"Even if he spoke, every possible response would make him sound deranged."

You Weren't Meant to Be Human is a book both horrific and deeply humanizing. Usually when I hear YA authors will be having an adult debut, I'm a bit iffy about it. Authors will typically have the characters be a certain age but keep the same YA-eqsue writing. Thankfully, this book is not that. Even ignoring the horrific things that happen within this novel, White doesn't do any hand holding and fully trusts his audience to reach conclusions.

One thing I always love about his writing is the use of descriptions. In his books I feel like you can easily sink into them and picture what is happening. There is never a time where I'm saying something is overdescribed or should've been described more.

My favorite thing about this book has got to be our main character: Crane. He feels like a person with genuine flaws and I liked seeing his character development. His character is used to show an aspect of mental health that is often stigmatized. The aspect in question being the utilization of horrific thoughts to self punish yourself; keeping yourself in a loop. This belief that you deserve horrific things to happen to you is a bold but humanizing thing to include. Mainly due to the fact that many people (like me) who are trans and neurodivergent and have these horrifying thoughts about themselves are told never to discuss them or address it. It's easy for someone to isolate themselves and feel monstorous and betrayed by their own mind, so it's nice to see that in a character who is humanized. Queer rep that isn't tidy and "clean" is something I wish was more represented. So I'm grateful for a character like Crane, who is unflinching and raw with the horrors that come with being in a bad mental state, internalized transphobia as a trans person, and the stress involved with being in a horrifying politcal climate.

I also enjoyed the depiction of toxic relationships within this novel. You as the audience and even Crane himself can see all the red flags while also seeing what would incline him to stay. I also think this does a good job in depicitng trans people specifically in toxic relationships with someone cis and this feeling of someone validating you (even if it's half-assed and littered with red flags). Giving you that good feeling in contrast to when society and the political environment is hellbent on taking your rights away and calling you something that you aren't. I enjoyed the usage of news headlines to really drive this point home.

That goes to say, this book won't be for everyone. I think that people should def heed the trigger warnings before they pick this up. This is an adult novel and the author won't hold your hand to tell you what's good and what's bad. However, I'd definitely reccomend this to all the transmascs who are/were obsessed with Hannibal (2013).

I know some people found the end shocking, but I feel it was expected especially if you pay close attention to the story. I feel like some people might feel the ending was a bit rushed but I enjoyed it. I'd definitely go into this expecting more of a bittersweet ending.

Overall, this was an amazing horror story that I feel did an amazing job showcasing a forgotten part of our societies discussion in reproductive rights: Transmen/mascs.

Thank you Netgalley for providing this eArc in reutrn for an honest review.

This year I have read more horror than I usually do. I wouldn't consider myself a horror connoisseur by any means, but I have enjoyed it in the past despite often being disappointed. The issue is that much of the horror I've read as of late is.. not horrific. Maybe it is interesting. Maybe it is (yet another) metaphor about grief. But it just isn't scary. Well I'm happy to announce that You Weren't Meant to be Human is HORROR. Boy was I taken by surprise with how grisly this was. There were parts that didn't land for me, but the mix between body horror and the visceral, mental anguish in this book, I was very impressed.

The Hive comes to those who need it. An escape, a helping hand, support--when someone has nowhere else to turn, in their darkest hour of desperation, a swarm of worms and flies may appear promising relief. They will help you, give you a place to stay, give you a family. All they ask is unquestioning devotion from then on out. Because once you join, there's no leaving. Crane knew this when he joined. He's known this for the many years he's been a part of The Hive. He has helped recruit new people, joining their small group of degenerates working a run-down gas station in rural West Virginia, which houses their Hive colony. He's numb to it all, because this is what he wanted, right? He's just another trans man with deeply, deeply destructive beliefs about himself. He has a man that treats him like shit (exactly how he wants to be treated), and a cobbled together found family trying to move forward in a country getting closer and closer to the drain it has been spiraling. All it takes is servitude to The Hive, but it's not so bad. He's gotten used to cleaning up brain matter and blood off of the floor. He's gotten used to hunting down former friends who have decided they want out. But then his worst nightmare comes true, something beyond horrific that he never thought would, or could happen to him, his devotion starts to falter. He falls pregnant, and The Hive demands he have this baby. He has no choice but to submit as his enforcer boyfriend locks him away to prevent him from killing himself and the baby as his body changes in horrific, dysphoric ways. He grapples with the question of what exactly is growing inside of him as his due date comes closer and closer, and what exactly The Hive is going to do once this.. thing is born.

