The Feeding

By: Anthony Ryan

Narrated by: Devon Sorvari

With echoes of The Road, New York Times bestselling author Anthony Ryan’s The Feeding is a brilliant postapocalyptic novel that is perfect for fans of Justin Cronin, M. R. Carey, and Alexis Henderson.

Fifteen years ago the feeders rose from the shadows to transform the world into a graveyard. The few survivors exist in fortified settlements surrounded by the empty ruins of a destroyed civilization. For years the citizens of New City Redoubt have relied on an elite cadre of Crossers to navigate the feeder-infested wasteland between settlements in order to trade for vital supplies. But the Outside is becoming ever more dangerous, and the ranks of the Crossers grow thinner with every crossing.

Layla, only a child when the Feeding destroyed the old world, spends her days scavenging the ruins for valuable scrap and her nights helping her adoptive family eke a living from the Redoubt’s only movie theater. Now, with her father slowly dying, Layla resolves to join the Crossers to retrieve the medicine that can save him. Smart, ruthless, and fast on her feet, Layla quickly gains the respect of her fellow Crossers. But, in a world lost to the deadliest predators, can even the most cunning prey survive?

©2025 Anthony Ryan Media Ltd. (P)2025 Blackstone Publishing

A good recommendation

I start listening to this book off of recommendation. I heard online about books that came out in 2025 for my taste to start out a little slow, however once the story started moving forward, I became very interested in it. I would recommend this book.

Vampire Apocalypse - Worth a Listen

I don’t normally do horror, but Anthony Ryan’s writing has been solid and his fantasy work is so dark it’s not hard to see him moving over in this direction. That said, it read closer to what I’d expect out of one of Nicholas Sansbury Smith post-apocalyptic world series’ than what I’d expect from mainline horror, much to my delight since I much prefer this kind of world-building.

The plot itself was interesting to listen to as it developed, with a unique twist on vampires (though never called that outright). The narration was good, not great - I found it hard to tell characters apart without the name cues from the text, but she captured the gruff nature of the characters (at least, most of them) well enough. The characters beyond the MC didn’t get a ton of development due to her general disinterest in other people beyond her immediate family, which made me think this could have been more interesting if we had shifted POV’s at least a few times for some unique twists on the events unfolding.

Still worth the time and credit to listen to, even if it’s not Anthony Ryan’s best work. If you like Helldivers or similar titles you’ll probably like this, but don’t expect as much action. The focus is more on the survival element, which Ryan does well. There is some action too - but dialed down to a Sanderson level, with plenty of plot development in-between.

Left wanting more...

Yet another tale by a great writer leaving you looking for the next installment in the series!

Creepy but compelling.

Feeders were creepy and the characters were interesting but Leila lacked substance. She was too hard which left no room to like her very much, which meant I didn’t feel invested in her survival.

Really Interesting Book

I don’t see why this book isn’t rated higher than it is. I know it’s not what Anthony Ryan is known for (epic fantasy), but it’s a really good post-apocalyptic/dystopian action-horror story. The story of the feeders (zombies vampire hybrid like creatures) and how they came about is interesting and while this book was meant to be a standalone, the ending left the story open for more. I truly hope we get to find out where Layla’s journey takes her as she seeks about answers to the feeders. I highly recommend this one.