I LOVED this! Let me say it one more time for those in the back: I LOVED THIS! I knew I would. I adore P.C. Cast, I loved her since I was a teenager and read House of Night and to see her dive back into the world of adult fiction made me so happy. I was especially excited because this book has such a dark and interesting premise. This book was right up my alley and oh boy did it deliver.
I couldn't get enough of these characters. In classic Cast fashion we were given strong female characters that made me want to jump in and be a badass right there with them.
This book also had me laughing so hard in places despite the tough subjects this book deals with there was still plenty of room for levity.
I would say if you like books in the same vain as The Power, Vox, or even The Violence I would definitely check this out. If this is your first dive into Cast writing do yourself a favor and go check out some of her other works.

3.5 stars. The first in a new series by beloved YA author, P.C. Cast, Into the Mist is the story of a group of teachers surviving the apocalypse. There's a bit of a mystery about who started this apocalypse, which is probably one reason this will be a series; by the end of the novel, it's still not clear who set off bombs and what the green mist is that seems to keep swirling around. The green mist changes women, however, and basically liquifies men. Super gross way to die. The women become super heroes and any men that are left seem to become worse than the absolute worst misogynistic creeps they were before. Actually, other than the main group of protagonists, mostly everybody loses their minds and becomes a complete a**hole, including women. I may read the next one just to know what happens but I'm not rushing out to get it.

*Special thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for an mp3 of this novel.*

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

The concept of this book was highly intriguing with an apocalypse where green fog is dispersed to wipe out men while women survive and are given powers. This was very interesting and I am curious to see where it goes from here because it left me wanting to know more.

Into the Mist
by P.C. Cast

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

[blurb]The world as we know it ends when an attack on the U.S. unleashes bombs that deliver fire and biological destruction. Along with sonic detonations and devastating earthquakes, the bombs have also brought the green mist. If breathed in, it is deadly to all men—but alters the body chemistry of many women, imbuing them with superhuman abilities.

[Review] I loved this book. When It started, and I heard where it was set. I loved it even more. I was like, yeah, this is a fitting place for an apocalyptic view of the world ending. This might not make sense to everyone, but if you grew up in the 80s-00s in Portland/Gresham/Rockwood. You'd totally understand my reference. Standing up at timberline and looking down. It makes cosmic sense. The plot of the book was the comfort of a classic (post apocalyptic) but the fun surprises of a new twist. I love the fact that the women banded together. That they were able to assess their strengths and weaknesses. They weren't afraid to allow younger members to step up and help. They allowed others who needed a second chance at life to grow and change. It's the exact female empowerment book I needed. Without being overly lovey. The book doesn't shy away from being spot on with the power hungry people and what can happen there.

I really enjoyed this book. Its Dark and twisted. But in a new and different way.

Trigger Warnings
-Child loss/infant loss
-Maternal Mortality
-Murder

I was really disappointed in this book. Feminist? No. Thrilling? No. Instead there are some really unprofessional and unrealistic women. I knew from the first few pages and the ridiculous behavior of the educators that this was going to be wrong for me. But I always hope it will get better, so I continue. It did not.

The plot was very interesting, usually in post apocalyptic novels the men are the hero’s. In this one, they succumb to the green mist, leaving the women in charge. The mist allows each woman to enhance abilities she already has. Gemma is taking first aid classes in hopes of being a doctor, she is the healer, healing wounds with her hands. Mercury is a fitness buff, she has super human strength. Amani was an amazing mother, she is the group nurturer and protector. Stella was an older woman, hardened my life, she has a sixth sense for danger.

Here’s my take. After the opening chapters, i almost DNF because the cheesy banter between the women was unbearable. I get it, their friends but too much. The story flowed well after the bombs fell, some heavy moments which i loved. It went up and down for me after that. I can’t tell how i feel about it. I liked the ending but the book took a random turn into religion and paganism, which i don’t mind, but wasn’t prepared for. I’m not sure how it fits into the plot. Two characters, a Wiccan and a Christian, always taking about religion. It bored me and became very redundant. I guess I’d rate it three ⭐️ if i had to choose

Into the Mist, the newest book by P.C. Cast, is a story centered around a small group of teachers who are at a conference away from home at the time the attacks begin. I’m usually pretty hesitant to read and/or listen to war/apocalyptic style books, but I have read other books by P.C. Cast and am not disappointed.

I was fortunate to have an opportunity to listen to the audiobook of Into the Mist, courtesy of NetGalley. As an avid audiobook listener, I have learned that not all narrators can tell a story in a way that you would imagine it be told, but I really enjoyed this one.

This story features some strong, but likeable personalities that have to find a way to survive when everything else is literally gone. They don’t have a home to go to anymore, their families are gone, and only have each other left. Throughout the story, they run into scenarios that require them to rely on each other and make choices that will impact the rest of their lives. Along the way, they pick up new members of their new “tribe” and forge together and create a new world in which they will settle. Overall, I am excited to see if this book has a sequel, as the author certainly ended things with questions to be answered.

When bombs fear across the country unleashing destruction and a deadly/changing green mist, a group of teachers are forced to band together to survive, not only the deaths of so many and the new lawlessness of the land, but also their changing bodies.

This was not for me. There is an apocalypse with an odd mist that seems to be deadly to all men and changes them to give them unearthly powers, but this is never explained. It's just seems to be the motive for this group of women to band together. The progressive nature of the women, while great, just seemed a bit heavy handed, to the point of cheesiness. There isn't much uniqueness in the plot, and it really just seemed like a way to get powers that tie women to the so-called powers of the natural world.

I think there is a lot of rage from women right now, rightfully, and this book will definitely feed into that and potentially provide some catharsis. But overall, I really didn't enjoy this one.

Thank you to Netgalley and Dreamscape media for the advanced audiobook. The narration was well done.

Wow, this book was a ride. I enjoyed this book and cannot wait to read the next one. I really liked the narration and I liked the characters in the book.

Honestly this was just okay. I expected more from it than I got. I wanted to love it - the premise had me hooked and I LOVE P.C. Cast, but this was a miss for me.

To start, I got an audio ARC from NetGalley and I didn’t care for the narration. I’m not sure why, but I really had trouble with the narrator and the way she performed this book. I’m just not a fan.

Narration aside, the story left much to be desired. From the synopsis, I expected it to be more gripping than it was - I found myself not even caring how it turned out in the end. I didn’t feel for any of the characters and wasn’t interested in their story.

⭐️⭐️⭐️

Into The Mist is a plot-driven tale that asks an interesting question: what would happen if we went from a Christian patriarchy to another type of society. In the novel this new social order is female-centered, with Paganism playing a huge role as well. Personally I felt it had a slow start, heavy on the set-up, and didn't completely answer the question posed by the author. However, Into The Mist is the first in a new series and future novels deliver plenty of opportunities to explore the question further. The story gained momentum in the second half and left off on a major cliffhanger- I will definitely read book 2! I very much enjoyed the feminist and nature themes and imagery.
While I didn't relate to any one character, I did relate to the group as a whole and thought the author accurately captured the group dynamics. I listened to most of this novel on audiobook and enjoyed it as the plot lends itself to the audiobook format very well. The author's writing style includes casual dialogue (for all but one of the characters) which felt very natural when read aloud. Lorelei King was the sole narrator but did an excellent job giving each character a separate voice.
3.5 stars rounded up to 4

Another great start to a series by pc cast. I loved the narrator on this one not sure if same as house of night series. In this there is a mysterious mist that is killing men though not always and in return it is making women evolved . There are also bombs releasing the mist though we don’t know where they came from and random people seemed to be dying . Then teachers left to try to find a better place to live and picked up people on the way. Some of them had got powers that were useful and met people along the way the would help them along and others not as much. Book does sorta end in cliffhanger and curious where the book will go next.

I liked how we learned about the different characters as the book went on and how they interacted . Everyone is not always as they seem and it can be good to be cautious.

NetGalley gave me an arc and I am volunteering my review.

I received a complimentary copy of INTO THE MIST by P.C. Cast as part of a Let’s Talk Books promotional tour! I also received an ALC audiobook copy from Dreamscape Media and Netgalley!

INTO THE MIST begins with a group of teachers finishing up a convention in Oregon. They’re on their way back out of the mountains when they make a detour to find a bathroom and take a group photo. They are stunned when the beautiful view becomes a horror as strange things fall out of the sky, decimating the cities they see in the distance and creating a strange green mist. Suddenly people around them are dying horrifying deaths and it seems that it is only the women who survive.

With few options, the women return to the once idyllic retreat they just left to help those in peril and regroup for how to move ahead. It is clear that the world as they know it has ended. Soon they figure out that it is the men who are dying and the women in some ways are stronger than ever.

I sat down to read this, thinking I would probably just read a few chapters and before I knew it I was flying through the whole book, switching back and forth between the print copy and the audiobook. I really enjoyed exploring this new landscape that the author has developed and how the women work together (or not) to save themselves and others. We get to see how a few different groups of people are adapting to the new world and how those different trajectories play out. The abilities that they begin to manifest were very interesting as well.

This book doesn’t shy away from the body horror, so if that is something that bothers you in books this might not be the right fit. Still, it is an engaging story that really kept me wanting more. There are definitely questions left unanswered and this book really sets up the intrigue for a second installment, so I will be looking forward to news about the next book!

4.25 stars

I’ve said it before, and I’m sure I’ll say it again: I keep surprising myself when I don’t lose my taste for dystopian/apocalypse stories, but somehow, I’m still enjoying them. I’m happy to see that this book seems to be the first in a series; I don’t think I’ve read anything that the author wrote by herself, but I’ve read many things that she’s co-authored with her daughter over the years, and it turns out I like her solo adult fiction just as much (perhaps more). The story focuses on a group of 30- and 40-something high school teachers, most of whom were delightfully sarcastic, tough, and funny. As a high school teacher myself, I feel like I can confirm that the most unrealistic part of the whole thing is how relaxed and seemingly prepared for the end of the world they all are; I’m confident I would not be that calm, especially in the days immediately after disaster hit. Regardless, it was an intriguing story that captured my interest right away; part at the beginning was quite gruesome, but I got through it, and I suppose it was necessary to the story. The book gave me feelings that were reminiscent of a combination of The Walking Dead (the post-apocalyptic society element, not the zombie piece), Emily St. John Mandel’s work (love her stuff), and some darkly comedic feminist plot lines (not *all* of the men get wiped out, okay?). Honestly, this one was a pretty solid experience overall, and I’ll be waiting for the release of the next instalment in the series, whenever that may be.

While I typically don’t like dystopian novels in general this was made an exception because of the author. I will be completely honest that I adore PC Cast’s writing especially the House of Night series which is what intrigued the request of this book. The book was beautiful narrated with distinct voices for each character. I was drawn in by the author’s story as it was new to me and something quite real with the current world situation but not in a scary way. It had just the right amount of fantasy to keep me interested while still being a science fiction which is also usually not my style. The characters were just regular people but then became special not only in the book but to mess the reader as well. Also appreciate the age range of characters and the opposite views of some characters not only from a religious stand point but just what they thought needed to be done. No utopia in this dystopia but in a good way. The end which I hope is just the beginning of series was interesting and hopefully it means something good will come from all of this mist.

Interesting concept. Poorly executed. I wanted to like this as dystopian survival is my jam. Most of the book was too chipper and upbeat to be anything about surviving an apocalypse. Only one character seemed to care about the death around them. The rest of the women were all about what wine they were gonna drink later, so much so that an exhorborant amount of time was spent on describing the brand labels and how much that particular wine cost pre-bombing. I found the characters diverse yet insulting. Lecturing repeatedly to the Christian character about respect of other belief systems but then also making fun of her behind her back about "Zombie Jesus." Yeah, that's respect. 🙄 And this character was supposed to be the main heroine of the group? More attention should have been spent rounding out the writing and characters than who was wear a RBG hoodie. Gimme a break dude. No.

The country experiences multiple life ending blasts while a group of teachers are away on a conference. The blasts are accompanied by green mists that have quite interesting side effects on the human population. The ones who survive, have to decide who to trust and where to live.

The last couple I have mostly been reading mystery/thrillers. I haven’t read a good sci-fi book in a while and this satisfied my drought! If you enjoy books like The Fireman and Survivor Song, then these books are right up your alley.

I received this ARC audiobook from Netgalley & the publisher, these are my honest opinions.

Great start to a new series. The ending was well done - I cannot wait for the next book!
I enjoyed the narrator - very well done with a complex plot.
Teachers are leaving a conference, heading home when bombs and earthquakes disrupt their plans. A green mist settles, moves on the wind - killing the majority of men. Or else breaking something within them. While women have enhanced abilities - almost like superheroes.
I am not usually a fan of post apocalyptical themes - with the current political stance, this book definitely intrigued me.
The humor and cultural references caught me off guard - very enjoyable and lent humanity to the characters. Though fear and the unknown are rampant, the interaction between the main characters is so well done. Personality clashes, learning acceptance.
Great read.

This book just didn't work for me. Let's break it down bit by bit, because I have the hardest time reviewing this.

The book is about a mysterious mist, that appears after some bombs are dropped on certain parts of the US - as far as we know, because there's no communication with the rest of the world, even the rest of the US. So it is very narrow scope for a story. All we get is what the main group of this story sees and experiences. The group is a bunch of teachers that are on their yearly retreat.

When they get the grasp of what is happening (men are bleeding out) they decide they will create a new order, where women will rule the world. I guess this is supposed to be a humorous throw away line, but it kind of keeps on rolling during the whole tale with how they deal with other people and even a woman from their group.
Next, we learn that women gain superpowers (due to this mist). And they run into a settlement where the leader is harnessing women that do have superpowers in order to have their blood and use it for their own gain.

There are a bunch of lines that were supposed to be funny, but felt very juvenile, The way they treat men - you're either bad and must die, or you're the hottest thing I've ever seen.. it all felt very shallow. And don't get me started on the science. If this is supposed to be sci-fi horror, and you can throw in a line "All we know is people are dying, and most of them are men" you can do more and expand on other genders, and what "most" means.

If I had to do a gist - explain a book in the worst way possible here's what this one would be:
Green mist makes men die and women gain superpowers. The hot guy comes back from death with horns.

Yup, I don't know if I'll read the second book, because that ending was more supernatural than sci-fi. And I can't deal with the horrific dialogue anymore.
P.S. The narrator is great.

It’s impossible to see P.C. Cast’s name attached to a book and not immediately draw parallels to the notorious House of Night series that was disturbingly formative to my preteen years. While Into the Mist is a completely different genre than YA vampire harem high school drama, there’s a startling amount of similarity between the two works. This take on a dystopian apocalypse where a bio-bomb attack that strikes the U.S. and essentially liquifies all men and grants women unexplained superpowers actual is oddly reminiscent to the House of Night magic system. The group of high school teachers who suddenly manifest inexplicable gifts like supernatural healing and precognition after coming in contact with the “mist” all had similar leanings in their life before the apocalypse - in a very similar way all the fledglings in House Night did before they became vampires.

Reusing old plots beats aside, this book has plenty of other off-kilter moments that had me taking a step back to try and wrap my head around the narrative. Characters will say absolutely bizarre things like, “Surviving an apocalypse isn’t actually as fun as you’d think it might be,” which… no. I don’t think anyone ever has thought having to rebuild their life in a post-apocalyptic hellscape is a good time, but the way P.C. Cast writes it comes across with a strange tone of wish-fulfillment. There is also an unthinkable amount of importance placed on preserving vintage wine - with one woman actually filling an entire pickup truck bed with boxes of it, as one would do in an urgent life or death situation. The final climax of the novel is predicated on the same women’s burning need to procure wine glasses for their new lives.

Beyond issues with the actual plot of the book, the pacing itself is completely off. Characters will frequently make a discovery - i.e. their blood spudding potatoes - and then spend pages at different points in time in the book explaining this to other characters. We don’t need to read about the same event told through the same character’s mouth. We’ve seen it once and the story should stand on that basis.

The more I think about this book, the more I am frustrated by it. I was interested to see what P.C. Cast would do in a genre so fundamentally different from House of Night. At best, this book was too similar in ways that felt like rehashing the same concept. At worst, it was nearly incomprehensible with characters whose actions were entirely contrary to what you’d expect from a group of women living out the very traumatic experience of a gory apocalypse. What Into the Mist tried to do for female empowerment missed the mark for me, and I don’t think I’ll continue with the series as it proceeds from here.

Thank you to the publisher Dreamscape Media for providing an audiobook ARC via NetGalley for an honest review.