“Wormwood” by DH Nevins

Jeff Green | Jan 19, 2012

DH Nevins, a.k.a. Danielle Harding, teaches at Sharbot Lake Public School and is married to Barry Harding of Land O'Lakes Public School. She is also the writer of the post-apocalyptic thriller “Wormwood”.

Although the book was released in September, I did not get to read until the first few days of 2012, and it was a fitting read for the new year, although I hope 2012 does not bring the same kind of outcomes that set off the action in Wormwood.

Although Wormwood is classed as Young Adult fiction, the scenario is unremittingly grim.

It's as if the Haiti earthquake, which took place two years ago this week, were a worldwide phenomenon. In Port Au Prince, Haiti, 250,000 people died within 45 seconds when the quake hit, a human disaster of epic proportions. Ever since the quake, there has been a worldwide effort to keep the rest of the Port Au Prince population alive and to rebuild.

In Wormwood, there is an earthquake of similar power, except it extends across the entire globe.

And in Wormwood, the cause of the destruction is not tectonic forces but the acts of half humans/half angels who respond to instructions from on high.

Kali, the heroine and focal point of the book, has been spared the impact of the global destruction because of her association with one of the angels, Tianmat. The central thrust of the book has to do with her struggles with human and super-human angels, who it turns out have intrigues of their own that she finds herself thrown into.

What Kali faces is a series of escalating physical and emotional struggles, and a number of pointed moral choices, all heightened by a fast-paced, accelerating plot.

Oh, and Wormwood is also a story about two really star-crossed lovers.

Reading Wormwood is similar to reading other science fiction. It takes a bit of time to find your bearings since the fictional world shares some characteristics with our own world but there are some important differences, and while Wormwood uses a planet that is the same as Earth, and borrows from some aspects of Christianity, it is ultimately clear that it inhabits an alternate universe.

At the same time the story line picks up its pace as the book moves along, because the apocalypse is really only the catalyst for the story, and like all good adventure fiction the dominant question in the reader’s mind is always “what will happen next?”

The first part of the book is centred entirely on the relationship between Kali and Tianmat, but when the conflicts with the other angels and with the mysterious character Richard come to the fore the plot really takes off. It is hard to stop reading the last 150 pages of the book.

The extra element in Wormwood is the fact that it is, not surprisingly given all of the Biblical references, a morality tale as well as an adventure.

Kali not only needs to be physically and mentally strong in order to survive, she needs to make the right decisions, even if those decisions are in conflict with her own desires.

Wormwood concludes not so much by resolving anything as setting up a sequel. Until Wormwood II is completed, we really won't know what the outcome will be.

Danielle Nevins has been able to accomplish several things with her first novel. She has created an alternate universe, given reality to her angel/human characters and spun a compelling yarn. And as they say in show business, she has succeeded in leaving the readers wanting more.

Wormwood is available in physical or e-book form through online retailers such as Amazon.com and at Smashwords.com. It retails for about $12 in paper form and for $3.99 as an e-book.