This Is Where the World Ends

by Amy Zhang

The heart-wrenching new novel about best friends on a collision course with the real world, from the author of Falling into Place.

Janie and Micah, Micah and Janie. That’s how it’s been ever since elementary school, when Janie Vivian moved next door. Janie says Micah is everything she is not. Where Micah is shy, Janie is outgoing. Where Micah loves music, Janie loves art. It’s the perfect friendship, as long as no one finds out about it.

But when Janie is date-raped by the most popular guy in school—a guy she’s had a crush on for years—she finds herself ostracized by all the people she thought were her friends. Now only Micah seems to believe she’s telling the truth. But when even Micah expresses doubt about whether or not she was “asking for it,” it leads to disastrous consequences, and Janie Vivian goes missing.

Using a nonlinear writing style and dual narrators, Amy Zhang’s astonishing second novel masterfully reveals the circumstances surrounding Janie’s disappearance.

Genres: Young Adult, Contemporary, Fiction, Romance, Realistic Fiction, Mystery, Audiobook

320 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 22, 2016

Reviews

[emma · Rating 1 out of 5]

I've written many a rant in my time. But this one needs to be the roast to end them all.

This is going to be a stream of consciousness review, because I’m so fucking angry and I don’t want to think about this but my fingers are twitching with fury and I need to do something.

https://emmareadstoomuch.wordpress.co...

Also, this will be teeming with spoilers, absolutely filled with them, but I don’t care and neither should you because nobody should ever goddamn read this stupid book.

Janie Vivian is a manic pixie dream girl. She has a stupid, manic pixie dream girl name, and manic pixie dream girl bright red hair, and a manic pixie dream girl obsession with a fucking pile of rocks, and cutesy, manic pixie dream girl alcoholism, and inspires obsessive, defining love into the hearts of boring guys like only a manic pixie dream girl could.

Everyone just looooves Janie. Teachers love her and treat her like the ocean fucking birthed her into the hallways of a public high school. The popular group welcomes her with open arms, for some goddamn reason. Her best friend loves her enough to bring her Starbucks every morning, which is frankly just financially irresponsible for a high school student, but what fucking ever.

But nobody loves Janie like Miiiicahhhh.

Janie and Micah are best friends, supposedly. They have been for years, supposedly. They have the most unrealistic and toxic and cringeworthy relationship ever. Wait, no, not cringeworthy. A million times more than cringeworthy. Scream-and-tear-out-the-pages-and-throw-them-into-a-pit-of-acid worthy. Rolls off the tongue.

Here’s how Janie speaks to Micah: Micah, my beautiful sunflower, you are filled with a light that rivals the stars I hold so dear. We share a soul. Every time I see you, I’ll say that I love you more than everything, and you’ll tell me you love me more than anything, k? It’s cutesy. The couples that are made up of one manic pixie dream and one platter of unseasoned chicken with plain toast always have something cute they say to each other. Okay? Okay. Get it? That was an example. Aren’t I funny and charming and life-changing? Insane and wild and worth it, darling? Thanks. And, um...I love this pile of rocks? I’m going to take some rocks from it and write Virginia Woolf quotes on them and carry them in my pockets? Is that manic pixie-esque enough?

In return for this validation, etc., Micah allows Janie to do shit like this: Never speak to him at school; break into his home; prevent him from studying/scatter his notes; make out with him and then turn around and make out with another guy; be aware for years that he is in looooove with her but just continue leading him on; try to prevent him from being friends with anyone else; tell him his best friend is in love with him just because his best friend is gay and she’s jealous and manipulative and psychotic.

But it’s okayyyy, you guys. Because she’s quirky. She takes shots of vodka without a chaser. She has a thing for metaphors.

Hang on. This is making me angrier. Cookie break.

Alright I’m back.

Everything’s coming up roses for good old Janie Vivian. (I love the two-first-names rule for manic pixie dream girls. Hazel Grace Lancaster; Lindsey Lee Wells; Margo Roth Spiegelman. Or at least weird names - Ramona Flowers; Alaska Young; Holly Golightly. But I digress.)

Anyway, life is just a romp in the park for Janie - or, to put it in her terms, a drunken winter’s night at the quarry spent spewing truisms about nature and life.

But, as we all have learned from books by John Green and movies starring Kirsten Dunst and Zooey Deschanel, things NEVER end up well for a manic pixie dream girl. That wouldn’t be tryhardy-powerful enough; it wouldn’t have the right sickly-sweet meaning to it.

Janie Vivian needs a reason to disappear from the book.

So -

trigger warning -

she

is

raped.

Janie Vivian is raped, and she burns her house down and kills herself because of it.

And Micah is so traumatized he spends the whole book forgetting it anytime someone tells him. We spend 300 pages tracking the truth, and that’s what we fucking get. We get rape as a plot device.

And of course the timing of the suicide is just fabulous. Of course it’s the night Micah grows a backbone. The night he tells her it’s not okay for her to treat him the way she does. She kills herself right after he says it. Like it’s not acceptable to stand up for yourself in a toxic friendship. Fuck off. It’s not extra powerful if you try to ruin a friendship in addition to killing off your main character.

We spend 300 pages chasing what happened - see, Micah’s forgotten an entire goddamn year, because that makes sense - and when we finally get it, the book ends. We get the truth, Micah says “I KILLED HER! NOW I’LL KILL MYSELF!,” Micah’s friend - I wish I was joking - says “Just be a better friend in the future.”

And then the book

Ends.

Like that.

Very cool.

Great message.

Everything definitely got concluded very well, thank you. That was simply wonderful.

And on top of it all, this doesn’t have anything to do with the apocalypse. The “““world ends””” for Micah because Janie killed herself.

Just when I was wishing the heavens really would smite this whole book.

Fuck.

