Thank you, NetGalley and RBmedia, for this ARC and giving me the opportunity to review this book ahead of its release.

If We Survive This by Racquel Marie, narrated by the author, is a YA horror novel set during a zombie apocalypse triggered by a mutated strain of rabies. The story follows Flora, a teenager doing whatever it takes to keep herself and her older brother alive while he recovers from a broken leg.

While the novel doesn't break new ground in the zombie genre, it still has plenty to offer. The plot is gripping, and you’ll want to keep reading to find out what happens to the characters. One of the most compelling elements is Flora’s OCD—something that once hindered her in daily life but becomes a powerful tool for survival after the outbreak. The book also features multiple LGBTQIA+ characters, which is especially important and welcome in today’s middle grade and YA literature.

If you're a fan of zombie stories, this is a highly enjoyable read.

A solid YA thriller/horror that pulls you right into a post-apocalyptic world through the eyes of relatable, well-drawn teens. The action scenes hit hard, and the flashbacks added real depth—especially in showing the main character’s OCD and anxiety.

I genuinely wished it were longer. I was fully invested in the characters and could’ve stayed with them for another 100 pages. Still, the ending provided satisfying closure. A quick, intense read I’d definitely recommend!

Thank you, Net Galley, for providing me with a digital copy of the audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

This book was calling my name. The title, the cover, the vibes were perfect for the summerween mood I find myself in dark and stormy summer days.

“If We Survive This” is a great take on a zombie apocalypse with great family dynamics, relationships and character development.
The story does not shy away from hard-hitting topics, not only the rabids our main crew has no deal with, while showing us the struggles of being human in a kill-or-be-killed world.

All our characters have depth and their own motivations that drive their actions through-out the novel. The develop into great additions to the plot with every new chapter you read, as you get to meet most of them before the horrors began. The “then” and “now” storytelling is one of my favorite ways to piece together a plot like this one, as it lets you fill in blanks as you go.

I absolutely loved how a lot of the scenes felt so cinematic. And I mean in in the best way possible: I could easily imagine an adaptation of this book. It just feels like a story you’ll see on a screen someday. In the meantime, you can enjoy this book.

I do have to mention, I thought this would be a bit scarier, leaning more into horror. Found out it leans more into the humans and their struggles. We do have several moments charged with tension, gory and scary scenes. But our MCs groups is the heart and soul of the story. Just something to take into consideration if you plan to pick this one up.

Fans of The Walking Dead & The Last of Us should have good time reading this one.

And lastly, this is not a new favorite of mine, but I’m glad I read it.
(CAWPILE) = 7+9+6+7+8+6+5 = 6.7 = 3 stars

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

If We Survive This is an emotional, powerful YA horror novel with a captivating cast of characters and a propulsive plot.

I devoured this one. The well-developed and compelling characters hooked me from the start, and I loved the character development and found family. Flora was a spectacular main character, and the sapphic romance was tender and achingly beautiful. I appreciated the sibling dynamic between Cain and Flora and the themes of OCD, morality, and grief. With an addictive plot and fascinating zombie apocalypse, the story was action-packed and fast-paced. I enjoyed the pre-apocalypse flashbacks, gore, and body horror. The ending was beautifully emotional and hopeful. Racquel Marie’s prose was sharp and powerful, presenting an immersive, vicious story. I highly recommend this incredible YA horror novel!

Racquel Marie’s narration of IWST was fantastic. I loved experiencing the story through her voice, accents, and emotion, which fit the characters and novel wonderfully. I highly recommend the audiobook!

Thank you to the publisher for the free ALC and finished copy!

3.5 stars rounded up!

Man this had a lot more emotion and heart than I was expecting!

To me, this reads more like a coming of age zombie apocalypse thriller than horror. There was great representation of different ethnicities, sexual orientations, and mental health. Flora’s struggles with anxiety, OCD, and intrusive thoughts play a big part in her narrative. I thought it was interesting to see how these affected her taking on this apocalyptic world!

I think this would be a great introduction to YA horror, as a way to ease into the genre. I personally wish this had been scarier/creepier!

I did listen to the audio version of this book, which is narrated by the author. I think she did a fine enough job, and it didn’t take away from the story, but it came across as more just reading aloud than truly narrating a story, if that makes sense? I think the story would have really come to life with a different narrator, but I commend her efforts!

Thank you to NetGalley and RBmedia for the audiobook ARC!

Racquel Marie delivers a raw, gripping coming-of-age tale set against the backdrop of a decaying world. Marie balances the horror of the apocalypse with moments of real tenderness. The most compelling parts aren’t just the chases or the standoffs — they’re the quiet ones: finding acceptance with who the characters are amongst themselves. You are left with a feeling of hope in a world that may seem bleak.

