Book Lovers Inc.
Romance Novel Reviews, Author Interviews, Commentary
Advent Calendar Day 17: Aftertime by Sophie Littlefield + Giveaway
Welcome to the 17th day of Book Lovers Inc Advent Calendar. Each day, we will offer you one great read in a giveaway on all 24 days till Christmas.
Usually, I like to read books that will be fun and dashing and all things sweet. But I’m also a sucker for a good ‘n creepy dystopian tale, the farthest thing from hearts and stars. And author Sophie Littlefield had knocked me out with her (intense!!!) book Aftertime, which was released by Harlequin Luna in February 2011. The book is set in California after a majorly catastrophic event has wiped out society as we know it, leaving behind disenchanted human survivors and a whole lot of flesh eating zombies (called “Beaters”). That’s right, I said the Z word, which seems to be all over the place these days. But what sets this story apart from many of its type is the outstanding development of the characters and the deft exploration of human emotion. This book at once freaks me out and shows me lasting truths about love and loathing, survival and despair. It’s SO much more than a mere “zombie book”; it’s epicness incarnate! And best of all, it’s just book one of an AMAZING trilogy that continually trills and chills. (The final book comes out January 2012.)
Purchasing Info: Goodreads, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo
Book Blurb:
Awakening in a bleak landscape as scarred as her body, Cass Dollar vaguely recalls surviving something terrible. Wearing unfamiliar clothes and having no idea how many days—or weeks—have passed, she slowly realizes the horrifying truth: Ruthie has vanished.
And with her, nearly all of civilization. Where once-lush hills carried cars and commerce, the roads today see only cannibalistic Beaters—people turned hungry for human flesh by a government experiment gone wrong.
In a broken, barren California, Cass will undergo a harrowing quest to get her Ruthie back.
The Review:
So, this book has an official blurb and all, but really I think the story as a whole somewhat defies brief description. The best that one can do is to describe the beginning, which is intentionally disorienting; the protagonist herself can barely gather her wits about her enough to make coherent thoughts, and even has a chunk of time missing from her memory. What’s immediately clear is that the world–at least from the protagonist’s perspective–is different; something hugely substantial has happened, and the desolate landscape is almost unrecognizable. Read the rest of the review!
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~*~*Giveaway*~*~
Guess what’s in store for one lucky commenter! Sophie Littlefield has graciously offered a copy of her book, Aftertime…AND its sequel, Rebirth!
All you have to do is tell us if you’ve ever believed in Santa Claus’s existence (c’mon, be honest. Did you ever leave milk and cookies out for jolly old Saint Nick? ^_^).
(You can read our full giveaway policy here)
Please leave a valid email when placing your comment so we can inform you if you win.
This giveaway is open to everyone!
Giveaway ends on Saturday, December 31 2011; we will announce the winner on Sunday (next year! Har har har).
Good luck!
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Ummm nope, but when I was very young, I placed one sock at the end of my bed :/
cean.loves.you at gmail dot com
We didn’t celebrate Christmas at my house, but when I was little, my best friend was Catholic and I remember sleeping over at her house when we were very young and both of us trying to stay awake to hear Santa Claus come in with the presents. At that age, I didn’t understand the religious significance of the holiday, I just believed in Santa right along with all the other little kids.
Nope! I always knew Santa didn’t exist!
k_anon[at]hotmail[dot]co[dot]uk
I totally believed in Santa! My parents staged these elaborate Santa hoaxes when I was little lol. I tried not to let on when I stopped believing in Santa because I the tricks my parents played were so much fun!
Thanks for the giveaway!
I did when I was really young. Then one year I had my door cracked open and saw my mom and dad carrying all the presents to the tree that were supposedly from Santa. lol
miztik_rose@yahoo.com
I did when I was younger believe in Santas Claus but I don’t think I ever left some for him…because that’s why I never saw him? 🙂 I did write letters to him.
Please don’t enter me in this contest, it really is not a book I want to read. But I am glad you enjoyed it so much.
Of course we all believed in Sinterklaas when we were little. I believe we were told the harsh truth at age 8 or so.
Of course I believed in Santa! This belief was engrained by a letter I received from Santa each year identifying a SPECIFIC instance of naughtiness, along with a gracious willingness to overlook said offense. Just once.
How can you not believe when the Christmas God is providing written proof that he literally watches All.Year.Long.?
Anyways – I would love it if the Book Lovers Santa sent some reading material to my new home in Alaska. Well, my hypothetical new home. The home I will have once I get out of this hotel.
Ohhh, zombies, yes please
booksforlife01 gmail dot com
I never believed in the santa in red, oh please! But I did believe in the pagan “santas” we got here. The spirits that live under houses and in stables. And if you are bad then they will not help you, but if you are good then they might milk the cows for you. Those I believed in and once I found pressies on the porch, and totally believed
I never believed in Santa and never left cookies and milk.
i can’t really remember, because i knew pretty soon that the guy under the costume was one of my family members *grin* but one scene is still in my head. i was 3 i think and at that time i really was afraid of the guy in the costume, because he told us to be good or else our parents would spank us with a rod – which he gave to our parents as a present. well at that time i didn’t really understand the concept of christmas. i just knew we got presents and our parents a rod to discipline me if i misbehaved XD
I’m sure when I was really young I believed in SC but I don’t remember being traumatized when I learned different 🙂
smaccall AT comcast.net
Yes, I believed in Santa when I was a young girl. I don’t remember how old I was when I learned there was no Santa – don’t think I was scarred for life, though!