Bottom line: rape and suicide as plot devices, a manic pixie dream girl like you’ve never seen, the most boring male character of all time...and the sum is greater than its parts when it comes to how much I fucking hate this book. I need a rating below one star.

-----ORIGINAL ANGRY RAMBLINGS------
I really, really, really, really, really hated this book.

So much that I don't even know if I can review it.

It's fucking unfair that this terrible fucking book even exists.

Fuck, fuck, fuck. What the fuck?

[Rose · Rating 1 out of 5]

I am so angry. I'm so upset. I don't even know how to put this into words.

SPOILER BEFORE, BUT ALSO POSSIBLE TRIGGER:

I haven't seen any reviews or anything at all warning others that there is rape in this book. I really wish someone had told me before cause it's really triggering for me, even though it's a spoiler.

The review is kind of a rant and all over the place, so just a warning.

I'm just gonna get out the basic reasons for why I dislike this book. It's about Janie and Micah, who are neighbors and 'best friends', but Janie is popular and Micah is awkward. They don't talk to each other at school because Janie's kind of a jerk. Janie ignores Micah and is hurtful to him, but yet always expects him to be there for her anyway. #FriendshipGoals

The first 70% of this book is confusing, boring, and involves lots of getting drunk and forgetting stuff. It shows bits of Micah and Janie's messed up relationship and all these little quirky, but weird things they would do together. So basically, it's everything that I hated from Looking for Alaska.

The rest is spoilery so if you plan on reading this (which I don't recommend), then don't read on.

The thing I fucking hated was the ending. I don't honestly know how to put this into words, because everything about it just felt so wrong. Janie was raped, burns her house on fire, and drowns herself.

Let me just say this: I didn't even like Janie. I thought she was extremely childish, self-centered, a hypocrite, and would say all these things that were supposed to be deep or something (which just gave me second hand embarrassment, no one talks like that).

But I just hated how her ending was written, how it was handled, and the overall message it was meant to send. I'm probably taking this way too personally, but honestly? Its hurtful when authors write about rape like it's not an extremely delicate subject.
I seriously wish I could take back reading this.

[Aj the Ravenous Reader · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think the author is really good at creating unreliable narrators just like she successfully did with her debut novel Falling Into Place. Though I still prefer her debut novel a lot more than her second book, Amy Zhang’s writing still incredibly impresses me. I have no doubt she’s really a 50 year old literature teacher trapped in a young adult’s body. I love the way she connects scientific theories with personal and social problems people usually deal with.

But a few weeks ago, I had this conversation with a Goodreads friend about how books should always come with a trigger warning especially when they’re dealing with sensitive issues so readers will know what they’re getting into. Let me warn you now that the book deals with rape and honestly not recommended for readers who don’t want to be sad. That said, This is Where the World Ends I think is still a pretty compelling novel with a strong plot and intriguing narrative modes, an insightful and significant YA contemporary that discusses ugly realities young people go through in high school.

Janie reminds me of a lot of our notable YA contemporary heroines like Margo of Paper Towns and Hannah Baker of Thirteen Reasons Why. For others, these references might be the reason not to read the book while for others, this detail might be intriguing. At some point, the relationship between Janie and Micah reminds me of that of Clay Jensen and Hannah Baker’s.

My two major problems about the book is one, how the narrative POV confused me several times. Yeah, I know they’re called unreliable narrators for a reason but the diversion and mystery sometimes annoyed the heck out of me. The second is its lack of any proper resolution leaving me really depressed like there really isn’t any justice left in this world. It’s just so damn sad. *sniffs. This is ultimately why I’m only settling for three stars.

[Melanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rating not final.

Me right now:



I cannot stress how highly anticipated this book was for me - Falling into Place, Ms. Zhang's debut novel was my favourite book of 2014 and since then I have reread it about 8 times. No joke. I fucking loved it.

But this book? It left me so, so disappointed.

Of course, Ms. Zhang's writing is spot on, but in terms of the plot, I still need to sort out my thoughts.

Discussion review to come with my co-blogger Celine.

---

I WILL READ ANYTHING AMY ZHANG WRITES.

[Drew · Rating 1 out of 5]

Contrary to what I originally expected, this book is not about an apocalypse.

When I first read the title I expected something along the lines of We All Looked Up, weaving sci fi elements and character explorations together, when in fact this book doesn't come anywhere near the science fiction genre.

This book is a ridiculously melodramatic and metaphorical contemporary focusing on a teenage girl who is constantly throwing a pity party for herself.

I really couldn't stand Janie. She was a pretentious and self absorbed main character. She friendzoned her best friend, Micah, who was secretly in love with her and whom Janie secretly loved back. She hurt him over and over by choosing to date a jerk and completely ignoring Micah.

If Janie and Micah loved each other so much, I don't understand why they didn't just ask each other out. They could have saved themselves so much unnecessary drama if they had just been honest with one another.

But that's not even the worst part - Janie's character was totally unrealistic. She spoke in metaphors all the time which made me role my eyes, and Micah had an unhealthy obsession with her, viewing her as the flawless girl of his dreams.

Seriously though, what kind of teenager carries stones and matches around in her pockets and constantly makes deep philosophical statements like this?

“I think most people are embers… just waiting for a breath to coax them to life. Some of the lucky ones are the breath. But some people aren’t either.”

Like, that doesn't even sound real.

Even when something awful happened to Janie near the middle of the story, I didn't like how she handled it - she didn't tell any adults or authorities what had happened and all her grief slowly built up as a result.

While I LOVED Amy Zhang's Falling into Place, her latest novel felt like it was trying too hard to be epic and memorable and the story ended up feeling scattered and messy.

I would only recommend this to people who like books that literally consist of angsty teenagers being angsty.

[Kels · Rating 2 out of 5]

I don't know. I JUST DON'T KNOW.

