Fable for the End of the World is a dystopian high stakes adventure for all the lovers of The Hunger Games and people who wish for a better world. This fast-paced sprint through poisoned woods filled with mutations and unknown danger is the setting for small rebellions and redefining survival, life, and love.
The Lamb’s Gauntlet is the ruling corporation’s way of giving the citizens a chance to erase their crushing debt. The selected Lamb faces an Angel, a cybernetically enhanced assassin in a live-streamed spectacle. Inesa’s cruel and negligent mother offers her up as a Lamb. Melinoë is the cold and calculating Angel who’s never failed. But this Gauntlet is haunted by the girls’ pasts and when they are forced to help each other their views begin to shift. They find in each other what they’ve always craved. Love.
Oh, this book is amazing. It’s a loving homage to The Hunger Games so it has a glimmer of nostalgia. But like all her books Ava Reid does something a bit like magic. She digs deep into the dark pain of humanity while holding up a light for the reader. We feel the helplessness but never forget the hope. Fable is a high-stakes dystopian tale where the greatest risk is to believe there is more. This is a story of queer love and human understanding in a landscape where empathy has been forgotten.

Feeling like a dose of dystopian nostalgia, anyone?

3.5/5 stars

Fable for the End of the World is a love letter to The Hunger Games, but with corporate corruption and a rotting, polluted world, and of course Ava Reid’s signature gothic poetic prose.

"𝘚𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘳𝘰𝘸𝘴 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘪𝘷𝘺 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘺𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘥𝘴. 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘰𝘰𝘵𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘮𝘺 𝘳𝘪𝘣 𝘤𝘢𝘨𝘦, 𝘸𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘶𝘱 𝘢𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘺 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵."

The story follows Inesa, a hardworking, poor shop girl chosen as the Lamb for slaughter in a livestream assassination spectacle, and Melinoe, the beautiful, brutal Angel sent to track her down.
It’s a fast-paced, bingeable sapphic ya romance that feels nostalgic yet relevant.

However, I found it lacking in the visceral, hauntingly atmospheric style that I associate (and love) Ava Reid for. It feels like a well written version of a book I’ve read before with more depth; meaningful social commentary beneath its murky surface.

"𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘳𝘰𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘵𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘤𝘰𝘳𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘨𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘯𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵… 𝘢𝘯 𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘲𝘶𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘥𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘤𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘤 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘨𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘺…”

Overall a decent and thoughtful read, but lacking in originality and that extra *spark* that makes me feral for a book.

I am wrecked by Ava Reid's Fable of the End of the World. This one takes a lot of processing power. My immediate thoughts are thought-provoking and heart-wrenching.
Reid gives us a dystopian future where drinking water is toxic, floods are prevalent, the land has been irradiated, animals and people have mutated, and the divide between the haves and have-nots is perpetuated by the ruling corporate government through a credit system. When the debt gets too high, they come to collect, and the debtor can "sponsor" a family member to the gauntlet where they will be hunted by a genetically altered and mechanically enhanced killer known as an Angel. Henceforth, canceling said debt.
I am left with these questions: What happens when an Angel experiences a bit too much humanity and is haunted by memories? To what extremes will people go to survive? What does it mean to be human? What happens when that last vestige of hope is extinguished?

'"I think individuals are capable of compassion. Actually, I know they are. And maybe that’s all it takes— at least at the beginning. Just a few people who care. And that caring matters, even if it can’t cool the earth or lower sea levels or turn back time to before a nuclear blast.”'

This well-written, visually immersive, exploration of these ideas is hauntingly close to what our reality can easily become. I was absolutely fully invested and am still thinking about it afterward. Melinoe and Inesa will live together in my mind for a while. The climax was so suspenseful that I had to fight my anxiety not to skip to the end before finishing it. 
Even so, the end is not satisfying. It is hope and hopelessness battling through the last page and beyond. 
The relationship between Inesa and Melinoe is powerful. Trauma bonding, for sure, but the level of vulnerability they share, and their chemistry is well above that. I melted when Inesa thought of Melinoe as her Angel.
The relationship between Inesa and her brother is also complex and solid.
I do hope that this isn't the end of their story. There is so much more to be said unless we are meant to accept that the worst of humanity will, in the end, ultimately retain power. But I think there will always be someone somewhere with enough hope to carry on.

