4.75 stars, rounded up | Oh this was devastating

I absolutely love Ava Reid’s writing, and, like all her other books, “Fable for the End of the World” kept me on the edge of my seat. This is such a timely story, and it can be argued that the world our characters live in is a character in itself. Melinöe and Inesa are such human characters, something that is only highlighted when the readers are confronted with the degradation that they face in their very different situations. Faced with disrespect for the natural world and all it’s inhabitants, the characters of “Fable for the End of the World” are the perfect products of the dystopian they live in, and the humanity that still remains.

Ava Reid has yet to disappoint, and this is no exception.

The description of The Hunger Games meets The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes feels generally appropriate, but while the set-up feels incredibly reminiscent of THG, Reid's approach to the YA dystopian genre sets itself apart once the Gauntlet begins. The world is built out enough to generally understand it without getting needlessly bogged down in too many details or being too vague.

Reid's depiction of her protagonists, Melinoe and Inesa, feels generally in line with the way most YA novels approach characters in this age bracket. They're enough of a blank slate to be more relatable and to project bigger issues onto- at least at first. One of the things I loved about this book was that they weren't really trying to be revolutionary about any of this. There's not really a "chosen one" type of narrative.

At its core, Fable for the End of the World is about two people coming to terms with their own humanity as they stand at the precipice of coming of age. Melinoe struggles against the way her humanity has dug its roots into her like claws in spite of her (and Caerus') attempts to rid her of it. By contrast, Inesa grapples with preserving her own humanity even when the world (and Caerus) give her every good reason to abandon it. Witnessing the way these two meet each other in the middle of that is the rebellion that the genre demands, and Reid using two teenagers girls and their love for one another feels refreshing and different from the norm.

This novel also serves as a scathing and necessary commentary of the way social media and ease of access has desensitized the public to violence the and commoditization of women. It's topical, current and modern, and Reid's choice to showcase through the eyes of teenage girls is both apt and well done.

The only real things that kept me from giving this five stars were that it felt a little too short for me. It needed a little more development in certain places, and the ending, while I understood the point, did feel both rushed and like the wind had gone out of its sails. I don't know that the ending needed to be different so much as I think the pacing of it could have used a little more breathing room.

(That being said, it is entirely possible Reid is setting up for a sequel here and we just don't know it yet, so take that with a grain of salt.)

I love Ava Reid's work - her writing style is clear and just the right brand of poetic for me - and I'll definitely be picking this up for purchase upon release. If you're into YA dystopian novels and/or queer ladies, I'd definitely recommend you give this a try!

[NetGalley was kind enough to provide me with an ARC for this title.]

I loved this book so much. Ava Reid is already an autobuy/read author for me but this just solidified it. This was so beautifully devastating. I loved all of the themes and her writing style, there wasn't one part of this book where I wanted to put it down and stop reading. This was so amazing and I want more omg.


Thank you to Netgalley for this E-arc!!

Ava Reid’s sapphic dystopian enemies to lovers was a love letter to the dystopian books a lot of us grew up reading and loving (ie The Hunger Games). The world was a little crazy, but not entirely something I couldn’t see our world turning into. I wish the plot had a tiny bit *more* to it, but the book did a great job regarding conversations around how women are viewed/treated, capitalism, and violence.

Thank you to Harper Teen for the ARC of this book. All opinions are my own.

Look, Ava, please chill. I can’t keep falling in love with your characters and your world and have them not be real. This was no different. This was such a great nod to The Hunger Games while still being authentic to its own plot, story, and world. Melinoë and Inesa stole my heart and I don’t want it back.

The premise of the Lamb’s Gauntlet was so interesting. It gave me this incredible vibe of mixing The Hunger Games tributes and Ready Player One’s loyalty centers to pay debt, except this is a single person being hunter. It’s like the most dangerous game (if people know what that is still) and it keeps you on the edge-of-your-seat. When Inesa gets volunteered for this after her mom wants to get rid of her debt, all heck breaks loose.

Watching Melinoë try and hunt Inesa and the story play out was truly a treat. I love this book so much and there’s not a single thing I could do to make me stop. I loved it and wont’ stop recommending it.

Ava is five for five on releases. Get this one. You won’t regret it! Plus, it’s SAPPHIC!!! Nothing better!

