This Is Where It Ends

​Very confusing in the beginning trying to keep all the players straight with so much back and forth between the characters. Once you settle in and become familiar with everyone "this is where it ends" becomes more and more of a page turner. Ms Nijkamp did an excellent job of making the reader feel we were right there sharing in all the emotions. I know this is suppose to be Young Adult Fiction, for ages 14 and up. I am well beyond that age and thoroughly enjoyed the story. I was given an early copy to review.

I found this book through the Iowa Reads program and am still waiting for the tears to dry. This is a YA novel but should be read by parents as well. As the parent of a 15 and 12 year old I spent a restless night imaging my children in this horrifying scenario. A shooter in the school, how do my children survive. Then the real sadness set in that sadly this is all too real a possibility. Excellent read, highly recommend this story.

The same as some others, I read this book in one sitting. At first it was a bit hard to follow. There were so many different little stories I skimmed through a lot of the beginning, that's why I gave it four stars.
As the story progressed, everything came together. I found myself going back to the front to see who was who. The intermittent text messages and twitters throughout the book was a way to give the victims more depth. I didn't realize until I got to the middle that the victims were involved with these messages.
This book reminds me of Tears of a Tiger, one of my favorite books by Sharan Draper. If you like that book, you may like this one as well. If you haven't read Tears of a Tiger, I recommend it, and all the others in the series.
This is a great novel, whether you're a YA fan or not. I kinda of saw it as a movie while I read which tells me it was well written. Set aside an afternoon for this one, because you won't be able to put it down.

The characters were cliche and one dimensional. The plot was stupid and unrealistic. The actions and motives of the shooter made little to no sense. I only finished this book becaus do assumed that it HAD to have some redeeming quality with the amount of positive reviews it’s gotten. Spoiler alert: I couldn’t find a single redeeming quality.

I would give this a 5 but the content is so possible that I can't. Love, sacrifice, betrayal, and an abused and broken bully with a gun. This one will knock you to your knees mostly because this is the kind of thing that could happen while everyone asks themselves what could I have done while saying if only. Although the book ends on what is meant to be a positive the feeling of despair is overwhelming.

I absolutely LOVED this book. As a middle and high school teacher, this novel was entirely realistic and Nijkamp did an amazing job capturing the voice of the different characters and the struggles they faced. Her writing is so seamless and so well-crafted, which really shows a lot of mastery for a debut author. My only disappointment, however, is that Nijkamp doesn't have a back catalog for me to buy more of her books! This is a must read for both adults and teens alike!

Warning: There might be spoilers in this review.

With the state of the world and all the random, horrific acts of violence, I thought this would be a timely, thought-provoking read. But I was disappointed with the cardboard characters (including the shootist).

This was a book with a lot of potential and it just fell flat. I wanted some insight into WHY this horrible event happened. There never was any feedback from shooter Tyler Browne - and that's the person I wanted some explanation and justification from, even if it was coming from his skewed viewpoint.

And, out of all the people that are killed, there was only two that I felt enough for to feel any regrets.

Also, there is a gay couple in the story and, rather than adding to the storyline, I just felt their relationship was thrown in to show that this was a "diverse story."

So, I was disappointed. This could have been a timely, well-written book. The potential was there. Sadly, it is not.

NOTE: I received this book from Sourcebooks Fire through Net Galley in exchange for my honest review.

It's hard to read...such loss...but it is also gripping. You read it so quickly because it is happening in real time. It is heartbreaking and encouraging all at once. You read about slackers stepping up and choosing to help, You are reminded that people are so much more than what you see on the surface...that a person's history and background shape and alter them in unimaginable ways. Grief makes people lash out...sometimes to extremes we can never comprehend.

This story takes place, ironically, in the town of Opportunity. After the death of his mother, Tyler, can no longer get a handle on his grief. That, coupled with the constant abuse from his father, his girlfriend breaking up with him....he decides to shoot up the school. I was unimpressed by the writing, but the book moved swiftly enough that I did finish it. The author was unable to develop her characters--I felt the story was being read to me and I wasn't invested in the characters or outcome at all. Probably won't read this author again.

***I received this book as a gift in exchange for an honest review via the publisher

Contains triggers: School shooting, abuse, assault, sexual assault, violence.

PROS:
I’m not sure if it was the author’s intention but I actually felt bad for the shooter. His sister is self-absorbed and dealing with her own issues. She left him to flail. The pressure from the community to conform. The dislike from his peers, the literal beatings from some characters who were meant to be seen as heroes. The glimpses into his past from the other POVs show a hidden depth and softness that was corrupted by loss, grief, and misunderstanding.

Diversity was all over the place. From tragic car accidents to Alzheimer’s to lupus to different ethnicities and lesbian characters, there’s a huge range and they don’t feel like “token” diverse characters. I appreciated that. So many times I’ve read books where it feels like characters have no function beyond the diversity in the book and each character functions as a regular teen with issues like anyone else.

That last 10% nearly gutted me. OH MY GOD. The feels between siblings were heartbreaking and like a hard slap in the face. All the things we miss when we are so focused on the general drama in our lives.

CONS:

Logistically, some of the particulars were a little off and didn’t align with the culprit. The shooter is eagle-eyed, perceptive, and a skilled sharpshooter. His motives are clearly planned and he has targets in mind. This act is not random. Somewhere in the middle of the book, this all goes haywire and an escape plan is hatched. It floored me how easily students were able to sneak when in the beginning, every little moment was caught and punished.

