World of Rot: A Post-Apocalyptic Novel

Cursed World #2

by Kate L. Mary

A changed world.
A family in crisis.
A future so uncertain no one is guaranteed to survive…

With the population decimated and hellish creatures loose upon the world, Andra and her family retreat to Quinn’s farm where they hope to build a new life. But the monsters are still a mystery and their habits unpredictable, making it impossible to know what’s going to happen next. The more they learn, the more questions they have, and the more Andra worries for her daughter’s safety.

As if living in an apocalyptic world isn’t stressful enough, Andra finds herself increasingly drawn to Quinn as the days pass, which is a distraction she definitely doesn’t need when disaster once again strikes. Braving harsh conditions and monstrous creatures, the group must work together to save one of their own. But with the odds so stacked against them, Andra can’t help wondering if the battle they’re facing can even be won…

Perfect for fans of Stephen King’s The Stand, The Walking Dead, and The Last of Us, join Andra's fight for survival now and get lost in a post-apocalyptic world full of horror and hope!

Genres: Post Apocalyptic, Science Fiction

317 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 20, 2023

About the author

I'm a mom of four, Air Force wife, and author of adult and young adult dystopian, post-apocalyptic, and science fiction. I love intense world building and character driven stories that feature strong female leads - as well as a side of romance - and any end of the world scenario. Zombies, aliens, a distant future where people have no clue how the world ended in the first place, you name it, I will create a story there!

Having lived in a lot of different places after more than a decade as an Air Force wife, I love setting my books in cities I've actually lived in to give them authenticity. I've resided in: Indiana, Georgia, Mississippi, South Carolina, California, and Oklahoma but am currently back in my home state of Ohio where I live with my husband, four kids, two dogs, and three cats.

When I'm not writing, you can find me by my pool (in the summer), getting lost in some binge-worthy show or at a play with my husband, patronizing one of the great restaurants in my small town of Troy, Ohio with my family, or traveling. I want to see everything and make a point of visiting a new place every year!

Some of my favorite books are The Hunger Games, Pride and Prejudice, The Host, and The Stand. My favorite movies are Aliens, Jaws, Signs, Say Anything, Everything Everywhere All At Once, and The Greatest Showman.

Awards:

Outliers
Winner in the 2018 Kindle Books Awards for Sci-Fi/Fantasy Fiction
B.R.A.G.Medallion Honoree
Finalist in the 2018 Wishing Shelf Book Awards For Adult Fiction
Top 10 Finalist in the Author Academy Awards for Sci-Fi/Fantasy Fiction
Cover Finalist in the 2019 RONE Awards from InD'tale Magazine

When We Were Human
2015 Children's Moonbeam Awards Silver Medal winner for Young Adult Fantasy/Sci-Fi Fiction
2016 Readers' Favorite Gold Medal Winner for Young Adult Science Fiction

Tribe of Daughters
Winner in the 2020 RONE Awards for Time Travel/Science Fiction
Bronze Medal Winner in the 2019 Readers' Favorite Book Awards for Science Fiction
Honorable Mention in the 2018 SPR Book Awards

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Reviews

[Nancy (The Avid Reader) · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am loving this new series Cursed World by Kate L. Mary very much. I fell in love with it with the summary for the first book World of Blood. World of Rot is the second book and things just seemed to get better with it. The world-building is still just as awesome if not possibly better.

I can’t get enough of the Cursed World series. I love the world that was created for World of Rot. World of Rot reminds me so much of my favorite TV show of all time one that I watch over and over again and that is any of the TV shows from the world of The Walking Dead.

Yeah, I know that the monsters in World of Rot are not zombies but that doesn’t matter to me as they are still something you want to stay away from maybe more so.

World of Rot kept me on the edge of my seat keeping me in suspense as to what was going to happen next. The build-up was very intense from one scene to the next. It felt like the tension that you get from one of Stephen King's stories. It builds you up and up and up keeping you hanging on and drawn up tighter than... and just as you are about to slide back in your seat bam it hits you in the face.

Andra and her family have made it to Quinn’s farm where they hope to make a new home for themselves there. Quinn has been prepping a long time for something like this to happen. He has fortified his home so the monsters can’t get in hopefully that is.

A virus has swept over the world at an alarming rate changing people into something monstrous. If you don’t want to become one yourself then you must stay as far away from them as you can get. The monsters are big, scary, and unpredictable.

