William hussey has written an important book a dystopian novel dealing with lgbtq romance that is outlawed in the country - such an important book for our times

For some reason I was never able to get this book on my kindle, so unfortunately I wasn't able to read it at the time.
Now I finally managed to get to it, and I enjoyed it a lot, and it's a book I'll probably end up rereading again at some point.

I was excited for The Outrage, but after getting into the book, I started to feel uncomfortable. which I wasn't expecting and I wasn't entirely fond of the writing or how the story expanded. I think the main character wasn't as fleshed out & I can see where Hussey was trying to go with the whole queer dystopian idea, but I don't think it worked out well in the end.

A chilling novel set in a Third Reich-esque future dystopia in which LGBTQ+ people (or ‘degenerates’) are sent to re-purification camps. Gabe is gay, and is secure in his sexuality but constantly aware that he needs to hide who he is. This means that falling in love with Eric, the son of the chief inspector of Degenerate Investigations, may not be the best idea... Where will Eric’s loyalties ultimately lie?

Just occasionally it tips a little into didacticism, but it is a very important and timely topic. Although it obviously deals with some very hard-hitting issues, it isn’t the standard gay ‘problem novel’ – for a start, it isn’t about coming out: Gabe is very certain about who he is and even has some previous sexual experiences. It’s also refreshing to see queer people in a dystopian novel – even though you might think it was an obvious link, dystopian YA is actually very heterosexual. There is also a trans character, and her depiction seems to be handled quite well (Jay Hulme was the sensitivity reader).

The Outrage reminds us that we can never take our rights for granted, but ultimately it ends on a hopeful note.

While I can appreciate how important the central message of this book is, it just fell completely flat for me. I found myself unable to connect with Gabriel or Eric and therefore didn’t feel able to invest in their relationship as well. I found the binary distinction between gay and straight a bit disconcerting as well, considering how they’ve immersed themselves in queer media and education.

Thank you so much, NetGalley and Usborne Publishing, for the chance to read and review this book!

TW; homophobia, self-harm, violence, reference to suicide.

In England exist the Protectorate that enforces the Public Good. There are rules for everything, what to eat, what to do or wear, what to read and say and you are safe...as long as you follow the rules. But Gabriel was born as a rule-breaker, because he's gay. He must keep his sexuality a secret, to protect himself, the people he loves and, above all, Eric, his boyfriend...and son of the Inspector at Degenerate Investigation, whose life and work threaten Gabriel's life.

The outrage is a brilliant, moving and captivating book. Set in a dystopic and scary world, where everything and everyone are controlled and have to obey rules, Gabriel and Eric fall in love, risking their lives. The story is amazing and made my heart race in many parts. The characters are wonderfully complex and intricated, in their fears, desires and dreams and I loved everything about this book. The author did an oustanding job and I was hooked since reading the first line!

An LGBTQIA dystopia. This reminded me of VOX and the Handmaid’s Tale. Set in an extreme right wing England, it is a crime to be gay. This is a nightmare not to be taken lightly...grab a box of tissues. I would definitely recommend this to students 14+.

Wow, wow, wow!
I didn't realise until I finished reading this book what a huge gap there was in the reading world before this book was published!
I was completely gripped from the first page, and I didn't want to know how it would end! I would adore to see this book become the first in a series, I'd love to see the story continued - however, saying that, I did really enjoy the ending it got.
The main characters were gay, lesbian, transgender and straight too. All loveable characters, all with stories to tell and issues they don't pretend to hide or shy away from. This representation was spot on - it made the characters very relatable, which therefore made me more emotional throughout.
The story of this book is incredibly important, and a significant story to tell. I absolutely love that it was told in a dystopian setting, but felt very real and on occasions it has been, and in some countries - still is.
I loved that it was told over two timelines; the current timeline and the previous from a few months before. It really brought the story together and gives us a lot of background knowledge in order to help us understand how current relationships and friendships have come to be.
I will say - this was not an easy read. It was heart-wrenching, very deep, dark and does include a lot of hate - but this is clarified at the beginning of the book by the author.
This book exceeded my expectations, William Hussey is a huge talent - I am so impressed and it is clear Hussey put an enormous amount of time, effort and feeling into this book. Truly fantastic, but heart-breaking - it makes you think and it makes you want to fight. I bought the book immediately after I finished this ARC.

This book sits up there with the great LGBTQ fiction that we have been lucky enough to be able to read over the last few years. The Outrage wears many hats, a gripping dystopian novel, a tender love story, a story about the power of friendship, but more importantly is its message that we can never be complacent. We can never just sit back when we still live in a world where in some countries around the world homosexuality is still punishable by death and the rise of the religious right in Poland has some towns there declaring themselves LGBTQ free zones.

The book is a definite page turner. Hussey expertly builds his dystopian vision of a United Kingdom where freedoms and homosexuality are outlawed, food is scarce, books and entertainment are banned and any citizens who do not conform to the Protectorate’s rules suffer the consequences. It is a frightening vision and one we should be fearful of.

The relationships that Hussey creates in this book are what make it special; the central love story between Gabe and Eric is tender and believable, Gabe’s relationship with his father will warm your heart and his relationship with his mother and the sacrifices she makes will break it. The group of friends, the rebels who revolt against the order of so-called normality will have you wishing to be a part of their gang. There is so much to like in this book, and I have not even mentioned Albert’s story – no spoilers. I absolutely loved this book from front to back cover.

A must read - not to be missed novel. Thought provoking 5 out of 5

Heartbreaking, beautifully written, with such a powerful message. The Outrage is a book which will stick with me for a long time.

William Hussey has done it again, another amazing book which brings up such a big topic which needs to still (Sadly) be discussed in todays world.

The book is filled with hard topics and hard hitting themes (which are noted at the front of the book as trigger warnings) but it isn't just about things like that.

It is hard and difficult to read, but it's worthwhile and really important.

In this YA dystopian novel, in England the Protectorate is in charge. There are rules for everything, and you're safe only if you follow them. