Disasters really bring the best and worst in humanity and this book touched me in a way I didn’t expect. I inhaled it in one sitting and just couldn’t turn away from what was happening on the page.

It is unbelievable to me this is Emma Pattee’s debut - the writing was witty and engrossing, but the story is heartbreaking. I could relate a lot to Annie - from growing up in poverty, conflicting feeling about artistic potential and your life trajectory, the fear of pregnancy - I felt she was a complex, fleshed out character. The characters she meet on her way - their individual stories broke my heart again and again.
I wish there was one more chapter at the end - a more concrete resolution - but I think I know what that would have been.
I hope, hope, hope everyone reads this when it comes out this March.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins UK for providing a complimentary digital copy in exchange for an honest review.

The ghoul in me requested ‘Tilt’ because I wanted to read about a pregnant woman surviving an earthquake in Portland and how she was going to make it across a city in the aftermath, whilst heavily pregnant.
And so the book did not disappoint my ghoulish curiosity.

However, once a couple of chapters in, I kept thinking, where’s the bigger story? I know, I know, what’s bigger than the ‘Big One’ PSW earthquake hitting when you’re heavily pregnant in an Ikea in Portland??
But the ‘message’ behind it. And I think that the message might just have been, ‘life is tough - survive it’.
Through the flashbacks, as told to Annie’s unborn baby (bean) about her and her husband’s Dom’s life, we see an average couple. Started off with huge aspirations of fame, wealth and success, but ended up in the reality of waiting, hoping and crippling financial instability. Annie is scared and unhappy being pregnant. Her marriage was founded on a need for Healthcare Insurance benefit. Her mother died at the very start of the COVID pandemic. And everything she wants/needs, is always just out of reach.
So the story of most people’s lives then.

Peppered throughout the narrative as she makes her way through the shattered city are plenty of themes about ‘the human condition’, both modern and from time immemorial. Selfishness, fear, mistrust, greed, death, family. And then the fleeting glimpses of the zeitgeist - imagining how she would make this event into an Instagram story and how this would one day make a great after dinner story; suggestions of conspiracy theories; the American healthcare system; being priced out of desirable neighbourhoods; fear of men; murderous teens running amok…

I was utterly hooked from start to finish. I was waiting for a satisfying ending. But the events take place over the course of one day. It takes Annie almost the whole day to almost reach home on foot. And the day, and Annie’s journey finishes just shy of her home. I won’t add more so as not to include too great a spoiler. But I wanted the story to continue.

I am very grateful to have read Tilt as an Arc (thanks to the publishers and Netgalley) but the formatting made it so that the end of the book ran directly into the author’s notes, leaving me with a momentary confusion! I didn’t get my satisfactory ending but I was only left wanting because I didn’t want the book to end

Absolutely loved this! It’s only short, so has a quick read time, but boy did it pack the punches. It’s very difficult to write engaging books which span such a short period of time, and requires real skill, but Emma pulled this off beautifully. Emotional and moving, my sense of walking alongside the main character, Annie, grew with every step, until by the end, my own memories of labour were brought right to the fore. Visceral…. This was never going to be a book with a happy ending, or, I should say a neatly resolved ending, given the setting and circumstances, and in truth I think I would have been disappointed if it had. It would have certainly distracted from the overall power of the narrative. Many thanks to the author and publisher for the opportunity to read an advance copy.

I raced through this in a day. I would like to say it was because it was so gripping and pacy, but I think it was because it was pretty short and I kept reading on expecting something to happen, which it does...kind of.

Tilt follows a day in the life of Annie, a heavily pregnant woman spending her first day on maternity leave buying a crib in Ikea when a major earthquake hits and she has to traverse the ruined city to find her husband. We also get some background on Annie's relationships with herself, her husband and her late mother. It's a great premise that, for me, didn't quite deliver, but I wonder if that's because we are all used to disaster movies where something crazy is happening at all times? In some ways, maybe the story told here is more truthful? There doesn't seem to be any real moments of suspense, just a long walk home with incidents a plenty but Annie seems numb to them and intent on getting to her husband (which again may be more a realist scenario). Maybe the numbness is a reflection of her life so far that started off with premise but fizzled as life took over?

