The World That Remains — Matthew S. Cox

Six months ago, Harper Cody stressed out over finding the right college-now, she'll be thrilled if she makes it to her eighteenth birthday.Unexpected nuclear war destroyed the world she knew along with her dreams for a future. Violent thugs took away her parents and home, sending her fleeing into the ashes with her traumatized little sister. Following her best hope for survival, she chased a rumor of safety in the mountains.Evergreen, Colorado turned out to be the shelter she'd hoped for. There, her patchwork family could make the best of the world left behind. However, their new home came with an unexpected twist: to keep her father's shotgun and protect her sister, sweet, introverted Harper had to join the militia.Safety is relative in the aftermath of societal collapse. The mountain town may have avoided the worst of the atomic blasts, but danger still surrounds them: unstable people, starvation, cold, disease... and something or someone creeping about late at night, stalking the most vulnerable among them.