In this book we follow Benji, a trans boy that managed to escape a literal christian doomsday cult that managed to end the world with a parasitic flood. Benji is infected by this flood, and is slowly turning into a monster that is supposed to be a new religious figure for this cult.

First off, I have never been that fond of postapocalyptic stories, but this one really worked for me. The cult was horrifying and felt so real, even if I would've liked to learn more about it and its backstory.

My favourite part was, of course, the queer rep. There was just something so poetic about a group of queer kids fighting a christian cult. Benji's transness was also really well done, and I loved watching him grow and develop, and the way his gender identity intersected with the changes his body went through due to the virus was very interesting as well.

Which brings me to my second favourite part - the queer rage!! I desperately want more stories where queer characters are able to express their rage, to get the revenge that they seek, without the story claiming that they have sunk to their oppressors level. This story definitely did not do that, and I found it immensely satisfying.

Andrew Joseph White's Hell Followed with Us is a twisted tale of cults, monsters, and the queer kids fighting it all.

The story follows Benji, who escapes from his mother's cult that infected him with a disease that will term him into a deadly, powerful monster. The cult has engaged in a merciless tirade to kill all of the nonbelievers, leaving the city--and the world--in a post-apocalyptic-like state. While trying to escape, Benji finds the ALC, a group of queer people that survived the original massacre and are attempting to fight back against the cult.

There were a lot of aspects of this book that I really enjoyed. I loved all of the queer representation in this book. Benji's own experiences as a trans boy are heavily featured, and all of the characters at the ALC are queer too. Nick was an amazing character that I fell in love with. Benji's complex romantic relationships/feelings that develop throughout the book make for a really compelling side plot.

However, there were a couple of reasons that I could not give this book a higher rating. There is a lot of grotesque body imagery in this book. Benji is literally turning into Seraph--this monster-like thing. He is puking up his organs, his skin is falling off his body, and a host of other disgusting things ensue. I have a kind of weak stomach when it comes to this stuff, so that made this book kind of hard to get through. If this kind of body horror is not your cup of tea, I would not suggest this book.

Similarly, there was something missing from the cult premise of this book. I was super excited to read about escaping a messed up cult; Sorrowland by Rivers Solomon has a similar premise, and I am obsessed with it. However, this book did not deliver on the cult aspect. There was just something missing, something that made the cult seem superficial, and not really all that interesting.

Finally, I am not going to spoil anything, but there was something at the end that just didn't make sense to me. Basically, there was a character arc that came out of virtually no where, but it mattered a lot for the plot.

Overall, I thought this book had a lot of bright points, and I'm really glad that I read it. However, because of some of the issues I had with it, I couldn't give it a higher rating. To me, it seemed more post-apocalyptic than cult-centric. So, if you are drawn in by grotesque imagery and post-apocalyptic story-lines than stories based on cults, I would still recommend it.

after sitting with this book for a bit, i'm still torn between a 3-4 stars so i'll call it 3.5 rounded up.

please note: this is a heavy book- read the trigger warnings and take care of yourself if you go into it.

i read the trigger warnings before going in, but was still a little overwhelmed with the graphicness of the gore (i don't mind gore! but every single page there was a paragraph-long description of how someone was killed or someone's body part was stabbed or whatever. it just got to be a lot.) i do love YA horror though and think we should have more of it, so i am very glad this book exists.

i enjoyed benji's character and i'm glad he got to learn and grow (and experience his growing pains... i'm a sucker for teens getting to experience growing pains <3).

some things i wanted to mention:
- there is a lack of world-building and overall coherence happening (why did Judgement Day happen? i sure as fuck don't know, it was never explained to us.) i would have loved to find out more about the apocalyptic-America this takes place in. there was little backstory about the characters, too. benji kept referencing how he missed theo/his fiance, but we never found out anything good about theo. we only saw the bad, current day theo, which did not make me understand their relationship.
- i couldn't find any info on if the author is autistic so i can't comment on how much of nick's autistic traits were taken from andrew joseph white's own experiences, but i would have liked to see nick's autism fleshed out a little more. we got like two paragraphs about stim toys and one sentence about nick stimming, and that was that.
- faith was described as "butch" and aromantic but was never clarified if she was a lesbian. additionally, there was the use of "femmes" in a non-lesbian-specific context. both of these terms (butch and femme) are lesbian specific. also note- i am a lesbian, i am correct, and this is not an opportunity to argue with me, a lesbian, about what words are and are not lesbian specific.

