School's Out Forever

The Afterblight Chronicles #3, 6, 9

by Scott K. Andrews

THE HIT BOOK THAT INSPIRED THE NEW FILM ‘AFTER THE WORLD DIED WE ALL SORT OF DRIFTED BACK TO SCHOOL. AFTER ALL, WHERE ELSE WAS THERE TO GO?’ Lee Keegan’s fifteen. If most of the population of the world hadn’t just died choking on their own blood, he might be worrying about acne, body odour and girls. As it is, he and the young Matron of his boarding school, Jane Crowther, have to try and protect their charges from cannibalistic gangs, religious fanatics, a bullying prefect experimenting with crucifi xion, and even the might of the US Army. Welcome to St. Mark’s School for Boys and Girls... School’s Out Forever collects School’s Out, Operation Motherland and Children’s Crusade, with the short story The Man Who Would Not Be King, an introduction by the editor, interviews, and new, previously unpublished material.

Genres: Fiction, Science Fiction, Horror, Dystopia, Post Apocalyptic, Book Club, Ebooks

801 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 28, 2002

About the author

Scott K. Andrews has written episode guides, magazine articles, film and book reviews, comics, computer games, audio plays for Big Finish, far too many blogs, some poems you will never read, and a whole bunch of novels. He's online at www.scottkandrews.com.

Reviews

[Cameron R · Rating 5 out of 5]

I, like most people, read the first lines of this book and then immediately went to the checkout line.
"I CELEBRATED My fifteenth birthday by burying my headmaster and emptying my bladder on freshly turned earth. Best present a boy could have."
After making my way home I relaxed on my couch, opened School's Out Forever, and did not move until three in the morning. The first book was done. I preceded to read the next books the following two days. Sure the books were a little like Lord of The Flies, and sure the fast pace can trip you up at times, but as a whole these books are a thing a savage beauty.
Having never read any Scott K. Andrews, I had no idea what I was getting into. But, it is the greatest feeling when I discover an amazing new author, and that's what happened. The Post Apocalyptic world Andrews creates ruminated in my brain for days. I look forward to reading more from him.

[Travis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Where to begin?

My first foray into the Afterblight Chronicles was the first book in the series, entitled "The Culled." It was a savage, mean bastard of a tale: violent, funny and hot-rod paced. I was left wanting more of this world, so I picked up "School's Out Forever."

It had everything I was expecting: vicious cults, action, humour and badassery on par with the Culled. But then there was something I didn't expect: heart.

I care about these characters. I felt like I went through every tragedy and triumph with them. I loved them for their virtues and found myself despising them for their sins...but I never stopped identifying with them. The Afterblight sandbox is a place where authors come to play and they bring their best toys.

Others have summarised the text, so I won't do that here. But I will say that this is a powerful tale and, if you enjoy it like I did, it will stay with you for a long time.

And that kid Rowles...holy shit. Am I right?

Happy hunting, readers.

[Buffy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book. Holy wow. I had a serious book hangover after finishing it. (For those of you who don’t know what a book hangover is, it’s the inability to start a new book because you can’t stop thinking about the previous one.)

Nutshell blurb: A virus has swept across the globe killing everyone who does not have O-negative blood type. This is the story of the survivors who take shelter at a private boy’s school in Kent.

I feel that I need to start of by saying that even though this book is mainly about children and teenagers, it’s definitely not a YA book. It certainly isn’t for the faint of heart.

So, why would anyone want to read a book that features children who must kill in order to survive? There’s an interview with the author at the end of the book and he’s asked the question of why he features children in the post apocalyptic tale of survival. His response:

“Because they’re far more vicious than adults. Crueller, nastier, less predictable and more morally flexible…kids are not fully formed personalities yet, they’re still pushing the boundaries of social conventions and trying to define themselves, so they do the most awful things sometimes. And the most wonderful, of course.”

This omnibus is made up of three short novels and a short story. The first book is from the point of view of a fifteen year old boy named Lee. The second and third books toggle back and forth between various characters.

There were a few times when I had to suspend my disbelief a bit more than I’m comfortable with, such as when one of the teenagers flies a plane from Kent to Iraq by himself, refueling at various military bases along the way. I also felt as though Lee’s voice/thoughts were a bit more mature than a fifteen year old’s would be. It’s been way more than fifteen years since I was fifteen years old, so I can honestly say that I don’t remember what my thought processes were like back then. I’m willing to push my belief to the boundaries if the writing is good, and the writing in this book is excellent. The characters are engaging and realistic and the action was non-stop.