"The love is what Azrael— and Caerus— can’t afford to lose. And maybe that makes love the most powerful force in the world, after all."

#enemiestolovers #dystopian #youngadult #sapphic #corporatocracy #creditocracy #environmentaldestruction #notHEA #UnitedStates #worldbuilding #actionpacked
I received a free ARC from NetGalley. This is my honest opinion.

i am blown away and also sick to my stomach and also on the verge of tears. like i am actively running around my apartment yelling and my roommate is calming me down. this book is fantastic. a phenomenal dystopia with excellent political/societal commentary that captured my attention and never let me go. i loved inesa and melinoë so much and i wanted them to find freedom and peace and love. i should have known better. i was first outraged when the dogs showed up and melinoë found out that every intimate moment between her and inesa had been shown to the world. every but of vulnerability on display for everyone in what should have been a private moment. yet again, i let myself hope, and i really thought that they were going to make it to the drowned county. i was naïve. when azrael showed up with lethe and luka, my heart cracked. melinoë getting stabbed and taken was painful, but nothing was worse than the headline that she had been given to visser and wiped. the nothingness behind her eyes and the pain that inesa felt was horrible. i wish they would have died together, rather than have this horror inflicted on them. this book offers insight into the state of our environment, our norms, and the people we place in power. it is a statement on how quickly things can go awry and how greed and malice can ruin us.

“Fable for the End of the World” by Ava Reid is a standalone dystopian story about survival, sacrifice and love.
Thank you HarperCollins for an ARC. Opinions from this review are completely my own.

You should enjoy this book if you like:
- dystopian story
- enemies to lovers
- sapphic love story
- dual POV

The story takes place in a world afected by climate change and corporations led by greedy and corrupt people. Inesa lives in the poor part of New Amsterdam and tries her best to survive. She lives with her brother and mother. After her mother goes into to much debt, she nominates Inesa for The Gauntlet (a reality show where she will be hunted by an Angel for entertainment).
Mel is the Angel assigned to hunt her. The story of how Angels are “created” is very sad and emotional.
The Gauntlet part of the story was filled with action, but also with a lot of feelings. The fact that Mel and Inesa need to work together to survive means that they get to know each other and find things about the world where the other lives.
Mel was traumatized by what she was trained to do and Inesa finds out that the Angels are not some robots as they seem.

I liked the story and the writing, but the ending left me wanting more. It would be great to have a sequel because there is more to this story and I want a brighter ending.

This is a beautiful love letter for the YA Distopian novels of the 2000's and any fan of the Hunger games would love this novel and fund it to be a fast paced and thrilling read! I loved everything about the world building and the charaters! My rating for this novel is 5/5 stars! Thanks Happer Collins, Net Galley and Ava Reid for an E-Arc for an honest reveiw!

Review for Fable For the End of the World by Ava Reid

Thank you Netgalley and HarperCollins for a chance to review this book. I promise this review is an honest review. May contain spoilers for some.

For the Fable For the End of the World is a Dystopian story about two young girls. A lamb, one meant to be hunted. An angel, the one to hunt the lamb. A gauntlet, a game to end the debts. So what happens when the lamb and the angel fall in love? Can it really change the game forever?

Inesa lives with her mother and her brother Luka. After their father leaves the family behind they struggle to survive. Their mother's illness pulling a debt that soon pulled Inesa into the Gauntlet. There she tries to survive from the Angel, Melinoë. A Caerus assassin who is trained to hunt the Lamb. When it begins Luka and I Inesa soon run, hoping to go North to get away. There they are attacked by Melinoë and The Wends. The Wends being zombie like creatures that lived off the grid and fed off of the contaminated lands. Inesa and Luka are soon separated and she and Melinoë have each other to live and protect each other. From hating they soon fall in love. A dangerous love. The angels are never supposed to feel for the lambs.

