All the Beastly Things

by Eilish Quin

In a post-apocalyptic matriarchy that has erased men, capitalism, and hierarchy, a devout novitiate destined for a sacred lunar abbey faces a crisis of faith when her best friend begins receiving visions of a forbidden masculine archangel—forcing her to choose between spiritual purity and human desire.

The year is 2171, and the Earth is not what it once was. The natural world once again reigns supreme, wild and ungovernable, after a series of wasting plagues and unmitigated climate disasters, the twin coups of fascism and AI, and a final, catastrophic nuclear fallout. Small monastic communities have emerged from the carnage—self-sufficient, female-only religious utopias governed by a strict codex and surrounded by walls to keep the wilds at bay. The new world is harmonious, and blissfully free from structures of oppression such as hierarchy, capitalism, and time.

Seventeen-year-old Igraine has never known life beyond the cloistered walls of the Field or seen a human male. Brilliant and devout, she spends her days in the gardens and scriptorium beside her closest companion, Ophelia. Their studies will culminate in twin posts at the Lunar Abbey—a gothic cathedral on the Moon reserved for the most venerated Sisters. Their futures fracture when Ophelia begins receiving visions of a mysterious, alluring, and damningly masculine archangel. As doubt spreads and rumors surface about the Order’s darker underpinnings, the girls venture beyond the convent’s walls and into the wilderness—while navigating the volatility of their deepening bond. When Igraine’s formidable mentor, Sister Agathe, takes a romantic interest in her, devotion blurs into jealousy and illicit desire. In the aftermath, Igraine must confront her unraveling faith in a system that demands her complete surrender.

Genres: Dystopia, Lesbian, Queer, Fiction, LGBT, Science Fiction, Fantasy

Kindle Edition

Expected publication November 17, 2026

Reviews

[Luke Dumas]

All the Beastly Things is an ethereal, richly imagined, and sublimely written meditation on devotion, like a breathless prayer from a dystopian future. Eilish Quin’s elegant, emotive prose glistens as if crafted from the light of moons and stars.

[quillnqueer]

Could I interest you in a Dystopian cult of nuns at the end of the world, aspiring to travel to the moon? Also, there's lesbians.

This is so deliciously dark and fucked up, and I ate up every minute. The convent Igraine is raised in reminded me somewhere of a cross between Jane Eyre's childhood school, and The Testaments. The punishments are severe, and the dying world around them lends itself to the constant feeling of claustrophobia.

There's a teacher/student relationship in this, exploring power dynamics, coercive control, physical and emotional abuse. The most interesting thing with this dynamic is how it is written - like a gothic romance horror. There are a few early scenes where I had to admit, it was kinda. Hot? It takes a skilled writer to be able to write scenes like that and be able to still show just how wrong the situation was at the same time.

The mystery in this that's revealed towards the end is carefully woven into the story, leading to an unexpected ending that I do think may divide readers. For myself, I feel I was given enough to be satisfied with the Epilogue, but I'd be putting in my pre-order immediately if a sequel was ever announced.

[Mel Rose (Savvy Rose Reads)]

Thank you to the author and publisher for the free book - out November 17!

Rating: 4/5 stars

Igraine is a novitiate in a post-apocalyptic order of nuns who has always dreamed of serving in the Lunar Abbey on the moon, but begins to discover dark secrets just as her dream comes into view.

I don’t think I’ve ever read a book like this one before and what a wild ride it was! I absolutely loved Igraine, who radiates such power and intelligence even when she’s making questionable decisions, and not to be dramatic but I’d probably die for Gawain. All of the characters were written so well and I felt like I truly inhabited this world alongside them while I was reading.

In terms of plot, I had no idea where this was going the entire time and my GOODNESS did that ending get me. The writing is also unbelievably gorgeous and poetic—in short, Eilish Quin is such a stunning novelist and I am so so excited for more of her work to be out there in the world!

