You Weren't Meant to Be Human

When festering alien hives offer struggling Appalachian communities a twisted kind of salvation, Crane finally finds a place where he can be himself—and even falls for Levi, a brutally protective ex-Marine who sees him as a real man. But when the hive demands an impossible price for the new life Crane's been given, his desperation to refuse sets off a devastating chain of events that will shatter everything and everyone around him. This is visceral, deeply personal horror that weaves themes of identity and survival into a chilling exploration of what we'll sacrifice and what we won't, no matter how much we owe. It's a haunting debut that lingers long after the final page.