This is one of those reviews that makes me wish GR would finally introduce a half star rating system, because while two stars seem to undercut my feelings for this novel, three stars would be wildly overdoing it.

Yep. I know. Bookwork problems.

Amy Zhang is one heck of a talented writer. Her prose is simple and straightforward, but also addictive and charmingly poetic. In This Is Where the World Ends, her style seems to be more whimsical and fanciful, and it works. It really does. But as much as I love her writing style, it wasn't enough to win me over in her sophomore novel.

So where to start? How about the beginning...

One of my least favorite literary devices is beginning a novel by withholding some critical information about the character's past, only to build it up for a big reveal towards the ending. Second to that, is probably the unreliable narrator. Don't get me wrong, I do have some favorites that use one or both, and when it's skillfully implemented it can be the very thing that keeps me on the edge of my seat. But I think that these two literary devices are often abused or just simply not executed well, and it can cause the book to suffer in the process. As was the case in This is Where the World Ends.

The main problem with preparing for a big reveal is that you rise the reader's expectations to what just might be an anti-climatic or easily predictable answer. The second issue I have is that after a while it starts to feel like a taunt, much like a friend who knows someone has a crush on you, but only gives you bad hints as to who that person is without ever giving you an answer. Annoying, amiright? That's how I felt the whole time reading this novel, because: 1) I guessed what happened to Janie in the beginning chapter, because how obvious. And 2) The author didn't really add any big twists to make it interesting.

Another thing was how it kept being thrown in my face with each chapter. What happened to Janie? Something happened to Janie? WHAT IN THE WORLD HAPPENED TO FREAKING JANIE? Just... stop. It came to a point where I didn't care what was happening in between, I just wanted to get to the ending so I could prove myself right on my guess. Needless to say, those two literary devices work best when they aren't so obtrusive and the author can keep your attention focused on the current events, and not just the past or future ones to come.

Yet I think what lost me most was perhaps the character and the dynamics of their relationship. But then again, maybe it was the lack of plot, because let's face it: the whole time we are just waiting to find out what really did happen to Janie. But back to the characters, ahh... I just couldn't connect with any of them. And that, my friends, is a HUGE problem.

Janie is eccentric, wildly whimsical, and to be honest I kept picturing her as a child in maybe middle school, not a teenager in high school. She's incredibly callow and naive, and absolutely preposterous. Sure, she was a "fun" character, but her level of immaturity was a little off kilter and the way she abused her friendship with Micah made me like her that much less. Speaking of Micah, he was such a hopelessly-in-love pushover, and I'm just not a fan of those character types either. Their personalities are almost identical to the character's in Adi Alsaid's, Never Always Sometimes.

I'm starting to get that Amy Zhang leans more to the dark and twisted side of teen novels, but it's just hard for me to relate to a bunch of high schoolers who do nothing but party, mistreat their friends, drink like certified alcoholics, and talk in predominantly four letter words. I don't know, but it seems to lean too much on an extreme with no balance for normalcy. Besides that, I just have a problem with how it's extravagantly displayed and romanticized in this novel. Getting so drunk that you have to be hospitalized and can't remember important/criminalizing events are obviously no big deals kids. Sigh. No. Just no. I can appreciate how Amy Zhang likes to showcase the darker side of being a teenager in high school, but it almost seems a bit cliche and one dimensional. She seems to forget to add in a sense of morality in her characters, and that's pretty shocking considering Zhang's youth.

Lastly, I just need to talk about that ending, because... what? That's it? No, seriously. Was that really it? That's how we end books now? Just stop it where ever without coming to a conclusion, without attempting to wrap it up. Um. Okay. I guess.

So here we are. Didn't quite love this book. Don't think I would be recommending it. Amy Zhang has a natural talent in writing, but it's still a little too one sided, and unseasoned. And yet still, anything Amy Zhang writes, I will probably be among the first in line to read. She's an author I plan to keep my eye on.

[Shannon Miz · Rating 2 out of 5]

You can find the full review and all the fancy and/or randomness that accompanies it at It Starts at Midnight
I was sure that it was just a fluke that I didn't love Falling Into Place . Everyone and their mom loved it. Who knows, maybe my mom loved it. I loved the writing. I did not love the book. So I firmly believed that this foray into Amy Zhang's work would go better. And it did, for a time. It gave me feels. And I excuse just about anything with the right amount of feels. And this book was heavy, emotionally. Oh, there is also a trigger warning for this one too, but I will place under spoiler tags, just in case There is rape involved in this book.

My problem with it lies in that I knew the general plot immediately. There was no real sense of urgency, since I knew, for the most part, exactly what happened from close to the start. So I knew we were looking at a really unhappy situation- it says so in the synopsis, really- and that made it hard to read. But I was definitely moved by Micah and Janie's emotions, so I forged on. Janie and Micah's friendship is painful- she is embarrassed to know him, and he worships the ground she walks on. But he's at her beck and call, and she knows she has him on the hook. Then reading along as things get worse and worse for them both... it's hard, but in an unsatisfying way. It's difficult to connect to either of them, because Janie isn't the nicest person, and we're reading her POV from the past; and Micah because even Micah himself doesn't know what is going on half the time.

I think I could have even been okay with the whole thing, but the ending was incredibly lacking for me. Since I kind of knew most of what was happening in the story already, I was hoping for some "oomph" at the end. Instead, I got a whimper, and a ton of unanswered questions and loose ends. 

Bottom Line: I hate that I didn't love this one. I still don't think I will give up on Amy's writing though, since it really is fabulous. Third time's the charm?

*Copy provided by publisher for review.

[Jeann (Happy Indulgence) · Rating 3 out of 5]

This review appears on Happy Indulgence. Check it out for more reviews!

This is Where the World Ends reminded me of Paper Towns, but much less infuriating and written in a more engaging manner. Amy Zhang has a flair for writing unpredictable contemporaries with unlikable characters who get turned on their heads.