Melinoë is struggling from her last Gauntlet. In it she had to hunt a young girl. A match that never was supposed to happen as each of the Angels are paired to the lambs in a certain way. Bringing in the entertainment for all to see. Fair yet keeping the eyes hooked to the screens as long as they could. However Melinoë had broken down after she had killed the young girl. Now haunted by the past of it all... This new Gauntlet with Inesa is supposed to change what had happened. Help her get back to being a favorite in a sense. Liked among the people. Or have herself wiped and become a bride for a CEO. An empty shell.

The personal struggles the girls go through is valid. Both come from different backgrounds. Both trying to survive in said backgrounds. It's a beautiful and heartaching story of young love. What you have can soon be all you have to completely nothing. Ava Reid masterfully brings life to her characters and their stories. Two lost souls finding each other in a hope for a better life. A story that leaves you wanting more.

I would love a second book. Inesa trying to move forward in trying to find Melinoë. A hope to bring in a better life they had promised each other. The story had left my heart aching for more and I've yet ti stop the tears. What a beautiful story...

Thanks to HarperCollins for letting me read this book early. All thoughts are my own!

DNF @20%

I think this was more than likely just case of bad timing for me with this book. I would probably try the audiobook at some point, but I am DNF’ing at 20%. There wasn’t really anything holding my attention, which at 20%, I feel like there should be. I wasn’t connected to the characters, and I really struggled to stay attentive to this book. I haven’t read anything else by Ava Reid, but I still would even after not really vibing with this book.

This book is definitely for the Hunger Game girlies and the This is How You Lose the Time War fans!

This book is set in a dystopian future where a single company has its citizens in a continuous debt chokehold- our main protagonist Inesa sadly ends up qualififying for the Gauntlet- a series of live televised assassinations as a form to repay family debt.

There Inesa meets Mel, who is her killer who is not quite human- and they strike a bond. This is definitely a darker read (dead children, creepy af taxidermy children haha) and overal this was not for me- but I can definitely see fans of the Hunger Games, Maze Runner, and This is How You Lose the Time War would gobble this one up.

Thank you to HarperCollins for this arc!

Thank you, NetGalley, HarperCollins Children's Books | HarperCollins, for the chance to read this book in exchange of an honest review.

In their half-sunken town, Inesa and her brother are trying to get by with their taxidermy shop and by hunting, but unbeknownst to them, their indolent mother has accumulated an enormous debt and she offered Inesa for the Cearus', the city corporation, live-streamed assassionation: The Lamb's Gauntlet.
On the other side, Melinoë is a Cearus assassin, her body and mind modified and creating a perfect weapon, who never failed to kill her marks.
When she discovers her mother's betrayal, Inesa is destroyed. The Gauntlet is a way to succumb the population, to kill the weakest part of it and none survives. But with the help of her brother she's willing to fight and not to lose. But for Melinoë too the stakes are high. After breaking down on national television and getting painful flashback she's terrified of being decommissioned and her memory wiped down, losing everything about herself and becoming only a thing to be used. So she has to kill Inesa. But while fighting to survive in the wasteland, both girls start to question the world they live in and what they can do to do more than just survive. And maybe falling in love, too.

Set in a post- apocalyptic world that reminds a lot of The hunger games, mostly how Capitol and Cearus and The hunger games and the Lamb's Gauntlet are similar, Fable for the end of the world is a brilliant novel who tackle abuse, poverty, government's abuse and oppression, violence, misogyny, sexual abuse, death and so much more.
Told by two different Povs, Inesa's and Melinoë, the reader is soon able to empathize with both of the girl for their lives. Inesa because, with her brother, has always fought to survive in an hostile world, with an unloving and selfish mother and Melinoë, who was sold and hurt, modified and changed by a corporation, molded to be an assassin. The Pov of Melinoë gets the chance to see the brutal reality behind Caerus and how female, women are seen and oppressed by them.
I was really impressed by Ava Reid's talent of storytelling and their ability of creating this hostile world and, at the same time, two strong characters fierce and ready to do anything to survive, who are also able to find the comfort and beauty in each other.
I recommend this book so much. It's a gem!

