November 2021 Review: Post-pandemic Thriller

A Single Light

(audiobook)

Author: Tosca Lee

Produced by: Simon & Schuster Audio

Read by: Cassandra Campbell

RATING: ⭐⭐⭐⭐1/2

Before I start: I know my newsletter stated a different book would be up for this month, but as we all know…life happens. My reading time was severely diminished by a demanding work schedule. And so…I give you my first ever review of an audiobook, which I consumed while mowing the four and half acres of our business property week in and week out. That said, this review is a little different as the experience was different. Audiobooks are fantastic, but they are a unique way to consume books. The voice actor will shape your experience of the story for better or for worse. Still, for the busy reader, I highly recommend audiobooks as a way to support authors and encounter remarkable stories while on the go.

Also before I start: I will do my best to keep this review spoiler free, but as a sequel to The Line Between, I cannot adequately talk about this book without giving a few things away. So…if you have not read the first book, please stop reading here and go read it. It’s fantastic. I’ve written a review on that book, too, which you can find here.

Ok. Here goes. Seriously, don’t keep reading if you haven’t read the first book.

The Line Between has been one of my favorite reads in the last couple of years. Strangely prophetic and gripping in its storyline, I read the first installment of Lee’s story in just a couple of sittings. I loved the story of Wynter, and her fight to engage a world that was so unfamiliar to her…all while a pandemic was ravaging the land.

So, when I discovered there was a sequel, I HAD to read it. Or hear it in this case.

Six months have passed since Wynter and the others went underground to be locked into a bunker to await the emergence of the vaccine that would curb the devastating pandemic that was raging across the country. Everyone in the bunker is eager to emerge into the world, to see their friends on the surface, and to get back to a somewhat normal life. Wynter dreams of her future with Chase and their plans to take off for Wyoming.

But then, Noah’s updates suddenly stop. All communication with the outside world is lost. Debate rages as to what has happened on the surface. Supplies are getting short, and something needs to happen. A loved one is hurt and in desperate need of medication. Then, the door unlocks…early.

What they find on the surface, is nothing like they expected. Wynter finds herself in an apocalyptic wasteland racing to find the needed supplies to save her friend. The only problem is…will anyone help her?

As sequels go, I was not disappointed. While the stakes of the story weren’t quite as elevated as The Line Between, I loved that Wynter once again must figure out the world around her. Vacant homes, towns controlled by makeshift warlords, and hospitals full of the diseased…this is not the world that Wynter had finally started to master after leaving the doomsday cult.

While the first book had that “any day” quality to it, I had a harder time getting pulled into the story this time. I appreciate that seeing a land ravaged by disease through the protagonist’s eyes would narrow the focus, there was a part of me that wanted to know more about the world.

Again, I don’t know how much of this was the author’s story or the actor’s presentation or my own encounter with audiobooks.

Don’t get me wrong, I loved this book.

If you love dystopian or post-apocalyptic books, then this is for you. If you read Wynter’s first story, then you will want to consume this, too. The story was believable and evoked both sadness and hope inside me.

The book is clean. There is some use of the Lord’s name in vain. No sex. Violence is not gory and fits in the story. Romance is clean. I would let my teens read this book, for sure. I appreciate that the author’s faith, while present between the lines, was never preachy or in your face.

Definitely checking out more of Tosca Lee’s other books after this one.

Available on Amazon or your local bookstore (support local business!).

No disclaimer. I did not receive anything from the author, nor was I requested to write this review.