With switching perspectives between Janie (before) and Micah (after), we find out the events leading up to Micah waking up in hospital. All he remembers is a bonfire and Janie in his life beforehand. As we piece together parts of the plot, there’s an underlying mystery – what happened to Janie and where is she?

The relationship between Micah and Janie is enthralling and toxic, as we witness their reckless, thrill-seeking behaviour which escalates throughout the story. Janie is bright, beautiful and unpredictable, and she’s focused all her attention on Micah like a siren. She’s made him believe that they’re soulmates, yet Janie ignores him at school because she doesn’t want to be seen hanging out with an outcast.

As you can tell, the characters aren’t very likable and I found both of them were as bad as the other. While Janie’s already emotionally committed to Micah, she starts dating the angel-like handsome Anders out of curiosity. She was never fair to either of these guys, yet her inflated sense of self made it seem like she was entitled to them. Micah, on the other hand, knew exactly what Janie was doing yet also disregarded her actions. He didn’t treat his best friend Dewey very nicely and looks down at him, despite Dewey being a damn good friend to him.

Although Janie and Micah were unlikable, I was fascinated by the nature of their toxic friendship. You can tell they’re both totally obsessed with each other; Janie with a sense of entitlement and wrapping Micah around her little finger, and Micah being willing to do absolutely anything for Janie. We witness the love-sick Micah in Janie’s point of view from before, but the after Micah who is fraught with separation anxiety after the accident. It’s the compelling mystery that ties the plot together, as we wonder what will become of the Janie and Micah disaster.

Although This is Where the World Ends features unlikable characters, the mystery, the switching perspectives and the toxic friendship kept me glued to it’s pages. I’m a sucker for books featuring toxic friendships because they’re so unpredictable.

I received a review copy in exchange for an honest review.

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

- I love Amy's writing style so fucking much. She has a beautiful way with words and I just adore how the story dips and turns.
- Good portrayal of toxic friendships.
- I felt like it had a lot of elements that were incredibly similar to other popular YA novels which made it hard for me to truly love the story.

[PinkAmy loves books, cats and naps · Rating 4 out of 5]

Grade: B

One Word: Gorgeous

Next door neighbors Janie and Micah, secret friends secret friends and soul mates never speak in public. Janie is bubbly and popular, Micah has just one friend. When Janie moves to the other side of town, each falls into some type of mental illness (though quite possibly the move just escalated their conditions). She's the leader, he the follower.

Janie tells the story "before" The Incident, Micah "after" in alternating, nonlinear chapters. Janie's journals of fairytales also illustrate The Incident. Micah has retrograde amnesia, as well as difficulty with short term memory and can't remember The Incident, or where Janie is. The police interview him, but he doesn't know why.

Amy Zhang's followup to her debut stunning debut, FALLING INTO PLACE, proves she's one of the most exciting young writers in YA fiction. Her prose is simply stunning, almost poetic. Both Micah and Janie are complex, flawed characters and neither is a reliable narrator. At times during Micah's chapters, I questioned what was real and what was hallucination.

THIS IS WHERE THE WORLD ENDS isn't a novel full of surprises and gotchas. If you read the blurb, the plot is fairly transparent, although that didn't take away from my enjoyment of the story. It's so well written, compelling and full of heart, I didn't mind figuring things out early.

THEMES: Friendship, romance, dating, rape, suicide, mental illness

THIS IS WHERE THE WORLD ENDS will make you wonder, feel and think. I'll read anything by Amy Zhang, including her grocery shopping list.

[Lauren (TheBookishTwins) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Disclaimer: I received a free copy via Edelweiss for review purposes.

I've heard fantastic things about Amy Zhang's writing since her debut Falling into Place. I was lucky enough to receive an eARC of This is Where the World Ends and experience her beautiful writing firsthand.

This book contains rape, so if that is something that triggers you I would avoid this book.

Janie and Micah have known each other for a long time. They were best friends and also polar opposites. But Janie, on her way to high school, keeps their friendship a secret. As they navigate their unhealthy relationship, Janie then goes missing and Micah is left to pick up the pieces of what she left behind and to figure out where and why she's gone.

There were certain aspects of Janie's personality I enjoyed. She was carefree, a dreamer and imaginative, and so full of life, but the way she treated Micah was emotionally manipulative. Micah was a bit of a dull character, so I never really emotionally connected with him. Their relationship is toxic. This is Where the World Ends portrays a very unhealthy and very manipulative relationship between Janie and Micah. Janie does not treat Micah like a friend, and so I was never really behind their 'romance'. I'm not sure we are supposed to be.

This is Where the World Ends is written with dual narratives, Janie and Micah, but Micah's chapters alternative between 'Then' and 'Now', and Micah's 'Now' chapters were very confusing and disjointed and thus made it very difficult to read and follow what was going on.

This is Where the World Ends also deals with a very sensitive topic - rape. It's not exactly a perfect portrayal but I think it highlights the grief that comes with such an ordeal. Though at times I felt that it was used just as a plot device.

I think the reason I enjoyed this book so much was the beautiful metaphorical writing by Zhang, and I will be sure to keep an eye out for any new books that she writes.

[savannah chandler · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is Where the World Ends is the type of book that is best to not know what it's about before heading into it. I am a huge fan of Amy's other novel, Falling into Place. So, when I saw that she was coming out with another stand-alone contemporary, I had to get my hands on it ASAP! I will admit, I really didn't enjoy this book as much as I thought I would. If you guys didn't know, if there is something I hate about a book, it's most likely alternating chapters. 75% of the time, they aren't done right. The story doesn't flow or there are gaps that never get filled. This time, it wasn't as bad as others, but it would have made the book better if the story flowed as one.

