I love being on a boat and feeling the spray of the water as we are cruising across the lake. I also like being able to get off of the boat and walk across solid ground at the end of the day. The characters in Kassandra Montag's post-disaster novel do not have the same luxury; their land was overtaken by water and they have no choice but to live at the mercy of the sea. I've never felt more grateful to live on land. Let's discuss After the Flood!
The Gist
In the aftermath of a great flood that decimated most habitable land, Myra and her daughter Pearl fight to survive on their fishing boat, trading their catches for essential goods. Myra has another mission: locate her older daughter, Row, who was taken by her father in the early days of the flood. Myra will stop at nothing to locate Row, even if it means manipulating a ship's crew to risk their lives to seek a rare plot of land where Row may be trapped.
The Take
Unlike film blockbusters like The Day After Tomorrow or Volcano, After the Flood does not deal in constant peril for the characters. Instead, it reads more like a sweeping epic set during a relatively short timeframe. The story can seem meandering at times, focusing on the daily tasks that Myra and Pearl accomplish in their life on the fishing boat. However, that does not detract from the moments of danger they face aboard the Sedna with its crew, and helps to center readers in the reality of this new existence. The people are struggling to adapt, but they do so in a lot of fascinating ways that Montag takes the time to explore.
There are still plenty of action scenes, particularly when Myra encounters members of the breeding ships (they are as heinous as the name suggests) or raiders on the sea. It is a brutal new reality, with a lot of people compromising old ethics in favor of opportunities for survival. Myra has a few of these moments herself, and as much as she tries to shield young Pearl from bearing witness, this harsh way of life has affected Pearl's naivete as well. Myra can't afford to trust anyone with hers and Pearl's safety, which lends an undercurrent of tension even in the more mundane-seeming chapters.
One of the main through-lines in After the Flood deals with the compromises that desperate people will make, and much of it is centered on Myra. She has the added layer of motherhood, wherein she stops at nothing to protect Pearl and try to make her way to Row. Myra is single-minded in her goal, to the point where she manipulates everyone who can be an advantage to her goal. The found family she and Pearl develop on Sedna does not stop her willingness to forfeit their lives in order to get to Row. These moments lend to the more frustrating aspects of the story, but while not justified, her actions at least make sense for a desperate mother. Seeing into Myra's thoughts throughout the novel also provides readers with insight into her fear and regrets for what she does, which helps her seem more realistic as a character.
There is a moment late in the story, which I won't explain due to spoilers, that almost had me give up on the book altogether. It eluded to the idea that much of Myra's journey happened due to a misunderstanding or moment that she "forgot," which would have changed her entire trajectory. This type of miscommunication device is a tired method for creating conflict easily avoided, which is a trope I am not a fan of. I will say that the resolution of this moment did not entirely ruin my reading experience, but it was a disappointing portion of the book.
After the Flood is an interesting take on a post-disaster story, and one that isn't bogged down by too many unnecessary action scenes. It is told in a way that helps readers immerse themselves in this harsh lifestyle and connect with the main characters. While I did not feel connected to any of the secondary characters, Myra and Pearl were interestingly complicated characters that kept me focused on their journey. There was a moment late in the story that almost had me put the book down, but thankfully it was well resolved. I can see this story connecting with some people even if it didn't become one of my favorites.
Rating: 6/10
Memorable Moments
"I hadn’t allowed myself to have a dream in so long it felt foreign, uncomfortable, like a muscle gone weak."
"I knew it was sometimes easier to love ghosts than the people who were around you. Ghosts could be perfect, frozen beyond time, beyond reality, the crystal form they’d never been before, the person you needed them to be."
"I am not the shards of a broken glass, but the water let loose from it. The uncontainable thing that will not shatter and stay broken."
Try It If...
You enjoy post-apocalyptic stories.
You like sweeping dramas that have a little action sprinkled throughout.
Mother-daughter character dynamics interest you.
Avoid It If...
Post-disaster stories do not interest you.
The idea of having to live on a boat greatly concerns you.
You need a small cast of characters to follow.
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