I was nervous going into this book - was reading a book about a global pandemic really the best option during a global pandemic? To begin with, I worried that no, it wasn’t a good idea. There were too many parallels between the real world and the novel (though the plague in the book so infinitely worse than our current situation).

But as I continued reading I was surprised, heartened and pleased to see that this is a book about hope. Yes, it’s about grief, devastation, the destruction of everything we know, but that’s only half of the story. It’s also a story of rebuilding, human connection, love and striving for a better future. It’s a story of human ingenuity and the best, and worst, that extremes bring out of people.

More than anything, it’s a well-written, emotive and powerful book. The characters are all well formed and the breadth that the author covers is admirable - not just how people cope with the death of so many husbands, sons, brothers, fathers - but also how this affects parenthood, politics, international relations, tech, LGBTQ+ rights, education and so much more.

Reading this book at the moment might seem off putting to begin with, and I won’t deny that the opening third of this book bought me to tears and horrified me on several occasions, but for me, it was worth powering through.

Slap bang in the middle of a global pandemic, we get a book about a global pandemic. It is interesting to see the ideas in the book and how they compare with the reality of living in a pandemic.

The style let the book down for me a little. It is essentially told in the first person but with several different characters each narrating parts of the story, often in podcast, blogs, or other writings. I would have preferred a different style but you get used to it as you progress through the story and I was keen to see how the fortunes of the narrators turned out.

Well worth a read.

A brilliant and insightful look into the not so distant future. A plague hits the world which affects only men. When half of the world's population is dying, what do women do?
Each chapter from different points of view all weaving together makes such a wonderful tale. It has an essence of Max Brookes 'world War Z' and I was enthralled.
Each section is told with a distinct voice and advances the story. Not all women are heroes and not all those who survive are worthy.
Thoroughly enjoyable.

2025. A mysterious virus breaks out in Scotland, a deadly illness that affects only men. Will a vaccine be discovered before it wipes out the whole male population?

I wanted to love this book soo much. The premise was fantastic and right up my street, but unfortunately, I found myself in the minority that didn't enjoy it.
The main problem was the multitude of characters; there were so many of them that I actually lost track and therefore couldn't connect to any of them. The story didn't simply follow a few perspectives but also included newspaper articles and diary entries, which might work well for world building but makes for a very confusing read. I have read a few books in this genre that use the same idea, and sadly it just doesn't work for me.
The timeline was jumping forward multiple times, and that was another thing that stood in the way of me engaging with the characters.
As I said, the premise is great but I just didn't find it was executed properly.
I hesitated between 1 and 2 stars, but couldn't justify the higher rating based solely on the premise so sadly I had to go for 1 star.
However, at the time that I write this, mine is the first 1-star review, so by no means rely on my opinion.

This book is fascinating and frustrating but ultimately enjoyable.

It is fast paced and the multiple treads keep it fresh and moving.

Due to the current circumstances it was close to the bone but would recommend.

This is an interesting and emotional read. In places it is scarily close to reality. Parts of this story seemed so real. I was fascinated by this story. It is memorable and thought provoking and worth reading.

Thank you to NetGalley for my copy.

This book is going to be huge next year! And probably on my favourite books of 2021 when we finally get there! I loved the premise and I have turned down many books about viruses this year as it felt too “close” but the book seemed prophetic in its plot development that grabbed me in a way I hadn’t expected it to. Its an intelligently written book that felt unique in its approach to post apocalyptic fiction and very realistic as well. The women characters at the forefront of the storyline were well developed, strong and interesting and I followed their journeys with an investment in their future. Some stories were absolutely heartbreaking as women lost the men in their lives but the positive mind sets and determination of some felt inspiring and hopeful.
This is such a brilliant book and I devoured. every single page.

When I first heard about this book, I assumed, wrongly, that it was written by someone attempting to cash in on the current Coronavirus pandemic sweeping the world. Once I realised it had actually been written in 2018 I became curious to read how closely related this work of fiction was to the current reality. Thankfully the fictional world where most of the population of men were wiped out was far worse. However, there were many parallels that amazed me with their foresight and for this the author requires utmost praise. The personal stories were heartbreaking but with incredible resilience many women showed unbelievable strength in the face of adversity. I recommend this book if only as a comparison and although our current situation has been dire and tragic for so many, it does not compare to this fictional world. I enjoyed, if that’s the right word, this book but felt it lost its way a little and moved on too quickly. Maybe there were too many characters but I inderstand the need to tell the story from many different perspectives. However, the conclusion and probable reality that the effects would be felt for many, many years was the correct one.

The End of men is a powerful, thought provoking story of a pandemic that started on the Isle of Bute in Scotland. The pandemic kills 90% of men and women are the carriers. Told in several points of views of people in the far corners of the world and their experiences of it and the grief and loss they endured and the changes they had to make not only in their own lives but in the society they lived in.
Although this was written in 2018, it was quite ironic that some of the things that are in this book are problems that we have presently. I really enjoyed this tale. Learning about the suffering and the way the people changed their lives that were left behind. But I thought the last few chapters were a bit more political than I would have liked. 4 stars from me.

An apocalyptic and timely near future thriller, presenting a terrifying what-if scenario. I was literally holding my breath to read what happens next!

