TL;DR: All That’s Left in the World is an emotional queer post-apocalyptic story about two boys trying to survive in the world following a world-ending pandemic. It won’t be for everyone as it’s hard to read about a pandemic after having lived through one IRL. However, despite the loss, deaths, and horrors that await our protagonists, there is so much hope and love within these pages. I grew to love Andrew and Jamie and I can’t wait to see where their story goes next! 

I have to admit that the beginning had me slightly worried. We’re thrown into a post-apocalyptic setting where a recent super-flu has possibly wiped out 70-80% of the global population. I immediately felt the anxiety of reading about a large-scale pandemic creep up on me but the feeling didn’t get so bad that I couldn’t keep reading. Additionally, I didn’t initially latch on to Andrew’s tendency to fall back on untimely and cringeworthy jokes that I didn’t find funny, or the overload of pop culture references that I barely grasped. That said, I’m happy to say things turned around the more I read and I loved this!

As Andrew and Jamie begin their journey south along the east coast of a dystopian America toward Alexandria, not only does the action kick off but the characters experience so much growth. They have to work through their past trauma, deal with living through a pandemic where they have to witness the deaths of everyone they love and find ways to survive in the dangerous world that’s left behind. It’s always interesting to see how people cope in the aftermath of world-ending tragedies in these types of stories, and I think Brown does a great job illustrating their experiences throughout their journey. Although I found both character POVs blended too much in the early chapters, their voices do become more distinct and I came to love Andrew and Jamie very much by the end. There’s a lot to unpack in their arcs and the more I tried to fathom what it would possibly be like in their shoes—from how they carry their trauma to the weight of death surrounding them, the more I was able to understand why they act the way they do and how it fit in their narrative.

Another thing that I think Brown illustrates well is the unfortunate nature of humans and the power of hope. Sadly for the remaining humans alive, racism, homophobia and ultra-conservative right-wing nationalists still exist in this America and while people have commented in reviews how they think it’s a poor choice for a queer dystopian story, I don’t think it’s at all unrealistic given the current state of affairs over the pond. As Jamie says at one point (sic): the meek don’t inherit the land and all the evils that survived are working double time to retain their power. Everything horrifying that happens to Andrew and Jamie stems from people’s desperation for survival; a lot of people latched on to communities they believed could give them what they 1) needed to survive and 2) wanted in a ‘new world’, and while that in no way justifies their heinous actions, it makes sense in the narrative because as we always see, the nasty truly find a way to survive and thrive.

But their story also speaks to the power of hope because, despite all the horrors they endure, Jamie and Andrew never give up hope of finding something good. Even if it’s just finding that one person has survived or encountering others who aren’t ready to shoot them on sight or take advantage of their aloneness/situation. I loved that even against such a desolate backdrop of a world gone to hell, our characters maintain a sense of optimism, even when it’s hard to feel hope/ful. And in the end, all that’s left is them. Andrew’s physical attraction to Jamie might have been instant but their love blooms naturally through friendship, hardships, and dependence as they fight to survive. Their romance was tentative, sweet and wholesome, and delivered an additional thread of positivity needed to make this less bleak and made me appreciate it even more. 🥰

Overall, although this was fairly slow-paced and there were parts that I felt could’ve been condensed, I’m so glad I ended up loving this! I wasn’t sure what I’d think of it after a slightly rocky beginning but it made me think and feel and I’m looking forward to seeing where Andrew’s and Jamie’s story goes next!

Have you read All That’s Left in the World or is it on your TBR?

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