I’m still reeling.

This beginning was a little slow. It took me 10-20% to get hooked, and that’s fine. I was a little turned off initially because the MC is a taxidermist, and the opening scene is her being asked to taxidermy someone’s dead child… who they killed.

I pushed past that.

The obvious one: it makes no sense that you can donate your child to pay for your debts. I figured you just have to suspend disbelief sometimes, so that’s okay.

The timeline was weird. How long had it been since the last gauntlet? The opening scene made it seem like it had only been two days, but it had clearly been a month or more. And then later, it was unclear how many nights were spent where. I forgave that.

The two MCs were too closely matched. There should have been no competition… there was competition.

Without going too far into spoiler territory, there was complaint after complaint that I GLEEFULLY ignored because I was having so much fun in the story… and then the ending.

Ooo boy.

50% of the way in, 75% of the way in, 95% of the way in, I was writing my review in my head. Each time it started out with some variant of “I didn’t think I would love this book, but it gets an easy five stars…”

And then I turn the page, and the acknowledgments pop up, and I realize that was the end, and suddenly all my complaints have a lot more weight.

Because the ending sucked. It felt cheap and empty. As another review said, it’s unclear whether she’s going for tragic uncertainty or setting up for a sequel… and I just felt disappointment.

Reflecting on the book, it feels rushed. The plot points weren’t well crafted. The world wasn’t fleshed out. The ending was the “obvious” ending.

This is it for Ava Reid. I felt like I hadn’t given her a real chance before this, and I was excited to give her a real unbiased chance. I went into this book very excited, and I wanted to like it, and I did… until the end and it all fell apart. The whole book felt rushed. Not that the events were rush, but the author didn’t spend enough time planning and drafting and editing. I’m not interested in another one.

Thank you to NetGalley, HarperCollins, and HarperCollins Children's Books for this advanced copy! You can pick up Fable for the End of the World on March 4, 2025.

I didn't expect to get immediately sucked into this all-too-real dystopian story (though I should've known better given Ava Reid's excellent writing). But both Inesa and Melinoë were compelling, viscerally real, and relatable characters. Despite coming from vastly different backgrounds, both girls struggled with feelings of powerlessness, lack of control, and helplessness in the face of a greater authority. Caerus (and its Angel program director, Azrael) were scarily accurate antagonists. Often, even when you know whose boot is on your neck, it's easy to believe their lies and platitudes that at least they cleaned their boots before stomping on you.

I also found myself really moved by Reid's themes of community and isolation. So many times Inesa hammers home how uncommon it is to thank people or express gratitude because you're in their debt now. To us, that idea sounds outrageous, but that's how governments and corporations like Caerus overtake the common people. They divide us and create social norms that encourage isolation and "every man for himself."

But I digress. Overall, the story moved really well, and I was just as intrigued by the Gauntlet as the millions of subscribers and live streamers (how easy it is to view blood sport as entertainment). Reid did an excellent job depicting their hunter/hunted dynamic and flipping it on its head. My one issue is that the transition from enemies to lovers happened a bit too quickly, and I really wish their romance had been a bit more slowburn and built up over another book.

And that leads to my only other complaint: the ending. I understand how open-ended stories can send a message, but given all the things that happened up until the last page, I needed some kind of reassurance that everything would turn out alright for our protagonists. I even would have been fine with it if I KNEW that Reid would pursue the storyline they set up at the very end. But leaving us dangling like that just felt cruel and incomplete, so I had to lower my rating a tad.

All in all though, this is a beautiful ode to the Hunger Games but with a unique, relatable world and sapphic romance. I'd really recommend it!

Ava Reid created a bleak dystopian world reminiscent of the hunger games, and the last of us, with the post apocalyptic vibes of the maze runner series, and mortal engines. In a world where everything costs you and all debt belongs to the corporation running their world. The gauntlet is a way to pay off your debt, at the cost of a life, a human vs the enhanced cyborg-esque Angels. Is it possible to beat the system.
The story was everything I’ve loved about the YA dystopians I grew up in, with a sapphic twist, and shadows of warning that echo our current world. The dystopian feelings that hope just might be the most powerfully and most terrifying thing to possess if you want to do more than just survive.

