of One if Us Is Lying and The Hazel Wood, Waverly is an autistic scholarship student at prestigious Webber Academy. She is in love with the dean’s daughter, unlikely friends with the most popular girl, and not surprisingly runs with the other “misfits” in the school. When Waverly attends the school’s fundraising masquerade ball, she uncovers a sinister plot to survive the end of the world. She finds herself trapped at the ball, witness to murders, and just trying to survive and save her friends.

Thank you @netgalley and @stmartinspress for this early copy in exchange for my honest review.

I was really enjoying this until the last little bit. It kinda goes off the rails but still enjoyable a solid 3.75 stars.

I did not read the synopsis again between requesting an ARC of the book (thanks NetGalley and the publisher for approving it!) and reading it in its entirety, and part of me wish I had. This was NOT what I thought I was getting into it. I expected Murder mystery/thriller, but not delving into apocalypse stuff. The plot was straight to the point, which was new to me; but ultimately disappointed me. Combined with the short length of the book, so much happened in such a small amount of time that I felt like nothing was amped up. The stakes were high, but they didn’t feel as high as they could’ve been. I love the range of representation in this book, but I wish there was just a bit more establishment on character dynamics. Overall the whole book needed to be expanded on and made longer to build up the world and the suspense.

Was really excited for this book. An exclusive masquerade ball thrown by high society where the most popular IT girl asks her scholarship-student tutor to take her place. Very 'Gossip Girl' and 'Cinderella' vibes. Plus the representation is wonderful! Queer characters, autistic main character, a dynamic disability (hEDS) and a woman who's Multiple Sclerosis took years to diagnose. It felt great to see myself and my friends reflected on these pages. I really enjoyed this book, right up until the point where it took a sharp nose dive into Horror territory and then gave me nightmares. I can handle Dystopia fiction. I cannot handle horror.

I don't think there could ever be enough queer dystopian fiction, but FYI, the first half of the book is used to set the setting and establish the MC (who is autistic). It seems like the usual "this is my life" teen fiction until the party gets started-literally. From there the focus switches to murder, deceit, and TEOTWAWKI. Basically, you have to be prepared for anything.
This title is short and engaging enough to get through in one or two sittings. Also, I think it skews more toward younger teens. I wish there had been a bit more substance in the ending, but maybe there will be a sequel in the future. I loved the diversity and pop references.
#NetGalley

Ok, maybe I am in the minority here, but I did not love this one.

I found that the characters were unbelievable, the story was unbelievable, and there were too many pop culture references. Also, I appreciated the fact that the main character was autistic, but, after working with many students with autism, I didn't feel like she was a believable character. I also appreciated the fact that she was gay, and that definitely had a major plot point attached to it, but her best friend being bi, and disabled, and Asian just made it feel like the author was trying to cram as much diversity into the book as possible, it added absolutely nothing to the story.

The story started off ok, but then veered so crazily that I couldn't enjoy it.

Sorry to those of you who loved it, maybe I read it wrong, but it just didn't do it for me!

Waverly is an autistic scholarship student at a prestigious New York City school, Webber Academy. Her classmates are all children of wealthy people, where money is never an issue. Waverly, however, lives in Queens with her parents, and the only reason she can attend Webber Academy is through the generosity of the dean of the school.

While tutoring one of the popular girls, she’s asked if she’d like to attend the school’s masquerade ball, disguised as her. The masquerade ball, that only the 1% attends, with one ticket costing about $10k. The night takes a turn when Waverly ends up in a different room, and witnesses a murder.

What attracted me to this book was the fact that the main character is autistic. I love reading books with characters I can relate to, and this did not disappoint. I honestly don’t know if I’ve ever related to a character more than I did with Waverly, and seeing that representation was nice.

The first half of the book was a normal sapphic fiction type book, and then the second half, things take a turn. There’s more of an apocalyptic type of feel, with the Dean of the school having a “new world order” type of agenda. At times, yes, a little unbelievable, but makes for a great read.

I’m not usually into apocalyptic type books, but I think this had a nice mixture. It was one that I couldn’t put down until I finished reading it, because I wanted to know what was going to happen.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for sending me a free early copy in exchange for an honest review!

