I was surprised to read the author's note and find out the book hadn't been started as a reaction to the pandemic, because to me, it almost read as if it were written as a way to cope with COVID-19. I think this is a good example of a book that would have gone over better with me if I were the target audience. Parts of the novel were very compelling, but I felt like those passages were somewhat camouflaged in standard post-apocalyptic tropes and time skips (granted, those are hard to avoid in a book where the characters have to walk everywhere). I think maybe if the details about the characters' backstories were sometimes flashbacks instead of always being recounted verbally or mentioned in snippets, it could have made what the characters went through come across more strongly. Despite some missed potential, I do think the book had a way of keeping you invested in what was happening.

Set in the near future in a pandemic-ridden world, All That's Left in the World is a gripping read that asks hard questions about what all of us are capable of in terrible circumstances but manages to temper that drama with a sweet coming of age romance. Jamie and Andrew find each other in the middle of the apocalypse, both with secrets to hide. Can they trust each other enough to survive?
The pacing of this book is dynamic, moving quickly from one set piece to another with ease. I appreciate how the author kept the tension going for most of the book, both romantic tension between the two leads and the outside problems that threatened the two teens’ survival. The details seemed realistic and the shift between perspectives of both boys was never forced. Both characters were well defined, and there were lots of great moments of levity in what could have been a very dour book. There was something surreal about reading about the aftermath of a pandemic in the middle of one, but I think this was handled well. And although I felt the book wrapped up too quickly, I think that is more a testament to how much I don’t want to let these characters go than any fault in the storytelling. I look forward to recommending this book to my students who love action, suspense, survival stories, and romance. A fantastic read!

✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦
5/5 Stars

Synopsis: This book is set in a post apocalyptic world after a disease wipes out most of the population in North America. Andrew stumbles onto a cabin, inside he finds Jamison. Together they try to find a way to escape North America or try to find more civilization to help them.

Definitely hooked me from the first chapter and the characters seemed very real and you can easily relate to them. The last quarter of the book really kept me wanting to read and didn’t feel slow and boring. The plot goes right to the end of the book and I could not put it down until I found out what happened.

The banter between the two main characters Jamison and Andrew began at the beginning of the book and it was so funny, realistic and really felt like two teenage boys trying to figure out how to work together. The author used a lot of pop culture references but they didn’t feel cringy or overused, it really felt like how teenagers would talk. In the book they mention Covid, it is very relevant to what a lot of people are experiencing right now and it helps us relate to the story a lot. While still being a dystopian and apocalyptic novel it does a good job of bringing other relevant topics to the table such as homophobia, gender roles, religion, white supremacy and woman’s rights. The LGBTQ+ aspect of the novel is definitely an underlying plot as in the whole book isn’t about them trying to figure out the identities and I really like that because not every book that contains LGBTQ+ characters has to have them trying to figure themselves out as the main focus. It really is nice to read a book where people are already comfortable in their identities. As you would expect from an apocalyptic novel it does touch on the subjects such as morality and survival and does a really good job of finding the positives and negatives of their situations. The only downfall I found was it felt sluggish when they were just walking to get to the next destination but that’s expected, but at this time they would also have very personal conversations. I feel like it helped grow their relationship. I added notes as I was reading and can bet that half of them just say “aw” and “so cute”.


Favorite Quotes:
1. “Christ, even after the apocalypse I can’t resist a pun”
2. “Oh man, I hope Paul Rudd survived the bug“
3. “This is the first time — in the entire time I’ve known Jamie — I’ve ever heard him laugh. All my snarky comments, my clever jokes, my anecdotes, retelling him movies, none of it made him laugh like this. And it sounds wonderful“
4. “A gender-bent, postapocalyptic Bonnie and Clyde”

It gets three stars. I feel like when it comes out in audio, it will be amazing, the voices will lend themselves nicely to narration, but the pacing is not quite what I wanted. Great concept, love the queer representation though.

This is a story about the things that remain, even after the apocalypse .. like queer love!