I genuinely adored this book so much, my only complaint is I felt the ending was a little rushed and didn’t do justice to the characters story ARCs.

I received an ARC for my honest opinion.

Thank you to the publisher Harper and Netgalley for the digital arc. This did not affect my review in anyway!

4.5 stars! -- We follow Inesa, a girl living in a small, drowning town who is picked to undergo a televised fight to the death to clear off a debt. Her opponent in the Gauntlet, Melinoë, has been lethally trained and artificially crafted to become an Angel, or the Caerus corporation's assassin. But what happens when this Lamb meets this Angel?

This book is incredibly timely. I felt the influences from other YA dystopian book series like The Hunger Games and cherished those thematic elements. Ava Reid is one of my favorite authors for a reason: she pushes the envelope with her fiction to reveal something about our society and behaviors, just packaged in a fantasy or dystopian setting. I personally saw this as a love letter to The Hunger Games during a time when dystopian fiction is once again on the rise (for obvious reasons).

The tone of this book is bleak, yet hopeful. Inesa has agency, even though her situation is dire. Melinoë has the appearance of agency, yet is now struggling to ensure her life is on her own terms after being treated like an automaton. The theme of the two feeling like they can achieve more together is evident in Reid's prose and quotes. I loved that this world was partially made the dystopian nightmare it is by climate change and debt-collection, because these parallels are evident in the world as I know it. The cultural impact of YA dystopian literature cannot be overstated and I think this book is quite a fine addition to it.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and think that it will shape young readers like The Hunger Games did. It is out now in the world now and I recommend giving it a read if you're into female rage, queer love, and taking down dystopian governments.

As expected, Ava Reid’s writing is lyrical, beautifully descriptive, and attention grabbing from the jump. Fable for the End of the World was extremely unique for a dystopian YA novel, yet at the same time it hits very close to home. The world felt like a version of our current one, just set further in the future. As someone born and raised in Alabama, I saw so many similarities in Inesa’s hometown with my own. I really enjoyed the plot of the actual story and it was very action packed. I was on the edge of my seat the entire time and thoroughly enjoyed reading this. My only complaints are that the love confessions felt very sudden and rushed, as well as the ending was not what I needed from this story. I had to confirm that Fable for the End of the World was a standalone and was a little upset it is. I don’t personally enjoy open endings or endings that close the story without any sort of implication of possible reconciliation. With how tragic the circumstances for Melinoë were at the end, I really, REALLY, needed some good news or the last chapter being her POV she we know her headspace. Besides those two issues, I really enjoyed this book and think it’s does a great job doing YA dystopian justice.

Thank you to HarperCollins, NetGalley, and the author for sending me an early copy!

I liked this book a lot. Ava Reid is a wonderful author. The characters and plot of the story were well thought out and the story flowed nicely.

“So here we are, hating each other, repulsed by each other, both standing to gain from the other’s demise. And yet— I owe her my life. And she owes me hers.”

Ava Reid writes an atmospheric, tragic book like no one else. Fable for the End of the World encapsulated everything I hoped it would. Reid said herself that it was inspired by the Hunger Games and I think she did beautifully telling Inesa and Melinoë’s story. The dual POV was perfect, and I loved experiencing the development from enemies to lovers. The deep rooted trauma that each of them was dealing with made my heart hurt and was written beautifully.
The dark, dystopian world made me so intrigued.
I really adored this dystopian fantasy. Reid always impresses me so much. If you love sapphic, dystopian fantasies— you need to read this one now!!!

Absolutely should be a movie....only because it won't ever be required reading and everyone should experience it! Dystopian done well. I seriously hope there is a sequel! From harshness to gentleness to abandonment and closeness, this book runs the gamut and takes the reader along on a wonderful, frustrating, hopeful, amazing ride.

If The Last of Us and The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes had a love child, it would be this electrifying, high-stakes dystopian masterpiece. A story of survival, sacrifice, and a love that defies all odds, this book grabs you by the throat from the very first page and never lets go.

