Thanks to @netgalley and @simonandschuster for the advance Kindle copy of this 2.4.25 release. All opinions are my own.
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⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5. This story is woven through several characters’ eyes during a future pandemic. This one, called Crown Royale, is as easily spread as Covid, but leaves its recoverees with a renewed and positive outlook on life. Tiburon, the son of the second-wealthiest man in the world, feels like he is held captive by his overprotective father as he tries to shield him from the virus. Mariel is a homeless girl who watches her mother die of the disease. The two meet at what is essentially a commune run by a recoveree. Morgan is a young genius contacted by a vengeful wealthy woman in England, who hands her a fortune and a directive to stop the disease. The three lives intertwine as the narrative around the disease shifts, as do their hopes. As usual, Shusterman makes the reader think. I only wish it was 150 pages shorter. Recommended for grades 7+.

Shusterman is an auto-buy author for me. His Scythe series and Unwind series are two of my favorites! But I cannot decide if I like this one or not.

There is a pandemic. And if you survive it, you are changed for the better, enlightened, experiencing harmony in your life. So we follow a handful of people through this pandemic, some who embrace it and some who are fighting it. Their paths cross and diverge throughout the book. The plot is solid, the characters are diverse and it has the elements of a Shusterman novel. Here’s where I get tripped up: the virus is called Crown Royale, which is obviously named after the liquor, and I can’t figure out the symbolism and message going on. Seriously, if you’ve read this, DM me because I would love to know your thoughts! I’m probably overthinking this. After all, this is a YA book and my adult brain is probably doing too much.

Man, Neal does it again. Every time I think he can't top his last, he does it anyway. This one is so terrifyingly true to life that it is honestly a little scary, which I know is exactly what he intends. And it works!

Thanks NetGalley for the ARC!

After reading the Arc of a Scythe trilogy, I will read just about anything by Neal Shusterman!! As an author, he is able to come up with new concepts to books that just blow me away.

All Better Now is a great read with an interesting premise! At first, it seems like people are their best selves after they survive the virus. But there are definitely drawbacks, and it raises questions about the survival of humanity. Great book for discussions! Purchased for our high school library.

I've enjoyed his other books, so I was looking forward to this pandemic story. I did like it...but it felt a little long. About the halfway point, I was ready for it to pick up. There are a lot of characters to keep track of, too. Fascinating premise....there's a new virus in town, Crown Royale, and when you get it, you end up almost a new person: much more caring and giving--even billionaires are giving away their fortunes and living off the grid. Two camps exist-those who want the world to have it and those who do not, as the economy is starting to tank. No one is interested in upgrading their cars, buying new stuff, etc. And the ending leaves it open enough that this will probably be a series.

What if there were a virus that changed the survivors into caring humans who got a new perspective on their former life?

This book delves into many questions around that topic. It would be really fun to discuss with a group of 14-17 year olds.

All Better Now is a fantastic and entertaining read! Anything with a virus is automatically an attention grabber for me, so this was definitely right up in my line of interesting reads. Neal Shusterman is amazing with storytelling, and this one does not disappoint. I'm grateful for the ability and opportunity to read this amazing story ahead of release, and enjoyed it so much that I've waited for the audio to enjoy a reread prior to reviewing. I've loved it both as an eARC and as an audio borrowed from Libby. I'll be reading again with my preteens, as we love Neal Shusterman already!

Thank you so much to Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing for this opportunity. Highly, highly recommended!

I enjoyed All Better Now, though I felt that there were a few pacing issues. Some sections of the book went very quickly and some dragged a bit. But the concept is fascinating and 100% Shusterman, which will be really exciting for his fans, especially of Scythe which seems most like All Better Now in theme and spirit. I appreciated the representation of so many different facets of humanity in this book - extreme wealth, homelessness, unparalleled intelligence, many races, religions and creeds. It made the book highly relatable in many moments. I'd love to give this book 5 stars because the concept alone seems 5 star potential, but because of the pacing, this book felt really long, almost like it should have already been split into two parts. I enjoyed it and I finished it, but I worry that some students of mine might not persevere through it if they get a little bit bored.

What if happiness was contagious? Like, literally—spread through a virus that makes people euphoric, content, and suddenly… unbothered by anything at all?

All Better Now by Neal Shusterman takes that wild premise and spins it into a sharp, unsettling, and surprisingly emotional ride. The story follows three teens caught on different sides of this strange new world: one immune to the virus, one who spreads it like wildfire, and one tasked with stopping it. And as society starts to crumble under the weight of forced joy, you can’t help but ask—what’s the cost of a world where everyone is happy?

This book reads fast but hits hard. Shusterman blends big, speculative ideas with grounded, complex characters, and it makes the whole thing feel scarily real. You’ll find yourself flipping pages, yes—but also sitting with some uncomfortable questions long after.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for sending a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Neal Shusterman can do no wrong. I loved the Arc of a Scythe series and this one was so good as well! Neal always comes up with super interesting concepts and this one did no disappoint. I was sucked into this story and I loved all of the characters.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers for providing me with an eARC of All Better Now in exchange for my honest review!

Having previously enjoyed Neal Shusterman's Arc of a Scythe series, I was eager to jump into All Better Now. And I'll admit, it's not something that I'm emerging from on the most positive note, but it still has some good meat for me to chew on. It's really the first half or so of the novel that I struggled with primarily, where it felt like I was being kept at a distance from the character ensemble and their interconnected stories. It could come across as if the book uses them more as instruments to convey the narrative's themes rather than letting them fully stand out as nuanced and believable human beings. It ended up reaching a point where I had to pause the book for a bit and get some space away from that first half, then return to give it another try.

Once we enter the second half of the tale, though, that's where more parts of it click together in my eyes. Yes, that's where we're able to dive a bit deeper into this story of humanity falling apart in response to a pandemic, the different ways in which they attempt to wrestle with such a terrible phenomenon, and the desperation and the power-hungry desires that people can display under such dire circumstances. It all feels quite frighteningly realistic in a real-life world where (whether or not you want to admit it) COVID is still around to disable and kill us, where masking up remains a necessary way to protect ourselves and other people from getting sick and dying. Don't forget that other diseases like tuberculosis and measles are plaguing us, too.

Once All Better Now wraps up, I'm left fairly satisfied over the choices it's made there, even while I wish the first half of the plot could have been strengthened significantly. I especially appreciate the conclusion for Morgan's side of the tale, and in general, she's one of the more interesting characters in the cast. Her dogged attitude is something to admire, even while she's playing an antagonistic role in the story.

Overall, I'm officially rating All Better Now 3.25 out of five stars. Again, this may not be one of my favorite books of 2025, but I'm glad I gave it a shot.

This sci-fi dystopian is a thought-provoking exploration of humanity and what true happiness is, though the parallels to pandemics/Covid may be a little to close to home for some. Overall I think this book was well written with complex characters and an immersive world. I enjoyed it!

Thank you Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing, Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, Netgalley and the author for a complimentary copy of this ebook. I am leaving a voluntary review. All thoughts and ideas expressed are my own.

Think of COVID being able to put you in a happy place, if you survived the initial symptoms. This new virus mad people happy with what they had. Billionaires were giving away their money, homes, businesses, and no one bought new stuff, because they were happy with what they had, and needed very little. Many thought the virus would cause an economical downfall. Of course, those that relied on people buying stuff they did not need, were not happy. An anecdote was in the works, but who made it, was another race to the finish. Mariel, Morgan, and Ron, are the main characters. They come from different backgrounds, and are put into different situations, until those situations began to intertwine. This book was a 3.5, rounded up to 4. I read the "Unwind" series, and like that series, lots of movement, and action going on. I did buy a copy for our high school classroom library. Thanks to Neal Shusterman, Simon & Schuster, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book. All opinions are my own.

Thank you to S&S books and NetGalley for providing a free e-copy to review.

What does it mean to be happy?

This was a very interesting exploration of human nature. The story was carefully and masterfully crafted, with many POVs intertwining to create a full worldview.

The characters each felt unique and intriguing, and I hope there is one day a sequel to explore more in this universe.

This novel is a must-read for anyone who enjoys stories of personal growth, resilience, and the complexities of the human experience. Shusterman once again proves his skill as a master storyteller, delivering a powerful, uplifting message of hope and redemption. Thank you for the opportunity to read this!

Wow. Well, this was certainly an intellectual read: not that I would expect anything less from Neal Shusterman. He is known to make you think deeply about what you read... but holy cow. I need a few days to decompression from this one.

I should start with what I love about this one besides the thinking part. The main premise is that after Corona Virus, another pandemic breaks out: the Crown Royale. If that doesn't make you want to read this novel... well, I don't know what else will because I found the virus name endless entertaining. Okay, how about if the virus's side effect is that you will be content and happy once you recover? You will go about your days in bliss (if you survive). What would the world ramifications be if everyone was suddenly content with their lives? I never thought so much about this concept until this novel.

I loved the juxtaposition of Rob and Mariel throughout the entire novel: it was clever and powerful. Morgan could possibly be my favorite character just for her drive and ruthlessness.

If you want a book that makes you think, this is it!

Thank you, NetGalley, for an e-arc of All Better Now by Neal Shusterman.
Having been through Covid so recently, I am not typically a fan of pandemic books. However, Neal Shusterman puts an interesting spin on the pandemic concept. What if a pandemic made people happy and empathetic? What if the world became a little bit nicer because of those infected? Crown Royale brings a sense of peace to those it touches, but not everyone is happy. As with any conflict, there are always two sides. Shusterman does a great job making you think and question who you believe. Creating a list of strong characters, Shusterman presents the conflict from many sides and allows the reader to determine who to cheer for. I'm excited to see how teens react to this book!

Sci-Fi is a new to me genre, so I was so excited to come across this story! The Scythe series has been on my list for a long time, and now its at the top of my list. I loved the characters in this story, and the multiple POV was done really well! A pandemic that makes people happy is just what our world needs, and I had to keep reminding myself this is fiction. Well done!

I personally did not enjoy this and I believe it’s completely a me problem. The parallels to COVID 19 were a bit more pronounced than I had anticipated.