I loved this book! Dystopian & apocalypse settings are my favorite, but there’s rarely any queer rep (if you’ve got recs, hit me with them!) & I never feel like the impact of injury or age are adequately explored. Enter this story! This was a beautiful book, about what makes a good human during terrible circumstances, and the value of retaining what makes us ourselves- even when the world crumbles. As an extra plus, it’s laugh out loud funny at points, so you really get to experience the full range of feelings before the end.

Thank you so much Netgalley,
Harper Collin Childrens & Balzer & Bray for this eArc!

This novel is set in a world in which a deadly pathogen has wiped out most of the population of earth. Seems an appropriate topic considering what the world has been going through for the past year and a half.
I really thoroughly enjoyed this novel. I loved the romance, but beyond that, I think it told a post-apocalyptic story in a very realistic way. It definitely left me thinking about my own perspectives about COVID and the world beyond our current status. Super solid read.

All That’s Left in The World by Erik Brown
All That’s Left in The World by Erik Brown is a fantastic post-apocalyptic novel, it has queer representation that typically is not seen in this genre and creates a lovely backdrop that is vastly different from your traditional coming out and falling in love stories.
Andrew and Jamie are two teenaged high school boys that have been left alone in a world affected by a fatal virus, leaving nearly no one unaffected. Both stuck in this new world without family or friends, they are searching for a way to cope and survive the fallout without losing who they were before. They come together in quite the fiasco of happenstances and end up travelling on an epic journey down the eastern coast. Their path is fraught with dangers and heart-pounding, lip biting obstacles, leaving you to wonder how they’ll survive.
It delves more into the aftermath of how a pair of teenagers would survive rather than your typical “We need to find a cure and save the world!” type of story. and that fact alone would make this book more than worth the read. The story is fast paced, leading to a few areas where expansion in the world building would be nice, but overall, this book is 4.5/5 stars; it keeps you moving and guessing what they’ll face next. The representation and real-life issues brought up in this book give it a realistic edge that makes you relate to the characters and keeps you coming back for more.
The characterization of Jamie and Andrew keeps you rooting for them through thick and thin, combined with snarky sarcasm and earnest optimism, you’ll want to keep reading¬¬— hoping for a happy ending for the boys around every corner.

All That's Left in the World is a wonderful post-apocalyptic novel that takes place after a superflu has wiped out ~80% of the population. Andrew is heading south from Connecticut when he steps in a bear trap and then stumbles upon Jamison's cabin. To his surprise, Jamison gives him first aid and shelter while he heals. When they no longer feel safe at the cabin they travel east in hopes of finding other survivors immune to the flu.

Just about everything in this novel is extremely well done. I loved the dual perspectives and getting to read everything going on from either character's point of view. Both are well written and very entertaining to read. I never felt like I wanted to skip a chapter to get back to a certain character's POV, which I normally want to do when reading novels with multiple perspectives.

The world felt incredibly realistic, especially since COVID is currently still very prominent. Despite not having been affected too much by COVID myself, a lot of the pandemic related stuff in this novel felt rather frightening to me. I also loved that the author chose to mention COVID in the book. It set the story sometime in the future and I felt that it was a nice touch.

The romance was very nice and not insta-love which I adored. So many YA novels have insta-love romances and I almost always dislike those stories. It was nice getting to see them going from strangers who were suspicious of each other to friends and eventually to boyfriends. It felt realistic and they were a very sweet couple. They're probably one of my favorite couples in a novel.

I really loved this book. It was a little slow for the first few chapters but it never felt dull. The characters were entertaining enough that even during the slower parts of the novel their inner monologues and dialogue were able to keep the story moving. This was a very enjoyable book all around and I will definitely purchase a finished copy when it's released.

5 Stars

All That's Left in the World is a post-apocalyptic novel set after a superflu has wiped out a vast majority of the population of the world. It follows two young men- Andrew and Jamison- as they travel the country.

I am huge fan of post-apocalyptic fiction. Ever since I read The Stand as a teenager I have loved reading stories set after everything falls apart. All That's Left in the World is a good addition to the genre. It explores many of the constant themes of post-apocalyptic fiction (survival, how humans work in groups, the fresh hell of only having cans of mushrooms to eat) through the experiences of well drawn characters who each go on specific journeys. And, heck, there's even a love story kinda deal happening.