CW: Death/violence/blood; suicidal thoughts/suicide; toxic relationship; animal death

[em!!]

omfg

[Andi]

The year is 2171. Men are gone. Capitalism is gone. Hell yes, amirite? What remains, in the post-apocalyptic sprawl of an Earth now inexplicably rebranded as Europa, are walled, all-female monastic communities holding back a rewilded, post-nuclear world, governed by a strict religious codex and the specific kind of tension that builds when people live too close together with too few outlets. It’s a strong premise, and Quin mostly delivers on it. I was hooked by the concept immediately, and what kept me there was how plausible the ending of the world felt. The collapse isn’t some abstract catastrophe; it’s a chain of things that feel uncomfortably reachable from here. That’s the quiet horror of it. The world Quin builds reads as both our likely inevitability and our total antithesis at once, and somehow it’s convincing as both.

The prose is the book's signature move. Lush, ornate, clearly the work of someone who thinks carefully about sentences. It made me feel uppity in the best way. There are moments where the stylistic ambition tips into grandiosity and loses the grit I'd want underneath it. That said, I admit this might be a me problem as much as a book problem: this style is genuinely accomplished, it's just not my absolute preference at the end of the day.

What I can't argue with is that it held me. The atmosphere is dense and immersive, the central relationships are tense in a way that feels earned, and I was genuinely riveted for most of the runtime. Unfortunately, I clocked where things were headed before I wanted to. Some of that is intentional foreshadowing, and some of it is that I happened to have prior exposure to a very similar conceptual territory (thanks, Philip K. Dick). If you go in clean, the ending will probably hit harder than it did for me. As it was, I spent the back half watching the pieces click into place rather than being genuinely surprised by them.

The conclusion itself lands somewhere between gutting and just slightly not enough. I wanted one more beat of resolution. Not a tidy bow, just a little more to hold onto.

Still: atmospheric, beautifully written when it's not overdoing it, and ambitious in all the right ways. Quin is clearly a writer worth following and I'm now eyeing *Medea*. A very good book that narrowly missed being an absolute fave book for me.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

[Amanda]

I received a copy of this from NetGalley, all opinions are mine, thank you!

This book was EXTREMELY GOOD. Igraine lives in a constrained, twisted-in-on-itself cloister in the far future, after an apocalyptic event, and this book is extremely character-focused without ever feeling TOO trapped in her own head. Or, when it does, it feels like it's an extension of how shuttered her whole life is-- she's training to go to the moon, there's an Extreme focus on suffering as a way to be closer to the divine (yes, I did grow up Catholic, I am familiar), and her dearest friend is drawing away from her because of visions of something that contradicts the teachings they've grown with.

It's about how entangled these high control groups can get, about feeling Wrong in yourself and trapped in your life, and the smallest escapes one can have. Igraine's fixation on and love for her coydogs is a delightful counterpart to her relationship with her teacher-- it's love, yes, but it's still a dependent relationship. Fascinating book. Will be on the lookout for more from this author.

[El Fish | libro.vermo]

Never have I wondered more if I finished a book or it finished me. It gave me such a hangover that I haven't been able to read another book in the last 10 days, which is very strange for me. I just can't stop thinking about it.

The sapphic yearning in this book is out of control (in a good way), made even more so due to the power imbalance between Igraine and Agathe. Sometimes it felt like "no plot, just vibes" (also in a good way), and those vibes were immaculate.

This is a great book to read if you're typically a litfic fan and you're looking to dip your toes into scifi because the scifi aspect, while excellent, isn't too heavy.

Thanks very much to Atria for the Arc!

[Jordan Tomasi]

*I received an ARC copy of this book for free in a giveaway. Thank you to the author and publisher.*

This book is a wild ride in a great way. I didn't really know where it was going for most of it honestly, but I was invested in the story and the characters anyway.Starts off as very dystopian cultish that leads into sci-fi which was unexpected to me at least.

Very well written, and honestly my gripe is that I want more now. Interested to see if another book comes out as it was left a bit open-ended but also could see it being a standalone.

