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The Cull: Book One
Your name has been drawn in the lottery.
You will receive your end-of-life date within one month
Overpopulation, climate change, natural disasters and skyrocketing food prices have turned the world into an unrecognisable former shell of itself. Causing it's inhabitants to increasingly find themselves dying on the streets which have become their homes, from diseases which should be easily cured.
In a desperate attempt to return things to a more manageable state, the governments of the world come together and propose a barbaric solution. A mass cull of nearly half of the population of the planet.
When Stephanie and Tom's names are called up in the lottery launched to decide who will live and who will die, neither one of them can foresee the challenges that lie before them. Sentenced to death, the two form an unlikely bond as they struggle to resign themselves to their fate.
Part one of The Cull book series. A dystopian saga.
You will receive your end-of-life date within one month
Overpopulation, climate change, natural disasters and skyrocketing food prices have turned the world into an unrecognisable former shell of itself. Causing it's inhabitants to increasingly find themselves dying on the streets which have become their homes, from diseases which should be easily cured.
In a desperate attempt to return things to a more manageable state, the governments of the world come together and propose a barbaric solution. A mass cull of nearly half of the population of the planet.
When Stephanie and Tom's names are called up in the lottery launched to decide who will live and who will die, neither one of them can foresee the challenges that lie before them. Sentenced to death, the two form an unlikely bond as they struggle to resign themselves to their fate.
Part one of The Cull book series. A dystopian saga.
- GenresDystopia
315 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 28, 2023
About the author
Joanne Roach
4 books12 followersFantasy & Dystopian Author 📚
Creating immersive worlds & emotional reads ✨
2,100+ books sold | 2.3M pages read on KU
Hi! I'm Joanne, or at least professionally I am. In my day-to-day life, everyone calls me Jo, unless, of course, I am in trouble! I have loved to write for as long as I can remember and spent many hours as a child writing short stories and even songs.
I live in the south of England with my four cats and more books than I can possibly count. Aside from writing, I love to read, sing, dance and spend time with my loved ones, especially my eight nieces and nephews.
As I got older and life got in the way, writing was put on the back burner until I suffered some health issues and found myself looking for hobbies that didn't require too much physical activity, and that is when I rediscovered my love for the written word and telling stories.
Shortly before lockdown, I began to write my first 'real' book series with the hope to publish and so The Cull, Book one, was born. Books two and three, The Escape and The Assault are now available with book four coming soon.
My latest adventure, The Flames of the Fallen, the first book in my new fantasy series comes out 10th March
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 41 reviews
June 11, 2025
The Cull is happening, and humanity is going down. You can go gracefully. Bravely go to your death, do your duty, save your species, or you can be hunted down. Either way, heads are going to roll. Governments of the world have united, decided, agreed, and enforced this being the only way to save humanity. Well, this young couple has been culled, and things are not going to go smoothly…
The foundation of the story was good; it had a lot going for it: ending of the world crises, a dystopian wasteland—I liked all of that. The two main characters lost my interest from the very beginning; there was a lot of repetition in the writing between these two, and the book turned into a dramatic romance novel—not my thing, and I barely made it through. It had some potential, and it looks like a lot of people enjoyed this; with 2 or 3 big sequels, there must be something special here; it's just not for me.
The foundation of the story was good; it had a lot going for it: ending of the world crises, a dystopian wasteland—I liked all of that. The two main characters lost my interest from the very beginning; there was a lot of repetition in the writing between these two, and the book turned into a dramatic romance novel—not my thing, and I barely made it through. It had some potential, and it looks like a lot of people enjoyed this; with 2 or 3 big sequels, there must be something special here; it's just not for me.
April 10, 2026
What a grate dystopian.
This book has a lot of inspiration hunger games, but this gos in a much more gritty direction. You spent a lot of time in the main characters lives at the start and get a good idea just how bad things are in this world before the “lottery” kicks off.
That’s when thing get much more tense. You get to see the family and heartbreak of those who are choosing to die. It gave how much bigger impact, and made the events at the end of the book, much more climactic and satisfying!
