Leave the World Behind
- Downloads：7832
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-04-17 12:53:39
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Rumaan Alam
- ISBN：0062667637
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary
A magnetic novel about two families， strangers to each other， who are forced together on a long weekend gone terribly wrong
Amanda and Clay head out to a remote corner of Long Island expecting a vacation: a quiet reprieve from life in New York City， quality time with their teenage son and daughter， and a taste of the good life in the luxurious home they’ve rented for the week。 But a late-night knock on the door breaks the spell。 Ruth and G。 H。 are an older black couple—it’s their house， and they’ve arrived in a panic。 They bring the news that a sudden blackout has swept the city。 But in this rural area—with the TV and internet now down， and no cell phone service—it’s hard to know what to believe。
Should Amanda and Clay trust this couple—and vice versa？ What happened back in New York？ Is the vacation home， isolated from civilization， a truly safe place for their families？ And are they safe from one another？
Suspenseful and provocative， Rumaan Alam’s third novel is keenly attuned to the complexities of parenthood， race， and class。 Leave the World Behind explores how our closest bonds are reshaped—and unexpected new ones are forged—in moments of crisis。
Amanda and Clay head out to a remote corner of Long Island expecting a vacation: a quiet reprieve from life in New York City， quality time with their teenage son and daughter， and a taste of the good life in the luxurious home they’ve rented for the week。 But a late-night knock on the door breaks the spell。 Ruth and G。 H。 are an older black couple—it’s their house， and they’ve arrived in a panic。 They bring the news that a sudden blackout has swept the city。 But in this rural area—with the TV and internet now down， and no cell phone service—it’s hard to know what to believe。
Should Amanda and Clay trust this couple—and vice versa？ What happened back in New York？ Is the vacation home， isolated from civilization， a truly safe place for their families？ And are they safe from one another？
Suspenseful and provocative， Rumaan Alam’s third novel is keenly attuned to the complexities of parenthood， race， and class。 Leave the World Behind explores how our closest bonds are reshaped—and unexpected new ones are forged—in moments of crisis。
Reviews
Czarina
，
Magnetic as in both the book and I trying to push our north poles together。 Suspenseful in a way that is never satisfactorily answered。 Provocative as in TMI on the masterbatory practices of the most boring white family ever and hearing way too much about their cum。It got sort of interesting around 60% in， but never went where I wanted it to。 There was the teensiest bit of character development maybe。 Mostly you're reading about casually racist and absolutely helpless white people begrudgingly a Magnetic as in both the book and I trying to push our north poles together。 Suspenseful in a way that is never satisfactorily answered。 Provocative as in TMI on the masterbatory practices of the most boring white family ever and hearing way too much about their cum。It got sort of interesting around 60% in， but never went where I wanted it to。 There was the teensiest bit of character development maybe。 Mostly you're reading about casually racist and absolutely helpless white people begrudgingly accepting shelter and help from a nice Black couple while denying reality the entire time。 。。。more
Kiley Heckman
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The worst book I have read， literally ever。
Kate
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Maybe 2。5
Kelsey
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This book was not at all what I expected from the first few pages; it was a really hard read。 Just so unsettling， but really made me think。 I did not feel particularly invested in any of the characters， though I had to keep reading to find out what happened。
Erin Pieronek
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I couldn’t do it。 I could finish it。 I was so bored and rolled my eyes so many times。 I find gratuitous sex annoying， I feel like it was only there to shock。 The read was laborious but I was so intrigued by the premise so I slogged on but I gave up。
Cait Barton
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23 pages and was already irritated by the OTT prose。 I remembered I read another book by this author— in 2019 maybe？— （That Kind of Mother） that was “meh” for me as well， so I’m going to say this one’s not for me。 At a perpetual 7 books behind my goal for the year， I have exactly zero interest in getting bogged down in flowery， pointless fiction when there are other books to read that I’d enjoy more。 Bummer though， that’s two fiction misses in a row。 Usually I pick better。 Lol
Pricilla Barwick
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Was very slow。 Trys to build up to something only to leave the ending open。 Doesn't tell you what's going on at all。 Was very slow。 Trys to build up to something only to leave the ending open。 Doesn't tell you what's going on at all。 。。。more
Kelsey Kim
