Flesh and Blood (Before and After Book 2) – Andrew Shanahan – 08.01.25
I was surprised by how much I loved these two post apocalyptic novels! Before and After begins with Ben Stone, a morbidly obese man living alone (with his dog) in an upstairs flat in London. He needs his leg amputated due to diabetes complications, and to get him to hospital involves removing the wall of his apartment and hoisting him out very securely strapped to a stretcher made for this purpose. In the middle of all this, just as he is strapped immobile something happens – first alerts coming into the radios of the people helping him, causing most of them to leave, then the remaining two men becoming enraged like berserkers and basically fighting each other to the death. Ben is trapped, listening to the world fall apart around him with the immediate problem of being strapped up with no food or water and a rotten leg to contend with.
I guess it’s a zombie novel, but so much more – I thought the writing was very engaging and intelligent and I loved the character of Ben and his dog and how they worked through the myriad of problems besetting them.
The second novel introduces a new (or nearly new since she was mentioned in the first book) character that adds interest and cleverness to what was already an interesting and clever set up. I loved the ending – very moving. Most enjoyable couple of books I’ve read in a while – highly recommended if you like this kind of thing!
Sarah Wray Writer 