Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a DRC of this title for review. All opinions are my own.

Actual rating: 3.5, but I couldn't go all the way up to a 4. This was good, and I think kids/students will really like it, but the writing was a bit stilted at times and there were a few plot holes, so a 3 star is all it really gets.

Zara grew up with her fundamentalist father in a remote compound secluded away from the outside world. There, all she knew was her parents and the rules her father tried to instill in her: take care of yourself; crying is a waste of water; don't hesitate to protect yourself, the individual. But, at some point, her mother took Zara and left the compound, eventually settling in LA. While the transition was rough (especially as a student in middle school), now, as a junior, Zara has somewhat settled in. She has found a love for computers and coding, has a *few* friends, and has managed to mostly forget her earlier years.

But now she will need all the lessons her dad taught her. Because the power has gone out across the United States and it isn't coming back. Zara knows that without electricity, most won't have water. And without water, most will die. And as people begin to die, panic will start to rise.

So Zara sets off across the country to try to get back to the East Coast and her father's compound. Although, along the way, more memories of her time there start to surface and she has to wonder if her dad's rules for survival are actually worth following.

Overall, kids will like this survival/adventure tale. Recommended purchase for collections where students enjoy this type of fiction. I would say this is appropriate for grades 7 and up.

Gone Dark is a action-packed read for both young adults and adults.
Panitch has created a dark dystopian adventure story that is sure to enthrall readers.
Thank you for the e-arc.

This was such a fun and completely enthralling book! The whatif's of it all will suck you in and keep you rapidly turning the pages. I absolutely loved how realistic this was and how down to earth all the characters were. It really did take me by surprise and keep me entertained until the very last page.
Definitely an author I will be keeping my eyes on!

When all of the electricity goes out, what happens to people? All of us who rely on it so much? Gas pumps stop working. Water plants cannot produce clean water. And of course, phones go dead, so there is no communication across distances. This book follows our main character, Zara, as she tries to get back to her father's compound in the wilderness, where she had been raised without electricity and learning to survive off the land. Zara and her mother had left a few years ago, but can Zara make it back to the compound once the world starts going crazy? A pretty good read; some parts were slow and I wasn't a fan of the ending, but the book really makes you think about what could happen if some day, the power goes out and it doesn't come back on.

I really loved this book, I read the whole thing in one day.
Zara was raised on a compound with her parents, learning how to survive off the land and without electricity or friends.
When she is still young, something happens that cause her mom to take her and flee back to civilization.
Once the world ends, Zara makes her way back to the compound to find her dad, but there’s a reason they left and Zara won’t be happy to learn what it is.