Inesa is the perfect protagonist—fierce, resourceful, and unwilling to go down without a fight. When she’s thrown into the Lamb’s Gauntlet, a brutal, corporate-controlled assassination spectacle, every moment is a battle for survival. And then there’s Melinoë, the unstoppable assassin who’s been trained to be nothing but a weapon—cold, precise, and utterly lethal. But beneath her deadly exterior is something fractured, something human. As Mel hunts Inesa through the desolate, decayed world, the tension between them is explosive—both in the way they fight and in the way they begin to question everything they’ve ever known.

The romance? Utterly devastating in the best way possible. This is a slow-burn, enemies-to-lovers journey that simmers with tension and longing. It’s a story of two people on opposite sides of a cruel system, forced to choose between survival and something far more dangerous—hope.

With heart-stopping action sequences, raw emotional depth, and a world so vividly crafted it feels real, this book is an absolute must-read for fans of dystopian fiction, morally complex characters, and love stories that cut deep.

A dark, gripping, and unforgettable ride. Prepare to have your heart shattered and stitched back together again and again.

Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for providing me with this ARC.

At first I struggled with the pacing in this YA book, but the world and characters slowly captivated me. It’s reminiscent of the Hunger Games, but with LGBTQIA+ representation. There’s also nuggets of thought-provoking prose that drew me in. I’d really recommend this one if you like a dystopian setting and queer main characters.

Ava is definitely one of my favorite authors, I love how descriptive her writing is, I feel like I am inside the story. I enjoyed the themes and the characters in this one. Would have loved their time in the cabin to be a little longer as it seemed to escalate a little too quickly in their relationship. I very much enjoyed this one and would love a second!

Fable for the End of the World is devastatingly poignant for the times we live in. Focused on a future North America, where the United States has been split by nuclear war and mega corporations, this book resonates with a modern audience increasingly cognizant of the meaning of the world oligarchy.

Despite the grim warnings in the book about climate change and technical surveillance, this book reads incredibly quickly and features immersive world building. The world feels as if it is both incredibly close to the real present world today and yet also far enough for us to potentially avoid. The characters are rich and fully formed, even in the short time we meet them before the hunt begins.

I was drawn to this book by my love of Ava’s prior books and the sapphic Hunger Games description that was given. This description is incredibly accurate and this book lives up to the high bar the Hunger Games sets. Please Ava, write more dystopian!

Thank you NetGalley, Ava Reid, and HarperCollins for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review! I was so excited to get this one because Reid is one of my favorite authors and I really enjoyed it. It’s very similar to The Hunger Games, but has it’s own unique world and characters.

This one follows our two main characters - Inesa and Melinoë. In this dystopian world, there is a live-streamed assassination spectacle called “the Lamb’s Gauntlet”, and Inesa’s mother nominates her for it to clear her debt. Melinoë is the assassin for this specific Gauntlet and she begins pursuing Inesa across the wasteland.

Inesa and Melinoë decide to pair up after some curious encounters and start to question their world. I really enjoyed this one and I thought that the world was interesting and that the characters were fleshed out. The romance was sweet and showed two people trying to rethink their belief systems and finding each other in the process.

Another thing - this book is 400 pages but felt INCREDIBLY short. It flew by and I wish it would have been longer (which is rare for me because I’m typically not a fan of long books). I would love for the author to write another book set in this world.

I’m giving this one four stars and I recommend it highly. I have a few small critiques but nothing that stands out. I wish that the romance was expanded upon a little more, and the same with the ending, but that goes back to me wanting more time in the world. Reid remains one of my favorite authors and I can’t wait to see what she writes next!

The Hunger Games, but make it Sapphic! Fable for the End of the World by Ava Reid is everything I wish I had has a teenager growing up reading the surge of dystopian YA novels that came out in my youth. And while this is a true enemies-to-lovers book, I caution you about going into this story expecting a lot of romance or an epic love story. While that is a piece of this tale, it is not the theme, nor the point, of the whole story.

We find our two main characters, Mel and Inesa, racing against a clock to be the last survivor in a gauntlet to the death. What transpires is a series of events that leads both women to believe the cameras are turned off and they are alone with each other in the wilderness and without a nation watching every move they make. When this happens, will they still strive to kill each other, or will they instead agree to an unsteady stalemate?

