You Weren’t Meant to Be Human

Okay, everyone take a deep breath, because you’re in for a TOUGH ride.

But believe us when we promise you this book is SO worth it. It will make you cry and squirm and rethink the way you relate to your own body and mind, as well as to others in your community. You Weren’t Meant to be Human is a searing, honest depiction of being trans and autistic, but told through a horror lens: Andrew Joseph White isn’t trying to offer his readers any particular virtuosity or salvation for these identities, and the result is some deeply vulnerable and straight-up excellent storytelling.

This novel interrogates what it means to be human (literally), as the Hive, an alien, cult-like mass of festering bugs, lures in its victims with the sweet promise of belonging. It exposes the sticky truth that for some people—the marginalized and misunderstood, including so many trans and disabled folks—the choice to surrender one’s humanity to a sinister alien collective might be a surprisingly easy one. Read on if you’re into any of the following: cult stories, alien invasion, trans + disability rep, and pregnancy horror turned up to the max.

This book deals heavily with pregnancy. Other content warnings include: child death, miscarriage, transphobia, suicidal ideation, self-harm, sexual assault, cannibalism, self-induced abortion, domestic abuse, misgendering, gender dysphoria. Please take care reading.