Thank you Netgalley for this free advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Fable for the End of the World left me deeply disappointed, especially since I'm such a huge fan of all of Ava Reid's previous works. I went into this YA dystopia expecting to love it, but found myself disengaged and trudging through the story.

The book follows Inesa and Melinoë, two girls on opposite sides of a debt-based society. Inesa is forced into a deadly game show where she must survive 13 days while being hunted by Melinoë, a genetically engineered assassin. However, despite this intriguing premise, I never felt connected to the characters or their struggles.

The themes here feel shallow and underdeveloped, and the characters lack nuance. Inesa is overly innocent and simplistic, while Melinoë has potential but doesn't undergo the deep internal transformation her character arc promised. I also found the writing style jarring. It seems very out of character from Ava Reid's other works. The ending was unsatisfying, leaving too many mysteries unresolved.

In the end, though, I couldn't connect with the story or characters. While Fable had some promising ideas, it didn’t deliver the experience I was hoping for.

This was an expertly done revisiting of the dystopian YA favorites of the 2010's. Eerily reflective of today's world and constantly dipping between desperate hope and despair in an apocalyptic world, each step taken in this book held immense weight. There were no consequences avoided or messages not highlighted, making for a poignant exploration of the impacts of climate change, late-stage capitalism, and the exploitation of teen girls. The Amazon-esque corporation in control of society was unsettling but also deeply realistic; this book pushes the reader to reflect on how consumption diminishes community, and profit-driven societies are the slowest, most brutal death.

Mild spoilers here for any fellow reviewers: What I have found to sit with me the longest with this book is the standalone format. I am accustomed to YA dystopian books being series, allowing for continued hope and the prospect of taking down entire systems to look forward to. I do however know that Reid's writing style does not hold punches, and even though I long of perfect endings, ambiguity and drawn-out revolution are honest to the story and its messaging. I would absolutely read a continuation of Inesa and Mel's story, but I see the necessity to leave it as-is and allow the reader to consider who is let down in a capitalistic society every day. The losses are much, much more common than the wins.

Thank you to Netgalley and HarperCollins for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you Netgalley and HarperCollins for the opportunity to read the ARC!

I think back to when I was in high school and what reading Fable for the End of the World would’ve meant to me. For teenager me to read what other’s are dubbing the “lesbian Hinger Games”, I would’ve felt so seen and felt heard. I’m so happy this dystopian YA exists. The heteronormativity of our country and world makes it hard for queer youth to see themselves in popular books. We need more Twilights, Harry Potters, Hunger Games etc that not only feature but star in the stories.

I was afraid that the author would make the novel too close to the series that inspired her. But Ava Reid has created a universe of her own! The pacing was amazing and the story behind the world was impactful. Like most dystopian novels, A Fable for the End of the World depicts classism, homophobia, climate change, government control, etc.

I feel like the pacing was good, but I do feel like I wanted a little more on the middle and a little more towards the end.

I’m not sure how I feel about it being a stand alone novel with how it ended(my brain must have skipped over that part when I read the synopsis). I need more of a concrete ending then. A final answer. I really wish this would be a series!!

Fable For the End of the World by Ava Reid

This Sapphic, Hunger Games-esque book was everything I could have asked for in a stand alone dystopian novel.

Careus controls everything. By ensuing a debt system for its underclass population nobody can escape Careus’s grip. Inesa runs a taxidermy shop with her twin brother Luka. Living in a half-sunken town, Inesa and Luka do everything they can to survive. So when Inesa’s mother accrues a massive amount of debt that qualifies one of her children for The Lamb’s Gauntlet - a live streamed assassination event - Inesa must do everything she can to survive even if that means making an alliance with one of Careus' killer angels. Melione was made to be an Angel. Through cosmetic procedures and Careus technology Melione has become a highly trained killer. After her last Gauntlet Melione is looking for a chance to redeem herself. After all, killing is what she was created to do. What she doesn’t expect is Inesa and her brother to fight back much less to fall for her Lamb. Together Inesa and Melione must team up to fight for justice, the future of the world and for each other.

For a standalone dystopian novel I thought this was really well done. We get enough set up about the world and characters to understand what is going on. Our main characters Inesa and Melione were very fleshed out. I think the dual point of views in this story made my reading experience more enjoyable. Though, I loved Inesa and her story the most. I always wanted to know what happened next. Careus was cruel and evil - I loved hating them with our main characters. The cruel and unjust treatment of Melione broke my heart. I loved her character development the most. By the end of this book I just wanted to cry. I’ve grown so attached to these characters and I only want the best for them.