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Suspenseful， cozy， and haunting。A white family of 4 leaves their Manhattan apartment to vacation in a secluded home， where they lounge by the pool， grill hamburgers， drink wine， and eat all the cheese and ice cream their hearts desire。 All is well until an older black couple shows up late one night， claiming they are the vacation home’s owners and that they need a place to stay due to a citywide blackout in NYC。 The distrust between the two groups combined with the general anxiety of what is hap Suspenseful， cozy， and haunting。A white family of 4 leaves their Manhattan apartment to vacation in a secluded home， where they lounge by the pool， grill hamburgers， drink wine， and eat all the cheese and ice cream their hearts desire。 All is well until an older black couple shows up late one night， claiming they are the vacation home’s owners and that they need a place to stay due to a citywide blackout in NYC。 The distrust between the two groups combined with the general anxiety of what is happening intensifies as their TVs and cell phones stop working。 Glass-shattering noises and a random flock of flamingos in the pool tarnish any sense of normalcy they were pretending to maintain， and we see how these two groups react to what could be the end of the world。 A thought provoking page-turner I highly recommend！ 。。。more
Iz
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Just ok - the pace was not for me。 I listened to the audiobook and the first half frustrated me a lot。 I think there was one dialogue where the owners knock on the door， there is an almost half-hour long back and forth of "Can I help you，" "Sorry to bother you，" and "We weren't expecting you，" each line repeated several times， over and over， with long prose-y paragraphs in between each line where people think about what the other person really means， and contemplating the meaning of life while t Just ok - the pace was not for me。 I listened to the audiobook and the first half frustrated me a lot。 I think there was one dialogue where the owners knock on the door， there is an almost half-hour long back and forth of "Can I help you，" "Sorry to bother you，" and "We weren't expecting you，" each line repeated several times， over and over， with long prose-y paragraphs in between each line where people think about what the other person really means， and contemplating the meaning of life while the wind blows on their leg hairs。 In the final chapters， the slowness works to amplify the sense of impending doom， but overall it's definitely not my favourite end of the world book。 。。。more
Bexy
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this book was very very very creepy and foreboding and propelled you forward to keep reading to find out what was going to happen。 the answer to that was。。。 not much of anything， really， which was a bit of a let-down。 the characters are quite interesting though， and how they interact with each other。 I'd definitely recommend this book， just don't expect some Big Moment。 this book was very very very creepy and foreboding and propelled you forward to keep reading to find out what was going to happen。 the answer to that was。。。 not much of anything， really， which was a bit of a let-down。 the characters are quite interesting though， and how they interact with each other。 I'd definitely recommend this book， just don't expect some Big Moment。 。。。more
Stacey
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Odd sexual references， underlying theme of racial and socioeconomic tension， and subtle hints to all the horrors happening in the world。 I feel like this one is one of those books you need to read multiple times to find all the hidden messages， but not sure if I could stand to read it again。
Rgrice
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Readable， but lacking a little in narrative and vague on details， which may just be the point。
Eileen Denette
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2。5 stars。 I'm not sure whether I liked this book or not。 It read like a Twilight Zone episode。 2。5 stars。 I'm not sure whether I liked this book or not。 It read like a Twilight Zone episode。 。。。more
Logan Melrose
，
The cover of this book is stunning， and it’s premise seemed promise。 However， I was quickly met by a lot of repetition and an unbelievably unnecessary amount of sex and sexual description。 None of the characters were likeable at all， and not because they were written to be disliked， but because they were simply underdeveloped。 This is a story with very little action and it needed strong characters to drive the reader through， but it lacked that completely。
Lynn
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No DisasterA family with academic jobs and literary background are in an Airbnb in the Hamptons。 They keep seeing disasters sent to them via NYT push notifications。 When a large power outage shuts dow the East Coast， they begin to finally observe the world around them。 Written pre- pandemic， the novel chides Americans who always seem to anticipate the a disaster around the corner。 Ironically， a disaster did happen and the US chose not to respond and as a result the largest number of deaths happe No DisasterA family with academic jobs and literary background are in an Airbnb in the Hamptons。 They keep seeing disasters sent to them via NYT push notifications。 When a large power outage shuts dow the East Coast， they begin to finally observe the world around them。 Written pre- pandemic， the novel chides Americans who always seem to anticipate the a disaster around the corner。 Ironically， a disaster did happen and the US chose not to respond and as a result the largest number of deaths happened in the richest country in the world。 One thing that I found endlessly tiresome in the novel was its delicately designed sentences。 Nothing is natural which is on purpose but it makes for slow read。 Figurative language city。 So loaded and heavy with words。 。。。more
Meonicorn （The Bookish Land）