[Danielle Harmon]

***This is an Advanced Reader Copy.***

I initially requested this book on Netgalley because the cover art stood out to me and the description was interesting. This was one of my first sci-fi books and after the first two chapters, I wasn't sure if it was going to be for me. But then the story started unfolding and I had to know what was going to happen next.

This is a dystopian queer sci-fi set in 2171 after climate collapse and what they call a "nuclear fallout," leading to the creation of a religious matrilineal society (only women exist!). The story follows a young girl and her friend as they choose their future paths and what it means for the both of them and their self-discovery.

This book felt like a work of art, unlike anything I've read before. It's actually hard for me to explain. There is so much to be learned from this story. I'm glad I stuck with it.

[Chelsea]

I don't know about you, but I like my dystopian horrors with a healthy dose of religious fanaticism and dysfunctional gays. It just hits differently. Eilish Quin's debut novel is a unsettling blend of the intersection of religion, devotion, the quest for self, and what it means to be human in the best way possible. Novitiate Ingraine is believable as a neurotic young adult questioning her beliefs while also trying desperately to conform to the expectations of The Order. Quin's excerpts of the 'religious texts' of The Order at the beginning of each chapter keep the reader guessing the motives of the other Sisters as a whole without revealing too much of the plot to spoil it too soon. Great read for fans of 'American Rapture' or 'Camp Damascus'.

[badger baddie]

This is a difficult one to review. It started out strong, then...hm. The toxic relationship stuff it wanted to give just didn't work at all. I appreciate a vague ending, but this one ventured too far. The twist in particular was somewhat of a surprise, I will say, but it didn't redeem how much of a dreary chore reading the last half of the book became. The story just...didn't take a direction I felt was as good as the initial set-up.
Fuck Agathe too btw

[Lilah]

Thank you very much to the author and publisher, and to NetGalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

All The Beastly Things is set in a post-nuclear-apocalyptic matriarchy. Its protagonist, Igraine, is a Novitiate studying under Sister Agathe while navigating her feelings around her best friend Ophelia. The story is told in first person present from Igraine’s perspective and explores various forms of love, grief, companionship, and existentialism. Applicable content warnings for this novel include sexual coercion, manipulation and gaslighting, sexual assault, drugging, and disordered eating.

I was very fortunate in getting to buddy read this with a friend who also received an ARC. Our discussions were incredibly fruitful, and we often found ourselves spending more time analysing than reading. All of this brings me to say that this book is incredibly dense in the best possible way; every word choice is deliberate and serves a poignant purpose, down to the inclusion of “own” in “your own” to create parallelism.

I was also particularly delighted by how rich the story is in literary, religious, and philosophical reference. From Marlowe’s Doctor Faustus—“Hell is but the absence of the Divine”—to Frankenstein. It also references the Bible, as well as its quoted philosophers, Søren Kierkegaard and Arthur Schopenhauer. I also made connections to Emily Dickinson, both in her life and in her poetry, in addition to numerous parallels with French philosopher and mystic Simone Weil—which led me all the way back to Kierkegaard and Schopenhauer. As such, author Eilish Quin rewards readers looking for depth with boundless reference points and intrigue.

Based on the author’s undeniable attention to detail, it is therefore unsurprising that all the characters should be magnificently fleshed out. Each character’s capacity (and lack thereof) to experience, embody, and enact distinct forms of love (maternal, romantic, platonic, spiritual, self, etc.) is beautifully portrayed. Even the coydogs are given character without falling back on personification, which only confirms Quin’s skill.

Regarding plot, I was very intrigued by the story’s progression and the gradual insertion of information leading up to the big reveal. While both my friend and I saw the reveal coming, I argue that it’s made deliberately obvious to further interrogate the themes of wilful ignorance and denial as part of faith. I did feel that some parts of the second act were needlessly repetitive, although I also concede that some readers may require that repetition to fully grasp some of the story’s themes. It takes immense skill to craft a story so well-structured and designed that I can say in the end, “I can see how it went this way, but I wonder what would have happened if things had gone differently here, or there.” One mark of powerful storytelling is the creation of junctions where the story could diverge, thereby cementing the characters’ agency.