overall i did enjoy the book. i'd be very slightly hesitant to recommend to friends as i don't want any of them to be triggered and i know this is a heavy book, but if people are comfortable with it (and are prepared for the gore), i'd say go for it! ya horror is definitely an underrepresented genre and there was a whole host of representation in this book that i very much enjoyed.

trigger warnings: religion, religious abuse, eco fascism, death of a parent (off page, recounted), death of a friend and funeral (on page), violence (explicit gore, graphic depictions of the dead, murder, on page death, shootings, terrorism, brief kidnapping, mass murder), body horror, emetophobia (repeated on page vomiting), use of slurs (q-slur), abusive & controlling parents, domestic partner violence, hallucinations, death of a child, arson (building on fire, people caught in building), ableism, something akin to a pandemic (idk there’s mask wearing and transmission via bodily fluids), transphobia (misgendering, deadnaming (on page and implied), disrespect of neopronouns), dysphoria, religion-based transphobia, heaven/hell existence discourse

“Listen to me. My name is Benjamin Woodside.
I’m gay and trans as hell, I am a boy, my pronouns are he/ him, and I am a goddamn person.”

There’s so many things I want to say about this book and I don’t even know where to begin. This is about the MC Benji who is a trans boy who grew up in a religious cult at the end of the world. He grew up as the child of the leader and was infected with a bio weapon to carry out the cults destruction of what little world that remains along with any outsiders who aren’t following them. Benji, not wanting any part of their hateful destruction, by chance or by fate discovers The ALC a group of other queer kids trying to survive.

“It’s amazing how locking down one key demographic, white people in rich countries, means you can get your claws into the world so tightly, you can tear it all to pieces around you.”

This was apocalyptic dystopia which is one of my favorite genres, but is a genre lacking in representation and diversity; this book did a lot to change that there were several trans characters including a SC that used neopronouns, and neurodivergent/autism representation with both the MC and SC. This also depicted toxic relationships both romantic and familial and how they affect the person on the receiving end. The relationship between Benji and his narcissistic mother; her not only denying his being a boy, but then forcibly turning him into something different, something he’s not, with the bio weapon. Him then making it his own making his new body benefit him rather then giving him dysphoria.

“I think we’re in a situation where eating the rich is not only allowed but acceptable, encouraged, and part of a well-rounded diet. Essential vitamins and minerals, you know.”

Benji, over the course of the book, tries figuring out who he is outside of the cult and tries to figure out what parts of him are him, and what parts are indoctrination; discovering parts of himself he didn’t even know he was suppressing. He clearly does not fit with the cult, but isn’t quite fitting with the outside world because of what the cult did to him both mentally and physically. This was one of the best books I’ve read in a while, and I think my favorite part about this book is that it’s YA and younger readers will be able to see themselves represented in a really unapologetic way.

Release date: June 7th 2022

*Thank you to NetGalley for providing an ARC for an honest review*

This book was amazing! It confused me a little at times, especially in the end, but it was otherwise amazing. First of all, the cover is beyond pleasing to look at. Second, the author’s warning at the start is very much appreciated since this book does deal with a lot of difficult topics. I was really excited to see how this book would end, and I’m so happy it included some of my favourite tropes. I love how inclusive this book was and it made it such a delight to read. It was gory, it was dark, but it had its share of sweet moments. I will say that the writing was a little uncohesive and that is where I started to get confused about what was happening. I felt like I knew what was going on but then there would be a random switch so I’d have to reread some passages. However, I would say in general that this was a great read and I’m so happy I got to read it in advance.

At First I really wasn't sure about Andrew Joseph White's Hell Followed with us but by chapter 5 I was fully hooked into this post-apocalyptic world. I wish it hadn’t been written in first-person (this is more of a personal choice for me as I do tend to avoid books written in first) and I wish the prose hadn’t been so simplistic and so blunt. I do wish the climax had been a bit less rushed, and I did feel there was too much showing the reader about the monsters and Benji’s powers. I wish the diabolus ex machina in the final showdown had felt less like it came out of absolutely nowhere.

and yet it captivated me and I couldn’t put it down. I was utterly fascinated by Benji’s transformation into Seraph, the monster-messiah of the cult that wiped out most of the human race. And yet, I want to stand up and applaud Andrew Joseph White until my hands burn.

