Hearts Still Beating -- Brooke Archer, Hardcover

Gripping, romantic, and impossible to put down, this dark and immersive post-apocalyptic debut novel is about two teen girls who loved each other before the end of the world -- and before one of them became infected with the virus that turned her into a monster.

Perfect for fans of Krystal Sutherland, Adam Silvera, and the darkly human side of the HBOMax horror-drama, The Last of Us.

Seventeen-year-old Mara is dead--mostly. Infected with a virus that brought the dead back to life and the world to its knees, she wakes up in a facility to learn a treatment for the disease has been found. No longer a Tick, Mara is placed in an experimental resettlement program. But her recovery is complicated by her destination: she's sent to live with the best friend she hasn't seen since the world ended--and since their first and only kiss.

Seventeen-year-old Rory is alive--barely. With impaired mobility from an injury and a dead sister, Rory's nightmares are just as monstrous as the Ticks that turned her former best friend. Even after the Island--one of a handful of surviving communities--rebuilds itself, Rory is prepared for the Ticks to return at any time. She never expected them to come in the form of the only girl she's ever loved.

As the girls struggle with their pasts and the people they've become, and with the Island's fragile peace in the balance, Rory and Mara must lean on each other to survive--or risk losing the girl they love all over again.

Author: Brooke Archer
Publisher: G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers
Published: 04/02/2024
Pages: 336
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 0.95lbs
Size: 8.40h x 5.50w x 1.30d
ISBN: 9780593698327
Age Range: 14-UP

Review Citation(s):
Publishers Weekly 01/22/2024
Booklist 02/15/2024 pg. 52
Kirkus Reviews 02/15/2024
Bulletin of Ctr for Child Bks 04/01/2024
School Library Journal 04/01/2024 pg. 135

About the Author
Brooke Archer graduated from Chapman University with a BFA in Creative Writing and has interned with Entity Magazine in LA. When she's not writing, she works at a doggy daycare in San Diego. Find her on twitter: @abrookeworm. And on Instagram: @broookearcher