This was a fun read, I can’t wait to see what things go from here!
This book has a lot of inspiration hunger games, but this gos in a much more gritty direction. You spent a lot of time in the main characters lives at the start and get a good idea just how bad things are in this world before the “lottery” kicks off.
That’s when thing get much more tense. You get to see the family and heartbreak of those who are choosing to die. It gave how much bigger impact, and made the events at the end of the book, much more climactic and satisfying!
This was a fun read, I can’t wait to see what things go from here!
February 26, 2024
This book.
I have a lot to say.
This read was so out of my comfort zone, I'm not normally a person that gravitates towards 'scary' or 'dark' stories, but after seeing the author promote this book on tiktok, I figured that i would give it a go, and I'm SO glad I did.
It took me a while to get through, (as i said it's not normally my cup of tea) I found the content quite heavy and sometimes hard to swallow, set in 2050, it's not hard to imagine it coming true.
But I think that's what makes this book so interesting, it's not a story about a far off world or set so far in the future that it's fantastical. It's real. A very real reality that faces us. And that made it all the more enticing. Like looking at a car crash even though you know you're going to see something you don't want to see.
One thing I have to say is that there were so many characters, and while I enjoy various povs, this book tended to flip between people in the middle of a chapter, and I found it quite confusing at times. Especially in the beginning when you are learning who all the characters are. But as you get through the book, you get used to it.
One thing I especially liked about this book, is how real the characters are. I found them to have so many human characteristics that normally get left out of other books. They were so vulnerable, I felt like I was reading about real people, and i genuinely cared about what happened to them. I found them to be annoying, frustrating but most importantly endearing.
I'm so glad that I picked it up and gave it a chance because it was so worth it. Looking forward to book 2 which i hope is coming out soon!!
I have a lot to say.
No one escapes the cull
This read was so out of my comfort zone, I'm not normally a person that gravitates towards 'scary' or 'dark' stories, but after seeing the author promote this book on tiktok, I figured that i would give it a go, and I'm SO glad I did.
Your end-of-life date has arrived. Please report to the population control centre on Bleecker Avenue no later than 9am. Thank you for your sacrifice.
It took me a while to get through, (as i said it's not normally my cup of tea) I found the content quite heavy and sometimes hard to swallow, set in 2050, it's not hard to imagine it coming true.
''We were supposed to grow old together you know? You were meant to teach me about girls, give a toast at my wedding.''
But I think that's what makes this book so interesting, it's not a story about a far off world or set so far in the future that it's fantastical. It's real. A very real reality that faces us. And that made it all the more enticing. Like looking at a car crash even though you know you're going to see something you don't want to see.
She deserved to die old and grey in her bed. Not with someone sticking poison into her veins, alone in a strange place without a single person she loved to comfort her
One thing I have to say is that there were so many characters, and while I enjoy various povs, this book tended to flip between people in the middle of a chapter, and I found it quite confusing at times. Especially in the beginning when you are learning who all the characters are. But as you get through the book, you get used to it.
''No, no, Thomas, thank you. For reminding this old man that there are still good people in this world. That there is hope.''
One thing I especially liked about this book, is how real the characters are. I found them to have so many human characteristics that normally get left out of other books. They were so vulnerable, I felt like I was reading about real people, and i genuinely cared about what happened to them. I found them to be annoying, frustrating but most importantly endearing.
''I came back for you.''
I'm so glad that I picked it up and gave it a chance because it was so worth it. Looking forward to book 2 which i hope is coming out soon!!
August 12, 2024
A good idea but needs a hard edit
I started reading this as I love dystopia and I was drawn to the plot. Unfortunately, I had to skim read the second half as there were too many adverbs and adjectives and lots of the description was telling not showing. There’s also a problem with the narrative perspective as it’s never clear whose story this is. The viewpoint shifts without reason from one character to another and it means that you can never quite immerse yourself in the narrative world.