This book isn't going to be for everybody but I was transfixed with the worldbuilding and would happily read it again when it comes out as a physical book

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC of this. Very unique storyline that i enjoyed. First time reading this author. Will read more by them.

Hell Followed with Us was exactly the book I needed this week. It is an angry and loving queer horror that more than once had me pause to mutter "oh gross" to myself, a fact that brought me even more joy given the angelic presence within the book. I was living for the gross and bloody approach to angels rather than the renaissance style with which the west has gotten comfortable. I read this particular element of gore as both pushing Christian religious violence and the holiness of trans bodies.

This book follows Benji, a young trans boy, after he escapes New Nazareth, a cult that has unleashed the end of world in the name of salvation. In leaving Benji took more than himself as he is infected with the cult's bioweapon that they would do most anything to get back. Benji finds refuge and a place to belong in Acheson LGBTQ+ Center and its teenage residents. But building a new life was never as easy as finding a place to belong.

I truly loved this book. I loved White's honesty from the very first page about the feelings that went into its writing that were clear throughout. I loved the determination to protect the life one builds for yourself and those one builds that life with.

4.5

Thank you Netgalley and Peachtree for the opportunity to read this book ahead of its release in exchange for an honest review!

I was not expecting to love this as much as I did, but from the get go, I was completely hooked. I was fascinated by the dystopian plot, and I just wanted to know everything about what had happened to the world in this future. This book is beautifully, gloriously queer; there are dozens of characters with dozens of identities. This book was the first book I've ever read to feature two characters with neopronouns, so that was really cool to read, and you really do fall in love with the found family aspect of the book. There's also an autistic love interest which was so nice to see! I loved seeing that!

I will say that there were just a few things I wish we could have had more detail on, particularly how this cult came to take over the entire world, as I was a little confused on that, but maybe I just missed something. Also, if you don't like gore, then please be aware because this book is heavy on the horror gore, and not going to lie, it made me feel a bit sick reading it at some points.

There are also heavy, HEAVY trigger warnings here for transphobia, deadnaming, homophobia, and lots more, so please just be aware of that!

Andrew Joseph White’s Hell Followed With Us is a heartfelt, hope-filled allegory for defeating personal and societal persecution lovingly wrapped in an angsty, gory, monster-filled fight for your life.

The book begins with a thoughtful list of content warnings, a practice I’d encourage more authors to adapt. It’s beneficial for a horror story such as this, which can be such an open-ended category to leave the reader wondering what kind of horror they’re in for. I appreciated that I was left with little doubt about what I’d be reading.

I was struck by how real it felt for a story with so many fantastical elements. The characterizations of queerness, transness, and neurodivergence felt natural and normal. Or, at least, as natural and normal as they could be in a post-apocalyptic world filled with doomsday religious cults, religious extremism, and Eldritch-style monsters. But neither the book's characterizations nor its many horrors detracted from one another. Fighting for my life against an angelic horror wouldn’t make me any less queer or gender nonconforming. Why shouldn’t that be the case for a fictional queer or trans character? It’s a common complaint of mine when encountering token queer or trans characters in otherwise heteronormative stories. I’m thankful for queer and trans authors who so ably address this.

I appreciated that the story's hero was a trans masc person surrounded by a queer chosen family, including a character with neopronouns, an aro character, and a character who tries to mask their autism. I can’t imagine what I’d do in the face of Benji’s difficulties. But stumbling on the remnants of a queer center would be high on my wish list.

This story contains many references to transphobia, including deadnaming ad misgendering, highly descriptive violence, gore and body mutilation, religious persecution and abuse, and abusive relationships.

The queer representation in this was absolutely amazing. And that together with a fascinating world and an action filled plot? Could not ask for anything else. My favorite things about this book were definitely the representation, the horror, and the characters. The queer rep was rich and authentic, and the horror was disgusting and vile (just how I like it), and the characters were easy to love. This book was similar to Gideon the Ninth in a way that you did not get much backstory or worldbuilding which always is a bit of a bummer, but I do prefer this kind of worldbuilding over info dumping. I would much rather see the characters interact with the world and learn about it from them rather than read a history book on a world I don’t care about. I highly recommend this book to any queer people who love horror or who starve to read about some queer rage. Because there were plenty of that in Hell Followed With Us.