This book left me with a lot of questions, questions that I would love answers for. Amy did this with Falling into Place, but I believe the book hangover was worst this time around. If you want a dark, grungy story, this book it right up your alley. The emotions that come of the pages just wiggle there way through your chest and into your heart. You want to help Micah and tell him that he's okay, but you just can't that is what you call writing.

Janie and Micah, oh what those kids went through. It like you're on a rollercoaster that never stops until the last word. No spoilers, but it's a lot like Mara Dyer, but 2 times more hallucinations. I would have loved to have more backstory on their friendship before Janie goes missing. My heart was broken throughout this whole book for Micah.

Amy's writing and creativity make this book whole. She makes all her work so captivating, I just cannot get enough of it. I hope to see more masterpieces from her in the future.
Overall, This is Where the World End is a heart wrenching, dark contemporary novel that put you in a story about friendship, loss, and living with one of the biggest mistakes you could ever make.

[Rachel007 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gah. This book. Gah. Amy Zhang's writing. She is 18 or 19 and writing like this and I can't wait to see what she does in 5 years' time. Seriously. Wow.

This is a book about toxic friendships and manicpixiedreamgirls and non-linear timelines and dual POVs and being a teen and thinking you know it all and high school and best friends.

[Aimee · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received a copy of This is Where the World Ends from HarperCollins New Zealand to review. I have Falling into Place by Amy as well that I purchased last year but I’ve never read it.

This book was a very fast read for me but it wasn’t the best book I’ve ever read. I couldn’t connect with Janie, she was way too over the top. I didn’t understand why she wanted to keep her friendship with Micah a secret if he meant so much to her. And everything was on Janie’s terms, I don’t get why Micah put up with her to be honest. I’m not sure I would have if she was my friend.

I did feel for Janie with what happened to her and I do kind of understand why she thought
no one would believe her but that’s no reason not to tell anyone. And her plan for revenge was really stupid.

I think the only problem I had with Micah was that he just went along with whatever Janie wanted to to, even when he knew it was a stupid idea.

I did like how the book was told. I had no idea what was going on and did want to keep reading to figure out what was happening. The story was told through Janie’s perspective in the past and Micah’s in the present. I’ve read another book that was told this way but I can’t remember what book it was.

I think the reason I didn’t like this book was because I couldn’t connect with Janie and Micah. I find when I can’t connect with the main characters in a book that it puts me off them and the book. It would have been an interesting story if either of the main characters were likable. I did like the story and like I said before I wanted to know what happened to Janie and Micah but that didn’t help me with the characters.

[Jacquelyn · Rating 2 out of 5]

Based on how much I absolutely adored Amy Zhang's first book, Falling into Place, I am oh so disappointed in this one. The writing was very nice and quick but other than that, I didn't enjoy it. It was so repetitive the ending was a total letdown. I was reading this thinking that it was going to be a huge buildup to something crazy at the end but nope... It just sort of wrapped up and was done. Left me so disappointed. Also, I saw someone else mention this in their review and they are SO RIGHT. The whole summary is seriously a spoiler of basically the whole book. Why do publishers do that?? The characters frustrated me a lot and it was just drama, drama, and some more drama. Thankfully, this one was so quick because if it wasn't, I am not so sure I could have finished. Wow.... I was looking forward to this one SO MUCH but oh well I guess? Dang it, I was really hoping to love this.

[Jasmine · Rating 1 out of 5]

Random update: every time I think of this book I get really angry. This book sucked. Sorry not sorry.

---------

There should definitely be a trigger warning for this book. I know the synopsis is meant to be vague and deep that can only be understood by angsty teenagers, but there is rape in here.

Overall, this book is just SAD. This book is everything you hate about high school and life amplified. Janie and Micah may have been best friends, but she was a TERRIBLE friend to him and was just a TERRIBLE person in general...pretty much everyone in this book was terrible. There is no one worth liking in this book.

[Oceane McAllister · Rating 2 out of 5]

I love the author's writing style, but with an f-word every page and quite a bit of sexual content, I had to DNF. If it weren't for the language and how open it is about the sexual activity of many teens, I would have loved it.

Also, for anyone planning on reading, please be aware that there is a rape scene. It's brief and not described graphically, but it can still be triggering. I'm glad the author added this, though, as oftentimes victims of rape will stay silent and it's extremely detrimental to their mental and physical health.

[Joey Reyes · Rating 5 out of 5]

”Micah Carter, it is an honor to be alive with you.”

Make sure you buckle your seatbelts before you read this book, because you’re in for one hell of a ride.

I sometimes forget how extraordinary YA can be. I read a lot of YA books because they’re my guilty pleasure – sure, sometimes they can be cheesy as a grilled cheese sandwich and most of the time they’re rather predictable, but I just love how fun and positive they are. Whenever I finish one I always get that feeling I can’t get from any other kind of book – that feeling where I want to take over the world.

This is Where the World Ends is not one of those books.

Amy Zhang takes a risk because she wants to write about broken characters. She wants to write about characters who’s had awful things happen to them that they didn’t deserve; she wants to show the reader how broken some teenagers can be. Take it from Falling Into Place. That was an amazing book, but did anyone actually think Liz was a good person?

And it works so, so well. She crafts characters that you connect with – that you love because of how broken they are. The synopsis doesn’t do justice to the book at all – this is a complex, dark story, filled with secrets and pain and triggers.

But the thing that really won me over was how amazing this author is at her prose. The writing style is just so unique and interesting – it hooks you from the very start and you won’t be able to put the book down. This is Where the World Ends was written in dual points of view, but never once did the book suffer from an identity crisis. I always knew who was talking because Micah and Janie both had their own voices. Also, I so desperately wanted to break my morals because the book had such great quotes and I wanted to highlight ALL OF THEM.

