by Andrew Smith
First published 2014
Austin Szerba chronicles his Polish family history while documenting humanity's final chapter. The sixteen-year-old and his best friend Robby have triggered an apocalyptic disaster in their Iowa town. Six-foot praying mantises now swarm the streets, an unstoppable army that spells doom for the human race. Austin faces this catastrophe while wrestling with his own sexual confusion. He loves his girlfriend Shann but finds himself equally attracted to Robby. His teenage hormones rage regardless of the chaos consuming the world around him. The mantis invasion forces Austin into an impossible position. He must find a way to preserve humanity while navigating his complicated feelings for both Shann and Robby. The fate of the species rests in his hands, but first he needs to understand his own desires and identity in this bizarre collision of adolescent awakening and science fiction nightmare.
Genres: science-fiction, coming-of-age, adolescence, family-drama, apocalyptic
Vibes: dark, emotional, fast-paced, intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, found-family, unreliable-narrator
Setting: Iowa
Period: 21st-century
388 pages · Hardcover · Dutton Books
Content warnings: body-horror, graphic-violence, sexual-content