Madisoncanread | American Rapture

American Rapture

CJ Leede

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The instant USA Today bestseller from CJ Leede, author of Maeve Fly—a scorching and sweeping new novel about the end of the world as we know it. One of Esquire and Vulture's Best Horror Books of 2024 • A GoodReads and Publishers Weekly Editors' Pick • An Indie Next Pick!

“A blistering, feverish ride through a uniquely American apocalypse."—Chuck Wendig, New York Times bestselling author

A virus is spreading across America, transforming the infected and making them feral with lust.

Sophie, a good Catholic girl, must traverse the hellscape of the midwest to try to find her family while the world around her burns. Along the way she discovers there are far worse fates than dying a virgin…

The end times are coming.

Also by CJ Leede: Maeve Fly

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Posts about this title from Madisoncanread

Madisoncanread\ \ Madison\ \ • Aug 17 2025

Poll:\ \ What are we reading next?\ \ This week we will be going over our next book club pick on Discord talk chat! To those who haven't joined, it feels like a Facetime with friends! One of my favorite parts of the week and I hope to see you all there! We'll go over the schedule for whichever book we select and then we'll chat and do some reading sprints! \ \ If you're unable to access or chat in the discord, please let me know! \ \ CLICK HERE FOR LIVE!

Book Club Live! Friday 8:45 PM CST! (Vote on what we're reading next!)

4 books

Posts about this book from across Bindery

Two Stories Bookshop\ \ Queer-Owned Shelves🌈\ \ • Jun 9

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[Hello, all! Happy New Release Tuesday! There are a few great releases today, so let's jump in!\ \

Headlights by CJ Leede (Ryn's top read of the year so far!)\ \
It Came From Neverland by Cynthia Pelayo (******)\ \
Obstetrix by Naomi Kritzer\ \
The Other by Annie Neugebauer\ \
The Unmagical Life of Briar Jones by Lex Croucher\ \ \ If you're in the Chicago area, Cynthia Pelayo will be in conversation tonight with Christina Henry about their two Peter Pan-inspired books at Bucket 'o' Blood at 6:30pm!\ \ Recent reads include:\ \
It Came From Neverland by Cynthia Pelayo\ \
Lucky Day by Chuck Tingle\ \
He Will Have the World by David-Jack Fletcher\ \
Our Cut of Salt by Deena Helm\ \
American Rapture by CJ Leede\ \
Phoning Faust by Sophia Mutiara Nova\ \ \ I would recommend them all! My favorite recent read is a tie between It Came From Neverland and Our Cut of Salt, but I think they were all solid reads! Have you read any of the books mentioned above? If you want to pick them up, please use our Bookshop.org link!\ \ Till next time!\ \ -Ryn](https://twostoriesbookshop.binderybooks.com/item/ztjVvp48fCyFtFiswqYt/)

June 9 Releases

10 books

Ronnica Reads\ \ Ronnica Fatt\ \ • Jun 8

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I had a staycation last week, so it feels like we JUST had a Tuesday new release...but here we are again! \ \ Here are the new releases on my radar:\ \ Headlights by CJ Leede\ \ Why it interests me: after Maeve Fly and American Rapture, I am absolutely interested in whatever CJ puts out, and preordered this without knowing anything but the title.\ \ Pool House by Mary HK Choi\ \ Why it interests me: a messy mother and daughter dealing with grief. I still have Yolk on my immediate TBR, but I have high hopes for both.\ \ Obstetrix by Naomi Kritzer\ \ Why it interests me: reproductive justice speculative fiction.\ \ Strangers Behind Closed Doors by Catherine Adel West\ \ Why it interests me: a mystery set in a high-end hotel.\ \ I'll Take the Fire by Leila Slimani\ \ Why it interests me: autobiographical novel featuring a queer Moroccan coming of age. I actually sat down to read it when I realized it was a 3rd book in a series...I will be getting to it though.\ \ The Unmagical Life of Briar Jones by Lex Croucher\ \ Why it interests me: romantasy with dark academia vibes.