Hell Followed With Us by Andrew Joseph White

Note : Thank you so much for the advanced copy, this book was a blessing (little pun here).

*This review is my personal opinion*

REVIEW :

This YA novel follows the story of Benji, a sixteen-year-old trans boy running away from the cult that raised him. Benji gets rescued by Nick, the leader of a group of teens which is called ALC, the LGBTQ+ Center. They offer him shelter in exchange of his help to protect their group, but there’s a lot of secrets and mysteries to unpack while trying to survive against the Angels and the bioweapon that infects Benji.

First of all, this book is a masterpiece.

When you start reading a book, the best feeling is to get hooked on the first pages ; that’s exactly what the author did. This YA novel starts strong and it never stops. Each pages, every detail is important and linked to something that will appear later in the book. Don’t zone out while reading because you’re going to miss something! I absolutely loved the style of the author, it’s beautifully written and I just couldn’t stop reading. It’s thrilling, mysterious, a strong book with wonderful representations.

I highly recommend this book, I truly wish I had a book like that when I was 16 as well. The author definitely shared a strong and important story, beautifully executed, unique and memorable.

Be aware of TW’s before reading. They are listed by the author.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/57911600

[Arc kindly provided by Netgalley]

I love reading books about queer stories– stories where I can empathize with the main characters–, and written by queer authors.
I'm also a lover of fiction (fantasy, dystopian, scifi) novels, so I put ''Hell followed with Us'' in my tbr list time ago.

Anyway, back to the book.
Most of the global population has been slaughtered.
The Armageddon has been unleashed by a cult of Christian extremists, whose main goal is to create a bioweapon capable of turning humans in the Seraph, a gore-y, genetically modified human being that is seen as a symbol for redemption.

I found the core concept a solid basis to expose criticism towards the toxic and suffocating environments that sadly, as a queer christian, I often see within religious communities themselves. The fusion of ethic (and ideological beliefs in general) and biological weaponry is also, in my opinion, very striking.

The main issue I had with this book is that, even though the plot was intriguing and the ideas behind it very original, I felt no emotional connection with the characters. The cast is diverse (which is awesome!), but each character except for Nick and, of course, Benji has a maximum of few lines, which keeps us from seeing a concrete development in their personality and to actually getting to know them.
If somebody asked me about Aisha, Cormac or Faith in a week, I probably wouldn't remember anything about them.

While following the protagonist's struggle for survival, I also started feeling less and less connected to his journey. Everything was happening too quickly, which didn't give me the time to really jump into the book's atmosphere.

Another aspect that kept me from loving the novel is is the setting's description. A detailed depiction of the worldbuilding and giving the reader time to fully understand it are fundamental when it comes to dystopia, which, in this case, didn't happen.

At the end of the day, I found it an okay read. The style is nice and the words flow, making it a pleasurable book.

Pure unadulterated queer rage and anarchy? Sign me up

It's the end of the world, (oh no), and it's a very scary and realistic end of the world. Enter Benji, everyone says hi to Benji, Benji is running for his life, from the extremist religious cult that has turned him into a monster, claiming that he's their salvation. He finds safety in this group of very gay vigilantes. Now if you're thinking what I'm thinking- Gays against the Church, then you would be right Gays against the church. (hell yeah)

I really enjoyed all aspects of this book. The world-building (which is technically the world's downfall, anyway). Also the representation. Especially how the author exposes some of the internalized homophobia within the queer community as a whole. On how there will be people within the queer community that would invalidate others for not being gay enough. That they are not a real trans person because they don't do x,y, and z. Or they don't look gay enough.

There were some minor pacing issues and some underdeveloped relationships. I kinda wanted more, from both the characters and the world.


Trigger Warnings:
Transphobia (deadnaming, misgendering)
Body Mutilation (a lot of descriptive gore)
The Church (Religious abuse)
Returning to an abusive partner and self-blaming
Abusive parent
Vomiting (there was just a lot of it)
Violence

This was an amazing book. I'm not typically one for dystopian books, and I have no Christian Church trauma but I was still able to get into and enjoy the book.