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2。5/5 I read this book for the BookTube Prize of 2021， Octafinals Fiction group C。 The book started with an ordinary family trip， where a younger middle-class couple drove to a house in the middle of nowhere with their two children and expecting a long-awaited vacation。 But late that night， an elderly black couple show up and said they are the owner of the rental house， and asked to stay because of the blackout in the city。 Things started to get peculiar from there。 With no internet and cellphon 2。5/5 I read this book for the BookTube Prize of 2021， Octafinals Fiction group C。 The book started with an ordinary family trip， where a younger middle-class couple drove to a house in the middle of nowhere with their two children and expecting a long-awaited vacation。 But late that night， an elderly black couple show up and said they are the owner of the rental house， and asked to stay because of the blackout in the city。 Things started to get peculiar from there。 With no internet and cellphone signals， they cannot connect to the outside world and have to solve the strange problems one by one by themselves。 Read the full detailed review of Leave the World Behind on The Bookish LandMore of my reading life: BookTube // Bookstagram // Twitter 。。。more
Jennifer
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Ugh。 This book sucked。 I enjoyed the first third getting to know the characters。 The middle third was slow and kinda boring and the last third was annoying。 It leaves you hanging which I hate。 I still have no clue what happened。 What were the booming noises？ Is it a plague， a war， what？ A lot of explaining what is happening but the characters don’t know。 I really disliked it immensely！！
Carrie
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Leave this book behind。 The author lost me at the pink flamingos！ A waste of time for a book that I really wanted to like。 I did finish it， but only because I was waiting to find out was the @#$% was going on。 True to form， the ending explained nothing。 Save your precious time and read elsewhere my friends！
A Row
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I'm surprised I finished this， it is a lot of character development over a short period of time but the content。。。 Isn't great。 It becomes more dystopian as it goes on and I left with a bad taste in my mouth。 I'm surprised I finished this， it is a lot of character development over a short period of time but the content。。。 Isn't great。 It becomes more dystopian as it goes on and I left with a bad taste in my mouth。 。。。more
Tammy Guinther
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I seriously couldn't stop reading this。 I know some people weren't fans， likely because the ending leaves you hanging a bit， but there was something even about that I really loved。 Suspense， strange human dynamics， quick read。 I seriously couldn't stop reading this。 I know some people weren't fans， likely because the ending leaves you hanging a bit， but there was something even about that I really loved。 Suspense， strange human dynamics， quick read。 。。。more
Annabel Clare
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The control freak in me couldn’t handle not knowing what happened or what was going on and then it just finished？！
Véronique
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This book was terrible， by far the worst book I have ever finished。 I hated it from the first page。 The writing is awful， the perspective changes with each sentence and huge parts are just random streams of consciousness that are simply page fillers and add absolutely nothing to the story。The premise sounded interesting enough， and I was honestly excited to read a thriller。 I usually don't read thrillers and I was ready for an edge-of-my-seat experience。 However， it didn't get further than the s This book was terrible， by far the worst book I have ever finished。 I hated it from the first page。 The writing is awful， the perspective changes with each sentence and huge parts are just random streams of consciousness that are simply page fillers and add absolutely nothing to the story。The premise sounded interesting enough， and I was honestly excited to read a thriller。 I usually don't read thrillers and I was ready for an edge-of-my-seat experience。 However， it didn't get further than the setup of a thriller as there wasn't really any plot at all and in the end， whatever is bothering the main characters doesn't get resolved。I didn't like the writing style at all， there were a lot of descriptions of what rooms looked like and even an entire chapter just listing everything the main character bought in the supermarket， I skimmed this entire book。 I only fully read the last two or so chapters， to find out what it was that was going on， only to find out that there was absolutely nothing。I have no idea what the author tried to do here and what story this is supposed to tell。 The blurb describes that the novel is "keenly attuned to the complexities of parenthood， race and class"， but other than that the MCs are parents and one couple is black， I don't see how these topics play any role in this story。I'm left super disappointed， as this book has been marketed as something it is clearly not and I regret spending money on this book。 I even have the Waterstones exclusive edition， and this only goes to show that looks can be deceiving， because I will forever wonder why this specific collection of letters on paper ever got the attention it got， because it is not worth it IMO。 。。。more
Kalyna Terelya