The story is told from more than 4 POVs, unlike what it says in the synopsis. There are blog posts and tweets (these were particularly confusing and hopefully the formatting is improved from the ARC version). The main characters relate events like you’re supposed to know their back stories. At first, I felt bombarded with information and it was hard to keep things straight. There are so many little details inserted offhandedly that it’s too easy to forget. At the halfway point, everything starts to fall in place and there are reminders of subtle, underlying issues like lupus or Alzheimer’s .

It might have been the numerous POVs (doubtful) or the interpretation of the shooter but for the majority, I’d say 90% of the book, I felt barely a spark for any of the characters. Each character’s section was too short and flipped quickly to another. Just when you’d start to feel something it was on to another.

For a book that is told in real-time and spans less than an hour it felt surprisingly slow. The terror wasn’t potent or as devastating because it kept moving from character to character and their life stories-flashbacks.

THIS IS WHERE IT ENDS is a harrowing novel with interesting, diverse characters and an ambitious, multiple point-of-view structure. The premise is both horrifying and captivating, and the 54-minute timeline works well to sustain the high intensity and illustrate how time can slow down when something devastating happens. It's a timely story that will raise interesting questions about what causes people to snap, if and how tragedies can be avoided, and what it means to be a hero.

This is one tragic story. I read this cold without knowing anything about it. If I had known it was about a school shooting I may not have read it and would totally have missed out on one of the best books this year. I can't even describe it. Maybe it's just the way everyone simply reached out for the people they l loved the most. Even when there was conflict between two of them. It was heartbreaking to see how one boy felt that he had to destroy everyone because of the devastation in his own life. Good read, and short too.

I began reading this without prior knowledge or expectations. Most of the book caught and held me. The few short misses made it the four, not five. I still do not feel the WHY . There is too much of a difference between the charecters disconnect and the action. Ifeel the character outside could have had more relevance. It would have been better served by a teachers perspective.

4.5 stars

Wow. This book. I finished it in a matter of hours. I just couldn't stop reading. It spans over 54 minutes. 54 tense, scary, heart breaking minutes. Somehow, in less than 300 pages the author manages to create multiple complex characters I grew to love. In 54 minutes, and less than 300 pages, I grew attached to everyone, felt like I knew them.

A powerful idea with unique characters, but it feels flat, and I can't figure out why. It feels as though there are too many characters that don't get fleshed out as much as they should, and the narration switches too often to get truly invested. It has a strong writing style and handles differing character voices well, but it just didn't hit me in the gut the way I think it was supposed to.

This is a decently riveting story written inside a fictional school shooting. The author weaves together a plot that shares the POV of a number of students coping with the terror and their own memories of peers whose lives are threatened. There’s no particular a-ha moment at the end, but the writing is crisp and sometimes poetic.

This is a very tight and gripping story about young people involved in a very terrible event. I really liked the way the stories unfolded from the different perspectives of the characters. At the very beginning of the novel, I found myself going back to see who was talking; but soon became very familiar with each of the characters. This is a well constructed novel and well written. I find myself wanting a follow on story dealing with the aftermath. I believe this young author has the voice to tell it.

If you're debating on reading this, read it. If you don't want to read this, read it. This is such a beautifully heart aching story that will grab your heart and break it only to pick it up and stab it. The story though is amazing and enlightening and is so beautifully written.

The cover and title drew me in and I wasn't disappointed but the three stars because it also wasn't this stand out book either. The subject is hard to read about and unfortunately happens more often than we would like to think. The author did a good job with the different characters and perspectives. A good book to read. Not overly complicated or dissatisfying.

What a horrible awful touching story this is. I tried to keep it together but I couldn't at the end. I fell apart and feel broken. I'll never forget this book. Never. I'm painfully aware of the pieces this book had embedded in me. I think it makes me more human. I'm speechless.

This is Where it Ends
By Marieke Nijkamp
Pages: 285
Publication date: January 5th, 2016

This book was so very emotional, by the end of it I really wanted to cry. The book is told between 4 different Povs, and let me just say I was attached to these characters. The writing was beautiful, and even those this was a devastating story, it was amazing at the same time. You really don't know how the book is gonna end until you get there...

If you haven't read this I definitely recommend this, but beware you might need to have the tissues ready.

5/5 stars

Wow! This book takes the reader into the terrible world of violence in schools and pulls us into the fear, the helplessness and the futility filling the building and holding every one hostage. We are also exposed to relationships that are broken or unfilled. It's a page turner; a different read. Not for the faint of heart though.

This Is Where It Ends is a book that I just couldn’t buy for so many reasons.

Reason #1: The setting of this book is Opportunity, Alabama, but you mean to tell me that almost every type of person is represented in the high school body? Black, white, Muslim, straight, gay, and those ROTC kids. I mean, that’s just great, but not really all that plausible. Especially for Alabama. (No offense Alabama.)

Reason #2: The characters were all really underdeveloped and I don’t know that I had any feels for any of them. All of them fell flat. I found myself flipping through the book and speed-reading as fast as I could just so it would be over with. (Not good.)

Reason #3: So many unnecessary elements were thrown into it all and it really disrupted the book’s whole flow. Between the tweets and the blog posts, and the confession that Sylvia makes about how Tyler raped her? WHAT. And she just accepts it and doesn’t want to bug anyone with her annoying problems I guess. Ehhhh.