There were too many cliched descriptions such as ‘her screams pierced the air’ and ‘looked deep into his green eyes’! I found myself asking why does it matter what colour his eyes are? It’s mentioned quite a few times. There are also contradictions within the plot. For example, they are moving quickly through the crowd but it’s slow, too slow. I also didn’t understand why they needed a key for the staff door when there are windows out of frames and giant holes in the walls. And, how did the CEA defeat a crowd of 800 RTL rebels plus all the ‘patients’? The rebels had bombs. Why didn’t they use them on the CEA? These types of plot holes were frustrating.
It just needs a really hard edit because the story and plot structure are there but the prose is uncomfortable.
I started reading this as I love dystopia and I was drawn to the plot. Unfortunately, I had to skim read the second half as there were too many adverbs and adjectives and lots of the description was telling not showing. There’s also a problem with the narrative perspective as it’s never clear whose story this is. The viewpoint shifts without reason from one character to another and it means that you can never quite immerse yourself in the narrative world.
There were too many cliched descriptions such as ‘her screams pierced the air’ and ‘looked deep into his green eyes’! I found myself asking why does it matter what colour his eyes are? It’s mentioned quite a few times. There are also contradictions within the plot. For example, they are moving quickly through the crowd but it’s slow, too slow. I also didn’t understand why they needed a key for the staff door when there are windows out of frames and giant holes in the walls. And, how did the CEA defeat a crowd of 800 RTL rebels plus all the ‘patients’? The rebels had bombs. Why didn’t they use them on the CEA? These types of plot holes were frustrating.
It just needs a really hard edit because the story and plot structure are there but the prose is uncomfortable.
May 27, 2024
This book had potential for a great dystopian book. I was really interested in the idea but it took way too long to get into a good rhythm.
The story follows two leads, Tom and Steph who were old acquaintances that get called forward in the cull. There were quite a few time jumps, between December and July, that weren’t clear and then suddenly they were at their end of life date which was the remaining 40% of the book.
I’m a romantic and spent the last 20% of the book screaming at the characters to kiss. To which they didn’t but I am hoping that there is more of a romance unravelled in the second book once that is released. I am aware that not every book needs to have a romantic storyline to it but when the author has spent the whole book telling us how much Steph has fancied Tom for years, it gave me hope that something more would happen in this book. But there were some heartwarming moments where Tom saves her a few times and he says things like I came back for you and couldn’t leave without you.
I was going to rate this lower than 3 stars based on the first half of the book being quite slow and even thought at one point I might DNF this book but I persevered as I wanted to know what would happen to Tom and Steph. The last sort of 10-15 chapters were where it got really good for me and I couldn’t put it down once I got that far which is why I ended up going for a 3 stars.
For a dystopian future book, it’s okay. It reminded me of the divergent series a little, I don’t know if that was just me. Although, this story is closer to home with it being set in London in the 2050s and the reasoning for the cull is population control which is slightly discomforting to think that something like this could happen one day.
Overall, the story had great potential. It had some really interesting parts, some gripping parts and some parts that dragged on a bit. I am eager to read the second book though when it released.
The story follows two leads, Tom and Steph who were old acquaintances that get called forward in the cull. There were quite a few time jumps, between December and July, that weren’t clear and then suddenly they were at their end of life date which was the remaining 40% of the book.
I’m a romantic and spent the last 20% of the book screaming at the characters to kiss. To which they didn’t but I am hoping that there is more of a romance unravelled in the second book once that is released. I am aware that not every book needs to have a romantic storyline to it but when the author has spent the whole book telling us how much Steph has fancied Tom for years, it gave me hope that something more would happen in this book. But there were some heartwarming moments where Tom saves her a few times and he says things like I came back for you and couldn’t leave without you.
I was going to rate this lower than 3 stars based on the first half of the book being quite slow and even thought at one point I might DNF this book but I persevered as I wanted to know what would happen to Tom and Steph. The last sort of 10-15 chapters were where it got really good for me and I couldn’t put it down once I got that far which is why I ended up going for a 3 stars.
For a dystopian future book, it’s okay. It reminded me of the divergent series a little, I don’t know if that was just me. Although, this story is closer to home with it being set in London in the 2050s and the reasoning for the cull is population control which is slightly discomforting to think that something like this could happen one day.