I truly and honestly love this world that Kate has created for Cursed World and can’t wait for the next book or at least I sure hope to get more from this world. I don’t want it to end ever.

I highly recommend World of Rot to all dystopian and post-apocalyptic fans! I highly suggest that you grab a copy of World of Rot today!

[Rbjumbob · Rating 3 out of 5]

The author did a good job in describing the conversation and the social circumstances very descriptive dialogue and thoughts. The problem I have the book is things that just wouldn’t go that way in real life. I think the way the author made choices in the characters that wouldn’t occur in real life. When your life is on the line, I don’t think several times in the story real life would’ve picked that path.

[Sue Gravatt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Holes

This series has a potential to be very good. But there are holes (not the kind dug by the mosters) I hate it when an author makes a presumably strong female lead, jump or constantly be startled. We get it, she's thinking hard. I also found that scenes were pushed because the author couldn't figure out how to get certain characters alone. In addition, she's supposed to be smart but obvious (painful) mistakes are made. Maybe a better editor? I was going to keep reading, even though I skimmed a lot because sometimes the descriptive narrative was seriously boring and unnecessary. Even still I was going to keep going. But I am pleading. Can someone, ANYONE, please pen a good story that doesn't rely on kidnapping? PLEASE. It's tired. It's been done to death. Just stop it. I won't finish the series because of it.

[Erica Hernandez · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good overall with tension spoiler alert

Desperately needs editing. Many times the author misses significant contradictions that interfere with the story. Gray can’t cross the holes to save himself but Andra and Quinn can?! Then a toy car with a book playing pulls the Grabouds from their homes but fights and screaming don’t?! It doesn’t work. Also the fact that Quinn and Andra don’t hear the cars when they come and neither do the Graboids. Also doesn’t work. With these fixed, the story would improve dramatically. The characters are mostly good, well developed. Other than these issues the plot is good. The people Kendall is with are not developed well. They come across very different in Kendall’s story and are a complete contradiction in this one. Also Kendall is not developed well at all. The character in this book is too big of a change from who she was before.

[Sofia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh my, this book has it all, and you know what, when I finished this book I went to google to research Chau, the missionary that died, and please!, don’t research that, yes he is real and yes I think I will have nightmares that someone will go to the island and retrieve his body (please don’t do that) what if Kate, not only is a witch guessing how a person could dislocate her shoulder but how a curse could be spread all over the world….

Also I first skipped this book and went straight to world of misery , and then came back and read this one, and you know what?! I compared Kendall with one of the characters from walking dead, and it seams I was right on the money, and this is downright creepy, so I say it again, please don’t go retrieving Chau’s body, even he asked for that not to happen…

what I like about this author books is that character development is very important, and even if the action scenes are not left and right on the book, they have enough of scary momentum at them, for us to be like, thanks God, that’s over… and I swear, in apocalyptical stories, even with monsters, I don’t know my fellow humans could always make things worse, but I wont get on spoilers. I Still continue to really like Andra, her brother continue to sound like a jerk (that being said very nicely), I wished I could punch Sean on the face one, when you read I guess you’ll know exactly when, Quinn is the most patient man I ever read about, Liv on this book is a bit in the shadows but I guess we will have more of her in the next book.

I’ll just throw out there, if you like apocalyptical stories, with character development, where the how we got to this situation is something that you don’t need fully complete answers, grab a copy for yourself because you’re in for such a treat.

Thank you BookSirens for the free ARC and this is my honest opinion.

[Amy Campbell · Rating 3 out of 5]

I still like the characters in this book, having read Book 1 in the series, World of Blood. The premise remains interesting. I was on the edge of my seat as they navigated saving one of their group, the last person I expected to need saving!

That said, I found the thought of going back into danger to save a dog more than a little dumb. And the subsequent effects of that return trip - oh look, a kidnapping. That's going to take up Book 3 and I'm not sure I'm here for it. It's a trope in the post-apocalyptic genre that I wish would recede, bc it takes away from the group of survivors as whole.

Would I endanger my entire group to save one person? I don't know if I would. It would be tough, but I think the safety of my entire group would be paramount.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Erica Field · Rating 4 out of 5]

World of Rot is a great sequel in the Cursed World Series. It picks up just where the plot left off and introduces us to a rich environment of new beginnings. I was rooting for the blossoming romance, anxious about our heroine exploring abandoned houses and caught up in the monster drama.