Overall, this is a phenomenal book. I believe this novel can and should become a key component of numerous university-level literature courses. It’s becoming exceedingly rare to find modern literary fiction that stands tall by history’s greatest works, and All The Beastly Things certainly does so with finesse and grace.

[Siavahda]

Another one that I don't think is bad, but I wasn't clicking with it at all.

I think I probably would have loved this if it had been written with really lush, decadent prose, but alas, it isn't. The prose isn't bad, but it's pretty plain and straightforward. It reads like YA - which makes sense, because the main character is 17. But it's not at all the tone or style I was hoping for. (The first-person present-tense did not help.)

The worldbuilding is kind of shallow? I was so excited for a post-nuclear apocalypse matriarchy, but it's just...meh. There doesn't seem to be any digging into gender, any actual deconstruction of capitalism, the patriarchy, any of the other systems this order of nuns was supposedly founded to oppose. Nor is there a very clear picture of what the rest of the planet looks like outside of the dome Igraine and the others live within. Where does the food come from? And all the other supplies? New children join the order from elsewhere; what's that elsewhere, and what is the order's place in any kind of wider network between them and other human habitats? It all felt very hand-wavey, reminiscent of all the Hunger Games knock-offs we got in the 2010s - surface-level worldbuilding only.

In fairness, I didn't finish this book, so maybe it gets way more in-depth with the worldbuilding later. I don't think it will - it just doesn't have that feel to it. But I could be wrong!

This is supposed to be Adult, but like I said, it reads like YA, particularly with how Igraine is very clearly in love with her best friend Ophelia (and has no clue how to deal with it). Reading her mooning about after this girl was exhausting and incredibly dull. I feel like I've come across her character a gazillion times before: the Good Girl who keeps her head down and drinks the kool-aid happily, the teacher's pet, who will then will be all Le Gasp when the truth starts coming out. She is so, so boring. Ophelia is vastly more interesting - to be honest, I'm baffled that she wasn't the main character. Mysterious background, which she can't remember because the nuns mind-wiped her! Visions! Uneasy with the System! Why couldn't we have been in her head instead?

The whole aesthetic...I was just expecting more, I think. More weirdness, more darkness, more gothic-ness. The author's borrowing bits of the aesthetic from Catholicism, but, speaking as someone raised Catholic, clearly does not get why Catholicism and the Gothic are so entwined. It's all tangled up with why the Protestants hated Catholicism so much! The sensuality, the over-the-topness, the decadence-as-glory. None of that's present in this book, and I get that these nuns are anti-capitalist so maybe they don't have gold treasure all over the place - but even the prose doesn't feel Gothic. It's stripped bare - except for whenever Igraine is swooning over how pretty Ophelia is.

I don't know. This whole thing feels shallow, feels like lip-service to the issues it wants to mess with. It's giving me 2010s YA dystopia and I'm just not here for that. I still don't think it's BAD, but it's not what I was hoping for. Alas, because this was one of my most-anticipated this year.

[Sally]

Thank you very much to the publisher and to NetGalley for this advance copy!

All the Beastly Things tells the story of Igraine, a Sister of the Order in a post-apocalyptic future, and deals heavily with her tumultuous relationships with her God, her best friend Ophelia, and her capricious mentor Agathe. Content warnings do apply for this book: abuse, self-harm, suicidality, and disordered eating in particular. Reader discretion is advised.

The setting for this novel is primarily the Field, a monastery of sorts where all Novitiates and Sisters spend their days in their contemplation of the Divine. The worldbuilding was very well-integrated into dialogue and Igraine's observations, and was skilled at raising enough mysteries for the reader to be intrigued all the way to the climax of the book.

Igraine, Ophelia and Agathe are well-realised upon the page. Some of their interactions made me very uncomfortable, but this was clearly by design; Igraine is an unreliable narrator and her perceptions of a character or event are not at all what the reader is intended to discern.