Very similar to The Walking Dead and The Last Of Us in terms of themes, horror, and gore. That being said, the central themes of this book did revolve around coming of age as is typical of YA books. We followed Flora as she came to terms with the nature of her relationships and her place in the world.

As far as protagonists go, I didn't really like Flora. She has OCD, and as a result has obsessive thoughts that significantly interfere with her life. Though I understand that she can't control those thoughts, I found myself getting very annoyed with her at certain parts of the book. There's a scene where someone's life is in imminent danger due to chronic illness, and she's so mad that she wasn't told about this illness that she causes a scene and runs off, forcing the other characters to go find her before they can bring the person who is actively dying to the hospital. I tried to empathize with her, I really did, but she acted like a brat a lot of the time. If there were character development and she started to heal and change her behaviour, I would be more tolerant, but alas we don't see that development until the last chapter.

There was some good queer representation in her (though I did pick out some biphobic dog whistles), as well as racially diverse representation.

I think I may be growing out of YA and the juvenile type thinking we tend to see in those books. Thanks fully developed frontal lobe...

I felt like the ambiguous ending was the right way to end this. I think bleak stories like this don't always need a concrete ending and we don't always need to know what happened to the characters.

Overall, I would recommend this book to YA readers looking to start their transition to NA.

*♡Thank you to to Raquel Marie and RB Media for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest opinion♡*

"I can handle so much these days. More than I ever thought possible. It's a strange thing, really, to discover that you were wrong about yourself."
Firstly I would like to give major props to Raquel Marie for not only writing If We Survive This, but for doing an amazing job at narrating it as well ♡
Although the story is marketed as a YA horror, I feel it leans more towards a dystopian apocalyptic feel. I still thoroughly enjoyed it, especially the sibling relationship between Flora and Cain.
Major props for the accurate portrayal of living with OCD and intrusive thoughts!!
If you enjoy Yellowjackets and The Walking Dead then this is definitely a book for you.

This story will certainly appeal to fans of movies & books with zombie or apocalyptic storylines. I really enjoyed reading about the resilience and survival of this brother and sister duo.

Flora & Cain are on a mission to survive and find their dad who has been missing for weeks. With “rabids” at every turn, they strengthen their bond, & begin their journey with a couple of friends. Throughout their journey, they try their best not to get bitten by rabids, have a lot of self discovery, & navigate through everyday teenage issues such as high school crushes, sexual identity & challenging sibling dynamics.

I loved the narration in the audiobook, and was in awe to discover that author was also the narrator. It takes a special kind of talent to narrate in general, & even more so to narrate your own work. Racquel Marie simply nailed it!

Overall a solid read that is perfect for fans of YA, slow burn, apocalypse stories. I especially love the separate underlying love stories taking place with the main characters & their potential significant others. The alternating timelines between before the outbreak & after was relevant & significant as it showed the family dynamics. Thank you RBMedia and NetGalley for this advanced listening copy. All opinions are my own.

If We Survive This Audiobook Racquel Marie


This was a good story, I just wish we had some other person reading the book instead of the author, and I say that with lots of love for the story, I felt like she was distancing herself from the story while transmitting the story by the eyes of someone that saw her own life as disposable..

what I found more unbelievable is how everyone in the story was gay or lesbian or trans, and who wasnt were absolute evil and jerks… while we don’t have a definite ending I felt it was kind a schrodinger's cat kind of situation, I still enjoyed the story and I recommend this book because there’s no graphic sexual situations and that is a plus for me.

So I still recommend for everyone to give it a try and read this book, its a zombie story while it tells us, what happened before… things that made our characters the persons they are in the end of the book.

Thank you Netgalley and RBmedia | Recorded Books, for the free AAC and this is my honest opinion.

3.25-3.5/5⭐️

I love anything zombie/ apocalyptic, so when I saw this book, I was immediately interested. This book is marketed as a YA horror but I feel like if you go into this thinking that your expectations won’t be met. Not to say that it wasn’t enjoyable (it was) but it is definitely more of a coming of age thriller set in a zombie apocalypse (think daybreak but a bit more morbid).

I think having a mc with OCD/ anxiety during an apocalypse was a good idea, we don’t often see what it’s like for people who can’t get over the grime and gore so I appreciate that.

I really enjoyed the exploration of the sibling dynamic between Flora and Cain, it felt incredibly real and raw. However, the then and now timelines felt pretty tedious, I feel like we could have just learned everything in the now timeline, but I am notorious for not enjoying dual timeline so take that with a grain of salt.

I didn’t love the relationship between Flora and Cris, it was kind of underwhelming and felt superficial, but I was interested in seeing more of Cain and Adan.

