when the ball drops

Waverly is out of her depth. She’s a student at Webber Academy, the most prestigious private school in New York City, but her family is not rich. She’s on scholarship, and she works as a tutor to make some money and earn some bonus points for her college applications. As she’s tutoring Caroline a few days before the big Masquerade, a charity event that the school puts on every year, Waverly sees the beautiful red gown that Caroline has bought to wear to the event. Caroline sees Waverly staring at it and encourages her to try it on.

Waverly has never seen anything so luxurious or beautiful, and she thinks this may be her one chance to try on a gown like that. It fits her perfectly, sparking an idea for Caroline. She is thinking that she could use a night off from being Caroline, and she encourages Waverly to go in her place. Everyone will be in masks, so no one would see Waverly and know that it wasn’t Caroline. She even takes a photo of Waverly in the dress and mask, to share on her social media shortly before the Masquerade, so her friends would know it was her in that dress.

Waverly has reservations about going to the gala as Caroline. She is on scholarship. She plans to go to Yale, to study medicine. She thinks her diploma from Webber will open that door for her, hopefully with another scholarship as well. But then she hears the rumors that Ashley Webber will be at the Masquerade too. Ashley is the daughter of the man who runs the school. She’s also Waverly’s ex-girlfriend. Ash, who ghosted her. Waverly’s been wanting to talk to her ever since, to find out why. Waverly can’t let this chance pass her by. She agrees to go to the Masquerade as Caroline.

The day before the Masquerade, Caroline’s father falls ill and ends up in the hospital. Waverly decides she can’t go to the ball, but a text from Caroline tells Waverly that she should go ahead with the plan. She goes with her friends to the building in Manhattan where the Masquerade will be taking place. At first, it seems like a big party, with men in tuxedos and women in gowns. It’s for parents as well as students, but there are separate party rooms for the adults.

Waverly goes in search of Ash, and tries to avoid Caroline’s boyfriend Jack, so that she can talk to Ash about what happened between them and then leave the party. As an autistic, the noise and lights are pushing her towards sensory overload. But when she tries to find a way to talk to Ash, Waverly stumbles into a dark plot that the adults seem to be in on. Her friend Pari is taken by one of the security guards, their phones had all been confiscated by security when they first came to the party, and Waverly finds herself lost in a maze of mirrors and lights and a strange dystopian projection of what could be the end of the world.

Waverly is lost and alone and wondering if she’ll be able to get herself and her friends back out of the building to safety. But if the world is really ending, will they be any safer outside, or is the end for the all?

This Is the Way the World Ends is a dark YA thriller about power and class and what’s really important in life. The story takes some very dark turns as Waverly and her friends try to figure out what is happening around them, and then when they’re trying to figure out how to survive what is happening around them. There are lots of surprises as the teens fight for survival and try to figure out what is most important in the new world they are about to find themselves in.

I was not prepared for how dark or dangerous things were going to get in this story. As someone who struggles with anxiety and sensory issues, being with Waverly through the party made me feel really tense as well, a little more than I was comfortable with. But I liked Waverly a lot. I admired her drive and how deeply she cares for those she loves, so I wanted to stay with her and cheer her on. But this does go quickly from an unsettling story with tension and confusion to a really dark story where people can be sacrificed like pawns in a giant game of power and control. If you’re a fan of dystopian fiction, then this could be the book for you.

Egalleys for This Is the Way the World Ends were provided by Wednesday Books through NetGalley, with many thanks.