Children of the Earth

April 15, 2015
The buildup to and final culmination of prophecies from End Times (2014). Three months have passed since the death of Janie's baby, and in the time between novels, the townspeople have changed their minds about Daphne and now believe her a prophet-she's attracting religious newcomers who want to participate in the final battle. But Daphne is keeping bits and pieces of her visions from them, just as she's keeping her relationship with Owen a secret. The secrets are connected: Daphne doesn't know what to make of visions of Owen with his fellow Children of the Earth reaping destruction and death. Meanwhile, Children of the Earth leader Luna finishes assembling her flock and shifts gears, hoping to lure Owen back by any means, as he is necessary to her single-minded goals. In less-mystical subplots, Janie's grief and loneliness become overwhelming as she's isolated in her in-laws' partially built chateau, while her father-in-law recklessly attempts to steal the oil right out from under her father. The plot suffers from logical hiccups-baffling depictions of police work notable among these-but the characters' emotional lives are rich and believable. With each character's moves, the showdown and solution's inevitability become clearer. A sequel that fulfills its predecessor's promises. (Fantasy. 14 & up)

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May 1, 2015

Gr 9 Up-In this follow-up to End Times (Penguin, 2014), the people of Carbon County still consider Daphne a prophet, but since she helped deliver her cousin Janie's inexplicably stillborn baby, they are even more wary of her than before. She's secretly meeting Owen for make-out sessions, and she has terrible visions that make her wonder if he is evil. Janie is drinking herself into oblivion, and her husband Doug couldn't be less interested. The mesmerizing Luna has opened a dance club called The Vein, and is finally able to round up the complete group of her brothers and sisters of the Children of the Earth. Unfortunately, Owen is among that number, and Daphne has some tough choices to make. Her lover, or the fate of the world? The brief moments of levity peppered throughout the previous installment are absent here. Human sacrifice, betrayal, orphaned children-this is one dark tale. The country bumpkin nature of the Carbon County residents is played up almost to the point of being distracting, but the plot is quick, and well paced, and the Daphne/Owen romance is sizzling. VERDICT The Rapture angle makes this stand out a little among other "end of the world" books. Readers who loved the first title will want to get their hands on this.-Mandy Laferriere, Fowler Middle School, Frisco, TX

Copyright 2015 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

June 1, 2015
Grades 9-12 Daphne and Owen are in love . . . and on opposite sides of an apocalyptic showdown between the God-fearing citizens of Carbon County, who believe Daphne's visions make her a prophet of the Lord, and the hippie Children of the EarthOwen's half siblingswho want him to add his mysterious powers to their own. Though she relies a bit too much on stock characters, Schumacher's finale to End Times (2014) comes with plenty of crowd-pleasing death and destruction. Readers who enjoyed the first book's fast pace and apocalyptic narrative will appreciate how Schumacher wraps up her story with a literal bang.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)