Those Who Survive is a bit of The Last of US and The Walking Dead, with a bit of Attack on Titan. We follow Ashley, one of the Privileged in this apocalyptic society, who plans to escape the walled city with her friends, entering infected territory. They all have their reasons for wanting to leave the safety of the city but Ashley can’t forgive SPORE, the military that defends what’s left of humanity, for the death of her father. Unfortunately things go sideways after their group encounters infected after leaving the safety of the city. Ashley is saved by SPORE, but is forced to join their ranks and enter cadet training. 

I flew through this book, the characters were lovable and complex and the mystery of the Exiled had me hooked. I felt that this novel avoids a lot of common YA tropes, such as a main character who is inexplicably good at everything and can do no wrong. I was invested in Ashley’s growth as she struggles with training and who she can trust in an environment of intrigue and difficult choices.

The setting of a military training academy was also a nice touch. It avoids the pitfalls of survivors on the run giving focus to the mysteries that will be explored. It was interesting to see the military training side of a zombie apocalypse story and the politics of surviving, the organization of the society, and the different types of zombies. I hope the author will revisit this world again. While story is wrapped up nicely, there is potential to follow-up on events that happened in the climax and conclusion.

Thank you very much to NetGalley and the publisher. I received an advance review copy, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.