4.5/5 stars

I really loved the direction this story was taking. The world building at the start was rich and detailed, especially in the pacing of the story. Ava is a pro at incorporating world building into character establishment and development and this was no exception. I loved the premise although I did feel I had some lingering questions but due to the shortness of the novel I didn't look too far into this. I did think that the character development was missing something towards the 60% mark. It felt nicely paced until it wasn't but recovered quickly. It was like there was a slight gap I can't quite put my finger on but the rest was so good that it covered up for it.

Overall this was really good and considering this is so far out of Ava's usual range this was an absolute hit!!

I love a dystopian novel so when I saw this was releasing I requested it immediately.

I loved the set-up of a post-apocalyptic world, and all of the characters were done really well.

The nostalgia from 2010s dystopian novels was definitely there, but where I felt like it lacked was the romance aspect.

Being a standalone I think it was hard to make the connection feel fully developed. I wish this was a duology so we could’ve had more development in their relationship and more from the world as well.

This book was fast paced and did keep my attention and I definitely would recommend.

3.5 stars!

Thank you Harper Collin’s and NetGalley for this eARC.

Fable for the End of the World took me back to the glory days of dystopia. This book knowingly takes inspiration from The Hunger Games, but it did not copy or disgrace the subject material. It was honoring without mimicking. I really appreciated that Reid acknowledged her inspiration and that it didn't feel trite.

The setup of this book was fantastic. It had the games aspect of The Hunger Games, oppression of women that reminded me of The Handmaid's Tale, and a quality to the games that reminded me of Immortal Longings. I love THG and IL, but the similarities to THT gave me pause. It wasn't just similar in theme, but in bleakness. While I respected the points the author was trying to make, she did not give the characters, and therefore the reader, hope.

It was this lack of hope that kept me from loving the book. Because love the book I did--at the beginning. When I had hope that a happy ending was attainable. However, at about the 70% mark, I realized there wasn't time for the author to give this society a happy ending. I could've accepted that, but the ambiguous ending for the two main characters, I couldn't forgive.

I hope Reid will try dystopia again, because this was a solid start. However, the relationship and societal problems could've used the time a duology would've given them. I love and appreciate a good standalone, but this story needed more time to develop.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with an e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

**Thank you for the publishers & to NetGalley for giving me an arc in exchange for an honest review.**

My first introduction to Ava Reid was Lady MacBeth and it became one of my favorite books of 2024. Fable for the End of the World has become one of my favorite books of 2025. Yes even this early on.

This book is a love letter to dystopian and it really has to vibes of all of our favorite YA early 2010s dystopian novels. Ava Reid did an amazing portrayal of how survival is based on human compassion and companionship. Mel & Inesa were two complex characters with simple convictions, thus made them relatable and lovable. The sapphic love story was amazingly done. The ending had me shocked and I’m hoping we get a small short epilogue with a happy ending for them both cause my girls deserve it.

Thank you Harper Collins and NetGalley for the advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

Boy this one felt relevant.

Capitalist dictators rule the world and have brought citizens to subservience via crippling debt.
!!!
Besides the obvious current world parallels, it was clear the book followed in some very large YA footsteps. Hunger Games is identified by the author as her inspiration, but with themes like murder, rampant greed, desensitization,and objectification, I couldn’t help also associating the premise with some of Atwood’s works. It definitely had my brain processing plot possibilities with every new page.
Amidst the soul crushing premise, Reid also manages to weave an impossible enemies-to-lovers sapphic romance. My only critique would be wishing this part of the story had been more fleshed out. At times the connection felt like it lacked the level of believability that I so desperately longed for.

This book is like a love letter to ‘00s dystopian YA like The Hunger Games and Uglies, and as a massive fan of the genre, I was so excited to receive an ARC!

Ava’s writing pulls you in immediately, and the world she constructs feels realistic and prescient. I mean, an omni-corporation who will drone-lift you anything you want at the touch of a button, until you’re so far in their debt you have to sell yourself (or a loved one) to The Gauntlet, everyone’s favorite streaming reality show/death competition? Unfortunately, very plausible!