Nothing about this book worked for me. If you are in dire need of a book about a school shooting, which I know we all find it a hard subject, check out Hate List by Jennifer Brown. Much better in my opinion.

I thought this was a good book, it sucks you in and keeps you hooked. You don't want to put the book down in fear of what might happen next. Definitely a lot of sensitive moments. The only thing that bothered me was the lack of character development, and the ending was moderately dull and predictable. I wish we knew more about the shooter and his motive.

Besides that, great book!

Principal Trenton is giving her traditional speech when Tyler Browne enters the school auditorium and shoots her. It's only the beginning of a massacre, but in spite of the horror, we feel pity for Tyler as long as,for his victims. Not for the sensitive reader.

How does an author choose to write about a terror that scares us to the core? It is a brave book, very well written. The characters are real and compelling. While we dive into the midst of a nightmare, we hope that each survives. There are no villains here, only lost souls that should have seen a different path was available.

I gave the book a 4 star, because as an educator some of this story seems implausible. The entire school in an assembly almost never happens. The students in the principal's office going through files. The reaction from first responders should have been much quicker. I like that there is a message of home in the end. Good description, and if I were looking for examples if figurative Lang., this is a great resource.

This is book broke my heart in the best possible way. I listened to it via Audible and I just adored it. The way Nijkamp masterfully using multiple POVs, including social media posts, shows the horrors of a high school shooting in a way that should make people think more about these situations. I particularly liked that I was reading a book that is classified as LGBTQ and it didn't feel like I was reading a LGBTQ issues book. It's a book about broken people, a book about people let down by family and society, a book about what can go wrong when people hold onto prejudices instead of embracing love and understand. The story never felt preachy, and yet I feel like it's impossible to read this and not come away the richer for it. I highly recommend it.

This Is Where It Ends received lots of praise early on, so I was expecting big things from it and hoping I'd love it just as much. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case. I read it one sitting, which never happens, so that shows you it was gripping (minus the first few chapters). But ultimately, it lacked emotion for me. This book deals with a school shooting and such tragedy yet it didn't effect me the way it probably should have (apart from a few tears). It was horrific to read, but I was left wanting more depth and emotion. I think in large that had to do with the multiple POV changes throughout the course of the book. Every few pages it would switch between one of four perspectives, which I should also note I'm not a big fan of. It had the potential to be a smart move as you start to connect the dots in your head and see how everyone's connected, but instead I found it got in the way of me connecting with the characters. I did love the diversity though and how many different characters were represented - always great to see done well. Marieke is a new diverse voice in the YA world and her debut was certainly an interesting one. Here's hoping her next book will be more of a winner for me

“‘I wanted to fit in here.’ His voice rises and falls with a singsong cadence. He has the gun in one hand. His other rests on his waistband where, strapped over his dress shirt and slacks, he carries cartridges of ammunition, perhaps even another gun. ‘Instead, I lost everything.’”

This read ended up being a major disappointment for me. I started out knowing, because of the subject, it was going to be dark and may hit a few sensitive marks. Unfortunately I never came to care enough about the characters to worry with the situation.

The story flips back and forth through multiple characters in different places throughout the school, which could have worked, but they all have some kind of relationship to the others. I found myself having to go back multiple times to remind myself who was who and how they were connected to the others. Overall it just became annoying and contributed to why I never connected to the characters.

There’s also a very severe lack of adults in this novel. Where the heck are all the teachers?! There’s a mention of one or two of the teachers, but as the shooter goes about his business where’s the trained leadership of the school staff in all this chaos? Maybe the author thought she could get away with it just being a “small” school, but small, country schools still have the same requirements as other schools. It’s clear the author wanted the teens to be heroes of the story, but don’t turn the book into a no-adults-exist super-teens story.

The gunman was another point that was lacking. What motivated his actions? He talks a lot with not much to actually say. He has family problems, and he points out that he was lonely, but nothing even hinted on what drove him over the edge and why he chose to take out his pain/anger on the school. To me this felt like a big cop-out, because there’s always controversy over if the shooter could have been stopped if his depression/bullying/abuse was found out beforehand.

Overall, I didn’t like this book. There were diverse characters (how in the world there could be that many diverse characters in that small of a school, no idea, but hey, lets go with it), but the characters lacked any depth. I’d probably skip over this one.

A myriad of characters tell this horrific story. A tale of a school shooting something that has become all to common in the US. Each character reveals the ordeal from their point of view. Realistically covering the emotions and events of that horrible day and how students and faculty start to deal with their loss.

The format of this book was a little tricky and I never figured out who some of the tweets were from but I got use to it and as tragic as the story is I liked being inside the heads of certain students. It was a good angle. I've avoided books on this topic but this was a Big Library Read so I joined in.

I enjoyed This Is Where It Ends by Marieke Nijkamp. The author did a good job of telling the story through the voice of four different characters. I like this style as it brings depth to the story - each character brings something different to the story.

I would recommend this book to readers.

I think in theory this should have been an amazing read! I liked the idea of following the story, minute by minute, with multiple POVs. I didn't like that most of the characters felt one note and as though they were each created to fill a "Breakfast Club" type role. The book was a quick read, and I'm not sorry that I finished it, I just finished and wished there had been more character development for all.