The craft of this book was the primary factor in my enjoyment of it. While this can be read as a perfectly serviceable and entertaining story on the surface level, beneath is a rich tapestry of philosophical and biblical references, symbolism and nuance, juxtaposition and mirroring. Every single word in this novel has been chosen with intention; every piece of information given to the reader has meaning, often two or three. I was lucky enough to be able to read this as a buddy read with a friend who also received the ARC, and we spent many hours discussing and dissecting it, which was an incredibly fun experience and certainly elevated it for me. This feels like the kind of book which can be studied in Literature classes. Additionally, the prose in this novel is simply gorgeous: poetic without being overwrought or overwritten, it strikes the perfect balance of beauty and function. I made so many highlights and notes reading this book; it was a highly engaging experience.

If I were to have any criticism of this book, it's that the second third feels stagnant and repetitive at points; the same scene in slightly different permutations plays out several times, and the lack of concrete progression and answers irked me. This leads to the climax and ending feeling a little rushed; I would have liked more time to be spent contemplating the events and reveals we are given in the final chapters. However, this did not diminish my enjoyment in a huge way, and as stated above, it was so well-crafted and intentional that I come away from this book with extremely fond memories of it.

Overall, this was a thoughtful and well-crafted book, with a story full of mystery and tension. Readers who enjoy explorations of humanity, religion, philosophy and love will appreciate this book. I am very much looking forward to future works by author Eilish Quin. Even though it was a more contemplative read, I found myself completely unable to put it down.

[Jacqueline Rackard]

I would like to thank Net Galley, Atria books and Eilish Quin for opportunity to read and review this book in exchange for an honest review.

“There are sisters on the moon,” and with this first sentence the reader is catapulted into a dystopian world set in 2171. Many of the secretive order of nuns who worship the divine on Europa (formerly known as Earth) aspire to go to the moon to be one of the elite nuns who have sacrificed themselves and their bodies to the ultimate worship of a female divine. This is a novel that follows a similar setting (the cloistered monastery) and explores themes reminiscent of The Unworthy by Agustina Bazterrica (which I also loved). However, in the case of All Beastly Things, Quin presents a much younger and innocent protagonist and this creates a specific type of horror for the reader while also eliciting a deeper sympathy and emotional draw.

In a world with no men, a collapse of capitalism, and an all- female monastic community that rules under a very strict order of tenets, Igraine (the main character) navigates her feelings towards her friend, Ophelia while also dealing with the overly interested Sister Agathe, the girls’ teacher and superior. The descriptions of Agathe’s obsession with Igraine, the way that her look pierces through her and the constant cutting glances and Igraine’s feeling of discomfort when around Agathe creates a tension that is both disturbing and suspenseful. Agathe is referred to as the Leopard, a name that perfectly describes her predatory demeanor and actions toward Igraine.

The tense claustrophobic atmosphere is present throughout the majority of the novel. The girls living in a community where there is no interaction with the outside world and the closed off is hauntingly describe by Quin, with evocative and profound descriptions of the world inside and outside of the convent. Igraine’s character is well developed and her first person point of view does well to present a young woman who is grappling with the difficulty of growing up in a confusing and secretive world.
Ophelia’s nightmarish visions of a mysterious, male Archangel troubles her deeply and she makes a decision that has her question the monastery and this cult-like existence.

This novel explores complex issues of gender, love and friendship, trust and loyalty all woven into a deeply disturbing world that leaves the reader wanting more. A dystopian novel centered around creepy nuns, religious fanaticism and a possible trip to the moon? Who could ask for anything more. I read this quickly while trying to savor the details. The pacing was steady while also creating enough tension and twisty moments that added to the longing to get to the end. Overall, a well developed, interesting and uneasy look at a horribly frightening future.

[Tay]

Rounded up from 3.5 on The StoryGraph.

All The Beastly Things is a gothic dystopian dissection of what makes up our humanity, and just how much these things might factor into our own inevitable demise, both as individuals and as a species. It doesn’t ask, so much as tell us, that our current trajectory — with all of our obsessions and the turning of blind eyes — may be our undoing as well as our most prominent legacy.

