REVIEW: Tomorrow Land by Mari Mancusi

 

Author: Mari Mancusi

Pages: eBook

Genre: Young Adult/Dystopian

Publisher: NLA Digital

Amazon: Tomorrow Land

Synopsis. (Goodreads)

Can true love survive the end of the world?

Imagine finding your first love, only to be ripped apart by the apocalypse. Peyton Anderson will never forget the day she was forced to make a choice--between her family--and Chris Parker, the boy she'd given her heart. Now, four years later, as she steps from the fallout shelter and into a dead and broken world, he's the only thing on her mind.

All Chris "Chase" Parker wanted was to take Peyton away and keep her safe from harm. But he waited for hours in the rain on judgment day and she never showed--breaking his heart without ever telling him why.

Now the two of them have been thrown together once again, reluctant chaperones to a group of orphan children in a post-apocalyptic world where the dead still walk...and feed. As they begin their pilgramage to the last human outpost on Earth, can they find a way to let go of old hurts and find the love they lost--all while attempting to save what's left of the human race?

REVIEW: 4.5 out of 5 stars

Tomorrow Land was kindly provided to me by Netgalley for NLA Digital.

I literally devoured this fast paced, action packed post-apocalyptic novel in such a short period of time; it was a real page turner that I struggled to put down.

Tomorrow Land follows the story of Peyton Anderson from the year 2030 where she is living safely with her mother and conspiracy obsessed genius father, to a post-apocalyptic zombie infested world 4 years later. As she steps out of the safe haven bunker constructed by her father for such emergencies she expected doom and gloom so was shocked by the reality and natural growth of her home, she was also curious about what had happened to everyone she cared about, especially Chris Parker.

Chris ‘Chase’ Parker crushed on Peyton for years and waited hours for her on judgment day so was devastated by her not showing up, he has hardened over the years and is shocked to see Peyton walking the deadly streets alone and changed – enhanced by her scientist father, she is now spouting razors on her fingers, enhanced eyesight and impressive kick-butt abilities.

As the story progresses, we learn the death and destruction was caused by a super flu which either caused immediate death or the person to change into a mutant hunger crazed zombie. 

Chase and Peyton make a journey with the group of orphaned children in the hope of finding Peyton’s father in Disney World Florida, a trek which will put them in a world of danger without the guarantee of a positive outcome.

The character interactions were wonderful, I thoroughly enjoyed the relationship Peyton and Chris shared both pre & post apocalypse; seeing them gain one anothers trust and to forgive gave us a great sense of who they were. Both were very real with personal struggles not only with the world they are now having to live in but also within themselves.

Tomorrow Land alternated between past and present which I always enjoy, seeing how everything came to be was devastating but it showed the reality of it all. It is a very strong story, which throws several twists and turns at us which kept the pacing even, the world-building was impressive.

Ms Mancusi’s writing is gripping and detailed, the setting was described to perfection and the characters fleshed out perfectly.

All in all, Tomorrow Land is such an intense and thrilling ride, it is a fast paced and exciting plot that will hold you captivated from the start to the very end.