God damn was this a ride. Yes there is a lot of body horror, yes it can get pretty grisly and gory, but honestly most of the more horrific content of this book is the realistic aspects. Firstly, pregnancy is described in unashamed realism here. Being a gay cis man myself, it is something I have not had to face much, but the way the author describes the body horror of everyday pregnancy was disturbing and skillful. Paired with the anguish Crane is going through as a trans man being forced to carry a pregnancy to term, the "miracle of life" is much more of a curse is this book. But I think really the scariest part of this is the brutal, horrific way that Crane views himself. He's someone who is deeply broken, and while he may be secure in his gender identity, that is just about the only thing he's secure in. The trans experience here is unfiltered and raw, it does not glamorize it, but it does not apologize for it either. It was conveyed so well, I was uncomfortable but I could not look away.

The characters here were also very well developed. Levi, the "boyfriend" is also a broken man, but not one on the mend. He's abusive, unapologetic, and blindingly devoted to himself, but he is also not a caricature of evil either. He cares about Crane in a disgusting, warped way that I don't even think he understands. Tammy, the "den mother" of this family is caring but blunt. She's quick to criticize, but also cares the most about everyone she's tasked with protecting. Jess, the newest addition to this group, grows into her own despite being saved from the most abusive circumstances. She faces her traumas but also falls to them. And her relationship with Crane is destructive, and realistic for two people who seem to be beyond broken.

Despite all of that though, this wasn't the perfect book. The pacing was quite slow. I don't blame it based on the nature of the story, but we get a LOT of time stewing in the mental turmoil of Crane's mind when sometimes I wanted a bit more of the body horror that would have me wincing as I read. But some of these more visceral scenes felt as if they were included just for the shock factor. There were some scenes with Stagger (a character you'll have to read the book to learn about) that were definitely "horrific" but had me scratching my head as to why they were included at all. As opposed to most of the "intimate" scenes with Levi which were extremely graphic and horrific and I think did an excellent job at showing us who both Levi and Crane are as people. There were some deus ex things that happen towards the end of the book that I'm just like.. oh okay that might as well happen I guess. But I can't really fault it for that. The climax of this book was truly like a slow motion 20 car pileup. Terrible and fascinating.

If you like gore, if you like body horror, or if you want to relate more to the transmasc experience, you should absolutely read this.

Annnnnd I have officially read everything by AJW! As this is his debut adult horror novel, make sure to check trigger warnings because this is very dark and more on the extreme side of horror fiction, I would say. Very similar vibes to Eric LaRocca and Alison Rumfitt, for a point of reference. You will be horrified, disgusted, and I personally felt viscerally unwell, really from the first few chapters. It only gets more intense from there.

We follow Crane, a trans and autistic man who has been taken in by an infestation of alien worms and the humans that serve them. Fresh corpses and whatever else they demand. Crane is completely nonverbal and in the process of transitioning, family and friends abandoned along with the life he knew before. This is set in rural West Virginia where he works at a gas station with his fellow hive member and abusive ex-Marine boyfriend. When they aren't delivering bodies to the hungry worms in the back room, they are exploring their own desires. Crane ends up pregnant and is horrified when the hive demands that the baby be delivered.

Right from the jump, there is a lot of graphic sexual scenes that really just made me have to put it down and regroup. Crane has a lot of intrusive thoughts and fantasizes about self-harm a lot. "Make the outside match the inside." There is SA and the scenes that are consensual still feel very much like sex with an abusive, uncaring partner as a form of self-harm. That, in and of itself, was hard for me to read, personally, but I just kind of took a lot of mental wellness breaks while reading and it was all good. Anyone who has ever been pregnant has probably had the thought that the baby was kinda like a parasite, wether they admit it or not, but this takes it to a whole other level. Forced pregnancy and that abuse of one's bodily autonomy is horrifying and very much a real concern with everything going on in society currently, so while this wasn't an easy read by any stretch I do think it is an important one. It is a terrifying time for trans people in the real world so I think horror is an excellent genre to explore the dark recesses people can find themselves in, trying to fit into some expectation of what others want them to be. This is ugly, raw, and personal, but by the end I was glad I read it.

While I thought it was a bold choice, this book had very little actual dialogue with the MC being essentially mute. I have struggled with other books without dialogue and I did here too, but I will say the style grew on me after a while. The ending made me want to throw up and stare at a wall for like a week. This book made me reflect a lot and I can't exactly say I "had a good time" or anything but it was clearly never supposed to have that effect. Do I think this felt a bit heavy handed for me personally? Yes. There were parts that just felt like intrusive thoughts that gave us more insight into Crane's mind and sickening things that happened that I felt did further the plot. Some scenes did feel unnecessary and overkill, as well. This may not have been unequivocally for me but I did still feel like I gained something from the read overall.