I love the idea of this book but with all the trigger warnings folded into the beginning I made the decision not to continue after a short while. Super appreciate the trigger warnings! I will be recommending this title to my students who would be interested!

This book was fine. Great for fans of Six of Crows. I think it had the same winding, vast plotline that Bardugo fans enjoy, but it just wasn't for me. I did find myself racing to the end, though, even though I was only vaguely aware of what was happening by that point. I think that a lot of queer teens will love this one, though.

Holy shit.

I’m so excited for when this book comes out, for three reasons. One, I’m super excited that in a few months, trans teens are going to get to read this book. As a trans adult, I wish I had been able to read this book at 16. In addition, I work with kids (many of them being queer or trans), and I can assure you I will be recommending this to all of them. Two, I can already tell this is gonna be the next big YA book, and I’m gonna be able to tell people that I read it before it was published. Three, I cannot wait to read this again.

What I Liked:
- The narrative here is so compelling that I could not put the book down. I cannot remember the last time I was excitedly awaiting the end of a class so that I could come home and read, but it certainly happened with Hell Followed With Us.
- I loved all of the characters, Benji especially. His voice is so interesting to read and I missed him when he wasn’t at the center of the narrative.
- The metaphor of transness as monstrousness is impeccably done here; the body horror aids in this a lot and is also very well done.
- This is one of the first books I’ve read (and the first YA book that I’ve read) that centers around trans anger and portrays it realistically.

What I Disliked:
- There were details about the world that I wish had been more fleshed out, specifically surrounding the cult and New Nazareth, Benji’s history and his family’s connection to it, etc.
- Spoilers Ahead: I didn’t love the romance between Benji and Nick, I thought it was somewhat rushed and didn’t feel super necessary to me.

Overall: in all honesty, I have very little to say about Hell Followed With Us other than “please read this when it comes out” as well as “please make sure any trans kid in your life knows about this book”. This was easily my most anticipated book of 2022, and it was everything I wanted it to be.

I devoured this book. This was the book I needed 25 years ago. I fell in love with so many of the characters, I can't even enumerate.

QUOTES:
- I hate that I can’t cry. I want to sob, I want to do something, anything, to get this pressure out of my head, this awful thing building behind my eyes, I hate it so much, and if I can’t tear Nick to pieces, I need to get it out.
- A banner flutters high above me: GOD LOVES YOU. Corpses dangle from the wires, yellow-pink organs hanging from their stomachs to obscure their nakedness, like Adam and Eve ashamed of their bodies.

hell followed with us is a book that will probably end up meaning a lot to quite a lot of people. i can definitely see it blowing up because it’s such a good story and i have to say it’s a solid debut novel. the gore parts were absolutely amazing and, from what i’ve heard from other people, it’s got great trans rep! however, i don’t think i was the main target for this book as i was very confused by the whole religion aspect. in my opinion, the book wasn’t coherent and consistent enough which hindered my enjoyment of the story.

it's got a great cast of characters, i really liked how distinct their voices were and how each of them had a well thought-out personality. it’s not my place to comment on the rep, but i’ve heard nothing but good things about that as well. i really liked Benji as a character quite a lot, he was a very complex character and his journey was interesting to read about. the author does such a good job at making Benji’s emotions come across and making the reader sympathize with him. nick was probably my favourite character but i have to say the romance felt a bit too rushed. i couldn’t fully embrace the romantic plot line, but i loved all the other dynamics. love me a found-family trope.

now, the actual plot made me so confused. we’re thrown right into the action without any explanation of why everything went bad in the world or any background as to what happened, who started it or even what’s going on now. maybe my brain is just tiny but i was fighting for my life trying to keep track of everything. i didn’t get why people transformed into graces? why some are okay and others turn? eventually it felt a bit messy. however, it was fun to read and the gore was *chef’s kiss*.

the ending was rushed. the plot twist of a said character turning into a certain thing was a bit questionable, like i don’t think it did any good to the story. it kinda lost me as a reader because it wasn’t believable. not that the rest of the book tetters on reality, but considering it all, i still didn’t buy into it. a lot of things weren’t explain and i simply couldn’t fully grasp the story because of these plot holes. the villain characters were severely underused for the build-up they had, especially mother woodside and sister kipling.

all in all, hell followed with us is a stunning debut and i’m so looking forward to reading more from this author because the horror parts were so, so bloody good