I also feel like the ending could have been done differently. I get that it’s YA and certain choices are off the table, and I get the need for Floras last, split second decision as it is a coming of age, however I feel like I would have been more impacted if she didn’t make that choice.

Finally, I feel like the narration felt slightly monotonous, but not enough to majorly affect my listening experience.

Thank you NetGalley for the ALC

4.5 stars to If We Survive This by Racquel Marie. I was given an audiobook for an honest review by NetGalley. Published today, June 17th!
This book is a complex and nuanced depiction of a young girl and her brother fighting for their lives during a zombie apocalypse. There are so many horrible and unethical decisions you have to make when you are in this sort of situation, and I think Marie handled these things with care. This story was so beautiful and touching. Flora and her brother Cain are heading towards a vacation cabin in Northern California when they run into Cain’s best friend (name I can’t spell because I listened to the audiobook lol) and her friend. They go on a rollercoaster of an adventure in the hopes of finding Flora and Cain’s dad at this vacation cabin. However, at every turn their moves are foiled by dwindling supplies, rabids, and eventually, other people. Around the 70% mark I was kinda like, this is losing steam and I don’t really know what the point is anymore, and I have no clue how it’s going to end. Thankfully not much longer after that it really picked up and we got to the conflict (the true conflict!), which allowed us to see Flora in all her badassery. The ending was a little open ended, but it left me with hope for Flora and her friends. This book reminds me of what Mariame Kaba says in her novel, Let This Radicalize You: Organizing and the Revolution of Reciprocal Care, because I truly believe in an apocalypse you will need community to survive, and it will be difficult to navigate, and there will be conflicts within that community, but that without joy and happiness your community it is all pointless.

thanks to NetGalley and Rbmedia for the ARC

This book is narrated by the author and truly she could narrate more and it would be a draw. Her narration is smooth and melancholy and the character voices are distinctive.

I will say that it wasn’t until 20% in that I realized that the infected were called rabids not rabbits. This more of a me problem but i did think it was just a fun choice.

This book is ya but pulls no punches when it comes to the visceral descriptions of the violence of a post infection world. For me this is a huge plus.

For a ya book the romance is also refreshingly light. At no point does the romance overshadow the need for survival and it’s perfect for the setting. The fact that its lgbt is only a plus.

I think that the Yellowjacket’s comparison will actively harm this book’s reception. Sure its about teenagers and violent but really thats where the comparison end for me. Don’t get me wrong its still good quite good but its a let down for me.

I also personally felt like Flora was just a touch too much of a zombie killing badass tm for me. A lot of the interest for me in a zombie story is the wrestling with humanity in the act of killing what used to be people. This is more of an established apocalypse story though so its just a matter of personal taste and we do get to see vulnerability in Flora especially as she wrestles with her ocd.

That said the sibling bond is a highlight for me, in a book full of high points. It is arguably the most important relationship and its so nice to a ya protagonist not so wrapped up in romantic relationships that they loose sight of others types.

I probably would pick up another book by this author but only if it was horror too.

I read this on audiobook, which was narrated by the author and I found that really cool! But I’d love to physically read this as I don’t read audiobooks very frequently so I wasn’t sure if my feelings by the end of the book were because of the book or because of the format I’ve been reading it in.

Firstly, I loved the contamination OCD representation. It was interesting to have her mental illness be problematic in the ‘before’ but have it become necessary and important in the ‘after’, giving her the vital skills she needs to survive a deadly virus. It also raises questions and starts discussions about what we pathologize and why, how what becomes a ‘problem’ changes, etc.

I also love the relationship between her and her brother, it was fun to see how it changed throughout and the new challenges they faced and overcame. I love reading about sibling dynamics.

And, as someone who has consumed a lot of zombie apocalypse media, what was missing from it was diversity in terms of POC and queer people, and this book delivered.

I think my main issue is that I wasn’t that invested or gripped. Again, it’s possible this is because I read it via audio. I would still really recommend this, there’s a lot to love about it.

In If We Survive This, an outbreak of a mutated version of the rabies virus occurs, leaving society in shambles and creating violent and infectious “rabids.” Flora Braddock Paz and her older brother Cain leave their childhood home and embark on a journey to an isolated cabin from their past to possibly locate their father and try to survive in the dangerous new world.

The audiobook of If We Survive This is narrated by the novel’s author Racquel Marie and she does a good job at bringing the story to life. Nevertheless, her voice is a bit soothing and when aspects of the plot slowed down a bit in the middle of novel, I needed to replay a few chapters to better absorb what was happening.

In If We Survive This is a poignant novel that focuses upon developing its characters and provides LGBTQIA+ and neurotypical representation that feels organic and very relatable. Told in dual timelines-one from the year before the outbreak and one in the novel’s present-the two perspectives help to develop the characters and their complex relationships.

