We Are Unprepared | Meg Little Reilly

Read If: you're a low-key prepper, you want to watch an okay relationship fail, you're worried about climate change.

I was really looking forward to an apocalyptic/weather type book, especially because I picked this up during COVID and right before the hurricanes hit (as I was reading, we had a wind warning of 95MPH) but this was somewhat of a let down. The premise sounds intriguing; a young couple who are very passionate about their relationship live their dream by moving into an old New England-y house, right before a bunch of catastrophic storms hit. And it's an array of them; rain, snow, mud, it's a whole mess.

I personally found both main characters pretty annoying and definitely naive to begin with, but as they start to approach the storms and their relationship crumbles, they're both very petty and spiteful. And that just continues - right down to the narrator (male character) considering cheating (spoiler: after the storm he gets together with the other woman, which makes his pining during the events okay I guess...?).

Pros: I loved the addition of the neighbor kid, and thought it definitely brought life to the story. There were also some realistic scenes/thoughts going on that were borderline-crazy - everyone storming the hardware stores; Pia getting into keeping worms for composting.

Cons: The realistic scenes were few and far between. Both characters seem aware of the storms coming, but don't actually do much to prep at all. Even Pia, who is supposed to be anxious and super in with the doomsday crowd, just drinks a lot of wine.

Overall, the initial build up peters off quickly; there's no real tension, just the breakdown of a relationship between two people who are annoyed with each other. Post-storm happiness sets in briefly and is just as unrealistic.

For what actually happened in this book, it could easily be half the page count.