[Book Review] The End of the World is Nigh by Tony Moyle

The End of the World is Nigh is a humorous tale about a stern researcher, a rich and eccentric older gentleman, and a ditsy doomsday prepper whom fate has decided need to work together in order to solve a mystery.

When I received and email from Tony Moyle asking for his advanced reader team to dive into his newest book, I couldn’t wait to finish my current book and move on to this one!

Full disclosure: I was given a free copy of this book by the author in exchange for an honest review. This did not affect my rating in any way.

My Thoughts on The End of the World is Nigh by Tony Moyle

Like Tony’s other tales, this book had a little something for everyone; humor, mystery, light romance, historical elements, and a bit of suspense!

The tale was told in two timelines- one in the present when a new prophecy was discovered, and one in the past that lead up to that same prophecy being written. 

I enjoyed the timeline that was set in the present, but I absolutely loved the timeline in the past! It was so fun and exciting, and I couldn’t wait to see what happened next! I also loved that the author mixed in some more modern elements into the narration and the story itself. On more than a few occasions the sudden mention of something modern made me laugh out loud. 

In the tale, there were a few sections that I just had to highlight because of how much I enjoyed them!

The first was a section on how the rumor about the end of the world spread. Seeing what the various theories were was equally hysterical and unnerving. It’s so amazing to think about how quickly news spreads and gets blown out of proportion like a game of telephone. 

I also loved the scene where Nostradamus taught Philibert the rules of writing a prophecy. I thought this sequence was so clever!

There was a sequence where Chambard tried to capture a wild boar… My goodness, this had me laughing with tears streaming down my cheeks! 

Lastly, the opening of chapter “A Bump In The Night” was so perfect! I loved the formula to a successful horror movie! I adore when the author goes off on what seem like tangents at first, but it soon loops back to the story perfectly. 

The Characters:

Ally– a researcher and expert on Nostradamus. Called in to check out a book to see if it was really annotated by Nostradamus. Quite abrasive and close-minded. 

Antoine– the man that owned the house the book in question was found in. Open-minded, and on the hunt for answers. Rather eccentric and very upbeat.

Philibert, aka Phil– a man locked in a jail cell with Nostradamus who has lived the life of a wanderer, escaping a life of poverty. His latest goal was to learn how to be a prophet.  

Chambard– a man that taught Philibert about being a wanderer and worked with Phil to try to make sure his prophecies came true.

Michel de Notredsme, aka Nostradamus– the original prophet. Very dramatic, selfish, and full of himself. 

Gabriel Janvier– a ditsy doomsday prepper that goes off into the woods to try to save herself from the flu that was killing people. A type of person that seems to be the stereotypical millennial that the older generations hate.

Ally’s negativity toward millennial’s was incredibly frustrating, but also well done. This tension certainly highlighted two stereotypical individuals from each generation. Ally’s character was so clearly upset by the younger generation that she took one look at Gabriel, judged her in an instant, and didn’t let anything convince her otherwise. This really hit this topic on the nose! If I had a dollar for every time someone judged me because of my age and actually told me so… Ugh.

I’m so glad there were positives about millennials mixed in there from Gabriel’s standpoint because just straight millennial bashing would have been exhausting. And when Gabriel had her little monologue when she got coffee… just wonderful.

My Favorite Passages from The End of the World is Nigh

The end of the world was coming. The exact circumstances and timelines were a bit sketchy, but it was almost certainly going to be on a Tuesday, and it was definitely going to be messy. 

Whether the prophecy was authentic or not didn’t stop it doing laps of the internet faster than a ‘cat falling off a ladder’ meme. 

Jacques drew a blade from his belt and advanced slowly on the unwelcomed guest. To protect himself, Phil spontaneously drew the only blade that he carried, a slightly bent, short and blunt lock picking knife. If it came to actual sword play his weapon was a raspberry against a watermelon. 

Thanks in large part to the hugely popular online group the Oblivion Doctrine news of the apocalypse had spread in hours like the free movement of liquid from a split mug of tea. And just like a tea spillage the volume on the table always far exceeded the apparent capacity of the mug. 

“It looks to me, from the way you are dressed, that you too are a noble. The correct response in that situation would have been to challenge the other to a dual. What was your approach?”
“I waved a rather inoffensive bent pen-knife at him.” 
“Unconventional.”
“And ineffective as it happens,” added Phil.

Charles had a habit of insisting on items that simply didn’t exist, like a mug of lightening or a nurse with three nipples. Whether Charles knew he was asking for the absurd or not didn’t seem to restrain him. It was as if his preposterous desires were purposefully designed to instigate his second favourite past time, losing his shit. 

“This is ridiculous, sit down.”
“I don’t think you understand. I will not be bullied by anyone, male or female, friend or stranger, ally or foe. If you wish to learn something from me you will need to act accordingly.”

“Palomer is a word used mainly in Provence and comes from the seventeenth century. It has two meanings; mild in manner or keeper of pigeons.”
“Oh dear, I’m not overly keen on pigeons. I think I’ll go with the first meaning.” 

Light was now trying desperately to penetrate their ground floor window in order to introduce them to a new day. Phil didn’t know how many more he’d spend here or whether the next one would bring news of his fate. 

But then again, what was truth? To be certain that you’d found it you had to do research, check facts, use your own brain and have an open yet skeptical mind to all information and opinions. Truth took ages. It was much easier to seek out opinions that backed up what you already believed. Plus you could substitute the time you might have wasted discovering the truth by angrily debating your own beliefs on Twitter with people you’d never met before, often capitalizing the word FACT as the only one evidence to back up your argument. In the twentieth century that was all people needed.

I’m just a small lamp in the great dazzling glow of enlightenment that is illuminating our world. I dedicated my life to the advancement of the human race in order to fulfill our species potential, to be more than we currently are. 

… he said carefully placing the manuscript on Philibert knees to stop some of the pages making a gravity assisted dash for freedom. 

So far none of his strategies had worked. Trying to reason with one had been highly ineffective. Creeping up behind one quietly in an attempt to mount it at the last moment had also not gone well. After multiple attempts the best he’d managed was the faintest of ankle tackles and a mouthful of forest floor. Coaxing them with a variety of tasty lures had been no good either. Hours he’d waited for one to venture out and devour the pile of mice and eggs he’d left as bait, only to find they’d waited long enough for him to fall asleep before eating the lot and depositing a steaming pile of boar dung as a thank you note. 

By week three the topics of discussion became stretched. In a possible sign of madness the questions being posed had absolutely nothing to do with their past or current plots. There were hour long debates about ‘why dogs never walk in their own poo, when humans seem incapable of avoiding it,’ and ’which came first botulism or the plague,’ and ‘if a horse mates with a cow and had babies would they be called hows or courses.’

“… None of us can change the road on which fate had placed us… but we can decide which steps to take.”

My Final Thoughts on The End of the World is Nigh

Overall, I had a lot of fun reading this tale! I loved each of the elements that were woven together so wonderfully, especially the mix of humor, light romance, and mystery!

If you enjoy novels that you can get totally immersed in, but which also touch on a few topics that make you stop and think, then I would highly recommend this one to you!

Snag a copy using my Amazon Affiliate link or inquire at your local indie:

Related Reading:

• The Limpet Syndrome by Tony Moyle
• Dead Ends by Tony Moyle
• Interview with Tony Moyle