While I enjoyed this story immensely I just think this would make such a good series. You can tell right away this book was heavily inspired by The Hunger Games and I love that. I think there is so much world building that would have made me love this book even more. I wanted to know more about Careus and how they came into existence. I wanted to see more of the underclass society and more of the city full of the elite. I think seeing more of Careus technology would have been a nice edition as well. I secretly do hope there will be a sequel announced. After that cliffhanger of an ending I have to know what happens!

Overall, this brought me back to my dystopian roots. I loved the setting and chemistry between the characters. I just want more of this world. I would recommend to Hunger Games fans, If you love the Enemies to Lovers trope, and to those that always wanted more Sapphic dystopian novels growing up.

Thank you to Harpercollins Children’s Books and NetGalley for providing me with an arc in exchange for an honest review.

thank you to netgalley, author ava reid, and harper collin’s for this advanced copy epub of this book.
this book was a fun and exciting homage to the dystopian fiction we grew up reading, like the hunger games, but with its own merit and story to tell.
in this world you can acquire debt and can offer family to be hunted by the angels which are cybernetically inhanced to catch their prey on a recorded show.
the lgbtq+ love story was built up very well and was endearing. i liked watching their relationship grow on the page.
-sapphic dystopian hunger games homage-

When Inesa's mother acquires an incredible amount of debt, she offers her daughter to be hunted by an angel - women cybernetically enhanced to hunt down their prey.

Reid has described this book as an homage to the Hunger Games and the dystopian fiction which made her want to be a writer. The influence is clear - the woods Inesa tries to hide in, the relationship with her brother Luka, but the book is its own. Inesa and angel Melinoe fall in love and have to deal with the complexities of being pitted against each other.

Like all Reid books, it's melancholy and reflective, with even side characters like Luka being given their own interior lives. I would recommend for any YA reader, especially girls who can see their own LGBT relationships reflected.

Fable for the End of the World is wholly different from the rest of Ava Reid’s writing but her voice was unmistakable throughout the book nonetheless. Inesa and Melinoë’s story was beautiful and heart breaking. Reading this felt like being in high school again when YA dystopia novels were at the height of their popularity. This felt nostalgic in a way that a book has not made me feel in a long time. There is something about Reid’s writing that makes everything feel so important and beautiful. Her writing is captivating and transportive. It felt like there was a movie playing in my head as I read. I have read everything from Ava Reid so far and have yet to be disappointed.
Thank you to Netgalley and Harper Collins for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

It has been a while since I read a dystopian romance and I can say that it was different from the usual genres I read. I liked this world and the characters in it. I think I’ll be looking into more in this genre and from this author. The writing style was really good and it held my attention. I really liked the Hunter vs hunted aspect, it’s awesome when the lamb bests the wolf. The sibling bond was a really nice aspect and I’m ready for more from Luka.

The Hungar Games-ish but make it gay and add the effects of climate change and what if Amazon took over society. Ava Reid doesn’t miss (although I could have done witb significantly less lip biting).

I won't lie, the middle was a bit harder to get through than I'd have liked, mostly because I got the arc during the end of a semester and I couldn't sit and read straight through. Having to stop to be a responsible person delayed me. But today, I sat down and read fully the last 40% almost in one go.

This book is tragic and hopeful all at once. Though I was afraid that it wouldn't sell me on the romance at first, I came to truly understand it. This book is more than that, though, because a teenage romance born during traumatic events may not last, but the changes in perspective for both girls will.

Those who want endings that are tied up in pretty little bows aren't going to like this ending, but I adore it. The author left clues that the hope Inesa feels isn't unfounded. I am reminded of the ending to Your Name.

