The Black Cat Awards 2019 Reviews

Paranormal 3rd Place - After the End: When Death Comes Calling by @NDeMeer

🥉 Paranormal 3rd Place Winner 🥉

After the End: When Death Comes Calling by NDeMeer

Reviewed by gabbyrosex

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Title: I like the title to this story. It is clear that death has come calling to the poor unsuspecting MC. It also gives the idea that it is in fact the end but truly this is where the story begins.

Cover: I love this front cover! It is so pretty, and stands out even though the colours aren't too bright. The title has almost a magical feel to it, and the white looks good against the blue. I really like the solid outline of the girl, this gives off the idea that the MC is a girl and this is her story that she is telling. The lightning deep in the middle of the girl is a cool effect.

Summary/Blurb: I really like the summary for this stort. The blurb is a good length. Not too long that people will get bored of, nor too short with little information. It gives a great brief description of what will happen in this story and I like how you started it off with telling us the date of when
Alex died.

Descriptions: There were a lot of good use of descriptions here. Many were vivid and immersed the reader into the story. I liked how you described Alex's initial reaction to her being dead and to seeing Death. I could tell just how creepy he was! I also liked how you portrayed the new clipboard man.

Plot Development: The plot developed very well. It was cool to witness how Alex came to terms with finding herself dead in an elevator. You spent enough time with showing us her emotions and how she tried to work out why no one could see her. I really liked the first encounter with Death and the clipboard man. You gave us little bits of humour here and there which kept me entertained. The pace of the story seemed a little slow at times, but the chapter lengths were good and you always left us on a cliff hanger at the end which left me wanting to read more!

Character Development: The growth of Alex's character became very noticeable in chapter 3 when she encountered the little girl who could see her. Her confidence grew with the more she learnt about being dead in chapter 5 with Rick. He seemed like an interesting character too. I liked their scene and dialogue, because it was the first time she had actually spoken to another person who was dead and could have a real conversation with without being ignored. It was a nice change and gave the story more intrigue.

Overall Impression: Overall my impression of this story is excellent!
It was very enjoyable and a shame that it didn't place higher in the awards. I will definitely be reading more of it again sometime.
With each chapter came new possibilities and action. I really liked lots of different aspects in this story. The narration was great and flowed nicely therefor making this story an interesting and engaging read!