Although it didn't quite hit the heights for me, I still enjoyed the story. There was a real moment of tenderness between Annie and two other women at the school, and I quite liked the abrupt open-ended ending. I am not sure how the story could have gone any further from that point.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

A perfect thriller/survival novel. Immediately I was hooked, Annie was a fantastic character to base this story on. As a fellow Portlander myself, I knew exactly what Pattee was describing. Growing up we were told about the great earthquake that was overdue, given earthquakes drills in school and warned about the aftershocks. She writes with such palpable fear in Annie that I could feel it through the book. I was right there with her, through the broken streets and houses. I loved the writing and the split timelines. I tore through this in one sitting, addictive!

The writing was as if the main character was speaking to her unborn child. It's set over the course of the day, on the first day of her maternity leave. It doesn't take long to realise her and her partner have money issues, regrets and not being happy with what they have and maybe with the earthquake and the aftermath - that day, that they should perhaps be happy.I think I was expecting more from this book, more emotions to be felt, a bit more of a powerful story, I felt something was missing.

An interesting book - it is set over a day after a major earthquake on the US Pacific cost. The extremely pregnant Annie spends the day trying to find her husband in the wreck of the city. As she walks and walks through the rubble she reflects on her marriage, her husband and what she hopes for the baby. I enjoyed how she progressed from railing at her frustrating husband to accepting and loving who he was.
The ending is abrupt but I appreciated the air of mystery, after all if there is such a massive disaster things aren't going to be tied up neatly.

I love stories that are set over really short timeframes, especially when they're centred around a desperate journey to reach a certain point or, in this case, person. Tilt is a gripping, almost dystopian story set in the immediate aftermath of a huge earthquake. A sense of doom hangs over us as we follow Annie, both towards her husband and back in time, to before she became pregnant. A short, attention-grabbing read.

Weirdly I found this very engaging which, considering its not a normal genre I'd read, is impressive and says much about Emms's writing style. With no traditional chapter breaks, a couple of plot lines that end with no reason and no ultimate resolution...but it still works! Many thanks to the author, publisher and Netgalley for allowing me to read this ARC!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Fast paced and emotional.

Annie is spending her first day of maternity leave buying something she should have months ago; a cot! However while stressing out at IKEA there is a terrible earthquake which changes everything and forces Annie to have a new perspective on her existence

Annie is one of those people who you can relate to but not necessarily like. There are trigger warnings a plenty through out this book so beware!

Once I started reading this story, I could tell it was well researched and in place, from person experience.

There were moments I was on the edge of my seat, and had a feeling of impending doom. I was very relieved to see that the ending wasn’t what I was expecting it to be.

I very much appreciated the references listed at the back of the book, allowing us to further research the subjects contained within. This is generally not done in works of fiction but I think, where the subject matter needs to be clear and accurate, it should be more common.

Thanks to @NetGalley and @HarperCollinsUK for the ARC!

This was an interesting and different plot though sometimes a little padded. I did not rush through it like most readers but was engaged and keen to find out what happened. The ending was a little disappointing. A great style of writing. Thanks to NetGalley for an ARC

I would suggest picking up this book on a day you have no plans as you will probably end up cancelling them, a truly propulsive and fascinating read and near on impossible to step away from once you begin reading.

Set in Portland in the US, on a hot day in the very near future, the novel unspools over the course of one day. Annie is 37 weeks pregnant, it is the first day of her maternity leave and she has gone to Ikea to buy a crib. While there, a massive earthquake hits, devastating the entire city. With no phone, no money, no car and a city absolutely descending into chaos and destruction, Annie realises the only way she can make it to her husband, is to walk. There is no power, no phone signals, it is hot as Annie makes her way across the wreckage of the city. On the way she reflects upon her life to this point , her marriage , her fears. She sees the full range of human emotions and behaviour, rioting in shops, the kindness of some and the opportunistic nature of others. She makes an friend along the way and for part of the book they walk together. Annie is determined she will make it home.

This is so bleakly realistic, from the detail of the earthquake itself ( the authors meticulous research is evident through out the book) to the observation of various forms of human behaviour. Annie isn't a character I easily warmed to yet I was deeply invested, I needed to know what would happen to her.

