"The Empty World" by D.E. Stevenson (re-read)

My D.E. Stevenson group recently completed our chapter-by-chapter reading and discussion of "The Empty World"  (alternate title: "A World in Spell"), first published in 1936. I read the book on my own, in advance of our discussions, earlier in the year, and reviewed it here. 

While DES is known as "the mistress of the light novel" (see the blurb on the cover image, left), and while there are elements of her trademark romances here, "The Empty World" is also an apocalyptic/dystopian/speculative/science fiction novel, set 37 years in the future, in 1973. 

The plot:  British author Jane Forrest and her secretary Maisie are en route from New York to England aboard a trans-Atlantic airliner, when a sudden, violent thunderstorm knocks the plane off course. With no radio contact or radar to guide them, they eventually land in Renfrew, Scotland, where they are greeted by complete silence. No people, no birds, no animals. Buildings are vacant and the roads are littered with empty cars and buses. The 13 passengers and 9 crew members are, it seems, the last surviving people left on earth.  (Or are they?) 

As I mentioned in my earlier review, it's an intriguing premise -- and there are some interesting thoughts about technology, power, human behaviour, morality, etc. -- but there are some gaping plot holes (DES obviously didn't think through all the details or implications of the world she created), and the execution sometimes leaves something to be desired. While the story is supposed to be set in 1973, there's a lot here that still seems very 1936. 

Several of our group members found the initial chapters bleak and off-putting and, early on, there was some discussion about whether we should abandon the book altogether and choose another one. Some wondered whether reading it now, in a world where nuclear weapons exist and global tensions are higher than they have been since the end of the Cold War, made it an even more difficult read than it would have been in 1936. Of course, even in 1936, Hitler was already beginning to flex his muscles in Europe, so who's to say? 

Anyway, I'm very glad we continued, because we sure had some interesting discussions as we worked our way through the story!  It's not Stevenson's best work, but she gets points for effort and originality, and for trying something a little different, outside of her usual norm. 

My original Goodreads rating of 3 stars stands. 

Not sure what our next Stevenson novel will be, but I'm looking forward to it!  :)  

This was Book #16 read to date in 2023 (and Book #3 finished in April), bringing me to 36% of my 2023 Goodreads Reading Challenge goal of 45 books. I am (for the moment, anyway...!) 3 books ahead of schedule. :)  You can find reviews of all my books read to date in 2023 tagged as "2023 books."