June 9th New Releases by Marginalized Authors

8 books

Ronnica Reads\ \ Ronnica Fatt\ \ • Mar 23

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There's been some heavy news coming out of the fundamental Christian world this week. When these stories come to light, it can trigger a lot of emotions in those of us who have left high-control religion.\ \ One thing that has helped me deconstuct from evangelicalism is (surprise, surprise) reading. Here are a few books that have helped me. First the non-fiction:\ \ Jesus and John Wayne by Kristin Kobes Du Mez\ \ I read this when I was still in the evangelical church. It helped me to start to identify the way patriarchal values have influenced what I was taught to believe about Jesus.\ \ A Well-Trained Wife: My Escape from Christian Patriarchy by Tia Levings\ \ In the church, this would be called a "powerful testimony" that highlights the harm fostered in such spaces.\ \ Awake by Jen Hatmaker\ \ Jen was too liberal for me when I was in the church, but reading her story of deconstructing was healing for me.\ \ Wild Faith: How the Christian Right is Taking Over America by Tal Lavin\ \ There have been a number of recent books on the Christian Right, but this one helped me process through it as a political movement.\ \ And now some fiction books that provided healing:\ \ Gay the Pray Away by Natalie Naudus\ \ Our protagonist is a teen growing up in a controlling religious family, coming to terms with her own sexuality. \ \ American Rapture by CJ Leede\ \ Our protagonist was raised in a controlling religious family, but now has to make it on her own in apocalyptic times.\ \ Camp Damascus by Chuck Tingle\ \ At a conversion therapy camp, whose side are the demons on?\ \ Join for free or login