Erik J. Brown knows how to tell a story. His prose moves quickly and he has an eye for character detail. He tosses in some cool references to other works, but this is his own post-apocalyptic world.

There was a certain... vertigo... to reading a book about a superflu ravaged planet while we're still in the midst of the COVID pandemic. As I write this, the delta variant of COVID is currently surging in areas where there are higher percentages of unvaccinated people. It's hard not to draw parallels. I don't know that I would have enjoyed reading this book in April and May of 2020. So I'm glad I didn't read this then. LOL

This book doesn't come out until March of 2022. Hopefully by then COVID will be tamed. But even if it isn't, this is still a good book well worth the read.

I love queer romances right now, and this book doesn’t disappoint. Our love interests make this story so interesting, to where you can’t stop reading and hoping for a happy ending!

This book is fantastic. It is set in a world following a pandemic brought on by an avian flu, where over 80 percent of the population has been wiped out. Andrew, one of the survivors who has lost his entire family, is trekking southward from Connecticut when he gets injured. With no supplies and no one to help him, he stumbles upon a house, where he meets Jamie, another boy his own age who also is all alone. Though the experiences in the pandemic and aftermath have conditions Andrew and Jamie to be suspicious of people they do not know and their motivations, the two quickly develop a connection.

When they no longer feel safe in the cabin, Andrew and Jamie decide to head south to see if they may find more help. As they journey together, they find their relationship deepening, as they face external threats and the potential challenges caused by the secrets each is harboring.

This book does an excellent job of balancing the adventure component of the story with the romance aspect. Both are quite compelling. The two main characters are well drawn, and the alternating perspectives telling the story effectively advance the narrative in a way that keeps the reader deeply engaged.

Very highly recommended!

Wow. This book is incredibly timely what with the pandemic and the way our society has reacted to it.

After being severely hurt by a bear trap, Andrew stumbles upon a cabin in the woods and Jamie.

From there an adventure fraught with danger, fear, humor, friendship, bravery, hate and love spins out.

Just like most other society ending stories show, people are always the biggest danger. And sometimes a saving grace.

Oh this book! It was soft and warm and full of life but it still maintained a gritty sense of realism that all truly great post-apocolypse stories have. Jamison and Andrew were an absolute otp from the beginning but I loved the slowburn angsty pining aspect way too much. Cara was also an unexpected favorite, and Henri is my absolute idol now.

All That's Left in the World is the book that describes the experiences of two teenage boys who have been suffering by themselves during the superflu and have had their loved ones die. And then they find each other. This book dragged on and on for me and really, after spending much of this past year in lockdown, I couldn't connect with these boys and their solar-paneled hideaway. Not my thing.

It’s the end of the world as we know it. We may have gotten through Covid, but the latest pandemic decimates the human and many animal populations. Andrew is on his own when he stumbles into a bear trap. After screaming and crying in pain for a few hours, he manages to pry the trap off. He won’t make it long without supplies, so when he comes across a house, he decides to try it. Jamison meets him at the door, gun at the ready, but Andrew is at his end. He would rather have Jamison shoot him quickly than to go on, dying slowly from infection. And so starts a friendship which will take them through the dangers of the apocalypse, romance, and more.

When I saw a dystopian novel with queer characters, I knew I wanted to read this, and I have to say this book did not disappoint. It’s going on the list for my teen book club. For a complete work of fiction, the stories and characters are real, with flaws, fears, and everything else. This should be a top YA book of 2022.

(I was lucky enough to get approved an ARC)

This book was really good. I wasn’t expecting it to be as good as it is.

It felt as realistic as you can get in a fictional world. Their relationship never felt forced, and I was rooting for them the whole time.

It is perfect for escapism, but not my favorite world to escape to. We’re just starting to go back to normal after a pandemic, so reading about the apocalypse isn’t my favorite thing to do.

The one thing that I love more than anything in a book is a good romance. They are adorable, and had a very interesting and amazing adventure.

Overall I really enjoyed this book, and I will be adding it to my collection once the physical copy comes out, but it isn’t my favorite book I have ever read

Sorry this isn’t to descriptive, I am having a hard time reviewing this without giving to much away.

