(#partner @fsgbooks) • Severance by Ling Ma is my exact book type. Literary post-apocalyptic? Check. A story that bounces between past and present? Check. An NYC setting? Check. A millennial lead character who I could relate to? Check. Basically, this book has everything I love, and the combo was so perfect for me that it’s a new favorite.

In Severance, Candace Chen works at a book publishing company in NYC. She oversees bible productions and interfaces between clients and the printing companies usually based in China. Her immigrant parents are both dead, and she thrives on routine. At first, she barely worries as Shen Fever starts to spread through the city. “The fevered” perform repetitive tasks over and over (like setting a table or changing the channel) until they die. Eventually, Candace is forced to leave the city and meets up with a small cult-like group of survivors.

I always like a book that jumps between past and present. I loved the glimpses of Candace’s relationships with her parents, her first days in the city, and learning how she fell into her relationship with her boyfriend. And of course I loved the descriptions of the city after the fever had spread through because I just love apocalypse stories.

This book also explores themes of immigration, consumerism, and routine. There is a parallel between the fevered and Candace, as she follows her routine in order to survive and struggles with a sense of meaninglessness.

I loved everything about this book. The plot, the compelling main character, and of course the post-apocalypse. A new favorite. Recommended to basically everyone but especially fans of Station Eleven, as this one has similar vibes.