”Miracles do not belong to religions. Miracles belong to the desperate, which is why every religion, every philosophy, and most importantly, every fairy tale always has a moment of salvation, a eureka, an enlightenment. And that’s what miracles are. Not solutions, but catalysts. Not answers, but chances.”

This is going to be a book that’s going to divide a lot of people. Some people are going to completely love it, some people are going to find it underwhelming. I, thankfully, am not part of the latter. So if you’re a fan of We Were Liars, Charm & Strange, or even her first book, Falling into Place, there’s a high chance you’ll be part of the first group of people.

I’ll read anything Amy Zhang writes. This girl knows how to tell a story.

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Hey there! You made it all the way here – why not check out my YouTube channel? I work really hard on my videos and I release new content every Friday, so I sure hope you’ll be there!

[Isamlq · Rating 3 out of 5]

Loving, or even simply liking, Micah or Janie isn't the point of This is Where the World Ends. That's good, as doing either is next to impossible. The extremes in which Janie' s life is lived then described --- her utter joy in the simplest, the whimsy she'd inject into every single moment got to the point where believing such positivity became a challenge. When her fairytale fancies are contrasted to Micah (and the utter greyness in which his everything is described) well, the difference staggers so that it is with relief that I say theirs was not the typical star-crossed someone's with each on the other side of some divide.

Mostly, this was an unravelling... the unravelling of them, then her... then him. Despite the lack of love from me for them, Zhang drew me in, initially with Janie's infectious joy; and when that wore off, it was through the novelty of a pair so different. Finally, it was in how Jamie's why is pieced together while Micah's was getting pieced apart.

I wasn't on board with the girl mpdg-ing in the first half, but it's how that same thing about her slowly dissipated because it is in that eventual change in tone (and more importantly why that was) that had me considering her more closely to discover that there's more to her than her whimsy, and so to with Micah and how he positioned himself on the fringe of anything/everything in relation to her.

They both prove that the good they see in the other isn't the only thing they're each capable of. But before that, it's blinders on the both of them because they'd both placed the other on some pedestal --- to her, he's just so good and for him, she's simply Janie and therefore perfect. When this mutual love, born of having grown together and as well as of proximity changes, they find that they are each not all the other requires because there's a growing up and apart as well as the recognition that no one is perfect even if you want them to (or need them to) be such, because here even first loves and maybe even true loves can be shitty. And man, but do I love the truth in that.

Thank you, E!

[Book Riot Community]

Micah and Janie have been BFs for F, two peas in a pod, basically two opposites who perfectly complement the other. And it has been this way rretty much since the day Janie moved next door during elementary school. But when Janie goes missing, everything Micah thinks he knows about Janie is called into question. Told back and forth between narrators and time, this is a sad, smart, and heartwrenching story of friendship, secrets, and perception.


Tune in to our weekly podcast dedicated to all things new books, All The Books: http://bookriot.com/category/all-the-...

[Tereza Eliášová]

Troch depresivní a trochu emo, ale dobře napsaný příběh.
Autorka si hraje se slovy a celé to má promyšlené na efekt, což jí ale odpustíte, protože to funguje. Je to ten typ knihy, z které se dá citovat každá druhá věta a dycky to bude znít dobře a hluboce a oduševněle.
Jestli máte rádi styl psaní Jandy Nelsonové, tohle se vám bude líbit, protože je to dost podobné. A taky proto se to líbilo i mně :)

[rachel, x · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

This is one of those books that I have three million things to say about it but also nothing at the same time. I’m a little worried that my thoughts of this book have been influenced - strongly - by the fact that I had just read Niven’s All the Bright Places. Were the similar themes out-putting? A little. I wasn’t a fan of AtBP so this was exactly what I didn’t need to read at the time. Maybe that affected my enjoyment? I don’t know anymore.

I guess, I just need to say that Falling into Place is one of my favourite contemporaries. I know a lot of people didn’t enjoy it - mainly because of the protagonist, Liz. I get that it was the type of book that you were either going to love or loathe, but I was lucky that it completely and utterly shattered my heart and destroyed my feels. I couldn’t have loved it more if I tried. When I found out that the author had written a new book, I was so damn excited to have something else of her’s in my hands… but I don’t know how to feel about This is Where the World Ends. I really, really don’t.

I guess what the most important thing to me, as a reader, was the writing style - without a doubt. It was just so damn beautiful. I didn’t expect anything less from Zhang and she undeniably delivered on that front. I love how raw and gorgeous her style is. It plucks out these random, beautiful thoughts that you thought were just random little things you thought to yourself, but somehow they’re there, on the page, and you find yourself agreeing with them and relating to them and it’s actually kind of breathtaking. Zhang has talent, and I’d honestly have her write my epitaph any day. I also truly think this style of writing helped to deliver the message of the story with the raw, blunt honesty it needed. This isn’t a light-hearted, cutesy contemporary. It kind of sucker-punched you at times. I, personally, loved that but I don’t think that it would have had the same impact under the penmanship of anyone else.

I know a lot of people didn’t like Liz, but I did. Janie, on the other hand? I don’t know! I mean, I didn’t dislike her, I just… she was too Manic Pixie Dream Girl. Ugh. I hate even saying that. Zhang’s last book was all about giving a voice to and breathing life into (what is usually the) cliched and stereotyped characters. This time, I felt like Zhang tried to do that but she didn’t quite get it. I hated how Janie treated Micah and because I didn’t understand why she treated him like she did, I couldn’t accept it or forgive her or anything like that - like I wanted to. I didn’t feel like she dive into these characters like she did in Falling Into Place. I didn’t care for Micah either, not really.