Book Recommendations for the Exvangelical

7 books

ash.reads.horror\ \ ash\ \ • Nov 5 2025

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\ \ Hi all and welcome to my review of One Bad Night published by Aardvark Bookclub. \ \ In case you're unfamiliar with Aardvark Bookclub, they are a monthly subscription box similar to Book of The Month. Not only do they have fantastic book selections each month (including horror books), but they also do a fantastic job with their social media. I love trying to decode the hints they drop each month of what their books will be. Last month they dropped their first ever short story collection. A horror themed anthology featuring some fantastic names in horror fiction. All the authors previously had a book featured in the Subscription Box.\ \ I LOVED this anthology. There was not a single bad story featured.\ \ Below, I plan to break down each story and give my thoughts. I'll do my best to keep this spoil free!\ \ Two Observers of The Slaughter Rights On Gannet Island by Kay Chronister\ \ \ \ To kick off the collection we follow an anthropologist and his wife as they look for a new and groundbreaking discovery for a book. They catch wind of an island where once a year a mysterious ritual is preformed. The couple is allowed to stay and view the ritual as long as they don't interfere.\ \ Kay Chronister is the author of The Bog Wife and Desert Creatures. Chronister's short story featured was a great way to open! I found myself enthralled by this mysterious, isolated community and the strange ritual they do. For animal lovers be warned there is cattle sacrifice in this one. I think this story is perfect for fans of Midsommar.\ \ My Lithopedia by Del Sandeen\ \ \ \ This one helped me learn a new word! In My Lithopedia, a woman learns that she had an unborn twin sister that was extracted as a stone baby during her mother's autopsy. The woman decides to take the stone baby home and things quickly go awry from there.\ \ Del Sandeen is the author of This Cursed House. This one gave me chills. Can you imagine carrying a calcified fetus in your body for decades? And the medical gaslighting in this one is the most horrifying thing of all. Why are pains often dismissed and not investigated? Anyway, this story was wild. I loved the slow descent into madness the story told. I love a good unreliable narrator!\ \ Lady Jawbone by Kylie Lee Baker\ \ \ \ Imagine a world so dark that the only light you see could also be your demise. This is the world Baker has built in Lady Jawbone. It follows Lilou who works in a hellish phosphorus match factory. The only light comes from dim candles and the scalding oven. One day a strange, new worker appears promising an escape to a world full of light.\ \ Kylie Lee Baker is the author of Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng ( a favorite of mine). Lady Jawbone captures isolation and bleakness perfectly! I loved the shimmer of hope this stranger offered the characters in this dark world.\ \ A Necromancer’s Guide to Reconnecting with Your Ex by Rachel Harrison\ \ \ \ What better way to reconnect with your ex than death? Roxanne is able to see and communicate with the dead. When her ex appears out of the blue after years without talking, they take a little time to reconnect. Especially since he's dead...But when he ask Roxanne to resurrect him, she has to grapple with what it means to truly let go.\ \ Rachel Harrison is the author of several horror books such as Black Sheep and So Thirsty. Harrison does a fantastic job capturing grief and the what ifs. Death hits us hard. We do questionable things out of grief--something Pet Sematary by Stephen King captures so well. While this story isn't the scariest out of the collection, it definitely packs a punch for all the people who think "what if I did this instead of that?"\ \ Red Tide by CJ Leede\ \ \ \ This story will make you think twice about working in an aquarium. A woman running from her past gets a job at an aquarium in a small town. When the red tide rolls in, she learns about the mythic "spectre fish" which is a carnivorous mer-fish. When everything around her starts going wrong, she starts to wonder if this legend has some truth behind it.\ \ CJ Leede is the author of American Rapture and Maeve Fly.This one was creepy! It definitely gave me some Into The Drowning Deep vibes with the killer mer-creatures! Leede does a fantastic job capturing beautiful yet gruesome imagery in her work. \ \ 47 Pineview Way by Jennifer Thorne\ \ \ \ An anxious mother drops her son off at his first ever sleepover party. The next morning when she goes to pick him up, the house is gone. The other parents begin losing their memories of their children, but she holds strong in hopes of find her son.\ \ Jennifer Thorne is the author of Diavola. This story captures the anxieties of parenthood perfectly. Sometimes intrusive thoughts pop into our head. Things like--maybe it would've been easier if they were never born. But if given the opportunity would we actually allow that to happen? Or would we fight for the ones we love?\ \ A Meditation on the Existence of Certain Cutlery (There is No Spoon) by SA Barnes\ \ \ \ Commander Janna Field is on a covert mission to the lunar south pole—or so she thinks. Toggling between two realities, Janna must determine whether she’s trapped on the moon’s surface, struggling to breathe in a damaged space suit, or whether she’s actually the victim of an immersive training simulation gone wrong.\ \ SA Barnes is the author of several space horror novels including Ghost Station and Dead Silence. This one messed with my mind! It was so hard to tell what was actually happening. I love a good psychological horror and this did not disappoint. And the isolation of space made it even more chilling. \ \ One Bad Night by Stephen Graham Jones\ \ \ \ And the last story in this collection is One Bad Night by Stephen Graham Jones. Just a heads up animal lovers, this one does deal with a sick, old Corgi! Steck, an aging, lonely man becomes fixated on a sinister green parrot after it predicts the death of his beloved dog. Torn between his dying father and dog, Steck is confronted with an impossible choice.\ \ Stephen Graham Jones is the author of over 35 novels/novellas. This one was just sad for me. The difficulty of losing both a father and a beloved family pet at the same time is something no one should ever have to face--but we do anyway. I think the true horror of this one is how closely it resembles the horrors of real life.\ \ Thanks for reading this review! If you've read this collection let me know your thoughts down below!\ \ Join for free or login](https://ashreadshorror.binderybooks.com/item/ka6RzE5eAypN2R7EL2A1/)

One Bad Night: A Deeper Dive

12 books

Madisoncanread\ \ Madison\ \ • Aug 17 2025

Book Club Live! Friday 8:45 PM CST! (Vote on what we're reading next!)

4 books

Boozhoo Books\ \ Naomi\ \ • Feb 22 2025

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\ \ Upgrade for $5 or login](https://boozhoo.binderybooks.com/item/vOrvnhOnXjnQC7OKNiX1/)

Booktube Intro And Newbie Tag

Welcome to my CHANNEL!

I'm Naomi, an Indigenous Book Content Creator who reads in all genres. I have a publishing imprint with Bindery Books, called Boozhoo Books and we publish exclusively Indigenous books.

You can support by becoming a member of my reader community on Bindery for free: boozhoo.binderybooks.com or you can become a paid member and get early access to my Youtube videos.

All Bindery members (including the free tier) get access to the Youtube bloopers (and there will be many!)

I would love to know what kind of content you would love to see!

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Boozhoo Books\ \ Naomi\ \ • Nov 25 2024

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Notes From The Mixed Up Desk, Monday November 25, 2024

newsletter w/quiet time book club link, readathon info

9 books

Boozhoo Books\ \ Naomi\ \ • Nov 18 2024

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Notes From The Mixed Up Desk, November 18, 2024

Newsletter: Pitchfest for Unagented Authors, what I've been reading,

6 books