No one is safe in this book, which gave me the thrilling feeling of fear for the characters I liked as well as the desire for the villains to get their comeuppance, which sometimes didn’t happen. It was difficult to predict and that made it stressful, heart-rending and fun at the same time.

I seldom recommend books to people as we all have different tastes and I don’t want the responsibility of my recommendation if you don’t like it, so I will refrain from doing so now. What I will say, however, is that this book was brutal and it took my breath away.

[Tina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am in awe of this Afterblight Chronicles omnibus but utterly heartbroken too. After the Cull, a plague that decimates the world's population, pupils and teachers start returning to their boarding school. All their loved ones are dead so it seems a sensible place to go, but the school bully returns too and the fact that the school has a Special Cadet Force means that he and his inner circle are quickly armed. He initiates them into doing some heinous things so he can control them. But there are some very good guys too who don't like the way things are going so they plot to take charge and maybe make the school a safe haven again. Very little goes to plan though. As well as the brutality within school there are attacks from outsiders to deal with too. Very soon the whole school is heavily armed and carrying out daily military drills. Death, destruction, power struggles, and that's just the first book!!! (School's Out)
I despised some of these characters, you will too, and wished awful ends for them and loved some whose ends just made me cry a lot. These are very few words to describe an omnibus of books that have left me reeling and shellshocked. I borrowed this but will be buying my own copy because it deserves to be read over again. Despite the relentless violence, it's not glorified. If society breaks down your nice safe environment can turn into a battlefield. It's not unimaginable either, some of the things that happen in it, although Operation Motherland is like a mad joyride! Wow!! Children's Crusade is the book that broke my heart but I cried a lot for each of the characters I loved not just the ones who died. Throughout these books I laughed, cried, whooped for joy, felt despair at their failures and was completely astonished at the close calls and crazy plans. Having read the intro i knew no-one was safe but come on!!!! (You'll know) There's bonus material which is really good too, but after all that, I'm at a loss what to read now. More Afterblight Chronicles for sure.

[Harmony · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an awesome book! I enjoyed every single page, including the interviews and bonus material at the end. I highly recommend this book if you enjoy post-apocalyptic stories. There may not be any zombies in it, but the living are far more scarier!

I enjoyed reading this book so much, I gave a copy of it to a friend for his birthday before I had even finished School's Out!

A+ Great job, Scott!

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is wrong to admit selecting a book for its cover? Well, take a look at the thing –– it's so compelling. Even author Scott K. Andrews admits the cover has helped U.S. sales of this omnibus. The gun toting school girl may be troubling, but it was enough to get me to read further. And yes, I bought an actual book -- made of paper not databits -- at my Newport Beach B&N.

I've lately become a big fan of dystopia. Perhaps this reflects my overall world view. For while I have never been happier in my personal life, looking beyond my front door I suspect the future will consist more of subsistence farming and shooting trespassers than meal pills and flying cars. And yes this is an odd dichotomy.

School's Out (the first title in the book's collection of three novels and a short) is a thrill fest. There is very little downtime as we meet the survivors of the culling –– a flu-like plague that ended the lives of everyone without Type O Neg, Blood.

[Type O- Neg was one of my favorite goth bands in the '90s, BTW. I actually saw them play at the Roseland in Portland. It was an amazing show, just incredible effects for an under 5,000 audience. Falling snow, lights, trees. Their singer was fairly ripped; I remember I was with a girl who'd seen him in Playgirl.... but I digress...]

(I do wonder if Andrews knows of Type O -- did they have any hits in Britain? )

Anyway, I realize I've been enjoying these types of tales since my 12-year-old reading of The Stand one summer. Despite similar elements (and more than a nod to Lord of the Flies), Andrews creates a unique world through his young narrator's POV. We get the sense of a world closing in on itself as the traditions of a fairly posh private school continue even as it devolves into military dictatorship. There is even an amazing speech where the one-time teenage leader of the school explains why strong dictators and fascism are a necessary first step to democracy.

Despite the occasionally graphic horror (which was realistic and non-gratuitous), one of the best elements in this novel is the way the main character pines for a girl, and experiences all the ordinary self esteem issues seen in YA fiction. I suspect the novel benefits from Andrews own journey into YA life, as the author of an unauthorized guide to Dawson's Creek.