I loved this book in spite of/because of the difficult subject matter. It was painful at times to keep reading but I also couldn't stop, if that makes sense. The different points of view flowed seamlessly, one to the next, pulling me right into the every day world of high school, turned completely upside down.

This book broke my heart and mended it all over again.

I didn't buy this off the store, I picked it up at a Barnes & Noble and intended to just read the first chapter or so to see if I liked it. Well, it was such a thrilling novel that I ended up sitting at that Barnes and Noble for 3.5 hours reading because I just could NOT put this down!!! It was such a captivating novel! I HIGHLY recommend this book, especially for a long trip or if you're wanting to read something while waiting for something. Just be careful when reading the ending or you'll end getting all teary in front of a bunch of Barnes & Noble shoppers...

The subject matter is disturbing, however, it has been a fact of life. The story , which I had to keep telling myself was just a story, was compelling. The lives and characters entwined and were heartwarming. The question is, do we really know a person, and what they are capable of. Hard to put down.

This storyline was difficult to read, yet I could not put the book down. This is the story of a school shooting through the eyes of several characters. The chapters proceed through a snapshot in time: just over an hour one morning.

I found the callousness of the shooter shocking and disturbing. It was difficult to follow all of the characters, and many had trauma of their own. So much dysfunction in a cast of characters - was it all necessary? As is common in YA lit and TV, the heroes are students and the adults play a minor role.

Mostly, I'm sorry that a book with this plot line is all too real and that this is our children's reality.

As someone who studies public health and I am currently taking a prevention of school violence class I found this book but amazing and difficult! The characters are a little shaking in the writing but the overall message is needed, especially in the way we live in America!
I wanted to know more about the first main characters and also wishes she had put in the perspective of the shooter instead of the runner.

Overall great book, would recommend to anyone who is interested in the topic!

This is a very riveting book but it is a lot like an accident seen that is horrible but you just can't seem to tear your eyes away. Author did a good job of letting you know whose head you were in. I just think there are enough school shootings that we don't need an extra one invented.

I'm of the older generation, where things like this never happened. Having visited Columbine High School in Colorado where just such a tragedy occurred a few years ago, this could be just that story. Challenging to follow the bouncing back and forth and some I still don't understand at all.

This book is well written and goes really fast. It gives you the perspectives of different students in a small town high school with a shooter. It shows how even good intentions lead to death. This I s a must read for anyone looking for a powerful book that tugs at the heart strings.

Although I came across this book accidentally, I couldn't put it down until it was finished.
Organized chaos was certainly clear in the writing style as you felt the emotions of the characters depicted on each page. Fast paced, heartbreaking, and overall just a very good story.

This is very close to home but well worth the read. An excellent portrayal of a school shooting told through the viewpoints of four students who are somewhat connected. The author's descriptive narrative make it seems as if it could have been my high school, and the story draws you in to the pain, stress and pressures that some high school students are experiencing.

This Is Where It Ends could easily be a true story taken from today's headlines. I read this from beginning to end in one day. I could not put it down! I felt the fear and terror of each character in the book. This story will definitely stay with me for a long time to come!

A blink of an eye and everything changes. The different points of view color and broaden the story of "This is Where It Ends" . How people act and think during a school shooting is told in this book.

It's about love and loneliness, hate and despair. It's about youth trying to find themselves when life gets in the way and changes their paths. It's about terror and fear and catastrophic loss. Hug your loved ones. Call your friends and tell them how much you care.

I surprised myself by actually reading this book to the end. It is a painful story. I have some trouble understanding what compelled the author to write it. I am ready to move on to something less predictable and more enjoyable.

Ednichols

Reading about a school shooting and getting into the thinking processes for both the victims and shooter was both fascinating and disturbing. If the authors wanted you to think while you were reading (and after) they succeeded. Glad I read this book.

I very much enjoyed this book! I found the characters to be well developed and the story to be gripping. Though I found some of the circumstances and events to be unrealistic, I thought these choices enhanced the drama, helping the reader to see the book through to the end. Please read my full review <a href="http://www.frozenseabookreviews.com/2018/02/this-is-where-it-ends.html">here</a>.

I read this for the Great Library Read. It was well written and the characters were well developed but it's a depressing subject. If you are reading just for pleasure, this is not the book to do it with. I generally wouldn't read this and not sure why I was compelled to finish.

After reading the blurb for This Is Where It Ends I couldn't wait to dive into it. But sadly.. I couldn't get into it. I personally thought the book could have been more ..whats the word I'm looking for? I think it could have been more gripping/more emotional. I didn't feel like I knew the characters at all. I understand that there's quite a few students that we switch between but I couldn't relate to any of them.

I received this book from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

This book was a little hard to get into because I had trouble getting the characters and their relationships straight. Once I understood that, I couldn't stop reading. I found the story gripping and intense. Definitely recommend this book.

This book was incredible. You become thoroughly embroiled with the characters and will find yourself holding your breath as you are reading, waiting for the next horrific gun shot. Heartbreaking, upsetting, but very well done.

I wanted this book to be better than it was.

This story deserves better than this.

I'm not going to go into much detail but one of the things that really bothered me was the way they talked to those who lost loved ones. It's not "okay" and it will never be okay. As someone who has been through a tragic loss, I felt my feelings were disrespected.

I'm so angry I can't even write this review.