If you’re in the mood for:
🧬 Dystopian, near-future sci-fi/fantasy
🧬 Sapphic ETL
🧬 Hunter x Hunted dynamic
🧬 Dangerous landscapes & creatures
🧬 Fighting for survival
🧬 Corporation slander

Then I think you’ll really enjoy this book!

Thank you so much to Harper-Collins for the gifted ARC and finished copy of the Deluxe Edition! 🥹

3.75 Stars
I was so incredibly excited to read this book because Ava Reid wrote it and it was a call back to the YA dystopian books I read in my teens and early twenties. I really enjoyed the gritty drowned setting and build-up of politics that led to this world. In typical Reid style, the parents were awful and I loved that. It gives messy family dynamics while still having supportive characters like Inesa’s brother. I felt like the characters were well fleshed out for a dynamic YA standalone novel and was pleasantly surprised to be pretty invested in Inesa and Melinoë in a relatively short book.

For me though, I may just be past my YA dystopian with a grand love story obsession days. The love story felt rushed, and while it seemed believable due to trauma bonding, it could have been fleshed out better. It may have also been a disservice to this book that I was reading the Earthseed duology alongside this.

Either way, I really did enjoy this for what it was; a dynamic sapphic love story thrown into a fight for survival. I can’t help but think that if I was ten years younger I would have made this book my whole personality.

Thank you NetGalley and Harper Collins for providing an advance reader copy of this book for my honest review.

I absolutely loved Lady Macbeth and while I am aware this is a very different genre, knowing how well the author can write just left me disappointed. This is yet another Hunger Games, battle to the death, class disparity, story, which I don't have a problem with, when the world is fully built and doesn't just leave huge plot holes everywhere.

The romance, sadly, was also lacking, because for a good enemies-to-lovers journey, you need some substance and character growth, and here there was very little of that. One moment one girl is trying to kill the other and the next they're in love.

The final complaint is the ending. It just sucked. This very much feels like a discount Hunger Games, and I don't know if the point of the ending is to do a surprise duology or trilogy but this just did not work for me.

4.5 ⭐️

Fable for the End of the World is a YA dystopian novel that follows two 17-year-old girls, Inesa and Melinoë, who are at the mercy of the company-driven government of New Amsterdam in two very different ways. A company by the name of Caerus essentially runs the entire nation as a business, controlling every facet of society and squeezing as much profit out of the people and land as possible. The entire economy is based on debt owed to Caerus for all living expenses from basic necessities to luxuries. When someone has surpassed a certain amount of debt to Caerus, they are chosen to participate in a highly publicized Gauntlet wherein they have 13 days to evade death while being hunted by an Angel. Angels are girls who have been physically augmented with technology and other procedures to make them into unfeeling killing machines. Melinoë is one of them. Inesa lives with her brother and mother in a small destitute town, doing everything in her power to protect herself and her brother from debt. She still gets forced into participating in her own Gauntlet, and Melinoë is the Angel hunting her.

I thought the concept of this novel was really strong as well as feeling relatable in some ways given current events. While I found the world-building compelling, I wish Ried had gone into a bit more detail about how the climate disasters and political relations with surrounding nations came to be; they felt just brushed upon rather than wholly fleshed out. There was a part in the last quarter of the book that explains some more world-building with Caerus’ ascent to power, and I wish that was added in earlier in the narrative to support the reader’s understanding of the government’s machinations better.

The dynamic between Inesa and Melinoë felt realistic in my opinion. In a survival setting where cooperation is needed for survival along with both people being teenagers, I didn’t mind the near insta-love that the girls experienced. I also liked that the ending wasn’t just all of their problems being wrapped up in a nice little bow, it added to the desperation and yearning for a better world that is explored throughout the novel. The open-endedness of the ending added a realistic sense of hope for both the characters and the issues that Ried was commentating on in the real world.

Overall I enjoyed Fable for the End of the World, and I would like to thank NetGalley and Harper Collins for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was a great dystopian stand alone! I could see the inspiration from the common dystopian books of the early 2000s but was a fresh take and kept me hooked. Finished it in less than 24 hours since I didn't want to put it down.