I *really* enjoyed this slow-paced and mediative dystopian novel in translation. If you love quieter dystopian novels like Severance and The Memory Police, then you need to give this Austrian classic a go!
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Our protagonist goes to sleep one night in a hunting lodge in the countryside, while her two friends are drinking in a nearby pub. When she wakes up the next morning, her friends have not returned and there’s an impassable wall blocking her into a section of countryside. Beyond it, she can see dead animals and at least one dead person. Surmising she is the last living human on earth, she sets about trying to survive.
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Written in the form of a report, this book is heavy on the details. You feel like you’re living along with the MC, as she details every aspect of her day-to-day survival, plans for the winter, work in the summer - everything! It’s slow going but ultimately very immersive, and the ominous hints she drops along the way of what’s to come do a great job of building the tension.
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While there are no humans around, she does have animal companions in the form of her friends’ hunting dog Lynx, an old cat, and a lone cow. Lynx is probably now one of my top favourite animals in fiction 😭 Such a beautiful and loyal soul. But be warned, some of the animals do die. ☹️
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It’s very much an aftermath book; it’s never explained what the wall is and where it came from. Its focus is on the woman and how she adapts to this radical change.
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Recommended if you like a quieter read with a slow building sense of dread!