My first experience with Andrew Joseph White and what a first impression! You Weren't Meant to Be Human is the first book in a while that has set me on edge and had me sitting here thinking. Not only is the timing of this book appropriate with the current political climate it went through topics of transphobia, forced birth, suicidal ideation, intrusive thoughts, stillbirth, and so much more. This is one that I would recommend looking at the warnings placed by the author as it could be majorly triggering to some.
Overall I thought the book was so well executed, the writing was amazing and the plot was well thought out. The main character is a transgender man, Crane, who has to go through pregnancy. He is also nonverbal autistic. This was told in the third person but I really do recommend this. This is AJW's debut adult novel and I really am excited for his future novels. I have been eyeing his other titles and now I am going to be adding them to my growing list.

Thank you to Saga Press for the complimentary copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Hmm. How to talk about this book? Most of the horror I pick up these days doesn't actually belong in horror if I'm being brutally honest, but this one does. It's brutal, it's gory, it's disturbing.... but instead of feeling horrified, I just felt sad. This book is heartbreaking. Don't read this if you're not in the best mental state and maybe don't read it before bed like I did. It'll really bring you down. This entire book revolves around a nonverbal, autistic trans man who gets pregnant and is forced to carry to term. Very timely, no? It focuses very heavily on the pregnancy itself and the birth, so steer clear if that's not your thing. It's also full of abuse. Abuse on every page. There's a hive mind element to this book, which is why I personally picked it up, and I think that was the weakest part of this book. Not enough of my questions were answered by the end, and that did bother me. I don't think this is something I'd ever reread, but I could be persuaded to pick up this authors next release.

Andrew Joseph White is one of my favorite authors in the YA space, and I was very excited to read his adult debut. It did NOT disappoint. It was raw, emotional, and challenging. I finished it in one sitting: at times it was uncomfortable but I couldn’t look away. The ending will gut you.

This book gutted me, in the best, most horrifying way possible. White delivers a visceral, body-horror-filled punch to the gut that’s as much about alien invasion as it is about finding identity in a world that refuses to make space for you. Crane’s story is raw and laced with so much fury, but at times tenderness, and then defiance. I was completely absorbed in the eerie, insect-infested world of the Hives, where transformation is both liberation and violence.

I appreciated the writing style, there’s something so intimate about it. It felt like Crane was speaking directly to me, confessing everything as it happened, and that made the horror and heartbreak hit even harder. I think I would have done the same had I been in Crane’s position, and that messed with me long after I turned the last page.

Not for every reader, but absolutely for readers who want horror that means something. Horror that tells someone's truth. I’m still thinking about the ending.

Trigger warnings: body horror, dysphoria, transphobia, reproductive abuse, insect/parasite imagery, medical trauma, cult dynamics, forced pregnancy, violence, and gore.

Utterly brutal and grotesque. Hope you got the stomach for all sorts of horrific elements including body horror that includes insects!!

Andrew Joseph White really can write something both horrifying yet honest, and You Weren’t Meant To Be Human is just that. Crane, a trans man who works at a gas station and is part of a sort of cult following what appears to be a worm/fly alien being that promises those who join it what they need, is subjected to numerous humiliations and horrors, though is also a deeply multifaceted and flawed person.

When Crane gets pregnant, the Hive demands Crane keep the baby for some unknown reason against his wishes, causing Crane to be forced to live out what essential is his personal nightmare as we slowly unravel his psyche and the dark ways minds can think and function, often compulsively.

The book is pretty disgusting in terms of the angle of horror. Not only are there, again, like a worm/fly hive cult being that… are gross bugs under people’s flesh. Crane also divulges deeply disturbing thoughts and compulsions that are dark. The world Crane lives in his hopeless, dreary, and again pretty gross given the alien worm being, so hope you have a strong-ish stomach.

The author crafts some pretty unique stories, often divulging the most sensitive, disturbing, and strange parts of the human experience, using horror as a vessel to uncover the least beautiful parts of humanity and living that also show off how humans /are/ even if we don’t see it. Crane’s experience seems deeply personal — a story beyond its horror themes about wanting to be accepted, be yourself desperately even if it hurts, and the hostility of the world toward marginalized people, especially when you feel like you have no why out or no way to be free.

But yeah definitely not for anyone that has like ANY sort of trigger since there are dark concepts in the story, such as forced pregnancy, body horror specifically with bugs, transphobia, degradation, gore, and more. Basically it’s pretty fucked up but not in a way that makes you feel that we are just doing gore/dark stuff for the sake of it.