Overall, the story had great potential. It had some really interesting parts, some gripping parts and some parts that dragged on a bit. I am eager to read the second book though when it released.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 20, 2025
that was something
where to even begin ? the premise for this book was so promising - the moral and ethical dilemma of culling people, the commentary on climate change and population control, the whole idea of a cull in the first place was so intriguing for me but it just fell so flat.
the writing is mid at best - i fear this story hasn’t been edited properly at all, and the constant switching between POVs makes it a bit jarring to get through seeing as there’s not even spacing between. we just be jumping from POV to POV in the middle of a sentence.
the switches in tenses really threw me as well and it feels like for some parts they were written one way at the beginning (present tense) and just weren’t changed to fit the rest of the book (past tense)
overall the book is fine - i feel like 3stars is a bit generous - but the writing style really brings it down. points for making the apocalypse organised mass murder, minus points for how mad i got at tom and steph for being goo goo eyes in a fkn war zone
where to even begin ? the premise for this book was so promising - the moral and ethical dilemma of culling people, the commentary on climate change and population control, the whole idea of a cull in the first place was so intriguing for me but it just fell so flat.
the writing is mid at best - i fear this story hasn’t been edited properly at all, and the constant switching between POVs makes it a bit jarring to get through seeing as there’s not even spacing between. we just be jumping from POV to POV in the middle of a sentence.
the switches in tenses really threw me as well and it feels like for some parts they were written one way at the beginning (present tense) and just weren’t changed to fit the rest of the book (past tense)
overall the book is fine - i feel like 3stars is a bit generous - but the writing style really brings it down. points for making the apocalypse organised mass murder, minus points for how mad i got at tom and steph for being goo goo eyes in a fkn war zone
November 4, 2025
This was shocking. Really interesting plot but my god, it read like a primary school play. I skimmed the last 20% because I can’t stand to DNF a book and it was insane, a big chunk of it could have just been a single paragraph
January 1, 2026
DNF after about 3 chapters. Reads like it was written by a 14 year old.
May 23, 2025
Disappointing and deeply implausible
I really wanted to like The Cull, the premise was intriguing but it fell flat in too many areas. The story follows Steph and Tom through alternating perspectives, but instead of offering depth or variety, it just ends up feeling repetitive. The same scenes are rehashed with minimal insight added, making large chunks of the book drag unnecessarily.
Also, are we seriously expected to accept that parents—many with children as young as five—would willingly lime up to hand them over to their deaths, with barely a whisper of resistance? The lack of realistic emotional or societal response to this atrocity makes the world-building feel hollow. It’s only once the adults start being culled that people suddenly find the will to rebel—by then, it’s far too little, too late to be believable.
As for the characters, Steph and Tom are disappointingly weak. Neither stands out as particularly compelling, or even memorable.
The book just retells the same scenes with the emotional depth of a damp flannel. By the time things finally start happening—at around 80%—I was emotionally checked out and aggressively skimming, and by that point, I was mostly just pushing through to finish.
I didn’t root for Steph or Tom, I rooted for something, anything to actually happen.
I won't be reading the follow up books.
I really wanted to like The Cull, the premise was intriguing but it fell flat in too many areas. The story follows Steph and Tom through alternating perspectives, but instead of offering depth or variety, it just ends up feeling repetitive. The same scenes are rehashed with minimal insight added, making large chunks of the book drag unnecessarily.
Also, are we seriously expected to accept that parents—many with children as young as five—would willingly lime up to hand them over to their deaths, with barely a whisper of resistance? The lack of realistic emotional or societal response to this atrocity makes the world-building feel hollow. It’s only once the adults start being culled that people suddenly find the will to rebel—by then, it’s far too little, too late to be believable.
As for the characters, Steph and Tom are disappointingly weak. Neither stands out as particularly compelling, or even memorable.
The book just retells the same scenes with the emotional depth of a damp flannel. By the time things finally start happening—at around 80%—I was emotionally checked out and aggressively skimming, and by that point, I was mostly just pushing through to finish.
