I like going into a book blind with minimum details so that I can enjoy every single page rather than just knowing what’s waiting for me in the first 50 pages because I read the summary, so all I knew when I started reading Journey through Eden was that this follows Evelyn who works in a bar and finds herself in the middle of an earthquake or ‘quake’ as they call it throughout the book, which results in wiping away any trace of life form that ever existed in San Francisco. And that was enough to get me excited about reading it. However, this book wasn’t a smooth ride.

I think that has a lot to do with how we perceive the story of a post-apocalyptic world to be, with a lot of bloodshed, loneliness, and survival tactics between groups. But that’s how Journey through Eden was different. But that turned out both a blessing and a curse for the story.

Journey through Eden follows Evelyn, Brandon, Taylor, Danny, and Melissa as they try to survive in the wild after they’re thrown in a forest after a classic example of the wrong place, and the wrong time, as all five of them were in the bar when the quake happened.

Journey through Eden had a unique take on the times after the world ended or as we so famously call it the post-apocalyptic world.

The characters are not looking for being the hero and saving the world but are rather more interested in surviving as a team. This idea/theme works for you if you want a sneak peek at what the world will look like after doomsday and that has nothing to do with people turning into bloodthirsty warmongers, collective survival can be the key. However, if a little bit of action is what you look forward to in such stories, Journey through Eden isn’t for you.

One of my biggest complaints with the story was the narrator. Usually, a story is written from a central pov where the character is in the middle of the plotline, which also helps in giving the readers more information about the side characters. However, Evie proved to be a very unreliable narrator who she felt like a side character in her own story, attempting zero conversations which made her internal monologues a little boring. We didn’t get enough about Evie’s character as well, although there were a few tidbits about her life and Brandon’s that are not enough to make you attached to the characters. By the time the story finished a lot had happened but I wasn’t that attached to any of the characters to have distinct feelings for each or rather any of them.

Another thing that was missing from the story was conversations. When five people are stranded in a forest with no hint of civilization, the only thing they have to keep them sane is each other. One thing that this book lacked severely was healthy conversations between the characters which also made it a little boring because of all the internal monologues Evie was having. Her disinterest in the characters starts rubbing off on the readers and what started as a gripping plot becomes a little boring and slow in the middle.

However, if you can get through a few chapters of them going through their days, the story picks up in the last 100 pages. There is also a good amount of action and there are also comes few plot twists. I liked the writing skills of the author. She has done an amazing job with the description of nature and everything that surrounds our characters in the plot. This book comes with its own set of trigger warnings and while none of those are talked about in-depth I still feel you should be careful with it.

The author has created an experience like man vs. wild but less graphic and more emotional. I thoroughly enjoyed the world they have created and this felt like it brings you closer to nature in its own messed up way because, in the end, all you can rely upon is your instincts and everything that is provided by the wild. I am not sure if that was what the author’s intention but Journey through Eden is a survival story and I’d recommend this one to everyone who doesn’t cares about the heroes who will sacrifice everything but rather people who would refuse to give up and can also build up life again together.

Pros:

• Loved the world-building.
• Amazing writing style.

Cons:

– Fewer conversations between the characters make them a little distant from the readers.   

Book score: 7.5/10

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Review made by Akansha

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