Kate’s Review: “American Rapture”

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Book: “American Rapture” by C.J. Leede

Publishing Info: Tor Nightfire, October 2024

Where Did I Get This Book: I received an ARC from the publisher at ALAAC24.

Where You Can Get This Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | Indiebound

Book Description: A virus is spreading across America, transforming the infected and making them feral with lust. Sophie, a good Catholic girl, must traverse the hellscape of the midwest to try to find her family while the world around her burns. Along the way she discovers there are far worse fates than dying a virgin.

Review: Thank you to Tor Nightfire for providing me with an ARC at ALAAC24!

Now that we are no longer in the fully acute stage of the COVID pandemic (not saying we are out of the woods yet, necessarily, as we are just getting out of another big wave here in Minnesota), I am far more able to read end of the world/disease based horror than I was four (or even three) years ago. So when I had to option to get a copy of “American Rapture” by C.J. Leede, an end of the world horror tale about a disease that makes its infected wholly uninhibited and wanting to have sex, and a Catholic teenager trying to survive, I was all in and excited to read it. And it takes place in Wisconsin! Sure, I’m a Minnesota girl, and while I too enjoy a good hearted border battle with our Eastern neighbors, I do really like Wisconsin for a lot of reasons, so that was a bonus.

As an apocalypse story I found “American Rapture” to be a unique take on a sub genre I have enjoyed for a very long time. I will say that I’m not wholly sure as to why I was thinking that the premise was going to be kinda fun when a disease that completely breaks down all inhibitions of an infected person and makes them only want to have sex with anything and anyone at ANY cost is the name of the game (in my defense, there is a tagline that uses the phrase ‘coming’ in a cheeky way and I thought that signaled light heartedness. IT IS NOT, be warned). But I really did enjoy this premise because it made for very intense horror moments as teenager Sophie is trying to survive and find her brother as the world around her crumbles to disease and danger. It felt a bit like the George Romero’s “The Crazies”, and I mean that in the very best way. I also liked how Sophie is wandering through Wisconsin and finding fellow survivors to cling to and lean on, as found family tropes in apocalypse stories always tug at my heartstrings and are one of the things I love most about the sub genre, and Leede really nails the tone, which in turn just raises the stakes even more.

But what made this book stand out even more to me was the fact that one of the major themes within its pages and story was that of religious trauma and religious fundamentalism and its damaging effects on its followers and also greater society. When we meet Sophie she is very clearly very attached to her upbringing and a true believer, though her faith has started to show cracks due to her twin Noah being sent away for being gay even before the outbreak has occurred. We are in her head basically the whole time and we get to see how her doubts and her anxieties about her faith have driven her to this point, and how the horrors that are unfolding are causing even more of a crisis within herself even as she tries to detach herself from the upbringing that has damaged her. Add in some wholly understandable PTSD responses as she interacts with fellow survivors while also trying to come to terms with her repressed upbringing AND the violence surrounding her and it is a wallop of a character arc. And even more chilling (and a bit too real given the way that just a couple weeks ago militias were out to get hurricane aid workers) is how religious fundamentalists from her community have taken up against relief and scientific efforts to try and stop the diseases from spreading, going so far as to commit violence like arson, torture, and murder all in the name of their faith. Leede doesn’t really hold back on the violence, both physical and psychological, and it elevated the horror levels to higher and more disturbing heights.

And with that in mind, I definitely want to make clear that this book has some pretty heavy content warnings attached to it, from religious trauma/abuse to animal death to sexual assault and sexual violence to child death. I didn’t feel like any of it was done in poor taste, but its still good to be mindful.

“American Rapture” is sure to stand the test of time as a new classic in apocalypse horror. I found it gut wrenching and tense, but also in some ways hopeful. I definitely need to check out more stuff by C.J. Leede.

Rating 9: Harrowing, terrifying, too real, and raw. “American Rapture” is a new classic in the end of the world horror sub genre!

Reader’s Advisory:

“American Rapture” is included on the Goodreads list “Horror to Look Forward to in 2024”.