Eden Lost — Andrew Cunningham

""Seven years ago the world died. I often think about who we were before the catastrophe. I was seventeen, and Lila was a year younger. In so many ways we were both behind others our age in maturity. But then I wonder about that. Were we really? Because somehow we ended up alive when so many other 'survivors' of the event couldn't make it. We learned self-preservation in a hurry. We saw some of the worst of humanity and some of the best. Sadly, I think the worst overshadowed the best. But maybe that was what we needed to experience in order to gain the skills and the strength to keep going. Our story of overcoming adversity became a rallying cry for some. 'The Legend of Ben and Lila' was a source of hope for so many. We became folk heroes up and down the east coast. And then we disappeared, finding a quiet home in the Great Smoky Mountains. We never wanted the folk hero label. It was thrust upon us by others-the scared, the needy, and those without hope. In the months following the great catastrophe, we developed the skills to live off the land, to defend ourselves, and to defend others when necessary. Often it was skill, and sometimes we were just lucky. But our luck couldn't hold out forever....""

When a forest fire destroys their beloved forest sanctuary, Ben and Lila, along with their six-year-old daughter Katie and their dog Ralph, head west through the earthquake-ravaged landscape, toward a rumored thriving community in Yellowstone National Park. Along the way, they encounter the changes that have overtaken the world-both to the land and to the remaining survivors of the "event"-changes that are a constant source of danger. But another rumor persists as well, that of a "great evil" in the Midwest-an evil they will have to deal with if they have any hope of making it safely to Yellowstone-to a community they are not even sure really exists.

Taking place six years after the events of Eden Rising, Eden Lost follows Ben and Lila on a new journey of discovery, one that presents them with surprises and obstacles that will change their life forever. Six years after finding their peace, Ben and Lila have to re-enter the world. Has it gotten better or become far worse?