[Gavin Gates · Rating 5 out of 5]

Certain things make any post apocalyptic novels an essential read for me, splatterhouse style blood and guts, what's left of society being ran by idiots, revolt, and some real bad taste tongue in cheek humour. All of the above are present in abundance, I had read the first two of these separately aswell as a couple of other novels in the 'afterblight chronicles' before being handed the omnibus for review and was over the moon with the thought of reading them again and also getting to finish the set off. Some people might find this a bit of a hard read at points because of the focal character groups young age (as the title suggests,) violent and serious approach but this is balanced out very well with the bad guys/powers that be being so over the top Andrews writes in an absolute no nonsense style so if you are looking for flowery prose and pointless filling of pages with 'beautiful' description and scene setting put the book down. From first to last though this is a real bleak and thoroughly entertaining look at how far society could crumble and how far the good few could be willing to kick back.

[Elle Lawson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I judged a book by its cover. I was making a return at Barnes & Noble and I bought The Hobbit and this book. I saw the cover and said "yup, buying it."

I was not disappointed, I loved this story. It was very violent and pretty graphic at times, but given the plot I wouldn't have expected it not to be.

There was only on bit that bothered me a little bit, because the never was discovered, anyone who's read it will know what I'm talking about when I say, The King. It only bothers me because there was a good section of the book dedicated to telling the reader the truth, but then nothing was ever done with it elsewhere.

All that aside I recommend this to anyone who enjoys dystopian stories.

[Sara · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read all of the books by way of this collection, so rather than reviewing them individually, I'll review each of them now, and I'll keep it short.

•Book 1, SCHOOL'S OUT: Hello this is Mac and he's here to fuck shit up because he's a sociopath and he likes to fuck shit up!

•Book 2, OPERATION MOTHERLAND: Hi, these are all the surviving military powers, and they're here to fuck all this shit up, in the name of God and Country and reasons! (And P.S., one word/name: Rowles.)

•Book 3, CHILDREN'S CRUSADE: no no no no nooooooooo noooo no MY BABIES wHYyYYYYYY WOULD YOU DO THIS TO MY BABIES

[H. R. · Rating 2 out of 5]

What if Golding had asked Rob Zombie to co-author 'Lord of the Flies' and they had modified the plot to bring the adults in early, and have them behave worse than the kids? Slogging through this literary bucket of viscera, was initially hopeful of something worthy, but the slasher moments are becoming highly repetitive. Maybe the point of this novel is no point at all, and I should skip to the last few pages.

[Lili Tee · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's 3 AM, I started this book 9 hours ago, and didn't put it down until right now when I finished it.

Yeah. That was a damn good book. And while people may be deterred by the blatant deus ex machina that Andrews employs regularly, I still give him much kudos as a writer to explore the depths of psychopathy the way he does. Brilliant.

[Shannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Full of fast-paced suspense -- this novel is pretty brutal. A terrible virus has wiped out most people in the world - only people with o-negative blood have survived. The main character, Lee, makes his way back to his boarding school because it is the one place her feels community. A couple of teachers and about thirty other boys have the same idea. While this could be a good thing, One of the surviving boys is the school bully, Mac, and he decides he wants to be the one in charge. What follows is intense brutality as Mac fights to be the dictator and Lee subversively tries to stop him. The boys have to fight against crazy religious cultists who want to kill them (and eat them) and other venomous groups intent on creating a power base. The violent descriptions are not glossed over and the terror feels real and brutish. Not a series for the feint of heart.

[C · Rating 3 out of 5]

Do you know why I love Indian Jones? Because nothing is ever easy for him. He has his skills and his luck and even the occasional bravado-fueled quip, but for every step forward he takes he seems to take two steps back. Hollywood seems to have forgotten about the Indiana Jones brand of hero and even the last IJ movie was more Pirates of the Caribbean than anything else. Done well, I have no real problem with the Pirates' type of hero - they can be lots of fun - but my heart will always be with Dr. Jones. In part this is because I think he is more like me. I may not be able to use a whip with great panache or survive a falling rope bridge but God knows, I sometimes feel like nothing I earn comes easily. I imagine most of us feel like that.

"School's Out Forever" is a collection of a trilogy that often manages to recapture that feeling. The characters in the post-apocalyptic landscape are dragged down and beaten more than they are allowed to breathe easy or celebrate victory. The main character, Lee is the crowning example of this and over the course of the trilogy gets injured and disfigured do frequently, it almost enters the realm of farce. It is not exactly a farce however and is lodged firmly in the realm of Pulp. I've never been much for pulp fiction but this was a fun foray and an excellent escape from more serious books.

