Hot Girl Scribe

Ling Ma’s post-apocalyptic novel Severance is an eerie yet endearing journey into the nature of humanity after the modern world has crumbled. This novel is what I would consider to be a “soft apocalypse” story.

The story explores common features of the post-apocalyptic worlds often included in the genre but with much less violence and horror contained in the plot. Don’t get me wrong, certain aspects of the novel are terrifying at times, but the terror stems from the eeriness of the post-apocalyptic world, not from any immediate sense of danger.

While the plot of this novel is interesting and engaging, the story is much more character-driven and introspective. I refer to this book as having “soft-girl post-apocalyptic” vibes because even in the face of danger and instability in a collapsed society, the main character is sentimental and reflective.

She reminisces on her past life and navigates through the new world with nostalgia and sentimentality. Candace’s response to her situation illustrates a softness not often captured in the post-apocalyptic genre. Her simultaneous tenderness and strength as she survives her new normal makes her character dynamic and interesting. 

Summary of Severance by Ling Ma

Severance by Ling Ma follows a young working professional, Candace, who works in the publishing industry at a job she is less than thrilled about. The monotony of her somewhat uneventful life is interrupted by an outbreak that quickly takes over the globe.

The novel follows Candace as she navigates through a strange new world in which society as she knows it has collapsed. Throughout her journey she reflects on her past life and reminisces about people she’s known and loved. The story takes a turn when she’s intercepted and quasi-adopted by a strange cult-like group of people.

The story is filled with twists and turns as Candace encounters unfamiliar challenges and fends for herself amid societal collapse. The novel is an excellent critique of the mundane and makes strong statements against capitalism and its treatment of workers.

A Post-Apocalyptic Novel Before Its Time (By a Couple of Years)

I was absolutely shocked to learn that this book was published in 2018. Reading through it the first time, it felt like a fictional reflection of the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic. Certain aspects of the novel were so on point with people’s initial reactions to the pandemic in 2020 I thought it was undoubtedly written in response to our recent history.

That wasn’t the case. Ling Ma somehow managed to accurately predict the human psychological response to a modern pandemic before it even happened. While our pandemic didn’t result in complete societal collapse (though at times it felt like that was a very real possibility), this story perfectly exemplified our resistance to accepting the severity of the crisis.

Severance perfectly illustrates our capitalistic mentality of keeping business as usual even when it is practically and ethically inappropriate. For that reason alone, this novel is an interesting exploration of the psychological and philosophical aspects of a pandemic.

A Unique Take on the Apocalypse

What really separated this novel from other post-apocalyptic novels was its treatment of those who were infected. The treatment of those infected in other post apocalyptic stories is typically displayed in violent characterizations of those who have fallen ill, usually in the form of dangerous zombies.

Ling Ma’s approach in this novel in making the “fevered” somewhat peaceful and unproblematic was a powerful literary move on her part. Taking away the sense of immediate threat from the nature of the “zombies” leaves so much room for ethical and philosophical dilemmas around the treatment of the infected.

This feature of the novel really sets it apart from similar stories in the post-apocalyptic genre.

About the Author

Ling Ma is a Chinese American novelist based out of Chicago. She earned an MFA from Cornell and has been featured in many publications, including Ninth Letter, Playboy, and Granta. Severance was her debut novel, earning her a Kirkus Prize in 2018.

For more post-apocalyptic recommendations, check out my Top 5 Dystopian Fiction Novels of All Time. Have you read Severance by Ling Ma? Let me know what you think of the novel in the comments. Any recommendations for post-apocalyptic novels? Please share them in the comments below!