Holland, author of I Am Not Your Final Girl

'Set in a post-apocalyptic world that at times seems all too near, Wytovich's poems conjure up frighteningly beautiful and uncomfortably prescient imagery.' -Claire C. She reminds us the lucky ones die first, and those who remain must face the horrors of a world painted in blisters and fear.' -Todd Keisling, author of Ugly Little Things and Devil's Creek 'Vivid, each word a weight on your tongue, these poems taste of metal and ash with a hint of spice, smoke. 'Reading this collection is like dancing through Doomsday, intoxicated by the destructive, decadent truth of desire in our very mortality.' -Saba Syed Razvi, author of Heliophobia and In the Crocodile Gardens So tell me: who will you become when it’s over? What’s clear though, is that the world is burning and we don’t remember who we are. These pages hold the teeth of monsters against the faded photographs of family and friends, and here, Wytovich is both plague doctor and midwife, both judge and jury, forever searching through severed limbs and exposed wires as she straddles the line evaluating what’s moral versus what’s necessary to survive. They are tragedy and trauma, but they are also grief and fear, fear of who-or what-lives inside us once everything is taken away. They are every worry you’ve had when your electricity went out, and every pit that grew in your stomach watching the news at night. The poems inside are undelivered letters, tear-soaked whispers, and unanswered prayers. This is a collection that strips away civilization and throws readers into the lives of its survivors. Whether it’s from the nuclear meltdown, the wrath of the Four Horsemen, a war with technology, or a consequence of our relationship with the planet, humanity is left buried and hiding, our bones exposed, our hearts beating somewhere in our freshly slit throats.

Doomsday is here and the earth is suffering with each breath she takes.

Heliophobia by Saba Syed Razvi