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Couldn't get over the prose of the writing。 Dialogue made no sense， made it through 30 pages and just couldn't keep going。 So many books on my to read list， don't have patience for unlikable characters and poor writing。 This one wasn't for me。 Couldn't get over the prose of the writing。 Dialogue made no sense， made it through 30 pages and just couldn't keep going。 So many books on my to read list， don't have patience for unlikable characters and poor writing。 This one wasn't for me。 。。。more
Jolene garat
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Good read， entertaining and thought provoking。
Holly B
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Literary suspense with a whisper of horror。A family is vacationing in a exclusive， remote neighborhood tucked away in the woods， when someone knocks on the door in the middle of the night！ They freak out！ What should they do？ What would I do？Inquiring minds want to know， and my curiousity was piqued to the point that I just had to finish and fast。 Only 241 pages， it was a quick read。 There are some vivid descriptions， nakedness， and other bodily happenings that were freakish。 Some downr Literary suspense with a whisper of horror。A family is vacationing in a exclusive， remote neighborhood tucked away in the woods， when someone knocks on the door in the middle of the night！ They freak out！ What should they do？ What would I do？Inquiring minds want to know， and my curiousity was piqued to the point that I just had to finish and fast。 Only 241 pages， it was a quick read。 There are some vivid descriptions， nakedness， and other bodily happenings that were freakish。 Some downright bizarre scenes。 Claustrophobic and wildly unimaginable。Strange things occur 。。。。uninvited guests， unsettling sounds， screaming， the television beeping and hissing， abated wind， animals acting strangely， and a chill in the air "They wanted something to happen， but something was happening。 They did not know it， and it did not involve them， not really。"It does not have a tidy ending，but for me it was brilliant！ After all， every day is a gift and no one really knows what the future will bring。 This was a library loanAn upcoming Netflix movie coming starring Julia Roberts and Denzel Washington。 No idea when， but can't wait！ 。。。more
Marca
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WTH？ Interesting premise that goes nowhere in a firestorm of flowery prose。 When the "big noise" is first heard， there is a chapter that discusses every minutiae around the noise but never actually describes the noise。 I know many readers were very impressed， but I was reminded of the Emperor's new clothes。 The book was a miss for me， although the publication date is interestingly coincidental to the C19 Pandemic。 WTH？ Interesting premise that goes nowhere in a firestorm of flowery prose。 When the "big noise" is first heard， there is a chapter that discusses every minutiae around the noise but never actually describes the noise。 I know many readers were very impressed， but I was reminded of the Emperor's new clothes。 The book was a miss for me， although the publication date is interestingly coincidental to the C19 Pandemic。 。。。more
Mikaela
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Super vague thriller and deeply unsettling， disappointing ending
Nancy
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This is a slow-building tale of an initially unnamed disaster。 A family of four， whom I found not too likeable initially， is heading to a home in the Hamptons which they have rented for a week。 All starts out well， but soon a black couple shows up at their door， claiming to be the owners of the house。 Due to a power outage in the city they have come to shelter in their second home。 Ominous signs begin to occur， but the group has no connection to the outside world by which to understand them。 Lit This is a slow-building tale of an initially unnamed disaster。 A family of four， whom I found not too likeable initially， is heading to a home in the Hamptons which they have rented for a week。 All starts out well， but soon a black couple shows up at their door， claiming to be the owners of the house。 Due to a power outage in the city they have come to shelter in their second home。 Ominous signs begin to occur， but the group has no connection to the outside world by which to understand them。 Little by little the author sprinkles in brief hints regarding what is happening。 Along the way we observe the family dynamics and the subtle ways in which race and class affect their interactions。 。。。more
Tina
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Slow moving， no closureThe premise of this book held such promise for me but it did not deliver。 It was slow， boring， and wordy。 While 2 families come together during what seems like the end of the world， strange things happen。。。。but not crazy， mind blowing things。 Kind of dull， somewhat weird things。 And there is no big finale， no big reveal。 It just ends and I was just as confused as ever。 While the unknown held enough strength to keep me reading by the end I felt cheated。
Elizabeth
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Meh。 I didn’t mind this book， but it was lacking in more ways than one。 I felt like the author was trying to drive a “bigger picture” regarding human behavior， technology， uncertainty， etc。， by leaving the characters shallow and the plot extremely vague。 I finished it just to see if anything would happen。 I was disappointed in the ending。
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Leave the World Behind
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Leave the World Behind&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft