Agnes at the End of the World by Kelly McWilliams

With the help of Matilda’s son, Danny, who exposes them to life outside, and prayers in which Agnes communes with God, they escape into a dying world. As the Prophet forces his followers into an underground bunker, Agnes realizes she must leave with Ezekiel.

Events ramp up as Agnes becomes aware of the Prophet’s lies and a viral pandemic ravages the outside world. Agnes’ 15-year-old sister Beth is her complete opposite-questioning the cult’s strict laws for women and sneaking around with a boy. Her one sin is the lifesaving insulin she receives from Matilda, an Outsider nurse, for her brother Ezekiel, who has Type 1 diabetes.

Raised in the ranch commune of Red Creek, Agnes has always followed the Prophet’s adage, “perfect obedience produces perfect faith.” With a mother in the depths of depression, Agnes dutifully takes care of her father and younger siblings and the household chores she is the perfect follower. As Agnes ventures forth, a mysterious connection grows between her and the Virus.The story of a 16-year-old’s journey to freedom at the end of the world. But it isn’t safe Outside, either: A viral pandemic is burning through the population at a terrifying rate. Is she a sinner for saving him? Is her sister, Beth, a sinner for dreaming of the world beyond Red Creek?Īs the Prophet grows more dangerous, Agnes realizes she must escape with Ezekiel and leave everyone else, including Beth, behind. Her younger brother, Ezekiel, will die without the insulin she barters for once a month, even though medicine is considered outlawed.

Then Agnes meets Danny, an Outsider boy, and begins to question what is and isn’t a sin. What she doesn’t know is that Red Creek is a cult, controlled by a madman who calls himself a prophet. There, she cares tirelessly for her younger siblings and follows the town’s strict laws. The Handmaid’s Tale meets Wilder Girls in this genre-defying novel about a girl who escapes a terrifying cult only to discover that the world Outside has succumbed to a viral apocalypse.Īgnes loves her home of Red Creek-its quiet, sunny mornings, its dusty roads, and its God.

Agnes at the End of the World by Kelly McWilliams