I would’ve liked to learn more about the Hive, but otherwise Andrew Joseph White is just one of those horror authors where I wanna see what horrifying thing they are cooking up next.

Crane lives in rural West Virginia and works for alien worms and flies that have made a hive at a local gas station. The hive up to this point has given Crane a new life where he is accepted, but now he is in insurmountable horror when he is forced to live out one of his greatest fears—carry a baby to term and birth the baby, all for the hive. This horror read is incredibly disturbing, emotionally intense, and unputdownable.

Thank you, Saga Press | S&S/Saga Press and NetGalley, for the chance to read this book in exchange of an honest review.

TW: blood, gore, murder, abuse

Across Appalachia, festering masses of worms and flies have invaded, saving humans in exchange of loyalty and fresh corpses. So it was Crane's life. He found a chance to transition, a way never to speak again, to live the life he wants. He also have a relationship where he's treated like a real man. Sometimes. But when his boyfriend Levi gets him pregnant and the hive demands the child, stopping Crane's decision to get an abortion, Crane's life is turned upside down. Now forced to be pregnant, almost locked up in his own apartment and controlled, Crane is trapped. What will he do to escape?

You weren't meant to be human is the devastating debut adult novel from the brilliant Andrew Joseph White and I'm so happy I got the chance to read this book early and fell in love with it. It's extraordinary! It's a devastating book about survival, alien invasion, community, found family, blood, abuse and identity and I loved every single bit of it. Told by Crane's perspective, the story is brutal and viscerally honest. Crane is sure of having found a community, a space for himself, to be the man he wants to be, even though he realizes he's in abusive relationship with Levi. But the pregnancy changes everything, making him realize he's not seen as he thought he was, but only as a vessel, someone to be used by the hive and this thought, his desperation will bring devastation and blood to his whole "family".
A story about marginalized people, forced to survive and "live" in an hostile world, I loved every single page of You weren't meant to be human. It's cathartic, painful, strong and so wonderfully written.

The Hive demands infestation; infestation demands metamorphosis. Crane was hopelessly trapped in a body that felt like a carapace to be molted and destroyed — until one night a voice whispered that the world was not made for those like him. Now, under the cover of a dingy gas station alongside others who have been saved, Crane silently serves the entity that has asked too much of him. Viscerally unbound by the conventions of the young adult novel, White’s adult debut provides addictively grotesque body horror as a scathing critique of modern reproductive politics and those caught in the crossfire. Positively skin-crawling and relentless in its depictions of dysphoria, depression, and suicidal ideation, Crane’s tale is not for the faint of heart, but long-time horror fans will devour it. Horrifying and smart—a must-read for body horror fans.

Andrew Joseph White’s adult debut was everything I wanted. It was intense, heartbreaking, and unforgettable.

Crane’s story is raw and visceral. His trauma, identity, and connection to the alien entity were written with so much depth. I felt devastated for him and rooted for him the whole way through.

It’s dark and graphic, but never just for shock. Every detail mattered.

The alien invasion in Appalachia pulled me in right away, and the body horror was done so well. This book explores unwanted pregnancy, loss of control, and what it means to survive when everything is taken from you.

It was disturbing in all the right ways. I’ll be thinking about it for a long time.

Thanks to Saga Press and NetGalley for the ARC.

Disgusting in the best possible way. Once I started, I couldn't look away. Definitely worth the hype it's been getting, and every review calling this book gross doesn't do it justice - it's going to be way grosser than you think.

You Weren’t Meant to Be Human absolutely gutted me—in the most cathartic, feral, unapologetically queer way. Andrew Joseph White doesn’t just write horror; he writes emotional exorcisms. This book was a scream from somewhere deep in the chest, the kind that’s been building for years and finally breaks loose.

From page one, I felt like I was being dragged—nails clawing at the floorboards—through a story that refuses to flinch. It’s messy, brutal, body-horror-laced, and buzzing with rage, but underneath all that gore is something incredibly tender: a desperate, undeniable need to be seen—fully, honestly, grotesquely.

The main character isn’t a hero in any sanitized sense. They’re raw, volatile, fractured. But god, they felt real. Their pain, their fury, their fight to exist on their own terms—it hit so hard it felt like my own bones were shifting right along with them. This isn’t just a trans horror novel. It’s a battle cry. It’s a reclaiming of monstrosity and power and truth.

I won’t pretend this was an easy read. It’s heavy, and it goes there. But it also made me feel more alive than anything I’ve picked up in a long time. If you've ever felt like your existence was something others wanted to tame, erase, or reshape—this book says: be louder. Be uglier. Be more.