Totally believed as a child! We always went for a drive late on Christmas Eve to see the lights and I am sure we all fell asleep in the car. The socks were always empty when we left and full when we woke up – it was awesome! Thanks for hosting. Please enter me – I am an old follower.
bevsharp@desch.org
I believed when I was young. We were told that Santa was tired of milk by the time he got to our house, so we left him a beer.
i never do it ;(
Of course milk and cookies were left. And I know one time when i was little I saw someone in red in the living room by the tree in the middle of the night. I was absolutely positive it was Santa!
bacchus76 at myself dot com
Of course I believed & my children too. I even left reindeer food out.
Nope! I always knew Santa didn’t exist! rogcaprino[at[hotmail[com]
I never believed in Santa Claus, then again I’m from Europe and here we have the Christkindl 😉 in which, of course, I believed!
I think I was all of seven years old before I stopped setting out those cookies and milk–which my dad probably was relieved to skip from then on.
I think I use to believe when I was a very little girl but not anymore. Please enter me in contest. I would love to read this series. Tore923@aol.com
I probably believed in Santa a little longer than most kids because I was an only child (no big brothers or sisters to spoil the mystery). But one year my mother decided to wrap “Santa’s” gifts and she signed the tags “From: Santa” – in her handwriting. Santa myth over. I continued to put out the milk and cookies though. It just seemed too sad to stop. (And my dad continued to eat them!)
mssculp@gmail.com
Of course I believed! That was the fun of Christmas as a child! I’ve made sure that my kids believe, too, for as long as I can! And after that, I make sure they know that Santa is alive in all of us – that the spirit of giving and goodwill is in all of us to spread 🙂
jwitt33 at live dot com
what?? Santa is not real?
follow via gfc
drakebdog@gmail.com
Of course!
We didn’t have a chimney but boot prints used to lead out the back door. One Christmas Eve my dad saw him out the lounge window,, flying through the sky in his sleigh but he was gone by the time I got to the window. I remember being so disappointed.
zzebra138@gmail.com
Totally! To the point I always fell asleep with my eyes squeezed shut tight. I was afraid if I actually did see him, I wouldn’t get any presents. These days I simply believe in the magic of the holiday.
I still give my daughter a present from Santa every year. The agreement is as long as she believes there will always be something under the tree from him. At 23 I’m not sure what conclusion she’s come to, but there’s an extra gift under the tree on Christmas Eve. We can all use a little bit of hope and magic in our lives.
ravensquietscreams@gmail.com
I don’t think we ever did leave things out for Santa, if we did I was so young I don’t remember.
Thanks!
Hmmm..i can’t remember believing in santa claus but my mum tells me i did. I didn’t leave milk or cookies though:P
I still leave milk and cookies for Santa! When I was a kid it was one of the most important steps every Christmas Eve!
jepebATverizonDOTnet
At first I didnt believe at all because I was a geeky, logical kid and it didn’t add up: the presents were already under the tree before midnight Christmas eve, I never had seen him, and the guy I talked to at the mall had no clue what I was talking about! lol
But then when I was 4 or 5 my grandpa hid all the gifts in the attic and didn’t bring them down till after we’d gone to sleep on Christmas eve and when we woke in the middle of the night the tree was casting beautiful multicolored lights on presents for us! It was like magic and I was convinced Santa was real!! Then the next year my parents messed it all up by putting gifts up in the attic right in front of me and the illusion was gone :-/
bells DOT franco AT gmail DOT com
I never did but I always defended my friends who did. One of my friends in third grade really loved Santa Claus and everyone made fun of her. I got into a LOT of fights on her behalf. 🙂
I wish! My older cousin told me there was no such thing as Santa Claus before I even started school. I wasn’t much older than a toddler. He showed me where they hid our presents in the closet. (we also played with them! And, of course, got caught!) I wish I got to believe for a little while.
I definitely believed in Santa until my friend, who had older siblings, told me the sad truth.
Yep – I was a true believer. Even when I eventually asked my Mum to tell me the truth I was hoping she would tell me I was wrong and that he was real! 🙂
Me too, I was a beliver!!!
Glassheart18ca@hotmail.com
I never believed in Santa Claus, but in the Christkind (Father Christmas?) – and I wrote my letters for a very long time, because I shared those moments with my younger sister.
booksforalleternity at gmail dot com
I did. My Mom had to have Oreos for us to leave out. No other cookie was good enough for Santa.
Well, I don´t believe in him because I´m not from USA… I believed in Christ Child 🙂
Well, I never left cookies and milk out for him- I probably would’ve sneaked out of bed and eaten them all in the middle of the night, anyway. But, I did believe in the big guy when ever I visited the mall and he’d be there with his big white beard and helpful little elves, patting his knee for me to sit on, so that I could tell him my wish and take a photo to remember him by. For those few moments, I believed that he existed:)
Sarah
sarah.setar@gmail.com
Of course I believed in Santa Claus and the Tooth Fairy and the Cookie Monster…sorry got a little carried away.