This was immediately one of my favourite reads of 2022 and continues to be a book I think about often and recommend at the slightest opportunity. I’m in love with everything about this book, from the cover art to the cast to the queer and trans rage and wrath.

Becoming the monster we are / we feel like we are / they made us into is such a vibe as a trans person, and it was awesome - in both senses of the word - to go on that journey. It made me feel so seen and so understood and validated, but it was also just an absolutely excellent read. I’ll definitely be re-reading this for years to come.

It’s not a book for everyone, but I do think everyone would benefit from reading it.

I LOVE the gore and body horror. It was done so spectacularly - described in such a way that is both disgusting and impossible to look away from. There’s a certain lyricism and beauty to the grossness. I also really liked the representation - how being queer or neurodivergent doesn’t absolve one of their internalized and conditioned biases, doesn’t automatically make them good (because so often these characters are shown to be perfect because a neurotypical cishet audience would balk at a marginalized character not being perfect). I especially liked seeing an autistic character and a trans character who don’t act or think like every other fictional autistic or trans characters; they are not molded into what an audience expects or already understands.

Unfortunately, religion is a big nope for me, and it is so vital to this story that it turned my stomach basically from the first page. I was enjoying the above stuff so much that I pushed through the religion in spite of myself but it kept me from fully enjoying it.

CWs: body horror, gore, disease, genocide, deadnaming, transphobia, and more

4 or 4.25. The body horror was such a great metaphor for living in a trans body and while half the time I was reading this thinking what the fuck I could not put it down. Definitely interested in the authors future publications.

This is one of the most unique reads, which I not only loved, but really enjoyed the writing style of the author. There is a lot to take in and reflect on, which I also enjoy.

Trans rage is real and with everything happening right now in our society, this book shows a grim reality of a post apocalyptic Earth where religious tyrrany has absolutely destroyed everything good and beautiful and special.

From the very start, the reader is thrown into a world of fire and disaster seeing religious terrorists chasing down a teen boy because of who he is, who he wants to be versus what they're demanding of him.

Everything that happens is brutal, gory, terrifying, and at times, watching Benji discover himself amidst it all.

Although I am not much of a horror reader, the plot of this book caught my attention and I ended up enjoying it. I liked that there was such a diverse cast of characters and that readers got to hear from the perspectives of multiple different characters as the story progressed. I thought this was an intriguing book overall and that any horror fans should check this out.

The synopsis captivated me from the first moment, and although it took me a long time to get started, I couldn't stop when I finally did it. The author has a style that turns reading into a drug. His way of describing everything, detailed but not overwhelming, explaining what's going on without being obsessive, made time fly by.
Full review (scheduled for Feb 20th): https://tintanocturna.blogspot.com/2023/02/resena-review-hell-followed-with-us.html

Frankly, the best trad-published book I read in 2022. An exquisitely disturbing dystopian tale that analyzes the problematic ripples of extremist religion through the lens of heaven-engineered monsters. White deftly wields one of the most imaginative, visceral, and memorable writing style of our generation.

Gruesome, unflinching, and thoroughly cathartic. I found the writing a little simplistic at times, and the ending was abrupt for me, but that's all that's stopping me from giving this 5 stars.

I am a member of the American Library Association Reading List Award Committee. This title was suggested for the 2023 list. It was not nominated for the award. The complete list of winners and shortlisted titles is at <a href="https://rusaupdate.org/2023/01/2023-reading-list-announced-years-best-in-genre-fiction-for-adult-readers/">

Hell Followed With Us by Andrew Joseph White is a YA Queer Horror story, that punched me in the gut right from the get go and didn't let up, even at the end.

Ok admit, Horror is not usually my thing, and did struggle with some of the graphic descriptions (me and blood are not friends). But still found myself enthralled with this story.

In a post apocalyptic world, trans teen Benji is on the run from the devastating fanatical cult that not only raised him but turned him into a monster. While he's on the run he meets Nick and the other queer teens taking shelter in the local LGBTQ+ Centre where he's taken in, and for the first time in his life finds love, family and acceptance. But when secrets out and time is running short, Benji has some terrible choices to make.

As a mother, this book broke something in me. All wanted to do was wrap Benji and Nick all the kids from the ALC in a hug and keep them safe. As a queer and agnostic person, I raged right alongside these kids while they fought against the end of the world. This book brought out so many feelings for me. I think it is going to stay with me for a long, long time.

The synopsis sounded great and I love dystopian and queer books, however I don't think this was for me. Body gore & violence are major content warnings. I can handle some just fine but there was just more here than what I prefer to read. I saw this in a different review and it was true for me as well. Even though i did DNF after a couple chapters I am still giving it 3 stars.

I’m not 100 % sure how to feel about this. It was well written, and I like the message of the story. I knew it would have religious undertones to it, but I didn’t expect it would have as much as it did. But it did fit the story and it makes sense. I don’t know if I would reread it, but I am excited to read the authors upcoming books that I’ve heard about.

A powerhouse novel from and exiting new author, I loved this exploration of ideology and identity. The trans and autistic rep was amazing, the story was unique and engaging, and it was threaded with a darkness and profound voice. I absolutely couldn’t put it down!!!

Maybe the real monsters are those who are willing do the most terrible things just for the sake of religious bigotry, and privilege, and hate.

This was such an incredible journey 😭 One filled with rage, fear, hope, and love. And clearly, a love letter to queer kids. I'm so glad to have read this 🤧

Full review soon 🤞

DNF @ 29%
Guess I'll have to accept I won't finish this RIP

I loved this in concept. When I hear someone talking about this book, it sounds straight up my alley. I was incredibly excited about this when I first encountered it, and thrilled to received an ARC. But when I started reading this I just couldn't get into it.
I think it comes down to a mixture of execution and style just not being up my alley. I didn't like the interpersonal connections and the focus on them, though I guess part of that was to be expected from a book marketed as YA.

Gonna stamp this one up as just not for me, which I regret.

<i> I received an ARC and reviewed honestly and voluntarily. </i>

This book for me had so much potential but I struggled to read it. I did enjoy the plot and the characters were interesting.

This is an amazing book that I needed when I was a young LGBT teen about to come out in an unaccepting world. The plot was incredibly intriguing and the characterization was immaculate! Well done on all counts!

i dont really have many thoughts on this book. the atmosphere was very good, the book was fast paced and really enjoyable, the main down sides was the predictablity of the plot and the flat side characters

I am so excited to see a queer, trans, autistic YA novel get recognition and while I can see there’s much to admire about HELL FOLLOWED WITH US, the contents are more triggering than I expected so I’ve decided to put it aside.