I didn’t root for Steph or Tom, I rooted for something, anything to actually happen.
I won't be reading the follow up books.
July 16, 2024
When I first started reading this book, I wasn't sure I would like it. The formatting and writing style seemed minimally edited, and the whole book has the air of a first or second draft about it -- that not-quite-polished clumsiness I know all too well.
However, as I adjusted to the head-hopping and accidental tense changes, I found myself unable to put it down. The world Joanne has built holds the authenticity and realism of someone who I can only assume lives or lived, as I have, in one of the more impoverished areas of the UK and, as such, their descriptions of the lives Tom and Steph live are starkly vibrant and scarily believable. Living in a time where I have had to ration hot water and fresh meat is a luxury, only to read similar on the page of a dystopian future, had me reeling for a long moment.
The Cull concept, although spottily explained for a few chapters before the actual details of this cull are laid out at last, is an interesting and grumly believable concept, and the main characters' conflict and different responses to the situation they're in are too. I enjoy the complicated relationships between them and their respective families, and their complicated inner turmoils alike, and the two have some sweet interactions when they finally start to come together.
Unfortunately, the romance aspect feels incredibly forced towards the end. By the time they actually interact at length it feels like they've only just reached a stage of bonding as friends, yet a couple of chapters later they're experiencing what I can only describe as bursts of crush-like horniness in the midst of literally fighting for their lives. Perhaps I'm a little too asexual to understand it, but there just doesn't seem to be as much romantic chemistry and tension between them as the author wants us to believe -- as if they only remembered within the final at of the story that these two are supposed to end up together and has to shove all of the "electric touch" cliches in as quickly as possible. The romance could be removed from this story altogether and basically nothing would change.
All in all, this is a wonderful concept and interesting story bogged down a bit by rough editing and inexperience, but I implore everyone to give it a chance and I can't wait to see what the sequel will be like now Joanne has a bit more experience under their belt!
However, as I adjusted to the head-hopping and accidental tense changes, I found myself unable to put it down. The world Joanne has built holds the authenticity and realism of someone who I can only assume lives or lived, as I have, in one of the more impoverished areas of the UK and, as such, their descriptions of the lives Tom and Steph live are starkly vibrant and scarily believable. Living in a time where I have had to ration hot water and fresh meat is a luxury, only to read similar on the page of a dystopian future, had me reeling for a long moment.
The Cull concept, although spottily explained for a few chapters before the actual details of this cull are laid out at last, is an interesting and grumly believable concept, and the main characters' conflict and different responses to the situation they're in are too. I enjoy the complicated relationships between them and their respective families, and their complicated inner turmoils alike, and the two have some sweet interactions when they finally start to come together.
Unfortunately, the romance aspect feels incredibly forced towards the end. By the time they actually interact at length it feels like they've only just reached a stage of bonding as friends, yet a couple of chapters later they're experiencing what I can only describe as bursts of crush-like horniness in the midst of literally fighting for their lives. Perhaps I'm a little too asexual to understand it, but there just doesn't seem to be as much romantic chemistry and tension between them as the author wants us to believe -- as if they only remembered within the final at of the story that these two are supposed to end up together and has to shove all of the "electric touch" cliches in as quickly as possible. The romance could be removed from this story altogether and basically nothing would change.
All in all, this is a wonderful concept and interesting story bogged down a bit by rough editing and inexperience, but I implore everyone to give it a chance and I can't wait to see what the sequel will be like now Joanne has a bit more experience under their belt!
August 17, 2024
The premise seemed interesting but I couldn't get past chapter 2 bc the writing style and dialogue was too cringey for me.