And I guess what makes me the most confuddled about my feelings towards this book is the plot - which was completely fuzzy and unresolved. Like I said, I just finished AtBP and I guess this draws on so many elements that are familiar and true to “those types of books” that it didn’t impact me on the level I wanted it to. I actually didn’t realise that Janie was dead was meant to be a shocking reveal. I thought it was obvious and we were just waiting for Micah to realise it too… but no, it was meant to be a Thing and it just wasn’t. And then the ending was rushed, confusing and incomplete. I’m not sure what the point of this story was, and that kills me. I think the ambiguity of the plotline and the very awkward switching between past & present just didn’t let the story unravel in the way it was meant to. I don’t know. I was just underwhelmed and didn’t think we got the answers we needed.

Maybe if I was a fan of Eleanor & Park, The Fault in Our Stars and all those other sorts of books then I would have enjoyed this more. But everything I found wrong with those books, I found wrong with this. I just… I honestly didn’t get enough out of this story. Yes, it was beautifully written. Yes, the characters were complex and fragile. But they weren’t as unique as I would have liked and the plot was way too messy.

I have to say that I’m not just disappointed, I’m kind of crushed. I adored Falling into Place and would still recommend it but this one? Not so much. I’ll still be reading more of Zhang’s work in the future… and you know what, I’ll probably try to reread this one in the future to see whether it was just my current mood that affected my thoughts or the book itself. We’ll see. I just wished I could have loved this more than I did.

Review copy provided by the publisher for an honest review.

[Deyse]

Trigger warming: rape and suicide

Official rating: I really, really liked but I also had a lot of problems with it. Also, reading anything about this book counts as a spoiler in my opinion so bellow there will be a shit ton of spoilers.

1. I really liked the writing on this one, as with Falling Into Place it's full of metaphors and it's very lyrical but for me it worked again, it gave me all the feels and turned this reading into a more intense one. Some of my favorites quotes bellow:

"I'm doing - something. Anything. I’m tired of watching, and waiting, and expecting things to work out. It never works out. It never works unless you demand.
So here I am, demanding."

"(...)when our eyes meet, my smile lights up the entire world."

"He says my problem is that I was born with a thousand beginnings and no endings at all."

"They knew each other in their atoms(...)"

"We sat there in silence for a solid minute.
“I don’t get it,” I finally said. “And what happened to all your furniture?”
“I have no idea,” Mr. Markus says. “But happiness is a choice. That’s the key. A choice.”
Is it, though? Is it really? Maybe.
Maybe, for the lucky ones.
I am not one of the lucky ones. I can fill my pockets with stones and mark myself everywhere and set the entire universe on fire, but it’s not going to change anything. I am not one of the lucky ones.
So here is what the unlucky ones choose between: prude or slut. Angel or devil. Maybe choice isn’t the right word—you’re always one or the other.
Damsel or villainess. That’s what it comes down to.
I guess the question that really matters is: which one gets the real happy ending?"

"That’s what high school’s for. You make plans and you don’t follow through. You dream and you can be brave when you’re dreaming, brave enough to imagine that there’s actually a yourself to find, brave enough to finish projects even though you were never born with endings(...)"

2. I didn't liked the way rape and suicide are dealt with in this book. The suicide part is only completely revealed on the ending and it was basically brushed off completely but I think that the bits related to the rape could have been dealt with better. This is a story about everything that can go wrong with a rape victim, she doesn't have a support net, no family or friends that are really there for her, she doesn't get any professional help, either from therapists or law enforcement, is a case where no one believes her even thought she didn't even shouted rape. It's a sad story and one that unfortunately happens but it's also one that I don't think needed to be out there (again), when you're writing for a younger public you have certain responsibilities and showing how to dealt with traumatic situations is one of them.

3. As I said above this story is already out there, this book plot and the plot of Thirteen Reasons Why are basically the same on its bones.

4. I was incredible disappointed with the characters on this one. One of the things that made me love Falling Into Place so much was how Zhang managed to pick unlikable characters and turn them into humans, complex with flaws but also with some redeeming qualities. This time around I didn't connected with anyone, I honestly only started feeling something towards Janie when she was raped, and she was already pretty fucked up, mentally speaking, before that but it just never made any sense to me her reasons and her overall personality probably because of number 5.

5. Janie is the definition of manic pixie dream girl, seriously she seems to have came out of a John Green book. She is full of artistic dreams and metaphors (she actually named a rock Metaphor), she is also super pretty and rich, she hates her parents just because, she is also a mean girl and gets everything she wants. I'm sorry but her character had no sense at all, her actions from before are made without any logical meaning and I couldn't get to sympathize with her.

6. The way toxic friendships are portrait on this one are on point, this is probably my favorite thing on this story. Janie and Micah relationship is intense and all consuming, and they are the best friends in the entire world and also maybe in love with each other, I mean how could they not be when, as Janie says, they are one atom. I loved every scene with them together and it was great to see where this would take them.

7. I hated how therapy is treated on this story, like hated with all my forces. Micah never takes therapy seriously, he never follow through on the recommendations of not drinking since he is 100% of the time drunk, he says what he thinks his therapist wants to hear just to get done with the sessions. I hated it. Is this kind of portrait of therapy that it makes it still be a tabu on our society and people with mental illness to be insecure about searching for professional help.

8. This book has a lot of swear words and underage drinking so if you're not cool with that you should probably stay clear of this one.

[jana · Rating 1 out of 5]

I promised you a review, and five months later I'm doing it. Half of this was my draft from the night I started reading it.

What is with Amy Zhang and abusive toxic relationships?

Before I drone on and on about my thoughts and rants on this novel, I would like to put it out there that her writing style is good. Her writing style was the one that made me stay and finish this book. (Probably the curiosity, too. But let me just say that reading this felt like a chore: I just wanted to finish it and be done with it already).

Seriously, though. This book made my head hurt. Does she have a thing for manipulative, toxic, manic pixie parasites as protagonists and pushovers as their love interest?