Dr Amanda MacLean in a Glasgow hospital treats a male patient presenting with flu whose body suddenly shuts down. She investigates and realises patient zero came in from Bute a few days earlier .... this starts The Plague of 2025 which only kills men. The story is told via multiple points of view worldwide.

Yes, it’s another pandemic novel and a debut! I really like the format of the book, although there are a lot of characters it clearly shows the dramatic escalation into fear and chaos that this pandemic brings across the continents. This is a four horseman of the apocalypse, epically biblical crisis in scale with the first half showing the horrifying stages of the pandemic and the second depicting the fallout and survival via a vaccine. There are some very good characters especially Amanda who is dogged and intuitive and I also have a particular liking for Dawn, the sixty something civil servant working in British Intelligence whose wry humour is a welcome relief. The novel is extremely well written and the style engaging. It clearly shows the devastating and overwhelming pain and sadness of loss, it’s moving and poignant as it humanises the victims otherwise it’s numbers of such enormity your brain cannot compute. Some characters are very reflective especially on life pre-pandemic which is heartbreaking. The impact worldwide is interesting as woman have to fill roles from refuse collectors to soldiers to world leaders. Especially thought provoking is the drastic action some countries take to protect male babies and how sperm is allocated to ensure the populations future. I like the end as it reinforces the importance of love and remembrance and putting a face to those that are gone but not forgotten.

Overall, yes, this is a devil rides out scenario but it’s also very intriguing, extremely well written and does make you reflect on what’s important as we go through this pandemic.

With thanks to Harper Collins UK/Harper Fiction for the arc for an honest review.

An uncanny thriller to read in 2020 - about a virus that decimates half the populations. The many different perspectives were really well-written, and effective in showing how a broad cross-section of the population was affected. Genuinely unputdownable, but don't read yet if you feel the plot hits too close to home.

A massively thought provoking read. Hotly topical, a virus is rampaging through society killing 90% of males, women are carriers but unaffected. Told from multiple viewpoints we watch as women lose husbands, sons and work colleagues. The race for a vaccine brings moral questions to the fore and the whole of society undergoes a seismic shift. At times I felt the writing was a little clinical and I would have liked a little more emotion and insight into the characters but on the whole it was an excellent read.

In a bizarre twist of fate I started reading The End of Men during a pandemic, on the day my son was confirmed as having Covid, a day later I was also confirmed as having it. Being a mother of two sons and wife in this story I would be set to lose my whole family, it made for uncomfortable reading at times. I found The End of Men a fascinating story, insightful and a warning as to what could happen in a similar scenario to what we are currently experiencing. Featuring lots of characters and their stores, it was truly gripping. I couldn't put it down.

I love this genre and found it quite ironic that it had been written just before COVID19 hit and we were living the reality. The End of Men starts with Dr. Amanda who witnesses patient zero and tries to raise the alarm of a deadly virus that attacks only men. But no one is taking her seriously and the pandemic is too late to contain. Now they are racing to identify a vaccine.

There is a lot right with this book. I love how much thought and intelligence went into imagining the world under this scenario and how different lives are impacted. But I also felt this was its downfall - too many points of views and angles were covered that made the story disjointed for me. I would have preferred a larger focus on a few specific stories. The author tried to cover too much. I also became bored with the political focus versus the personal stories. A brave attempt that provides lots of food for thought.

Thought provoking, clever, diverse, well written and calm in a scenario of panic.

This book hits close to home considering the current World Pandemic and I really thought I was going to be unable to read it. The story is really compelling and there is a feeling of hopefulness, despite the situation, that gave me something to hold on to. On the other hand there were very similar situations from the one we are going through currently - the big pharmaceutical companies trying to find a vaccine which made it a bit difficult to disconnect from the reality of what we are currently living.

I normally struggle with multiple points of view but the characters are well characterised and it became easy to follow:

This dystopian world was really interesting but at the same time scary to think of it as a reality.

Overall, the book is wonderfully written and the plot of fantastic and although I would highly recommend it I think I would have enjoyed it even more if it didn’t remind me so much of the current situation.

I would like to thank Netgalley, Harper Collins UK, Harper Collins Fiction and The Borough Press for an advanced digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest and unbiased review

For me, after reading The End of Men, it made me grateful that the current pandemic we are in is no where near as devastating as the virus described in this novel which is something I never thought I'd say.

The End of Men is about a virus that wipes out 90% of men with women being immune as well as carriers. I started this book thinking it would be interesting to read a story about women ruling the world and how we would manage that. I didn't think I would end up in tears reading stories from mums as they watched their boys dying from the virus.

That aside, it was a very good read, I particularly liked reading different view points from women around the world. I would, however, have liked to have read more about how the world had changed, how jobs were allocated, how women found the elimination of choice in their lives and the psychology behind the decisions in more detail. Still a great book that gave me lots of food for thought!

Not necessarily the most escapist reading in 2020, however definitely the most intriguing, clever and terrifying take on a global pandemic and it’s far-reaching consequences. Can’t stop telling people about this.

No fault of the author but I just couldn't read this. It was just too close to the current situation for me and I felt uncomfortable. Probably an indication of itself how good the book is in one way!

A read I could really have enjoyed if it wasn’t for the current pandemic and my anxiety! I got about half way through and had to stop, but will finish it once the craziness in the world is over! If you don’t suffer from anxiety then please do give it a read as it is well written and the story line is great.. if not a bit too real at the moment!