The action is fast, the violence is brutal and the quips are non-stop. The latter pays homage to pretty much all of the comic book, action movie and late night low-budget quasi-law enforcement shows in history. In the beginning it works and works well. In part this is due to the inner doubts of Lee, who is still a child. He is fully aware of the face he shows to others, built on one-liners given as punchlines in battle. At the same time he proves himself tough, resourceful and highly skilled with guns - all hallmarks of success for would-be post-apocalyptic action heroes. His failures are also in plain sight for the reader but his awareness of his own shortcomings combined with his conflicted feelings on his false bravado, make him an endearing character and one the reader can't help but root for.

As the books go forward however, the formula changes as Lee grows more confident in his skin. He still makes the same, tried and true, brazenly unfazed-by-danger heroic statements, but the self-awareness behind them has started to erode. Basically Lee is growing into the man he has pretended to be. That is actually a pretty neat character change if left on its own, but as more and more characters come to the forefront, we see that Lee's bluster, which is quickly transitioning from mask to reality, is also present in so many others. This could be a beautiful commentary on pop-culture and how the plethora of poorly written, violent media is affecting the way we see ourselves and who we ought to be, but instead comes across more as the author losing sight of that very point as he began the second book in the trilogy.

Personally, I think the perhaps overwrought violence (perhaps not) of the books, coupled with the disturbing fact that the vast majority of the killers and killed are children and teens, brings the series to a higher level of seriousness - one which makes the blaze attitudes of the characters falter as a device. It's hard to fully enjoy the hero's snide remarks to a villain when you know that the scene is sandwiched in between scenes of frank, and often disturbing violence.

This is not The Hunger Games, and the contrasts are telling: while The Hunger Games Katniss is fairly accepting of the need to kill others to protect her family, she actually manages to do very little of it herself, and is fully aware of the costs of violence, both to herself and those she has to kill. Lee, in contrast, talks plenty in the beginning about the costs of violence and maintains a strong desire to avoid it, but his actions often belie his words. Furthermore, while his reactions to death and violence initially are fitting, the constancy of it soon wear these feeling away.

The change from false bravado to real bravado, coupled with the growing acceptance of violence work well as plot devices and character development, but are at strong odds with the humorous zings Lees gives his enemies and the repeated statements of a wish for peace. The result is a steady slide in depth with each successive book in the series. While they never reach a truly unenjoyable bottom, they do start to grow tiresome after a bit.

That said, the books never fail to be fun. They are all fast-paced, action-filled, light reads which are hard to put down - at least on their own. I took a little break between books but maybe not long enough. The result was a total awareness of how each book compared to the ones before. Had I allowed myself more time in between, I might have come away from them giving the series a higher rating.

[C.J. Mugleston · Rating 5 out of 5]

I usually dont make it through omnibusses or great hulking collections rolled into one book, but Scott Andrews held my interest.

[Barrie Miles · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fast, furious and not afraid to kill off main characters, very satisfying read!

[Jessica Patzer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not gonna lie, this book is intense. It just keeps dragging you along from one violent episode to the next. Pretty good though. Not the kind of stuff I usually go for, but pretty darn good.

[A.D. Roland]

School's Out Forever by Scott K. Andrews

AWEsome!! I grabbed this book on a whim while I was hunting down some over-priced Doctor Who merchandise in a bookstore. It took me two solid weeks to actually start it, and then three days to finish it. It's absolutely one of the best books I've read in a long.

It's brutal. Angry. Violent. Honest. The gore and carnage and violence is intense, but it's not gratuitous. It's not about shock-value. The characters reactions to what has happened to them is just painfully realistic. They learn to survive, but they also learn to think of their friends, and their community. They band together to destroy those who want to hurt them, and they do it with swift brutality.

The four stories in the book all seem a little too big to be realistic. It's a similar formula in each one--threat looms, the hero, Lee, gathers his forces, basically blunders into the enemies' headquarters, and gets shot, hanged, stabbed, bones broken, tortured, friends are killed...and then the bad guy makes a mistake and Lee walks his people out (figuratively. By the end of the book he's absolutely broken, body and soul, and it's one of the most crushing moments of the books when it can't be hidden anymore).

I love how strong the female characters are in the stories. While Matron is the main female lead, by the end of the book, Caroline is stepping up and taking names.

