Reviewed by Cheryl E. Rodriguez for Readers' Favorite

Gil Roscoe’s After the Predays is a compelling work of fiction about life after a cataclysmic disaster. Thaddeus (Thad) Lowell, a philosophy professor, is the only living person in the LA basin and in the entire world as far as he knows. The virus was nasty and cruel; it attacked the lungs, then the liver. In three months, it took all human life. Somehow “evolution, natural selection, had chosen him.” Every day for eighteen months, Thad wonders why he lived. Alone in the mountains, talking to himself, Thad looks at Los Angeles and concludes, “All that civilization and all that quiet don’t go together.” One day Thad decides it is time to come out of hiding. Then lo and behold, he discovers that he is not alone. Thad meets a Vedi, a minister, and Gary, a Vietnam vet and mechanical genius. Why did these three survive? What did they have in common? The philosopher, the minister and the technical wizard pool their talents, their hopes and their abilities together, aspiring to create a better civilization and a new way of living. But first, they need to find some women.

Gil Roscoe writes a realistic story about the end of the world as we know it. After the Predays portrays the reality of what would happen if only a few people survived a cataclysmic event. The novel is told from the main character’s (Thad’s) point-of-view. Therefore, we see the world through Thad’s eyes and understand the tragedy through his experiences. All of the characters face their conflict with strength of mind and a will to survive. Mr. Roscoe has a very informal and casual writing style, which made the story appealing. Many disaster stories focus on the “doom and gloom” aspect. But After the Predays is filled with hope, survival and a “life must go on attitude.” The novel’s plot has progressive movement; it gradually builds and gives way to a desirable and satisfying end. The inclusions of Ralph Waldo Emerson’s quotes and the reference to Edgar Allen Poe’s, “nevermore” character added depth and relevance to the story. Gil Roscoe’s love for storytelling, literature and philosophy was revealed throughout the novel. He poignantly writes that it is not just humans that would die in world-wide catastrophe, but “Shakespeare, Darwin, Descartes, Van Gogh” as well.