World Between by Sarah Lyons Fleming Narrator: Roger Wayne, Teri Schnaubelt, Christian Barillas, Mia Gaskin
Series: The Cascadia Series #2
Published by Podium Audio on March 15, 2022
Genres: Horror
Length: 16 hours and 40 minutes
Format: Audiobook
Source: Purchased
Goodreads
Amazon, Audible
Danger can be anywhere in the world between.
Trapped in the fairgrounds by zombies and circumstance, it’s impossible to move out—and tough to move on.Whether romantic or platonic, changing relationships prove tricky for Rose, Tom, Clara, and Craig—never mind adapting to the new not-so-normal. Being surrounded by the undead is bad enough, but with a tyrant-in-training running their Safe Zone, it’s that much worse.
Still, it’s better than being eaten alive. And when the biggest threats are removed, it seems life with zombies is on the upswing. But there’s no margin for error in the world between—and sometimes the smallest threat proves most lethal.
World Between is the second book in The Cascadia Series by Sarah Lyons Fleming. I originally picked up the first book, World Departed, during an Audible sale after having read her Until the End of the World series, which is set in the same universe. As soon as I finished World Departed, I grabbed this one. I loved the characters and wanted to spend more time with them. This sequel picks up right where the first book leaves off.
We follow the same four point-of-view characters: Rose Winter, Tom Jensen, Craig Matthews, and Clara Jensen. At this point in the story, they’ve made it to a safe zone located at the fairgrounds in Eugene, Oregon. The zone still has hydroelectric power and enough food to feed everyone, although supplies need to be monitored closely and foraging missions are still ongoing to keep things steady. We meet quite a few new characters, while also spending time with many familiar faces from the first book.
In this installment, zombies aren’t the most dangerous threat. Instead, the safe zone is ruled by a tyrant, a high-ranking military officer who took over after the original commander left on a supply run and never returned. People continue to disappear during food missions, and it’s clear that something more sinister is going on within the camp’s leadership.
There’s a heavier focus on romance this time, with multiple characters starting new relationships. Unfortunately, there’s also a fair amount of romantic angst, along with tension between the kids and their parents. That was the part I enjoyed least. It didn’t ruin the story, but it did make me like this one a little less than the first book. I’m not generally a fan of too much relationship drama, especially when it spills into the young adult dynamics.
There’s also a new character, a mother with a young son, who got on my nerves quickly. She constantly complains about the food not being organic and the clothing not being made of all-natural fibers. In the middle of the apocalypse, with people struggling to survive, her priorities and attitude drove everyone in the book crazy, including me.
That said, I still really enjoyed this book. I haven’t picked up the third one yet only because my Audible membership ran out. I plan to sign back up soon, but I also have a big backlog of books I want to work through first.
Narration:
The narration team remains the same as in World Departed, with Roger Wayne, Teri Schnaubelt, Christian Barillas, and Mia Gaskin each voicing a point-of-view character. As before, each narrator reads the entire section for their character, including all dialogue. They continue to do a fantastic job, and I had no trouble staying immersed in the story or recognizing which character’s perspective I was in. I’d happily listen to them again.
Listen to a clip: HERE
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I started listening to audiobooks when a new book in a series was coming out and I wanted to get a refresher, but didn’t have time to read all the books (I think it was Anita Blake). I fell in love. I stayed with strictly re-reading books that I’d already read for a long time. I eventually tried an audiobook for something that I hadn’t read first and was hooked there too. Now, I listen to audio for both re-reads and first time. I have some series that I’ve given up reading and only listen. I try to get any many books/audiobooks from the library to help save on my budget. Books on CD and the newer digital downloads from the library really allow me to listen more. I then purchase my favorites (because who can wait in line for your favorite book??) and less mainstream books from Audible or some other online retailer.
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Neat that you found a series written in the same world. Ha, I just read a couple novellas in a sci-fi dys series with zombies, too. I’ll have to look into this and the older series you liked, Melanie.
I do enjoy books like this sometimes. Although the one thing that I get bored with sometimes is when the zombies aren’t the main problem, like how it got with The Walking Dead at times. Great review!
A reminder that I still need to listen to her End of World series! Great review 🙂
Maybe you can find book 3 at the library?