Flora is an engaging character and her mental and emotional struggles are presented in a way that is insightful and genuine. Dealing with anxiety and OCD can be difficult in everyday life, but Flora manages to do what she can to protect herself and her brother in the midst of an apocalypse.

The secondary characters that Flora and Cain encounter help to provide more emotional connections to both their pasts and the present, while also illustrating the detrimental decisions and behaviors made necessary by the degeneration of society.

One theme If We Survive This does share with The Walking Dead is that while those infected may be the more immediate problem, the true danger is often other people. I wish the antagonists had been introduced earlier and developed a bit more, but they served their narrative purpose.

The ending was not quite what I was expecting, but I appreciated it. While this book is a YA novel, it doesn’t minimize the overall grimness of the situation for an unrealistic resolution.

Thank you to RBmedia I Recorded Books and NetGalley for access to this audiobook. All opinions expressed are solely my own.

I ended up getting the arc to this audiobook very last minute, but I’m so glad I did because I enjoyed this book more than I imagined. I really liked the characters and how they interacted with each other and the world. Some of the plot twists we’re easy to guess early on but I honestly don’t mind that at all. I don’t think books have to be unpredictable to be well written. This was definitely one of my favourite ya horror books that I’ve read!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for letting me listen early! Also: happy release date!

This is a heartfelt yet gruesome story about Flora who’s trying to get herself and her brother to a safe location while the world is crumbling due to a virus that turns humans into zombie-like creatures.

On their way they find an old school friend and crush and together they try to find their way. But their new companions have a secret that might destroy them …

It read like a The Walking Dead episode but make it very queer and Flora has OCD and is afraid of dirt, bacteria or anything else that might make her sick which is, as you can imagine, not ideal in the apocalypse.

For me, this story was amazing mostly for the characters and the legit amazing OCD representation.
Unfortunately some parts of the story felt a bit dragged out and essentially it felt like there wasn’t really a plot at all. And the ending was, though I understand what the author tried to do here, not inspiring but just depressing to me.
I really wish this was a bit more plot driven but I still enjoyed it a lot.
The dual time line added a lot of depth to the characters and their relationships, which was amazing and very well done.

The narration by the author herself was great and I can totally recommend to listen to it.

All in all this is a great read for all dystopian fans, it’s not as heavy on the horror as I had hoped but it was very enjoyable!

Flora and her brother Cain are left alone in their house when their dad leaves to check out the cabin they used to go to in past summers. With "Rabids" on the prowl - zombie-like people infected with rabies that can spread the disease with a bite, or just tear you apart - the siblings have to navigate the changed world to join up with their father after Cain is convinced he heard him over the radio.

At first I was a little worried that the narrator was going to be a little too monotone for my liking, but was thankfully slightly assuaged when the dialogue began. The narration part continued to be a bit monotone, but I thought about it less as the story went on and I was drawn into the characters and plot. The characters and relationships were definitely the highlight, and while the story itself felt a bit trite, I still had a good time. The main romance wasn't really a hit for me, but the diversity representation was great. The flashes back to the past felt a bit unnecessary. Beyond showing a bit of character backstory/personality, it felt unhelpful and like not much was happening or being shown when we flashed back until the very, very end.

A coming of age queer zombie story I would recommend for fall spooky vibes.
I rated it 3.75/5 rounded up to 4. 
Thank you to NetGalley and RBmedia for the ARC!

Thank you to Netgalley for the ALC of this book. It was a fun YA book that reminded me a lot of The Last of Us. I loved the author was the one that was the audiobook narrator. We are going back and forth between her mother and father and what happened with them. And then the present day of fighting for their lives with the zombies at every turn.

4.5*
YA zombie apocalypse with neurodivergent characters? Yes, Please!

I truly enjoyed how dark and serious a lot of the subject matter was in this book. It did not make things campy simply because the characters are YA nor because they are neurodivergent. In fact, it feels as though the author striped away some of the "fluff" to better represent the ways people feel in this type of situation.

Flora and her brother Cain have been trying to survive the rabies mutation which has turned many into "rabids" and into zombie-like creatures who crave living flesh. Flora is both horrified and intrigued by this morbid turn in society, but her brain also creates many worst case scenarios which she has to battle as well as the zombies. Her OCD and anxiety makes working with other people quite difficult for her. This book is quite heartbreaking at times as well as gory and emotional. .

We get glimpses of when Flora and Cain were last on a trip with her family about a year previously mixed with the current events of how they are handling the outbreak and surviving. They also run across some familiar faces and a puppy named Biscuit (which I love). Honestly, this book was really well done in many ways and I thought the story was well written. I highly recommend it.