The writing is strong and vibrant. Details are rendered in excruciating clarity. When you take a step back, you realize these plots wouldn't work in real life...or would they? Why do you need complicated, multi-pronged attack when you can just wait until you're face to face with the enemy, and kill him then?

LOved this book. Can't recommend it enough. Read it!

[Stacey Douglas · Rating 5 out of 5]

A post-viral apocalyptic trilogy (School’s Out, Operation Motherland, and Children’s Crusade), somewhat like Golding's Lord of the Flies, set in England's boarding schools countryside outside London. We follow the devolution of several characters, mainly children in their early teens, through various ethical dilemmas and the increasingly horrendous choices they must make in their bid for survival. The narrative keeps one wondering "just how are they going to make it out of this now?" - at times stretching ones credulity - but, hey, the suspension of belief is part of what fiction/James Bond/alternative realities/sci-fi is all about. Various appalling circumstances and situations present themselves, which the author pursues through several characters, exploring the ethical motif that in a safe, civil society certain high moral standards may be possible but under survival situations they must/need be abandoned--unsavory acts and heinous choices are presented as warranted and justifiable. A grim story, not without hope, but one that shows the struggle to be and remain what is good in being a human, even when ones being and sanity is progressively sacrificed, fragmented, and lost through impossible choices if one is to continue to find ways to survive ('live' would be too generous a word here). This "Afterblight" Earth contribution is well worth the time to work through to the end, and to ponder the horrifying questions Andrews raises in the process. I look forward to reading more from Andrews.

[Mary Bryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one of those books that I never thought I'd ever read. Still, it called out to me at a visit to Barnes and Noble. The book zips right along and you find yourself really caring about the characters. Now, let me tell you, I've never thought of myself as a "Science Fiction" reader. And there are no aliens or spaceships or journeys to middle earth, etc. but that's the genre this book has been given. There are some moments where you roll your eyes at the convenience of someone getting out by the skin of their teeth. Still, you just keep wanting to know more and more about these hapless Cull survivors.

[Ruben · Rating 5 out of 5]

Someone commented how they got book hangover after reading this, and I have to concur. This was one of those books that kept you up late into the night and I'd have dreams of the characters, wondering how their fate will play out. I love post apocalyptic, zombie, survival novels as I find the monsters turn out to be us in the end, having to make such terrible choices in order to preserve ones self or their family or friends. I'm going to have to search out the rest of the Afterblight Chronicles to find out the whole story arc.

[Meaghan Houle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was never a reader until this book. The Way Andrews writes almost puts you into the story (well it did for me anyway). It was a great read and many other books he writes keep me entertained. School's Out Forever is very real saniro of what an apocilypse might look like. It is very fun to read and you never really know who is going to do what. Love this book, and if you like sience fiction, I highly recommend it.

[Brent · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book (actually a three-book collection) turned out to be surprisingly good with a fleshed out plot and well written characters that beg compassion and empathy from the reader. I expected a trite, mishmashed collection of post-apocalyptic gore, but was pleasantly surprised by a narrative that while rough and unpolished in areas, shone brilliantly overall.

[John Carlson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic!!! Loved every minute of it.. Three books in one, with action, romance and dystopian shadows. I can't wait till Scott K. Andrews comes out with another like this. Character development good -- teens, but fighting against self as well as enemies. The three great themes all in these pages. "Human against Nature, Human against human, and human against self."

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not normally the style of book I'd choose on my own, recommended by my mom...so I gave it a shot. Marvelous novel, well written, amazing characters who you cheer for as they struggle with the nastiness of a world ravaged by death and chaos. Had a Lord of the Flies meets Mad Max sort of feel. I blew threw this book in a couple days, great read.

[Jim Short · Rating 4 out of 5]

Post-apocalyptic vision - so depressing in that vein and the view of the majority of humanity. But well written, the characters are engaging and you really rout for them.

[Angie Jenkins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Outstanding, fast paced and well written. That being said, I would recommend it hesitantly as it is extraordinarily violent and features children committing horrific acts in the name of survival.

[Peter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Best first sentence. Ever.

[Jennifer]

OK, I gotta say, despite the violence this one is worth reading.
It's a page turner for sure, and it's well written with well built character, location, story.... if you can handle gore, go for it

[Anastasia · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was just wow.
The storyline and the characters were absolutely fantastic, and it's one of those books that I wanted to throw across the room at the plot twists.

[OG · Rating 5 out of 5]

I reread this once a year as a form of pleasurable self harm