Not as much of a dreary slog as I'd anticipated (not due to the author at all, but to the setting), but still a post-apocalyptic "everything sucks and we're trying desperately to survive" slog. While I can recognize that it's well written, I was tired of post-apocalyptic slogs even before it looked like they were going to be even more prescient than I'd ever thought (this one even has a US/Mexico border wall), which I know colors my impression of the book. At least this one does have moments of peace, beauty, and hope here and there; even filtered through the lens of a wounded, PTSD-suffering ex-soldier, those moments were appreciated.