Hell Followed with Us by Andrew Joseph White
Published by Daphne Press
Age Group: Young Adult
Format: Fiction
Genres and Categories: Alternative Universe, Religious War, Angels, Monsters, Black Characters, Brown Characters, Gay Characters, Latinx Characters, Lesbian Characters, Muslim Characters, Non-Binary Characters, OwnVoices Representation, Queer Characters, Sapphic Characters, Transgender Characters, Christianity, Disabled and Neurodivergent Authors, Transgender Authors, Diverse Representation, Dystopian Sci Fi, Neurodivergent, Theological Horror
My Rating:
Published on: 7th June 2022
Pages: 416
Disability Representation: Fictional illness, autism, selective mutism, stimming and a cane user.
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Sixteen-year-old trans boy Benji is on the run from the cult that raised him—the fundamentalist sect that unleashed Armageddon and decimated the world’s population. Desperately, he searches for a place where the cult can’t get their hands on him, or more importantly, on the bioweapon they infected him with.
 
But when cornered by monsters born from the destruction, Benji is rescued by a group of teens from the local Acheson LGBTQ+ Center, affectionately known as the ALC. The ALC’s leader, Nick, is gorgeous, autistic, and a deadly shot, and he knows Benji’s darkest secret: the cult’s bioweapon is mutating him into a monster deadly enough to wipe humanity from the earth once and for all.    
 
Still, Nick offers Benji shelter among his ragtag group of queer teens, as long as Benji can control the monster and use its power to defend the ALC. Eager to belong, Benji accepts Nick’s terms…until he discovers the ALC’s mysterious leader has a hidden agenda, and more than a few secrets of his own. Perfect for fans of Gideon the Ninth and Annihilation.

This book was provided for free by NetGalley and the publishers in exchange for an honest review. Many thanks to the publisher and the author for the opportunity to read this book!

Content Warnings:

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Hell Followed With Us by Andrew Joseph White is a delightful post-apocalyptic horror stand-alone that follows the journey of sixteen-year-old Benji as he escapes the religious cult that raised him. Responsible for creating a virus that brought about Armageddon, the cult is obsessed with cleansing the world. When Benji escapes their clutches, they lose the bioweapon they infected him with and will do whatever it takes to get it – and him – back. 

Taken in by a group of queer and trans young people hiding out in the local LGBTQIA+ centre, Benji feels at home for the first time in his life. Unfortunately, the weapon in his blood is relentless, and he is slowly changing into a monster designed to wipe out the rest of humanity. When the group’s leader, Nick, finds out about Benji’s secret, Benji makes a deal but soon learns that Nick has his own secrets…

Hell Followed With Us hit all the right buttons for me. I loved the theological aspects and the way that White delved deep into the horror of religious fanaticism and bioweapons. A lot of this book is terrifying, not just because it’s dark, but because it makes you wonder how many cults/sects are out there planning to wipe out humanity. As much as I love apocalypse settings, I’m not a fan of the everyday survival that inevitably comes with it. By choosing a group of LGBTQIA+ young people, White created a fascinating and complex group that goes beyond the usual devolution of trust. 

This book contains autistic representation in the form of Nick. This is explored through his narration and his interactions with Benji, who recognises the differences between Nick and other characters. I liked the way that Nick talks about learning how to interact with people by memorising ‘the rules’ of social interactions. Throughout the novel, there are moments when he is non-verbal, overstimulated and stemming, and White’s personal experience with autism shines through in these scenes. 

This is a very dark book, and I appreciated the ending White chose for Hell Followed With Us. It worked perfectly for the narrative and issues that White focuses on, although it might not be everyone’s cup of tea. If you love theological horror with great representation, then this is for you!

About Andrew Joseph White

Andrew Joseph White is the trans, autistic, and bestselling author of Hell Followed With Us, The Spirit Bares Its Teeth, Compound Fracture, and You Weren't Meant to be Human. Born and raised in the Shenandoah Valley, he received his MFA in Creative Writing from George Mason University, and lives in Virginia with his wife and their antisocial cat.

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