In this novel, Eilish Quin digs up the bones of my teenhood infatuation with 2010s-era dystopian fiction and dresses them in my current interests. It’s a mildly nauseating, unsuspectingly fun, and unavoidably thought-provoking read.

While I really enjoyed the novel in a general sense, it definitely fell short for me in some areas. I felt that the whole story lacked a level of depth that it demanded. The subject matter and the wordiness of the writing felt at odds with the book's lack of heartiness. It felt something like finding a beautiful mirage in the desert only to have sand slip through your fingers when you try to grab hold. Something crucial was missing.

Getting more specific, I would have loved more world-building. I had SO many questions throughout reading and, while some of them were answered to a surface-level extent, I still found myself wondering about so much. In my opinion, the book could have been double the page count and I wouldn't have minded one bit, as long as we got more to dig into, something to anchor ourselves to as readers.

In addition to my longing for stronger world-building, I also found myself wishing that the characters felt more three-dimensional. I think characters that readers can really connect to are an essential piece of telling this story. For me, though I liked many of these characters, I didn’t feel connected in any way to any of them.

Despite what I felt was missing, All The Beastly Things was a deliciously weird and haunting read that I will be turning over in my brain for the foreseeable future.

A huge thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for access to this title. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

[rebeccareads]

Oh (Wo)man, what a book!

All the Beastly Things tells the story of Igraine, a novice sister of the Order, a post-apocalyptic, matriarchal religion that encourages sublimation of the self in worship of a divine feminine. All Igraine has ever wanted is to ascend to the Lunar Abbey, where the holiest of sisters study and revere the divine on the surface of the moon. She's right on track to do so alongside her best friend and maybe-more, Ophelia, but when Ophelia begins receiving nightly visions of a male Archangel, both of their worlds turn upside down. Ophelia decides not to go to the moon, and Igraine, entirely devastated, turns to her mentor and also maybe-more, Agathe, for comfort. That maybe quickly turns into something real and dangerous, and begins to subsume Igraine's very being.

I was totally engrossed by Igraine's story, and devoured this book in just two sittings. The premise is thrilling on its own, but I loved immersing further via chapter-opening excerpts from various holy texts. I would've liked to know even more about the world, but I really enjoyed its referential nature; all of the works referenced by both the holy texts and the characters add complexity and context. The heavy Christian imagery and theming is vivid and atmospheric, if a bit under-baked, and most of the tense, creepy vibes come from this (there's nothing like Christianity to creep a girl out).

I also ate up the toxic dynamic between Igraine and Agathe. I loved to loathe her, and found it so refreshing and freeing to explore a predatory, exploitative relationship without the lens of heterosexuality/maleness.

I do wish we'd have seen more of the Archangel - the danger of his masculinity is such an interesting idea, and surprisingly not really one the book explores. Despite some throwaway comments about Igraine's own gender, the book ends up being a lot less focused on gender (and whether tendencies to violence and domination are inherent), and much more about being human in general. That's not what I expected based on the blurb, and it's also not what I wanted - the gender stuff is so much more interesting! The ultimate twist also really doesn’t feel like much of a twist for Chekov's gun reasons.

But that I loved the book anyway speaks directly to Eilish Quin's talent. All the Beastly Things is a rich, complex, fascinating triumph, and I'm very excited to read more from Quin.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!