I didn’t think that this had quite the same pull as the first book, but a shock ending has me desperate to find out what comes next!

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily

[Carole · Rating 5 out of 5]

World of Rot picks up the story of Andra, her blended family and their struggles to remain alive in a world gone mad. Civilization is in tatters and monsters now roam the land.

The adventure continues with a little hint of attraction beginning to bloom between Andra and Quinn and this second book becoming another page turner as the story advances at a rapid pace. Can things get any worse? Yes, yes they can!


I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another winner …

I did find Andra quite annoying in this one though … however, that did not detract from how good this was.

Great world-building yet again.

Brilliant plot … building on from the previous book.

I was not a fan of the ending, beware this has a cliffhanger ending.

Highly recommended.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Robin Perryman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Focus

This story got on my nerves, I was ready to stop reading. I couldn't bear to hear about Quinn's dimples and eyes anymore. It was like a broken record. Andra needed to be more focused on the monsters. Also the situation between her and her brother was too much. These people were a ball of dysfunction. I've never been so glad to get to the end which finally had some action. I need a break from this story. If I get curious, I may continue .

[Johanna Schonberger · Rating 2 out of 5]

I very rarely write a review, feeling my rating says it all. However, I am somewhat conflicted with the rating. I love the back story. However, I was very annoyed by the lead characters' attitude and comments. She seems very immature emotionally for being in her 40s. The ending also disappointed me. Kidnapping is a bit much. I purchased the 2nd and 3rd books as a bundle and am going back and forth about even reading the 3rd one.

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

very entertaining!!

So good!! Very entertaining!!!

I have to agree with Kendal though.. besides the fact that she is crazy.. they could have easily went to get her! I can’t imagine leaving my kids best friend alone with dead bodies!! I find it hard to believe that they didn’t really know where she lived if the 2 kids spent that much time together!

I can’t wait to see what happens next!!

[Sam · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant! This is really an excellent second part to this exciting, well written, zombie end of the world series! I loved it all, the characters are well developed as it the plot, good levels of action & pace, great ideas! It had me hooked from the first page & I pretty much read it all in one sitting! I do recommend this & all stories by this writer! You are in for a real treat!

[Paula Mills · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jam Packed Adventure of a New World

Book two of this series is quite excellent. What a page turner , with a new twist and excitement at every turn! Yes, it does end with a cliffhanger, but this savvy author has written a novella to continue the story until book three of this saga comes out. I can’t wait to read the novella and eagerly anticipate book three!💥💥💥💥💥

[mia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this instalment, it was nice to get a different characters perspective. There were some surprising plot twists and love the references to "Tremor's", can't wait to see what happens next.

[Denise Del Vecchio · Rating 3 out of 5]

I felt like a large portion of this installment was spent rehashing what had already happened in the first book. I skip the recaps on television why would I want to "read" them in a book. At this point I have nothing else to read, I might as well finish the series.

[Leslie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thrilling book

I have been enjoying this series a lot. Who knew when most of the world's population died from a mysterious plague that monsters would show up? Read this series and you will find out!

[Breana Warner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Never disappoints!

This was definitely a good read. It started off a bit slow for me but eventually picked up and had me so engrossed. I can't wait for Book 3

[Mandie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fab

Another great read. Post apocalyptic without the zombies. There's a new monster in town, but is it the monsters or the people you know?

[Anita Hofer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome continuation of the story. I loved the references to pop culture. It really helps set the scenes.

[Kim A. Mann · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good

Interesting story and premise. A new twist on the zompoc tale. I wanna see how this resolves itself, I believe there are a lot of new tangents to explore.

[Blair Stackhouse · Rating 3 out of 5]

The series has potential, but it feels like the author doesn't know where she is going with anything. The rules of the world rapidly change, but I'm not sure that it is on purpose.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was the 2nd in the series and was really worth it I couldn't put it down stayed up late to keep reading it and was taken away with the contents I hated that it ended the way it did so now I need to get the 3rd in the series looking forward to reading it too

[Donna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such an exciting story!

This gets better and better, more exciting. Loving the characters and the danger. Can’t wait to read the next in this series!