I found myself holding my breath during points in this story as if I were hoping the gunman didn't see me. The characters and their stories were at once heartbreaking and hopeful. This is a book I'll remember for a long time.

This Is Where It Ends is one of those books you want to finish asap, because you want to know what's going to happen, but at the same time you want to stop reading because of what might happen.
The first few lines grabbed me and I've been glued to the pages until the end. When I learned that the story is told from the perspective of several people, I thought it would be confusing, but it wasn't. It made it more personal. No "wondering what the other person is thinking" because his/her thoughts followed next.

Of course the book is dark. There's nothing uplifting about a school shooting, but at the same time it's a story of hope, love and sacrifice.

What I found heartbreaking ánd what made the story real, are the questions the students involved ask themselves. "Why?" and "Is there something I could've done to prevent this?" Questions everyone asks when something terrible occurs. And - as in real life - we don't really get an answer to the "Why?" question, apart from a few suggestions. There are so many reasons why a person reaches breaking point. No, not everyone who "snaps" goes off shooting people, but the real school shootings only prove that the topic is far more than a possibility.

In this day and age, where school shootings are news headlines far too often, TIWIE gives an insight into the feelings and actions of people in a life-threatening situation. Some actions you understand, others make you wonder if it's bravery, courage, or plain stupidity and I couldn't help but wonder what I would have done..

Needless to say I highly recommend this book!

As an educator,we learn safety drills. We protect kids. Reading this book was terrifying and real all at the same time. Each person tried to stop the shooter in their own way. Innocent people die and mental illness is real.

Massive stereotypes, four points of view and not one of them from the shooter's standpoint. I'm very unhappy with the whole added sexual issues for the kids. The author simply can't have lived in Alabama. As a native Alabamian, this is way off base. Sadly, I have known someone who went on to kill others, and the problems in that person's life were deep and disturbing. It was not a light weigh, oh I felt like it. This book needs a total re-work. I found it to be shallow, offensive, and unrealistic.

My copy came from Net Galley. I left this review because I wanted to, my thoughts and opinions are my own. I chose to post this.

This is not the type of book I would typically read however I really really liked it! Every time I put it down I couldn't stop thinking about it and what was going to happen next. Very well written and developed.

We need to consider introducing this novel to high school students with social workers, psychologists and social justice theater practitioners present to ensure our youth digest its lessons and resolve to put violence behind them.

Not sure what to think of this one!
Postives:
- Extemely addctive - I stayed up the whole night to finish it
- A really interesting and important storyline!
- Some characters had distctive voices.
- I enjoyed the multiple points of veiws, which is unusual for me.

Negatives:
- The POVs for the female main characters were indistinguishable!
- I found some parts a little unbelievable and unrealistic.
- I found the character of the shooter to be too simplified - a typical villan with little character development

Altogether, if you're looking for a fast paced read with important themes, this is a good one!

The key to the beauty of this novel is in all the rich layers of the ties that bind, fracture and heal within a family. Our reactions to unfurling tragedy and our ability to make and break monsters through love and grief is beautifully told in "This is Where it Ends."

An hour with some students during a hostage situation/school shooting. There are glimpses of previous incidents that may have contributed to the gunman's unstable condition, but none of that is expanded on.

Won't stop the pain but gives hope. Can any of us really share this experience? must we be forced to again and again? This plea for gun control speaks to the core of all that is rotten in the NRA stance.

This novel will bring tears and make you smile. It will make you think and remember your teen years. It will make you care for its people and mourn for its lost. As I wrote above, a most powerful book.

Nijkamp brings to readers four main prospectives of a devastating disaster that many of us fear ever happening to us or any of our loved ones. Set in a highschool, students are trapped in the auditorium where a gunman threatens the lives of all whom it contains. Loved ones are murdered before your eyes and dreams are lost. Four different students who try to do all they can to protect the very people they care most about. This story leaves your heart pounding waiting to see who is saved and who is lost. Many heroically try and do something but I are gunned down almost immediately.
We've all watched the news of mass shootings but this brings a new light to the many emotions that take place in one individual. The fear, the anger, the guilt, and even the joy. That's just to name a few. Read and become part of this heartbreaking tragedy.
A must read but beware you WILL finish this story with a wounded heart.

This book was sad and heartbreaking, yet gripping until the end. The way the author tells the story keeps you coming back to the book and wanting to know more. It was a fast read, but in a way that makes you not want to put it down until the end. This book is especially relevant in our increasingly tragic world today.

This book definitely kept me interested to see how it would end. It was very realistic with things that have happened in our country. I read the book in 2 days and usually do not read books that fast.

I read this book because it was featured as The Big Read. This book was very hard to put down. I felt for the characters and admired their bravery in the face of tragedy. I highly recommend this book.

I felt as if I was there, not in the auditorium, but just outside, taking it all in. Very well written. The text and tweets were an annoyance. Would not recommend this book to anyone younger than 16.

I read this book as part of the Big Library Read on Overdrive and was completely sucked in. It is an amazing book. Ms. Nijkamp puts you in the characters', who are telling the story, heads and you feel their feel and overwhelming helplessness as the shooter takes over the school. This is such an important book for teenagers and their parents. Hopefully, it will give people some insight into what makes some snap and do something this horrendous. As an author of lesbian fiction, I loved the story of Autumn and Sylv and how they stayed strong and true throughout the story. Wonderful writing.