This is a story about a larger narrative as well. In a time when real life is as scary as some of the "dystopian" worlds we read about, this book almost comes across as a warning. To see how easy it would be for these rich corporations to steal everything from the poor, and we have very little recourse to stop them. This book was almost too hard for me to read, but in a moving way! I can see so much of our current political climate reflected in these pages.

I would encourage anyone who needs to feel inspired by a love that can overcome even the most drastic of odds to read this book. Ava Reid does such an amazing job of writing from the perspective of Mel and Inesa, to help us understand both sides in very different lives. I cannot recommend this book enough!

Thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins for a free eARC in exchange for an honest review!

I loved this book so much… it’s a perfect YA dystopian romance to me. It’s also a great representation of what our current world could someday turn into. It’s not fun to think about how wrong things could go in our own country or in the world, but with the way things have been going, it’s very difficult not to. And I think the world in this book is very well-rounded on the topics it touches upon, especially its discussion on a sense of community.

This book combines a reflective dystopian world with a beautiful queer romance in the most perfect way I could imagine. Everything from beginning to end is just so well put together. The development of the plot and romance and how the two aspects interact to portray the message is just soooo well done. This was my first Ava Reid book, and now I am so excited to read her other works. The writing and composition of the story are just amazing.

This was one of those books that just made me sit and think for a few minutes after finishing it. The characters, the setting, the plot, and the romance are just so good. And the ending is soo fitting. It wasn’t what I expected, but I absolutely loved it! Inesa, Melinoe, and Luka… I love them 😭.

I would definitely love to see some sort of a sequel. It doesn’t need to be about the same characters, but I feel like this world can produce so many great stories. If I haven’t made it obvious enough, I fell in love with this setting and would eat up anything that comes from it 😅.

Overall, everything about this was just so good, and I feel like Ava Reid is going to become one of my favorite authors! ❤️

I love Ava Reid's books and writing style. While I enjoyed A Study in Drowning and Lady Macbeth more than this one, I still found it to be a good time. This one is all about the dystopian Hunger Games vibes and Reid does a great job at building out the world for this story. The characters are also interesting and well fleshed out. I liked the dual POV style. I did find myself wishing for more at the end, but I'm still glad I read it! Hunger Games fans will enjoy.

The queen of sapphic romance has done it again with this blissfully hopeless yet hopeful dystopian-like novel with the added "the purge" vibes. Lambs are out for slaughter due to greed and sport. We meet two siblings struggling to survive their mother's hypochondriac illness that eventually costs them more than money but also their freedom. Inessa discovers that the assassin set to kill her isn't like the rest...Melinoe is layered and struggling to adjust to the new knowledge unfolding before her. Together, they discover where the true monster has been hiding and that they have a lot more in common with each other than their own kind. I feel like there may be a book 2 on the horizon, but time will only tell. Until then...

There are so many elements that will please dystopian readers, an homage to the genre with a dystopian hunger gamish, Snow Globe kind of vibe, and sapphic romance.
The author handles well the rhythm of romance, description, action, and social criticism where we wish it was in a distance future but very much sounds like today. We destroy ourselves, and the feeling is present from the start to the finish.

I love the atmosphere of the story. I also love the characters and their different viewpoints as the story progresses. I will be recommending this book through readers advisory and my library will be purchasing this title.

Ava Reid's science fiction debut tells a harrowing tale of love and survival - but its not a new one. Pulling heavy inspiration from Susanne Collins' Hunger Games, the story follows broad grooves of a televised death match between two teenagers, one born to kill and one born to survive. Reid has clearly taken pains to try to differentiate the story: a climate apocalypse setting, a protagonist unused to hard survival - but these do not succeed in separating the story from its inspiration. I was also deeply, deeply frustrated by the romance, which takes itself too seriously for something so incredibly unbelievable. You would think this supremely unlikely enemies to lovers conceit would at least result in a happy ending - not so! I had high hopes for Reid's sapphic debut, and was hugely disappointed to find yet another story co-opting sapphic misery to Make A Point About Feminism. Also curious how Reid's first non m/f romance is denied a happy ending. Curious indeed!!!!