A review by helenfarch
All That's Left in the World by Erik J. Brown

adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Wow, the debut YA novel from Erik J. Brown certainly packs a punch.


A super-flu pandemic has swept the world and wiped out most of the population. In this post-pandemic world it is everyone for themselves until an injured Andrew turns up on the doorstep of Jamie's remote cabin.


What follows is a journey of survival, forgiveness, self-discovery and bravery.


As Andrew and Jamie set out on a journey down the east coast of the USA they fight for their lives, find pockets of surprising humanity, stumble across communities re-building, and ultimately, they find a love that makes them both stronger.


It was so interesting to read Author's Note at the end of the book that the author wrote this book before Covid changed the world. As he says, he was "tired of not seeing queer representation in post-apocalyptic stories" so he wrote his own.


Initially I did find the whole global pandemice wipes out most of the population of the world storyline quite anxiety inducing given what we have all gone through over the last few years. 


And whilst that unease never fully left me while I was reading this book, that didn't stop me falling in love with Andrew, Jamie and some of the characters they found along their journey - particularly Henri.


I have to say I particularly liked the ending. Now, this is spoiler-free so I won't say what that ending is, I would be interested to hear what other readers think.


The global pandemic setting of this book may not make it a read for everyone right now, but if that doesn't deter you, this is definitely a recommended read.

Thanks to Hachette Australia and the author for an advance copy of this book to read and review
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