What was supposed to be a fun party in which autistic scholarship studnet Waverly pretends to be a rich popular student she’s tutoring to finally face her ex who is back in town spirals when she discovers a secret society preparing for the end of the world. Waverly goes to the prestigious Webber Academt in New York. She’s used to being seen as less then and poor by her wealthy peers, she spends her days tutoring students and just getting by with the help of the school’s charming and enigmatic dean... who just happens to be the father of the girl Waverly is in love with... Ash, who just ghosted her and left. Yet Waverly also tutors the resident “it girl” Caroline who asks Waverly to attend the school’s annual fundraising Masquerade disguised as her which also gives her the opportunity to come face to face with Ash again who she heard is back in town. Yet Waverly’s fairytale is about to turn into a nightmare as Waverly accidentally witnesses a murder and she and her friends find themselves stuck in a maze... can they survive the night... and the fact that they just realized that the world is ending and they’re trapped with a secret group of people who will do anything to secure only the “worthy” to survive. Can Waverly finally face her ex and find out what went wrong and can she and her friends survive the night? This was definitely an unexpected and strange one to read, I didn’t realize how dystopian it was going to be and the story itself was a fast one to read but it just felt a bit strange. I think this is one of the cases where “its me and not you” as I just didn’t really find myself getting interested in the story or the dystopian aspect of it. I think if you are into YA Dystopian with teen drama this is for you.

*Thanks Netgalley and St. Martin's Press, Wednesday Books for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

Uh wow. Did I just finish this book in literally 3 hours? Yes.

I did not put this down start to finish. The twists, the lies, the deceits. This was so freaking fast paced and unexpected.

Through out Covid there have been conspiracies of a new world order and, solar flares, complete black outs. And this was kinda like a what if this actually happened but in a smaller form. It really made you think about the world and the people in it.

The rich vs poor. All the different dynamics. And can you really trust who you think you can trust? Some will surprise you. Not everything is what it is made out to be.

The only downfall I would have to say is I wish there was a bit more explanation about a few things as well as I wish this book was a bit longer. Or maybe even an epilogue to finish it off. However I did enjoy the turn of events and how everything came so smoothly together in the end. Plus a little bit of LGBTQ action Is always appreciated from me!

But to sum it up, I really really loved this. It was constant action, drama and twists. I highly recommend you pick this one up.

"Everything is Scooby-Doo," she whispers as we tiptoe down another hallway. "Every episode ends with a rich white dude being unmasked as the villain. How is that not real life?"

Thank you to NetGalley and St Martin's Press for an advanced electronic copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

I loved Jen Wilde's "Queens of Geek" and "The Brightsiders," so when I saw a new book from her to request on NetGalley, I knew I had to read it!

Waverly, an autistic queer scholarship student at Webber Academy is thrilled when she gets the opportunity to attend the school's masquerade ball in place of fellow student, Caroline Sinclair. But as the night goes on, too many things seem wrong. Waverly witnesses a murder and talk of a "new world," and then the building goes on lockdown.

This story requires you to suspend a bit of belief, but it's still a fun ride. Jen Wilde writes reliably good novels, even when the content seems different than her previous books. Also, Waverly for queen, president, and/or whatever role she wants. I love her.

Out May 9th!

CW: murder, violence, death, fire

I received a free copy from NetGalley. Interesting main character. Locked building. A bit of mystery, drama, and class dynamics.

Date made up. I feel behind on reviews.

Thanks Netgalley for allowing me to read this book. Waverly is estatic to attend a party at the school she goes to. While at the party, she witnesses a murder. When no lone is allowed to leave the school, it will take everything she has to stay alive during the night. This book kept me guessing.

Setting: New York
Rep: autistic lesbian protagonist; bisexual disabled South Asian best friend

I've enjoyed Jen Wilde's books in the past and I love thrillers so this should have been a no brainer but the story just wasn't there for me. I guess I didn't realise before reading that this is more of an apocalyptic book but it takes a while to get there, and then it's so rushed that the end is like ... what just happened? Unfortunately it just didn't feel well written or paced and the plot needed a lot of work.

You read a story that you believe you know the rules, what is going to happen and how it all works out and then, BAM! Twist beyond twists and the story morphs into something completely different (in the best of ways)?

Well, that is this story for me. I thought I knew what I was reading, I was lured in and comfortable and then the story took an amazing turn and twist and I was glued to the pages.

This story is so much fun! Those comparisons to One of Us is Lying and The Hazel Wood? Yeah, keep those in the back of your mind.

This story has it all! A wonderful main character, a loving family, a prep school, a masquerade, friends, a mystery, and a global … well, it has so much gone on all brilliantly wrapped together to make this one heck of a wild ride!

I want to say more but I don’t want to ruin anything so I will just say, I really enjoyed every page and would highly recommend this read. If this is the author’s debut story, I cannot wait for more!

I received an ARC via NetGalley and St. Martin's Press, Wednesday Books and I am leaving an honest review.