Read
July 29, 2025Found this one highly disturbing especially the way climate change and world population is increasing and causing havoc in our times. the books thoughts and ideas felt like a peep into our very dark future, a doomsday warning and something that could be a distinct possibility in the future.
what if we the government was tasked to do a population control around the world? is there a fair or unjust way of doing it without giving preferences to a particular caste, creed, sect or religion?
i forsee human beings leaving this decision to the AI, and since AI consist of everything it has learnt from human beings experiences and thoughts both dark and deep, will it be able to make a fair decision on the behalf of humanity? if so, what would that decision look like? who will be spared and who will be culled? something to ponder over
what if we the government was tasked to do a population control around the world? is there a fair or unjust way of doing it without giving preferences to a particular caste, creed, sect or religion?
i forsee human beings leaving this decision to the AI, and since AI consist of everything it has learnt from human beings experiences and thoughts both dark and deep, will it be able to make a fair decision on the behalf of humanity? if so, what would that decision look like? who will be spared and who will be culled? something to ponder over
October 1, 2024
Finished this book in a couple of days, and I absolutely loved it! Satisfied my craving for a dystopian/end of the world story, but I loved that it felt so real, as it is set in the near future.
The main characters were well designed, and you end up really caring about them, and how their relationships develop.
My only real criticisms are that it felt slightly unfinished in terms of editing. Noticed a couple of typos, and a few sentences that didn’t really make sense grammatically, as well as the wrong use of ‘prone’ (how can you be prone but looking up at the sky?!).
Overall a really great book which I would definitely recommend. Already downloaded book 2 (thanks kindle unlimited!) and I can’t wait to get stuck in.
The main characters were well designed, and you end up really caring about them, and how their relationships develop.
My only real criticisms are that it felt slightly unfinished in terms of editing. Noticed a couple of typos, and a few sentences that didn’t really make sense grammatically, as well as the wrong use of ‘prone’ (how can you be prone but looking up at the sky?!).
Overall a really great book which I would definitely recommend. Already downloaded book 2 (thanks kindle unlimited!) and I can’t wait to get stuck in.
December 24, 2024
Really great premise for a book and the world building is interesting but two main issues really take me out of the story. Firstly, this book is LONG. Infinitely longer than it needs to be. It needed a good edit before it was published and that is lacking. The author loves repeating details that add nothing to the plot, we get it he has green eyes!!! He's a kind doctor!! As an audience it feels like this is written based on the idea that you cannot hold an idea in your mind for more than two pages.
Secondly, I just found the female characters to be so poorly fleshed out. The main characters best friend is a curvy sassy black woman (original). Even the main character herself, I don't think I could tell you much about her actual personality except she is nice and handles things well.
Secondly, I just found the female characters to be so poorly fleshed out. The main characters best friend is a curvy sassy black woman (original). Even the main character herself, I don't think I could tell you much about her actual personality except she is nice and handles things well.
May 9, 2025
Almost a DNF
There’s so much apocalyptic, dystopian decent reading out there that the less good stuff like this just shouldn’t happen. So many truly gaping plot holes, characters out of the 1970s (she was slender/thin/flat stomached, he had broad shoulders and muscular hands) that I could have screamed. Repetitive use of stock phrase (a puff of breath…) and I’m not sure if Ms Roach is American but hells teeth, if you’re setting a novel in the UK, the no American terms, please! ‘Sedan, faucet, gotten’ just no! It did seem like the Surrey town where the book was supposedly set had been picked with a pin as there appeared to be scant knowledge of it. The Cull will be culled from my reading list, there’s far better dystopian lit out there.
There’s so much apocalyptic, dystopian decent reading out there that the less good stuff like this just shouldn’t happen. So many truly gaping plot holes, characters out of the 1970s (she was slender/thin/flat stomached, he had broad shoulders and muscular hands) that I could have screamed. Repetitive use of stock phrase (a puff of breath…) and I’m not sure if Ms Roach is American but hells teeth, if you’re setting a novel in the UK, the no American terms, please! ‘Sedan, faucet, gotten’ just no! It did seem like the Surrey town where the book was supposedly set had been picked with a pin as there appeared to be scant knowledge of it. The Cull will be culled from my reading list, there’s far better dystopian lit out there.
December 3, 2024
I am really sorry and I don’t do this very often but I couldn’t finish this book. I got to 40% and it just didn’t get going.
The story bounced about a bit between different characters but there was no real building of the people.
