Severance: A Novel

Written by Ling Ma

Narrated by Nancy Wu

"Narrator Nancy Wu delivers an outstanding performance of this cheeky satirical novel...Listeners will be entertained by the world building; cast of amusing, eccentric characters; and bizarre charm of the aloof heroine." — AudioFile Magazine, Earphones Award Winner

Maybe it’s the end of the world, but not for Candace Chen, a millennial, first-generation American and office drone meandering her way into adulthood in Ling Ma’s offbeat, wryly funny, apocalyptic satire, Severance.

Candace Chen, a millennial drone self-sequestered in a Manhattan office tower, is devoted to routine. With the recent passing of her Chinese immigrant parents, she’s had her fill of uncertainty. She’s content just to carry on: She goes to work, troubleshoots the teen-targeted Gemstone Bible, watches movies in a Greenpoint basement with her boyfriend.

So Candace barely notices when a plague of biblical proportions sweeps New York. Then Shen Fever spreads. Families flee. Companies cease operations. The subways screech to a halt. Her bosses enlist her as part of a dwindling skeleton crew with a big end-date payoff. Soon entirely alone, still unfevered, she photographs the eerie, abandoned city as the anonymous blogger NY Ghost.

Candace won’t be able to make it on her own forever, though. Enter a group of survivors, led by the power-hungry IT tech Bob. They’re traveling to a place called the Facility, where, Bob promises, they will have everything they need to start society anew. But Candace is carrying a secret she knows Bob will exploit. Should she escape from her rescuers?

A send-up and takedown of the rituals, routines, and missed opportunities of contemporary life, Ling Ma’s Severance is a moving family story, a quirky coming-of-adulthood tale, and a hilarious, deadpan satire. Most important, it’s a heartfelt tribute to the connections that drive us to do more than survive.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Macmillan Audio
• Release date: Aug 14, 2018
• ISBN: 9781427298614

Ling Ma

Ling Ma is a writer hailing from Fujian, Utah, and Kansas. She is the author of the novel Severance, which received the Kirkus Prize, a Whiting Award, the VCU Cabell First Novelist Award, and the New York Public Library Young Lions Fiction Award. She lives in Chicago with her family.

Reviews for Severance

[d-fbuser-79911981 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Less of a post-apocalyptic read but more of a commentary on life under capitalism, the monotony of life as a twenty-something riding the tide, as well as the woes and pros of immigrating to America.

[A Journey to Books · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

loved the audio voice. the book itself felt lacking but a fast read.

[lizbet alviar · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Hmm it’s slow at first then it progresses, it’s not bad but not great. I think there are some really beautiful moments and some that are eerie about the fevered. Interesting!

[Zach & Beth Lancaster · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I loved this! The narrator does a great job, and the book & writing style is very engaging. An easy and interesting listen

[Markéta · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

In all honesty, this book didn't give me anything. I didn't connect with the characters, haven't felt invested in the story at all, and I'm not really sure what the general theme was even supposed to be. Perhaps searching for one's identity in a world where none of the expectations (your parents', your friends', your own ...) have any weight anymore? I don't know it was just a huge miss for me.
But it wasn't irritable and I did finish it, so one star would perhaps be too harsh.

[Amanda · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

An unique take on “zombie” narrative, the description of the fevered is chilling.

[Rebecca Emmons · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Great book! The book captures the slog of everyday life, the lack of purpose and the pain of loneliness so well. However, this is a book about surviving and moving forward. I really loved this book.

[Aerin Miller · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I enjoyed this book. I do wish it ended at a further point but I understand the choice.

[Suz Lee · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Very good! As a Millennial living in NYC and working in the gig economy, the storyline is oddly familiar and incredibly relevant to living in the US epicenter of COVID-19. As a fourth generation Asian-American, I don’t have much context of what assimilation is like in the States as an immigrant, but Ling Ma paints a strong picture of what life is like for a young women’s parents to move to Salt Lake City from Fujian in the late 80s and how that shapes her. The underlying zombie apocalyptic subplot falls a little flat for the sci-fi genre, but if you’re looking for a satire on the modern day workplace and how doomsday-like a pandemic can alter a city and it’s inhabitants, this is the perfect read for Asian Pacific American Heritage Month!

[Rian K · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

It’s just not that dramatic enough. I wanted more plague but I got a heaping dose of melancholy. (Which is even funnier since I’m reading this while COVID is going on ?)

[Kathryn Pratt · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

The book was a bit too psychological for my preference.

[Valerie · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Can’t think of a book that summed up how I feel about doing zoom classes or anything else in late stage capitalism.

[brad lukes · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A different take on the descent and journey though an all too imaginable dystopian world. Filled with real loneliness and alienation, but still a satisfying read.

[Bruce Lashley · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Good story. Hate books that end on a cliff hanger. This is literature not television

[Agnese Daniel · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Great novel - well written, thought provoking and an easy read.

[Jennifer Bristow · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

It was really eerie listening to this in the first part of 2021, but it was well told and I enjoyed the narration. It had Station 11 vibes which I also liked (and read in 2020)

[Ventura Dennis · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I enjoyed the slow burn reflection on memory but the apoclyptic aspects of this book was more background then central to the story.

[Jessica · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

What a great story! I really enjoyed this unique story. I’ve never read anything like this. Loved it!

[Christine Stromsem Hosch · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

While this was an original take on the post-apocalyptic genre, it was just ok. It was very slow moving and ended so abruptly that I thought the recording must have cut off prematurely, until I got the message confirming it was the end and hoping I’d enjoyed it.

[ericcrouch · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

Ends abruptly without resolution.
Was the author rushing to meet the publishers deadline?

[Ronnica Selene Gordon · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

If you liked Station 11, Sea of Tranquility or I am Legend, you will like this one!

[Sheena Gurbakhash · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

it would appear that even the apocalypse is not without power dynamics. Candace Chen, orphan moves to New York to find her future after her mother dies. She harbours hopes of being a photographer but knows she doesn't quite have the talent for it. She settles into a job as a production assistant and is assigned to produce bibles. Her job takes her back to China to an exploration of her migrant parents, then comes the Fever. Candace stays loyally at her post while the city crumbles around her. You can only live on vending machine snacks for so long so Candace ends up with a rag tag band of survivors led by the increasingly power hungry Bob. Will Candace be able to free herself. The answer lies in her coming to terms with herself, her mother and her relationships. The result is funny, sad, tragic, and hopeful all at the same time. Loved the narration in the dead pan tone. Would listen to it all ovet again just to rediscover the details.

[Cheryl Clough · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I enjoyed the narrator of this book. I thought she handled the various voices very adeptly. The novel was interesting. I did wonder why she kept going back to her previous life , but found I was very intrigued by it and felt it added dimension and emotion to the novel. I also felt that it was a natural reaction to what was happening around the protagonist. It was scarily believable.

[tom sklar-blake · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

The last couple chapters are missing from this audiobook! Arghhhh!!!

[marian · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

It was a pointless read, nothing to be enjoyed, no one to like or hate.

[Guacal92 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

In this case, I am glad that reality has not surpassed fiction. It details the emergence of a deadly fungus in China that ultimately leads to the collapse of civilization; the similarity to what is happening with Covid-19 made me want to read it. In my opinion, there are chapters that add little or nothing to the plot. I don't know if Ling Ma did it ironically, but the fact of naming brands also didn't sit well with me. The protagonist seemed to me to be lacking in empathy. (Translated from Spanish)