Black Mirror and Hunger Games have a beautiful sapphic baby.
This story takes place in a unique environment that has a strong capitalistic hierarchy with an extra dose of bloody spectacle. I'm typically not thrilled by stories where someone from the lower class falls in love with someone of the oppressing class but I feel like Ava Reid writes this version of the trope extremely well. A key element is definitely that the character sent from the upper class has realized that they are just as trapped and controlled as the most marginalized, they simply have the privilege of a more comfortable cell. There was definitely an omen like quality to the story in regards to the effects of climate change under capitalism.
I loved the way the characters interacted with each other in this dystopian world, and the nuanced take that even the most dystopian world is just someone's regular world. I thought so many details of the environment were beautiful additions to the story.
I found the plot of the story to be intriguing and I had no idea how the story would end until we got to it.

this book was everything younger dystopian era me would LOVE. it put me on such a rollercoaster emotionally i was constantly stressed then relieved over and over again all i wanted was for inesa and melinoë to be happy for more than 5 seconds. it was scary reading it and seeing how despite it being fictional, a lot of the elements in it seemed so possible to happen in the future. from the climate change to the system of caerus to just how people treated each other in day to day life, it all seems so distantly possible but gave the book an even more realistic world. i desperately wanted a happy ending for these two and even if we didn’t exactly get it im still so satisfied with how it ended (even if it HURTS). nothing to complain about for this sapphic dystopian novel and i hope to see more like it in the future !!!

Ya'll, I was not prepared for this book. Ava Reid's homage to the Hunter Games is on another level. I won't mince words. This story is dark with a capital D. Which could be a challenging read for the YA reader in your life who is not used to dystopian/non HEA ending. But it could also be the fantastic first stop on the journey to that genre. Thoroughly enjoyed!

Thank you to HarperCollins Children's Books | HarperCollins and NetGalley for providing an eARC for a honest review.

Ava Reid has been a favorite author of mine for some time now, but this book absolutely knocks it out of the park! The world, the characters, the atmosphere -- everything is amazing.

Perhaps no one is more disappointed about this book than me so far. I have to start with my obligatory disclaimer that I am a huge Ava Reid fan. A Study in Drowning and The Wolf and the Woodsman are some of the best books I've read in the past year. Despite all the criticism, I thoroughly enjoyed Lady Macbeth, even through its flaws. All of this is to say, I went into this book expecting to love it, as per usual with Reid's books, and was truly shocked to find myself trudging through and feeling wholly disconnected from the story being told. I will keep this mostly spoiler-free, only including bits that are in the blurb or are revealed within the first few chapters!

This is a YA dystopia book with a dual narrative following Inesa and Melinoë, two young girls on opposing sides of a debt-based society. Inesa runs a struggling taxidermy shop with her brother until her mother nominates her for the Lamb’s Gauntlet, a televised assassination gameshow with its contestant being the unlucky child of an overly-indebted adult. The goal for Inesa is to survive 13 days while being hunted by the other main character, Melinoë, a genetically and mechanically enhanced superhuman designed to kill. Melinoë is an “Angel” created by the governing corporation Caerus to be a debt-collecting killing machine. However, this Gauntlet takes an unexpected turn, placing both Inesa and Melinoë in circumstances they never would have imagined.

I want to start with what I think is one of the biggest problems overall, which is how heavily this book is marketed as being similar to The Hunger Games, with the author even stating in the foreword that this novel is heavily inspired by the aforementioned trilogy. The problem is that, as far as I'm concerned, The Hunger Games is one of the best trilogies ever written, and I consider each book a masterpiece. I truly feel that you are setting yourself up for failure when putting yourself next to one of the (if not THE) most highly acclaimed dystopian works of all time. When reading, I did indeed notice that Fable for the End of the World takes clear inspiration from The Hunger Games, with the deathmatch style “game”, the bleak and heavily controlled society, the strong female main character(s), sibling bonds, consumerism, and commentary on real-world media consumption, however, these elements only feel cheap and uninspired compared to its predecessor. These elements are not presented and analyzed in a thorough, engaging, or meaningful way here, with each point feeling preachy at best and incomplete at worst. I know this is vague, but there is not enough substance here. Each subject or plot point this book tries to cover feels half-baked and like we aren’t getting a complete and fulfilling experience, only surface-level ideas and underdeveloped relationships. Side note, I've also seen this book marketed as similar to The Last of Us, but I’m not seeing the comparison here. The only thing I can see being related is the zombie-like creatures, but if anything they seem closer to the wendigos from Until Dawn, though I suppose that game isn’t as much of a marketable comparison. But to me, the comparison with The Last of Us just seems like a cheap grab at something popular and should be disregarded.

