amiasmoon 's review for:

Hell Followed with Us by Andrew Joseph White

5.0

dark emotional hopeful sad tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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started this book on my birthday and it was the best gift a reading experience could give me. A dystopian future, that doesn’t seem so distant from us. Our world is falling into conservative ideologies and this world showed me how tragic it can be. Yet how we deserve better, and queer people will always fight for it.

Each chapter begins with a quote that tells readers the haunting reality. I liked the small chapters from other characters' points of view. The world-building was believable. It took me a bit to understand fully. Benji is a young boy filled with religious trauma. He was the result of the cult's cruel behavior.

The cult was opposed by the lgbt community center. There were still tensions, but it felt so amazing to read about. I was a Nick and Benji shipper since I learned Nick's name. I do appreciate how the story didn’t focus on their romance though. They had a lot on their plates. I loved Alex, Faith, and Erin all of them<3. 

Theo was a realistically tragic character. He reminded me a lot of Cooper from Andrew Joseph white’s most recent book, Compound Fracture. Theo had the best of tensions but he got lost in the cult's propaganda. It is what killed him.

The ending signaled a small start for the future. There might not ever be a sequel but I’ll hope for one. It is a heartwarming moment between Benji and Nick. This book ripped my heart apart and put it back together in four hundred pages. I want to reread it already.