Ma makes it work, and unlike her characters, or the circumstances they face, her language remains restrained.
And there are even moments and dialogues that are so absurd as to verge on the hysterical realism. Tense or even brutal scenes are alleviated by Candace’s caustic narration. Ma’s fever works as an allegory, one which reduces humans to the humdrum activities-getting dressed, preparing food-that constitute their lives. In Ma’s novel the fevered repeat “banal activities” on an infinite loop: they will spend the rest of their days performing the same activity (such as washing dishes, opening a door, dressing, trying different clothes). Along the way, they raid the houses of those who are infected, and Candace finds herself becoming increasingly disenchanted towards her so-called leader. In the chapters focusing on ‘after’, once New Yorkers have either fled the city or become infected, Candace joins a group led by the rather bullying Bob, a man who isn’t particularly charming or clever but has somehow successfully convinced others that they will be safe if they follow him to the Facility (a ‘mysterious’ but safe location). Although Candace operates very much on auto-pilot, her listless routine is soon interrupted by the pandemic. Thankfully Ma makes Candace her own unique creation, one who, as the fever starts spreading in America, actually undergoes some character growth (making Severance a coming-of-age of sorts). She’s yet another disaffected, somewhat directionless, twenty-something female protagonist who has become all the rage in contemporary fiction. The chapters set in the past detail Candace’s daily routine, in which we see that other than her half-hearted interest in photography, Candace is resigned to her position as Senior Product Coordinator of Spectra’s Bibles division, and isn’t too disturbed by her role in the exploitation of workers outside of America. Her drone-like work attitude brought to mind novels such Convenience Store Woman and Temporary. Kmart realism meets millennial malaise in Candace Chen’s first-person narration.Ĭandace’s sardonic observations lightened the mood of the story. Through the use of a dual timeline Ling Ma’s novel encompasses many genres: we have chapters set in the past, pre-apocalypse, when the Shen Fever is a mere afterthought in the daily lives of New Yorkers, and the ones post-apocalypse, in which our protagonist joins a cultish group of survivors who seem to be immune to the fever.
Severance is an engrossing and, given the current pandemic, timely read. It is also to take pleasure in those systems because, otherwise, who could repeat the same routines, year in, year out?” “To live in a city is to take part in and to propagate its impossible systems.
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