Continuing the comparisons to The Hunger Games, something that made that trilogy so effective was how convincing and compelling each character was. The extreme and brutal worlds in each book need to be matched with well-crafted characters to sell the intense emotions invoked by those brutal situations, and I did not feel that Fable was successful in this. Both Inesa and Melinoë were very basic and boiled down, to where they didn't have any nuance or relatability for me to grab onto. Inesa is very innocent and kind in a world that values selfishness, her mother mistreats her, she loves her brother, and she is a taxidermist. That's about as much as I got from her because that's all the book ever plays off of. Melinoë is at least a bit more complex and interesting, with the whole enhanced superhuman assassin concept. She is cold and calculated, and she has been mistreated and groomed by the people who turned her into an Angel, though she has no memory of it due to the repeated memory wipes they enforce upon her. This is an incredible premise for her character, leading to what should be thorough and deep internal development by Melinoë where she understands and comes to terms with what her creators turned her into and what they force her to do. However, I never felt like her character arc lived up to the potential it could have. She would faintly reflect on the fact that what was done to her was wrong, but she never had a strong cathartic realization like I was hoping for. My complaint with both characters boils down to the fact that there just wasn’t enough oomph to them. I never connected with their emotions, felt interested in their personality traits, or rooted for either of them in any capacity.

I have a handful of additional complaints that I either can’t get into because they go into spoiler territory or because I just don’t have much to say about them. To start with my non-descript spoiler critiques, I found the events that pushed the plot forward to be highly unbelievable and because of that doubt in the feasibility of the situations, it ended up impeding my enjoyment of the situations that followed. I also did not care for the ending and it felt like a lot of the mysteries in this book were either barely answered or not answered at all. Unless there’s a surprise unannounced sequel, I think it was poorly done. Surprisingly, the writing style really irked me here, despite being one of my highest points of praise with Ava Reid’s previous novels. I started to notice this first in Lady Macbeth as well, but the writing style feels overly pretentious in this novel. Ava Reid’s aesthetic for her previous work gives this romantic, gothic, and folkloric way with her words, which makes sense given that they are gothic fantasy novels. However, this style continues into this book, but it heavily clashes with the industrialist and barren setting of this world. When it goes for the typical ‘vines are growing in my ribcage and my heart is rotted like old damp wood’ type thing, it normally works because of how well it meshes with the setting and aesthetic, but here it clashes too heavily and only comes across as jarring and obnoxious. Also, if I have to read another line about a man parting a woman’s legs as a metaphor for / an example of the man being slimy and gross, I’m going to lose my mind. It worked the first time I read it, but not the countless times the line has been used since.

Now after all that criticizing, I think I need to explain why I didn’t just give it 1 star and move on, because this book does deserve praise for a few things. First, I appreciate the bold move from Reid to write a book that is so different from her previous works. Clearly, the romantic and whimsical style of her fantasy novels has worked well for her and given her commercial success. To branch out and try something new (even if I didn't think it was successful) is respectable, and I did enjoy getting to read an Ava Reid book with a plot and setting completely different than what she has provided in the past.

Content-wise, I appreciated the commentary this book provided on the dehumanization and vulgarity of the internet. As a girl who grew up both chronically online and very involved in the video game space, I am no stranger to how horrifying the internet can be, particularly how certain groups treat women. I’ve experienced the comments and vitriol firsthand, and know how disgusting and dehumanizing it can feel. The portrayal of live-streamers, commenters, and general online objectification of women is spot-on and can be genuinely gutwrenching with how accurate it is. I really loved this aspect of the book, and if it had leaned more into this commentary on media consumption and how toxic and dissociative the internet can make us, I think it could have been much more successful in my eyes.

So, with all these thoughts going through my head after I finished this book, I was conflicted about how to rate it. Throughout my whole time reading it, I was trying to put a positive spin on everything, telling myself I always love Ava Reid’s books and I should here too. In the end, though, I had to ask myself: What did I even enjoy about this? What did I get from this reading experience? The answer is not much—certainly not enough to warrant a positive rating or review. Though this was a very negative reading experience, I don’t feel that it was a waste of my time and it doesn’t change that Ava Reid will still be an author I always check out, though I may have more reservations than I used to. Who knows, all of this may have been a me problem, and I did think this had some strong aspects, so I still recommend giving it a try when it comes out next year!