[hime]

hm. i really wanted to like this. it had all the elements to get me excited and ready to read (religious dystopia, doomed yuri), but the way the narrative unfolded ultimately did not work in my favor.

the story starts out strong by presenting an interesting nearish-futuristic world in which men have essentially been eradicated and the women carry on in the name of the divine, and we follow a young woman who’s in love with her best friend and doesn’t know how to grapple with that feeling in the context of her religion and the role she wants to pursue in her society. this sounds pretty awesome, right?

enter: the weird, abusive grooming teacher. i’m all for exploring a toxic teacher-student relationship, but i see no reason to include romantic feelings and physical attraction in the picture. the protagonist is seventeen and the teacher is some unspecified adult in at least her early thirties? the direction the narrative took, focusing on the protagonist’s obsession with her teacher instead of her relationship with her lifelong best friend, lost my interest as it developed, and by the end i was just trying to finish the book.

it is evident that the teacher-student situation is unhealthy, and thus the author is not romanticizing it, but the way it took the forefront of the story didn’t suit my tastes. everything that got me invested in the book took a backseat once the relationship began. while i have no major critiques of the writing itself, the story it delivered and i simply aren’t compatible. if you like doomed toxic religiously traumatized lesbians and controversial age gap relationships, however, then boy do i have the book for you!

[Eric Lustbader]

This magnificent novel revolves around what must be the strangest love story ever told. In this future, a number of enclaves of Fields have been saved from nuclear Armageddon that has raveged Earth. These enclaves are the property of cadres of religious Sisters. There are no males allowed in the enclaves; in fact, there may be no more males left alive in Europa, the only viable continent left after the Fallout. In gripping stained-glass prose Quin describes the claustrophobic atmosphere of the cloister, the horrifying self-denial of this unnamed all-female religion, and the sado-masochistic nature of the central triangular relationship between three Sisters, one of whom can only find solace from constant heartbreak with a female coydog (wild co-mixture of coyotes and wild dogs, who seem like the only animals to survive the Fallout) and her littler. Despite (or perhap because of) the claustrophobic nature of the cloister the intensity of intimate emotions Quin lays out for us are exquisitely moving. In her genius, she also manages to include scenes both chaste and deeply erotic. This is a novel of big ideas, bigger questions, and prescient, thoughtful conclusions. The finale of the novel is both heart-rending and exalting. Quite a feat of legerdemain.

[Catherine]

All the Beastly Things has a genuinely creative premise and an engaging mystery. The world-building is imaginative, and I appreciated how the author slowly revealed information about the setting and its history. The mystery element was particularly effective and gave me a reason to stay invested in the story.

That said, this book ultimately wasn't a great fit for my personal tastes. There were a few content choices that pulled me out of the narrative. One scene involving self-harm felt unnecessarily graphic to me and didn't seem to add much to the overall plot. In addition, a teacher-student sexual relationship played a role in the story, and I found that aspect uncomfortable and difficult to overlook.

Overall, I can appreciate the creativity, atmosphere, and mystery that the author created, and I think readers who enjoy speculative fiction with strong religious themes may have a very different experience than I did. While there were elements I admired, the content and themes simply didn't align with my preferences, making this a mixed reading experience.

[Reli]

This story is set in a dystopian-esque world. Men have been eradicated and only women remain. Our main character, Igraine, is a devout student studying to apply to be sent to the moon.

She lives under a strict, religious, matriarchy that follows a strict codex. Her best friend Ophelia is one outlier and pulls at her thoughts often.

Ophelia will start having visions of a male archangel and this will cause the pair to drift away from eachother. In the midst of this is the alluring sister nicknamed the Leopard. A hypnotic, dangerous, and obsessive relationship starts.

The longer Igraine is under the Leopards influence, the more things start to stop adding up.

This story was very good and was able to read in a day. This very much read as a fever dream and the twist at the end was very good. Once it is revealed, you think back and realize the author had been dropping hints. This will definitely be one that I read again to find what I may have missed during the first read.

Overall, I recommend and really enjoyed.

[Lesley Thomas]

My word, I have to read this one!: “In a post-apocalyptic matriarchy that has erased men, capitalism, and hierarchy, a devout novitiate destined for a sacred lunar abbey faces a crisis of faith when her best friend begins receiving visions of a forbidden masculine archangel—forcing her to choose between spiritual purity and human desire. The year is 2171, and the Earth is not what it once was. The natural world once again reigns supreme, wild and ungovernable, after a series of wasting plagues and unmitigated climate disasters, the twin coups of fascism and AI, and a final, catastrophic nuclear fallout. Small monastic communities have emerged from the carnage—self-sufficient, female-only religious utopias governed by a strict codex and surrounded by walls to keep the wilds at bay. The new world is harmonious, and blissfully free from structures of oppression such as hierarchy, capitalism, and time.

