Year One by Nora Roberts

 

Most of the time, I begin books with no knowledge of them at all.  I may know a brief blurb, but in general I like to go in with a blank slate. But this year I have learned that I do need a primer or I will accidentally end up reading books about pandemics when you're not quite ready to do so, and I've been just making sure that I'm not about to dive into a book about mask-wearing and people dying in mass numbers.  But guess what I didn't do when this Nora Roberts book came across my radar?  Year One by Nora Roberts was published in 2017. 

The Doom strikes (for mythical reasons that I'm sure will be important in later books) and the vast majority of humankind is dead. Meanwhile, a lucky few are immune. Some of these immune have special powers - witches, fairies, telekinetics, and a seemingly endless supply of other powers.  We mostly follow Arlys, a reporter who managed to get out of New York City and Lana, a chef who ends up pregnant.  

It was actually a pretty good book. I've read that it's similar to Stephen King's The Stand, but with many fewer pages.  I was just a bit surprised by the story because this Roberts absolutely breaking form. This not a romance novel at all.  You think there's a romance, but it doesn't last. In some ways it was interesting because every page was unexpected.  It was rape-y and violent, but just not what I expect from the same author who wrote the adorable, sweet Bride Quartet.  I just wasn't expecting anything that happened in this book and while that was a compelling narrative, I also just kept putting off reading more pages because it was such a downer.

So, as it turns out, I'm not ready for this just yet. The idea of burning bodies in Central Park, hospitals with only one doctor, and people dying days after contracting a virus just didn't sit well with me. The idea of government collapse and raiders taking control of neighborhoods is horrifyingly real. I think I'm doing all the right things to get over the trauma of the last year and I'm slowly reintegrating. But at the same time, there's a constant voice chirping in my head *should I be wearing a mask here?* *is it safe to do yoga in the studio?* *is going to work the best option for you today since you had a sniffle yesterday?* and this book just made that voice stop chirping and start to become louder. I question every decision I make now much more than before I picked up this book.

So.  Beware, my friends. It's not a traditional romance novel.  I wish I'd read it closer to its release date so I could give you more of a general review, but for me, in this particular moment, I'd say give it a good skip until 2026.