The Edge of Life

The Edge of Life by Lena Gibson follows both Kat and Ryan as they race against the clock towards a bunker to survive the end of the world, as a gigantic meteorite is coming. Kat is a elementary teacher, who tries to cope with her life by drinking on every free day. She's neurodivergent (autistic) too, and this is an ownvoices book. She has met Ryan a couple of times before because of a mutual friend, but now they're suddenly sort of stuck with each other. With the end of times around the corner, their relationship develops fast.

I was of course very curious about the autism rep, I love reading about people with the same neurodivergence as me! I have to say, the rep I read was well done, but I felt like a lot of the time it was just ignored. I expected at least a few meltdowns or shutdowns as there are some pretty intense situations, but those weren't around, and the sensory issues were there, but it felt like it was not enough for what they went through. Every autistic person is different of course, so I'm not here to judge, this is just how I experienced it. But mostly I loved it, especially how Kat tried to interpret social interactions, and used her social mask in emergency situations to save the day - or ruin it lol.

I love an apocalyptic story and this one absolutely didn't disappoint. I was screaming at times at their choices, which is a good thing lol, I was very invested in their survival. The road trip through hell was gruelling yet entertaining as lots of things happened to move the plot, and the romance is the perfect counterpart to the world falling to pieces. I have to say, I thought the actual first romance was a little sudden, but after that it felt very natural and I was heavily invested in their happiness. They make a perfect match, and it was just really sweet and amazing to watch them grow together and open up. I love that part. I very much dislike all spice, but this book had just enough for me to not grow tired of it, which is quite the feat. We also get POV's from Ryan, the lovable workaholic, and he's very fun to read about. Their back stories and time together is my favorite. Plotwise I felt like there was a perfect balance between the action and epic plot and the oasis in between of getting to know the characters. The writing style was very engaging and beautiful.

All in all, a perfect romantic apocalypse story with great autism rep, and I really hope there's gonna be a part two, even though the ending is a real ending, I can see so many things in their future I really want to read about.

I received a free e-arc through Netgalley, many thanks, but this has not influenced my opinions.