I lost all interest in the characters (if I even had any in the first place) and the storyline was a little bizarre. I’m pretty sure there would be an uprising if there was any form of cull, especially if there were children involved!
I hope others find it more riveting
The story bounced about a bit between different characters but there was no real building of the people.
I lost all interest in the characters (if I even had any in the first place) and the storyline was a little bizarre. I’m pretty sure there would be an uprising if there was any form of cull, especially if there were children involved!
I hope others find it more riveting
February 26, 2025
great concept and love how it’s a series! some punctuation errors on the kindle .. and some very long sentences which sometimes interrupted the flow whilst reading. loved the characters, engaging and well thought out story. scarily traumatising to read (the first half of the book). would for sure be mindful whilst reading and be aware of themes in the book because it’s extremely detailed and disturbing at some points in the first half.
May 11, 2024
Dull book, dull main characters, dull backstories.
Skim read after 40%
Random characters pop up with a little bit of a back story - giving the impression they'll somehow fit into the plot (Terry and Sister, David and Vincent), then they disappear. What's the point of the backstory if they don't have a role? Lots of redundant text.
Skim read after 40%
Random characters pop up with a little bit of a back story - giving the impression they'll somehow fit into the plot (Terry and Sister, David and Vincent), then they disappear. What's the point of the backstory if they don't have a role? Lots of redundant text.
July 7, 2024
I enjoyed my time during this book. The premise is good. The characters are likeable. The pacing could have been better,but the last chapters made up for it. I started book 2 right after the book ended. All in all a good book,but not on the same height like classics as hunger games,divergent,maze runner etc. Would be a very good tv series i think
April 11, 2025
A crescendo of action
The Cull brings up a very real issue.. overpopulation. Putting my self in to the world of The Cull, I found myself putting myself in the main character’s predicament of being selected to sacrifice themselves for the betterment of the human race. I cheered and applauded the effort and willed the characters to make their escape. I was left wanting more!
The Cull brings up a very real issue.. overpopulation. Putting my self in to the world of The Cull, I found myself putting myself in the main character’s predicament of being selected to sacrifice themselves for the betterment of the human race. I cheered and applauded the effort and willed the characters to make their escape. I was left wanting more!
August 30, 2025
When I came across this on KU I was really intrigued as I hadn’t read a dystopian in a long time and I really liked this book! I loved following along with a different cast of characters and really made me feel for them and what they were going through, it made me question my own mortality at times!
I can’t wait to continue this series and see what road the characters take.
I can’t wait to continue this series and see what road the characters take.
July 19, 2024
What a terrifying idea!
We follow Tom and Steph who have been given end of life dates in a bid to save humanity.
Could you go to the culling centre if your names was pulled out of the lottery?
This book has had me questioning what I'd do for well. Over two months now
We follow Tom and Steph who have been given end of life dates in a bid to save humanity.
Could you go to the culling centre if your names was pulled out of the lottery?
This book has had me questioning what I'd do for well. Over two months now
December 14, 2024
Took me a while to get into this book hence the loss of a star. Maybe midway to latter half I became more invested and enjoyed it. Leaves you on a cliffhanger but no option but to read book 2 really.
February 20, 2025
The Cull has a good premise that feels all too plausible. While some parts drag and could have benefited from tighter editing, the overall story kept me engaged. A solid Dystopian story.
I will pick up book 2.
I will pick up book 2.
February 26, 2026
A haunting and thought provoking dystopian story. The lottery concept is chilling, but it’s Stephanie and Tom’s emotional journey that truly stands out. Their bond brings heart to a bleak world, making this both unsettling and deeply moving.
March 1, 2024
I need a second book please 🤣
October 2, 2024
Utterly brilliant
A page turner if ever there was one!
Could not put it down.
Onto the sequel already.
Thriller, mystery, adventure, morbid, genius
A page turner if ever there was one!
Could not put it down.
Onto the sequel already.
Thriller, mystery, adventure, morbid, genius
October 30, 2024
Well that was bleak
January 5, 2025
Not my usual choice of book, but after wanting to support the author - WOW! I was so immersed in this book and it felt so realistic for the future.
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