No wonder this was a best seller technically we know how these stories end but to read the behind the scenes of this to get to know these people personally is powerful. I just wished we had the shooters point of view. Because in the end that's the question that's always left right? The why? And the what really pushed them to this point. That's the next part I want to read

I have never read a story so quickly. I loved that the story was told through four perspectives. So many secrets to protect loved ones, too many things unsaid. People always question why friends and family don't foresee the danger. This story makes sense of why it is hard to prevent such a tragedy.

This was a county wide reading selection for our public library so I just had to read it and it was surprisingly good! School shootings are not an enjoyable subject matter but the tie in between the characters made for a good read.

Wow this was a page turner as well as a tear jerker. Being a mother and praying that my children will never have to endure this. I can't imagine being in the situation. My prayers to all the family, friends,teachers and parents who have been through this as well as the ones who didn't survive.

3 stars because the "villain" of the story is never mapped out. What made Ty change so drastically? It was a page turner but I wanted more insight into some of the characters and I just didn't get it.

Not sure how best to describe how only ok this read is. I was hoping for something very poignant and relevant to today. But it just seemed to be another story, neither awful nor spectacular...just ok.

Almost to sad to bear. I couldn't stop reading until I finished. I don't want to believe this is possible, but sadly it is all TOO possible in our world today. Love is the only answer. What will it take for us to chose love over fear and hate?

Reading this book made me want to tear my hair out. The writing in this book is awful and unemotional. The way the author describes the death of a character is "shot his brains out" which is completely irritating to read about a death being taken so lightly. I stopped reading the book right when I read that line.

There are no words really. In this day and age when school shootings, mass shootings really, happen frequently, it's interesting to get the perspective of the survivors. I felt for these characters in a way that I haven't felt before. They were real. Their fear tangible. The author was able to bring these stories to life. Great quick read

I enjoyed it, they way they followed main characters n thier thought processes, made for an interesting read. It was chilling how the shooter chose his victims. IT kept me wanting to read more n not put the book down.

This is a fictional account that feels like it was ripped from today's headlines. As multiple students narrate the crucial minutes during a mass shooting at a high school, the author is able to convey what seems to be a very realistic account of the complex relationships and social issues that might lead to such an event.

Heartbreaking and compelling. The emotions were very real even if the relationships were a little tidy. Beautifully done. Be in a strong headspace with lots of loved ones/support around when you read.

This book is a disgrace. Simply horrendous in the way that it depicts a real issue, romanticizes it to the point where it no longer has anything to add to the conversation. There are some points where the translation is so unnatural that it breaks what little suspense it had. It might be better in Dutch, but never buy the English version.

Without having read any reviews, I picked this book up and could not put it down. The story unfolds in real time, the present tense makes it visceral and alive. A book both heartbreaking and well done.

Words don't do justice as to how much I loved this book. It has become a favorite and very treasured since I read it and I hope it has for many others as well. In this heart wrenching tale, an issue is addressed that should have been dealt with by society as a whole a long time ago. I completely and whole heartedly recommend this book 100 times. You won't regret it.

I really enjoyed this book. I love how fast paced it is while still progressing slowly. The only thing I didn't like was the multiple [perspectives because I found myself getting confused about which character was which.

I just finished the ARC - read in one day! Gripping, unsettling window into a high school shooting. Tension-filled, provocative and frightening yet filled with great moments of hope and resiliency. Couldn't put it down!

Poorly developed characters. The style of writing was very cliche and juvinelle. A little too nail on the head for me. I was hoping it would improve, but with as many viewpoints as it had it was difficult to keep them straight. Really disappointed, I was definitely drawn in by the topic.

This book is a very fast read... The entire time you are reading with a pit in your stomach. The author uses multiple POVs to tell the story of a high school under siege by a gunman. The different perspectives add to the story once you become used to the "jumping around" (Think A Song of Ice and Fire). Be warned this book will make you cry. I recommend you read it!

This book was heartbreaking. I remember Columbine happening while I was in high school I remember feeling afraid for a long time after that. This book was as heartbreaking as it was a good book. It just pulled me through it.

This book had a lot of potential, but to me it just fell flat. The concept of the book was interesting, but I couldn't really connect to any of the characters and there was too much emphasis on things that didn't even seem to relate to the main story.

This Is Where It Ends is a heart wrenching story of a school shooting in different perspectives of the students. It's real and doesn't beat around the bush about the horrors of an event like this. Even though it was sometimes hard to read because I couldn't stop thinking about all of the times this has happened and

I truly tried to engross myself in this fiction. However, I just could not connect with the characters. Their instinctual responses and thought processes just did not seem realistic for such a traumatic incident. Especially for high school students. I will say that this book has a few page turning moments, heartbreakingly so.

Amazing book. Read it in one sitting. But that ending is NOT realistic or settling for the reader. It felt like the victims were shrugged off and let go too easily that very same day. Broke my heart...

Masterfully woven story of a cast of high school students in the throws of a school shooting. Past and future are prominent features helping to tell their stories as they navigate the catastrophe unfolding.

I loved this book. I read over half of it in two hours. I was confused in the beginning, and did not like the switching of 4 different perspectives. Once I got into the book, it was much better. Everyone should read this book, it was a heartbreaking story, but written very well. It portrayed emotion and hope in a dark situation. READ THIS BOOK!