Janie and Micah are bestfriends and they love each other "more than anything, more than everything" and yet they don't talk to each other in school becaus it's "easier"? They love each other more than anything, more than everything but Janie turns up and messes Micah's plans and studies, leaving no second thought to Micah's say on it? Janie loves Micah so SO very much and she knows how very much inlove Micah is with her that she leads him on, trying to give her actions justice by saying that "oh, but i know that eventually I'll fall inlove with him because i just know that we ARE soulmates, but not now, though!" She loves Micah so much that she is so possessive and jealous of Micah's other friend that she badmouths said friend, saying he's inlove with Micah just because said friend is gay. Because Janie is allowed to be in the popular group, having a lot of friends that gives her starbucks every morning and Micah can't have one.

That's just the summary of their toxic relationship. The plot, however, is a completely different story.

Micah, is in the hospital after his head get split up the very night Janie disappears (dies) and every time they tell him what happens he just forgets. Anyway, Micah is in this journey trying to find out what happened to Janie, he does this, by the way, by constantly getting drunk near a quarry that at least fifty people have died in. (Seriously, why is that quarry unguarded?) And he remembers what actually happens after his head getting split up again for the third or fourth time this book. (Why he has not died or had full on amnesia, I don't know.)

Did I mention that the ending also sucked?

- T R I G G E R W A R N I N G -

Janie was raped so she burns her house down to pin it on the person who raped her, when she found out it didn't go as planned, she drowns herself.

She drowns herself with the words Micah said, the words wherein he stands up for himself written. What a selfish twat.

I absolutely hate how the author put in rape, an extremely sensitive subject, just so the manic pixie dream girl can disappear like she's supposed to. Am I even making sense?

[Kelly (Diva Booknerd) · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is Where The World Ends was lyrically beautiful, engaging and swept me off my feet with it's charm and sense of adventure. But ultimately it was a story told in halves, the before and after referencing Micah waking up in hospital with no recollection of how or why.

Told in dual narratives, Micah and Janie couldn't be more different from one another. While he's quiet, meek and reflective, Janie is the Manic Pixie Dream Girl, fun, quirky, often irresponsible and able to charm her way out of any situation. Janie decided that in middle school, their friendship wouldn't extend to behind the school gates, leaving Micah with one friend and Janie as the popular, beautiful girl her peers are enchanted with. Here lies my first issue. I didn't feel their friendship was ever genuine on Janie's behalf, existing only on her terms and seemingly where no one else would know. Although she relied heavily upon Micah, he was an afterthought and her character left me struggling to invest emotionally in their storyline as it progressed. I adored her character on the surface, but not what lied beneath her idiosyncrasies.

Micah was ordinarily lovely. He genuinely cared so deeply for Janie and even against his better judgement, it was clear that she took advantage of him and the attention she so desperately craved. It wasn't until Janie moved away where she felt as though she was losing her hold on Micah. It's obvious that Micah was infatuated with her, his only friend in Dewey seeing the toxic hold Janie had on him and the underlying jealousy of his friendship with Dewey as well.

Beyond the storyline, the writing was so lyrical and lovely, almost dreamlike.

Stars and stars, night after night, secrets spilled in a world too big for sleep.

We fall asleep to fairy tales, and the world rotates and revolves and time passes and we grow up and understand that they are false.

My heart aches for the beauty of Amy Zhang's style of writing, reminding me of Jandy Nelson. It's effortless and so easy to immerse yourself, even if I couldn't connect emotionally to Janie's character.

Despite it's issues, This Is Where The World Ends is an immersive and enjoyable read. Amy Zhang's style of writing is beyond lovely.

[Completely Melanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I could not stop crying.

This book is told from 2 perspectives, Micah and Janie's, and from 2 different time frames, the before and after.

Throughout the course of this book, we learn all about this amazing lifelong friendship between Micah and Janie. These two share a soul and a birthday. They care deeply for each other.

The book opens up with Micah in the hospital suffering from a brain injury. He can't remember anything and Janie is missing. Not only can he not remember the last few weeks, but he can't remember anything right after it happens. As soon as he is told something, he forgets what was said. He is forced to ask the same questions again and again. Police come to question him about what happened "that night", but he can't remember anything.

As the story progresses, we learn what happened and as Micah's brain begins to heal, he begins to remember as well.

[AH · Rating 3 out of 5]

About 3-3.5 stars. The book did not wow me, however it was a quick read. I think that I had a little trouble with the writing style which kept switching from past to present and between the points of view of the main characters Janie and Micah.

I'm not going to get into plot points because the less you know going into this book, the better. I'll just say that it is not really a love story, it's more a story of two good friends who are soul mates.

I'm also going to put the trigger warning in spoiler tags, just because I feel it is a spoiler - date rape .

Thank you to Edelweiss and HarperTeen for a review copy of this book.

[Carina Rosas · Rating 1 out of 5]

MOST ANNOYING CHARACTERS EVEEEER.

I just can't...

I meannnnn, the plot is not even that bad. Is interesting and it touches some serious and important topics, but the writing style!! Oh gosh, It was uncomfortable since sentence ONE.

[Karla Aguirre]

This book is certainly meant for people in high school and above due to the topics it covers in this book. That being said this book does go over some heavy topics such as rape and death if you are uncomfortable by that. Now with the warnings out of the way, this book was a phenomenal read. I'm not much of a book person but this one captured my attention from the very beginning to the very end. Although at the beginning it felt very cliche, the author manages to make the character's story completely unique. The author also manages to fully express the feelings of a teenager which in my opinion is a hard task to achieve. The author’s words also manage to capture emotions splendidly in the ways the characters react. This book is a rollercoaster I never want to get off of and so if you’re searching for that capture-your-attention type of book then this one is surely for you.

[Sarahdactyl ♥ · Rating 2 out of 5]

The writing style was lovely, but the story was not good. Full review to come.