[Amanda]

TL;DR - post-apocalyptic space nuns who are sometimes gay live in an all-female “utopia” but something isn’t quite right

Hi, I have no idea if I liked this book? I’m at a loss here.

Things that I liked:
See above - post-apocalyptic space nuns who are sometimes gay
The Codex excerpts. Give me the whole Codex immediately.
Noticing that dangerous coydogs are friend-shaped
The general vibe
My own confusion

Things I did not like very much:
Unhealthy relationship dynamics and the focus on it
The “twist” reveal - I found myself being a bit like “yes, I get it, I am not dumb.”
We renamed Earth after another planet’s moon but Los Angeles is still Los Angeles
The ending
My own confusion

I can’t say for sure that I liked it, but I DO know I didn’t hate it and I had fun reading it 🤷‍♀️

3/5 stars - would recommend with an asterisk and corresponding fine print

[Michelle Wood]

Thank you to Netgalley for the Advanced Reader Copy

Imagine a world where all men are gone. All capitalism is gone. Everything is run by this religious matriarchy in a post-apocalyptic world.

The writing is beautiful. And it is unsettling. And it is Terrifying. Mostly because I can see how this would happen.

It did remind me of something a friend and I like to talk about. Some books aren't meant to be enjoyed so much as they are meant to be experienced. I can't say I really enjoyed this book because I don't enjoy feeling sad when I finish a book. However, it left an impression, and I will be thinking about it for days.

[Honey]

I found myself thinking about this book when I wasn’t reading, and there were a few moments where I had to put it down and just say, “Wow.” The way the author brought certain things to light was incredibly well done.

I really appreciated the religious themes and how realistically they were portrayed, especially the way religion can be used to influence and control people. It was a little uncomfortable at times because of how believable it felt. The darker elements were well placed and felt necessary to the story.

I loved watching Igraine grow throughout the book, and the ending was both surprising and satisfying. Definitely a five-star read and one I would recommend.

[Morgan K]

All the Beastly Things has all the parts and characters for a thrilling mystery. The world-building is engaging and I enjoyed the Catholic imagery.

The intrapersonal relationships between the characters and how the characters explore their world and push through the borders is well written and interesting.

However, the plot is very slow to build and I found it a little difficult to stayed hooked. I do think a lot of readers who enjoy a post apocalyptic slow burn thriller will enjoy this book, it just wasn’t necessarily for me.

3.5/5 stars

Thank you so much to NetGalley for the ARC.

[Jessalyn]

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This is 100% a book that isn't necessarily made to be enjoyed, but to be read and understood and experienced. There were parts of the story that pushed the reader to sit in discomfort, which makes certain sections difficult to parse. It was a good book, with a very interesting story, and I'll definitely be thinking about it for a while.

[abigail parker]

“My heart falls into my stomach and then just keeps descending, through the floor, down to the basement, the Catacombs, the earth itself. The demons will find it in Hell.”
LOVED this dystopian/ horror/ romance. (Literally checks all of my boxes). So incredibly well written and immersive. Beautiful and tragic. It will devour you. I sooo hope this gets a movie adaptation.

[sydney ☆]

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for providing an E-Arc of this upcoming release!

A gut-wrenching examination of the self through the lens of a post-apocalyptic cult of misandrist nuns. I don't want to say more for fear of ruining this experience for anyone else, but I loved every minute of it.

[Nancy]

Full of emotion, hopelessness, and despair, though written well, clearly plotted, with distinctive characters, and an imaginative setting, I was so glad to push through the text and be done. It felt abusive to my soul, with young people emotionally abused by a female hierarchy. There were moments of kindness. This is just my reaction. This might be more enjoyable used in a book club.