It was very surreal to put yourself in the shoes of any of the characters telling their story, and yet it did feel real. I felt their hopes and fears as the minutes of the chapters were counting down. I wondered if I would be as brave as some of the people were.
I only wish there was a point of view from the shooter. Just to get that insight as well.

It has been a long time since a book has affected me this much. The characters are so full and the story told through their eyes is so true and real. It hurt my heart to read yet I didn't want to stop. I was sobbing as I finished but I can't recommend this book enough. So well done.

bought this book about 7 hours ago...just finished it and I'm so pissed at the author for writing it. Like I could have gone my whole life not knowing this type of sadness. it was so good, but completely unnecessary. I do not think I will recover. it was very legit.
10/10, not for the faint of heart. would recommend, if you're not a weak ass bitch.

This book gripped me from the very beginning and didn't let me go until I read the last page. Very well written story of the terror and tragedy of a school shooting. Told from the perspectives of four students who endure the horrific nightmare of an active shooter in their high school. Definitely need tissue for this one.

This book is not a love story, there's no happy ending....it's emotional. It's raw. It's brutal. I read this book quicker than most books I've read, I couldn't put it down! It makes you think about how much your words and actions can play a role in someone's lives.

This Is Where It Ends starts strong and finishes stronger. With each characters perspective, you are pulled into a deeper connection with the events and the outcomes. This book is beautifully written, yet terrifyingly realistic. As soon as you start, it will be over.

This book is just..... shallow. Superficial. Not once did I connect to a single character. They all felt like caricatures of real people instead of relatable.

I can see what the author was trying to do with the subject and having a more diverse character base, but it just didn't work.

Unfortunately the fictional aspect of this book is all too real in today's society. It is beautifully written and the characters are well developed.would recommend this book to anyone dealing with adolescent

I binge read this book in a matter of a couple of hours. I was a bit hesitant to pick it up considering all of the negative reviews. Overall I was pleasantly surprised by it, but that could be because I went in with low expectations. I know a lot of people were upset because they felt like the book was too black and white. But I felt like the author did a decent job of showing us that Tyler wasn't this all around "evil" kid. There were factors that led him to become as withdrawn as he did. I do have to say that I wish his character had been developed a bit more. Given him a little more complexity. The book had my attention from beginning to end, which in my experience is not an easy thing to accomplish. I think readers have to keep in mind that this book takes place in a span of 54 minutes and there's only so much (realistic) detail that can be included. Which is why I gave it 4 stars instead of three! All in all, it was a very emotional read and I have to say that I had tears in my eyes at the end. So don't let other negative reviews sway you and form your own opinion.

This is a real page turner. Made me more aware of what the students that live through these types of tragedies had to go through as they happened. Now I want to read more by the same author, not necessarily the same subject matter though. A person can take only so much of the heartbreak experienced by these young adults.

Even though this book has a tragic storyline, it offers insight into the mind of a troubled young man and those around him. Each character felt real to me. It kept me so involved that I read the book in one full day, stopping only now and then when I had to.

The title grabbed me first and then with each line,then paragraph and then page,I realized that I didn't want to put down the book. I fell asleep reading out and picked it back up upon waking. Very heartwrenching and compassionate all at once.

This book handled an extremely serious topic very well. School shootings, while horrifying, can often seem like they're a distant fantasy, as if nothing so terrible could every happen where you live, and Marieke Nijkamp managed to really drive home the tragedy of such acts, whilst also making it seem that much closer to us. The characters were unique and many minorities were well represented, as well as a wide range of personalities and stories around the central characters. The interconnectedness of their stories really allowed for the reader to see the characters from several different viewpoints, making them three-dimensional and real. A huge plus as well was the casual incorporation of LGBT characters into the plot. So often, YA fiction makes LGBT characters out to be extremely abnormal, and you can really get sick of it. It was nice to see Sylv and August's relationship portrayed like any other teenage relationship.

I loved this book, everything about it. The way it was written, the story, the characters, the damages done. It cuts to the bone! It is hard to say that I loved this book because the story is so heartbreaking, but this book has touched me and made me feel so much that I will never forget it! Thank you!

This book was well written and too heartbreakingly believable. The only reason for just three stars is the subject matter may just be too raw for a lot of readers. School shootings is a tough subject to read about and those who are looking for a book with any kind of a happy ending should avoid this one.

This no "We Need to Talk About Kevin".

My ultimate issue with this book is that it was written by someone who's never lived in the town that Opportunity seems based on. Perhaps if the author did a better job of generalizing the town it wouldn't have bothered me so much.

But I lived in that town. I did. The author talks able it this fancy new high school because the other was blown away in a tornado. Not to claim credit for all tornadoes taking out schools but in 2007 my alma mater Enterprise High School (as well as a good chunk of the town) in Enterprise, AL was destroyed by a tornado. "The final death toll was set at nine, including Ryan Mohler, Peter Dunn, AJ Jackson, Jamie Vidensek, Michael Bowen, Mikey Tompkins, Katie Strunk, Michelle Wilson, and an elderly woman named Edna Strickland.[5] It was the first killer tornado at a US school since 1990."

While it's not directly part of the story it remains to this day a sad and sore area for many of the people who have lived multiple generations in that small town.