And I am so glad it exists.

This book makes me feel gross and icky in EXACTLY the perfect way. If you are a fan of AJW's work, and the triggers aren't an issue, this is a must read. I know so many people who are going to love this. This is so visceral, so filled with pain, so amazing. I honestly don't have the words to describe just how amazing this book is.

in all of ajw’s books, you can feel the rage poured into the pages. really— it’s palpable in every word! if his previous books were screams, this book is a guttural roar, filled to the brim with anger: anger at the loss of agency for pregnant persons in the country right now, anger at those who think they know best, anger at yourself, because who are we if not our own worst enemies?

this was kind of like a gross fever dream (in the best way possible, I promise!), and has such graphic descriptions of the utter horror of pregnancy, what it means to be trans and autistic in this day and age, and growing up in appalachia (a region which already most look over) that you just cannot look away. ajw pries open your eyes and forces you to look at where we’re at right now.

as his adult debut, this shines above the rest of his bibliography as a writhing and roaring monument to being your own person.

Wow. What a wild ride that was. At first I wasn't sure if I would be able to finish it, but I'm so glad I did. Body horror, weird creatures, identity crisis. Wow. Fantastic read

This was absolutely bloody disgusting in the best way possible. It was raw, it was visceral, I had an absolutely delightful time. I've loved Andrew's previous works, but this? This is the best one so far.

Andrew is very skilled when it comes fo describing gross things and gross situations. He has this way of drawing you in, of making you feel the muck on your skin. I personally love it.

I went into this knowing that it would tap into a personal fear of mine, pregnancy, oh my gods. My every fear was reflected in this book. And it was put so bluntly, so clearly, and in so many ways, so validating.

4 stars. This book is a lot. I would urge anyone considering reading to read the trigger warnings before beginning. This seems obvious, but it's definitely necessary. They're clearly stated within the first few pages, before the book even begins, and the author has also posted more detailed content warnings in a Goodreads review of the book and on his website.

This is a gnarly, nasty book that's not afraid to get gross. And I appreciated that. I spent a lot of this book uncomfortable or wincing or staring blankly ahead at a wall. I've read a lot of horror, and it takes a lot to really get me. This book tapped on a lot of my personal fears as a trans person, and I don't think I'll be able to get this book out of my head for awhile. It was hard to read but I couldn't look away. This book talked about transition in a way that was really compelling, and while that was also hard to read, I found those parts to be the most relatable.

This was probably my most anticipated release of this year, and Compound Fracture was one of my favorite reads of 2024. I can't say this disappointed. I don't think I've been this affected by a book in a long time. Thanks so much to NetGalley and Saga Press for the ARC.

I've read horror before, but now I've officially read HORROR. This book is definitely for all the HORROR fans out there.

One reason I enjoy AJW's books so much is because he can always provide a perspective (i.e. trans and transmasculine) I myself would never experience (cis-man, white, gay). I don't know if I will ever cross paths with a trans, autistic, poor, mute, sadistic, pregnant man IRL, but hey, now I feel like I have by reading this book. AJW's character building is always top-notch, and he is an excellent, excellent writer I'm always locked-in when I read his books!

The part that fell flat for me was the Hive, but I feel it fell flat because expectations weren't aligned from the beginning. About halfway through the book, Crane talks about the origins of the Hive even though I felt pretty familiar with it already, knowing that there are multiple Hive locations and humans have roles within each Hive. I wish this description of origins of the Hive were mentioned earlier in the book, to set the reader's expectations. Also, before reading this book, I thought the Hive would play a much stronger role due to the short summary of the book being described as "Alien meets Midsommar in this chilling debut adult novel from award-winning author Andrew Joseph White about identity, survival, and transformation amidst an alien invasion in rural West Virginia." But as I read first few chapters, I realized the aliens (in this case, the Hive) have already invaded. Also, in the origin story I mentioned earlier, Crane says that it is unknown what the Hive is, and they aren't necessarily aliens. So, I think this descriptor isn't true to the book.

What worked for me with this novel, and my favorite part, was the (glimmer of) hope that Crane will be able to mend the relationships with his parents and Birdie and (I think) Aspen. From what I understand, Crane ran away from home when he came out to himself as trans, but never came out to his parents due to his own anxiety. He assumes his parents wouldn't accept him for who he truly is. In this moment in time, the trans community is attacked, never accepted, so he assumes his parents will feel the same. However, as we get to the end, I don't believe that will be the case.

Thank you Saga Press for approving my request to read this novel early. It was my most anticipated read of the year and I'm so grateful I was allowed to read it early.