There was one part of the book I found really difficult to read, I won't add spoilers but brace yourself, this is a difficult to read at a number of points, that is how realistic it is.

A brilliant brutal debut novel, a well told and detailed story and like I said at the beginning, impossible to step away from.

A pregnant woman in IKEA buying a crib when a huge earthquake rips apart her world. We follow her as she tries to get back to her husband. This book is tense. I’m not sure what genre to really describe it as, it’s part horror, part love story and it’s got buckets of grief.

I absolutely love an apocalyptic story and my favourites are the “in the moment” ones. The ones where you out yourself in the situation and wonder what you would do. This book has that element of fear and uncertainty.

Tilt flits between before and after, showing Annie’s relationship with the father of her unborn child, and her journey to becoming a “grown up”. I loved the short snappy chapters and time jumps as they really kept the story moving. The whole book had a really relatable feel to it, which is great for apocalypse tales.

Set over one day. Not just any day, but a day where there is a major earthquake. Our main character is Annie, who lives in Portland, and is weeks from giving birth to her first child. I was horrified at the thought of having to endure such a disaster while pregnant, and this is what both attracted me to the book and kept me reading. We are introduced to the baby’s father, Dom, by joining Annie on her journey to save herself and the baby, and to find Dom. The insight into their relationship and her own life choices is well done and is revealed alongside details of the devastation of the city and the people she meets along the way. I was there with her, on her long walk, and was desperate to find out what would happen.
An accessible and quick read that made me think a lot about climate change (particularly with the horror of what is going on over the Pond right now.) I liked it.

A gripping read blending the themes of motherhood, survival and apocalypse. While this is more reading group fiction than scifi, it's engaging and humane and would pull in post apocalytic fiction fans.

Tilt does a great job at making you feel you are reading a real life scenario. The timeline being one day has great pacing and it’s hard to put down. The backdrop of the earthquake comes secondary to our vivid female main character. She is reflecting on her life and its downs. There is not much in the way of character development (this is over a day to be fair), things are happening to her and she is processing them but at the end there is no major revelation. I felt this again was true to life.
The aftermath of the earthquake itself is chaotic and well written, I definitely felt transported into the wreckage of the city.
The themes of motherhood, the anxieties of life and the use of metaphor make this for an engaging and human read.
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an ARC. This is a voluntary review of my own thoughts.

I liked this book and the gripping story of Annie, Bean and the people she meets on what is a terrible day. However I'm not going to lie I thought the ending was super disappointing. Soooooo many stories left unfinished and suddenly I was reading acknowledgements!! There either needs to be a follow up or an epilogue written.

Wow oh wow oh wow oh wow!
I’d give this 6 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 if I could!

Talk about on the edge of your seat. This is THE most compelling book I have read since Stephen King’s Cell.

Told entirely from the point of a 9 month pregnant woman, caught in the middle of a massive fault line earthquake in Portland, Oregon.
It switches between now and reminiscing about her life, and is brilliantly told. There’s no chapters, just to and fro. It makes you want to keep reading and reading. Quite philosophical at times, but without being annoyingly so. It’s tense. It’s scary. It’s totally believable.

I absolutely loved this book. I’ve been going through tough times myself recently which has massively affected my love of reading. But this has made me remember that there are AWESOME books out there!!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

‼️Slight Spoilers:
Trigger warnings - Parental loss. Child loss.
The ending is rather open. Not for people who like their novels tied up in a bow!

Such an engaging read that makes you want to keep reading to find out what happens. The author vividly describes the immediate aftermath of an earthquake. You feel for the heavily pregnant main character as she strives to become reunited with her husband. You get to know the couple's story in interludes from the past throughout the present time story. I became so involved in the story that I found the end disappointingly abrupt. I wanted more!

An earthquake strikes while heavily pregnant Annie is in Ikea buying a crib last minute. With no phone, Annie travels downtown to try and find her husband all while trying to keep her sanity and protecting her unborn baby.

I really, really enjoyed this. I felt like I was traveling with Annie and experiencing the aftermath of the quake. It was so well written and visual. If this doesn’t get snapped up for a film then the film world is formally in the doldrums.