Besides the glossing over of the devastation the tornado caused the students, their families and the citizens of the town, what bothered me most and what stopped me from reading the entire book was the fact that this story is not hers to tell. I read the acknowledgements in the book to see if she had gone to the town to do research about it but it looks like it was just something friends told her about - something they saw on the news and hey wouldn't a school shooting add extra drama as it's such a news item right now?!?!?

What bothers me is that this author has no idea what life was like living In that town. Pre-tornado our schools were extremely old and the generations of families living there even older. To be someone without "kin" in the town meant that I was a second class citizen. Many of us army brats forced to go to school in the town felt segregated and alone. We received little class attention when we needed help, often times hearing teachers ask students who they were related to and then watching as those students got special attention. Knowing that my parents asked the school to help me find tutors because I was struggling so much with math (later learning that I have the numeric version of dyslexia) and being told tutors were not a good idea and the teachers were doing a fine job. Except of course anyone who wasn't upper middle class and related in some way to the teacher was often ignored altogether.

To know that the principal and vice principal of the high school out right bullied students, especially the non-sports kids and anyone who their children weren't already friends with. To watch as the leaders of the school were the perpetrators of meanness and nastiness of non-conforming kids (my dearest high school friend was extremely over weight and was teased mercilessly not by students but by our assistant principals every single morning as he walked in through the front doors of our school).

To know what it was like to be different and in need of help and being tossed away like a used napkin and in your heart wishing so badly for someone to hurt these people as they had hurt me, us.

And never once did we have a shooting. Problem kids were shipped off to local private Christian academies in hopes that a coming to Jesus would solve all their problems is probably what kept us from having a shooting rampage.

So no this wasn't a good book especially from someone who lived in the real version of Opportunity and the problems that reside there. I haven't been back since 2006. I refuse. i still have good friends there and it hurts them that I never visit. I haven't seen the new school in person, and yes there is some slight jealousy that we never had the classes or opportunities these kids have with a new school and then only because a tornado took away the safety of never changing. That we were expected to be farmers, go into the military, become housewives and do a little teaching on the side is all that was expected from us even though many of us left to find our own way unassisted by this s***hole town to our true dreams.

This is not the authors story to tell. It's the survivors stories to tell. The ones who never acted on the impulses to do harm but suffered harm every day in silence.

This book is part of the Overdrive's Big Read. As I read through, too many flashbacks of Columbine and Sandy Hook and other school shootings came to mind. This is not a happy ending but the issues that the teenagers go through are real and as educators and parents and communities, we have to hear their stories .

This book is really good. It gets your attention from the beginning and it keeps you interested all the time with the different characters and events that happen throughout the book. I 100% recommend this book.

The idea of this book was interesting and I did want to see how it ended, but the subject seemed a bit too big for this author and the ending made the book feel flat. I was never fully invested in the characters and never really felt that connection to a character(s) that pulls you into the story and makes you feel what they are feeling.

Writing is a noble effort, and the author should be applauded for that alone. Also, the subject matter is contemporary and hard to write about. That said, this book did not enlighten, teach or move me in any way. The characters were hollow and never fully developed. The author left no racial stereotype or scenario unturned.

I didn't know what I was choosing when I chose this book from Overdrive. But after reading this book shows how mental health is dangerous and should be addressed and how people react when faced with adversity.

It's written so realistically. As a parent, it's our worst nightmare. To read it from a victim's perspective it's absolutely the saddest, scariest thing I have ever read. It makes an atheist want to pray for our kids.

Once I began this book I couldn't put it down until I finished. You can feel each character and their ride to the end. Unfortunately this is also a relevant book and could be taken right out of the news. A must read.

It is a quick read and very entertaining. I wish it had went a little deeper into some of the relationships and thoughts people were having. But, you really do sit on the edge of your chair the whole time. I couldn't put it down!

This was a novel with an agenda. It was less a book about the horrors of a school shooting, than it was about pushing forward the ideas of diversity in the schools. Apparently the antagonist feels abandoned by his sister, when he learns of her relationship with another student. I also felt the plot was illogical and poorly executed. (Really, no pun intended). Apparently, I didn't like the book very much. Can you tell?

The way we slowly learn about the characters and their stories was interesting and kept me reading. Some melodramatic writing at times but a good and sad story. Makes you feel as if you're seeing Columbine from the students perspective

Wow. This book just grabbed my heart and I read it all in one sitting. In a time of so much violence, this book shows us just what can happen and how people can rally together in times of tragedy. Extremely well written.

The book was good for its audience, but you could tell she's not an American author. Autumn's mother makes no sense at all. She obviously doesn't recognize that Alabama and New York are not next to each other...

In this day and it seems these headlines are becoming the norm. In this book we get to know some of the students and witness what led to this horrible tragedy. Although we can all guess how it ends it left me on edge with each turning of the page. Great book.

This book reinforces the thought. That life can change irreversibly in minutes and how important family and friends are. The need to say I love you and to really listen to what others are saying. Well written.

This book had me riveted for the first few chapters, but then flopped miserably. I found myself skimming every time Claire's voice was used to tell the story, and did not care which characters survived or were eliminated. Won't be recommending this one.

I couldn't put it down, I felt every emotion possible while reading this book. As much as the tragedy torn me apart the suspense and emotional attachment to the characters kept me from putting it down.

This book delves deeply into the emotions that course through communities and individuals when tragedy strikes. The strength of the human spirit is expressed amazingly within these pages. Beautifully written.