Coming into this post-apocalyptic novel following two boys who's lives collide, I wasn't really thinking about how my experiences with COVID would impact my reading of this novel. However, many moments of this novel were super triggering to me. I haven't lost anybody to COVID personally, nor would I consider myself to have any significant amount of "COVID PTSD," yet this book was so hard to read because it hit too close to home. Some may find post-apocalyptic media to be healing after the year from hell we've had, however I would urge readers to consider how hard of a read this book may be before the fact.

That being said, I really loved this book!! This book gave what The Fifth Wave, They Both Die at the End, and We are the Ants were supposed to give, but ultimately fell short on. We have: fully fleshed out main characters, a post-apocalyptic queer romance, mutual pining, self discovery on the low-key, murder, gore, a small little found family, and a thriller dystopian plot that will keep you on the edge of your seat.

This book features some pretty graphic descriptions of gore, as well as thriller sub-plots that will make you want to put the book down because your stomach is churning to badly. The author is fantastic at delivering high-stakes plots while keeping the light, fluffy bits to ease the mood.

Overall, despite the plentiful triggering content in this book, I *highly* enjoyed this read. The character development is *chefs kiss,* the romance is fantastic, the world-building is well-done, and it gave everything a YA post-apocalyptic thriller is supposed to give!

I got this off of Netgalley, these opinions are my own. This book combined two of my favorite genres, Dystopian and LGBTQ+! I have read so many different Dystopian books and I was so excited to finally read one with LGBTQ+ protagonists! Erik J. Brown wrote such a beautiful love store, highlighting that even in the darkest of times love can be found! I’ve always kind of thought that it would be interesting to read about a character who falls in love with a person and their love is not so focused on gender! Like the fall in love with a person because of who they are and it doesn’t matter that they are the same gender and with this book I finally got that! And both of these protagonists are so relatable! Andrew really clicks for me because sarcasm is my bread and butter and I just love how strong and loyal Jamie is! It’s interesting to read this book after COVID it helps put into perspective how really this could all be or have been! I’ve always figured if we had a really Dystopian society it would be after electricity stoped working… after COVID it created new meaning to what it would be like if the world fell apart, it was interesting read a tale on how society would put itself back together and what that would very realistically look like! I absolutely loved this book and cannot wait for it to come out to read it again!

The biggest of thank yous to NetGalley and HarperCollins Children's Books for this ARC!

Holy shit, guys. This was SUCH a wild ride, and I loved every minute of it.

A new kind of plague overtakes the earth, killing more than 2 BILLION people. This isn't just a plague, this is damn near extermination. Andrew, injured, stumbles upon Jamie's shelter when he really has nothing left to lose. Jamie takes him in, nurses him back to health, and they form a friendship. When their previously safe shelter is abruptly threatened, they flee south in search of civilization. It's an INTENSE and wild trek, but as long as they have each other, things will be okay, won't they? New feelings develop and their lives are threatened more than once- but they face it all, together.

I want to shout at the top of my lungs about how much I enjoyed this. I tend to shy away from apocalypse, end of the world stories but I knew I wasn't about to pass up a queer one and I am SO glad I didn't. I was hooked pretty much right away, and I might have stayed up until four am because I had to know what was going to happen next.

The characters felt like real people I know, and man, I didn't expect to laugh in a story like this, but it was FUNNY. The pop culture references were spot on, and I full-body laughed THRICE within the first 10% of the book. I got scared when they were scared, and I felt everything right along with Andrew and Jamie. I also very much enjoyed the lack of gay panic when feelings started to develop between the two of them. It was super refreshing to read!

The book definitely had some dark spots (I mean, the world is literally dying out) but they were very well done and kept me on the edge of my SEAT. It gets emotional, and you really see these two humans just connect and grow together and be there for each other through terrible things and it's just lovely all around.

Please pre-order this and read it as soon as you can get your hands on it. It's fantastic.

Sure I love it so far it’s like there’s a pandemic (kinda like COVID it does actually mention COVID in the book) so there’s this bug going around and it wiped out half of the population and it’s like the end of the world there’s no electricity things like that and then these two boys meet each other (it’s LGBTQ Romance 😩) and it’s also so funny I love it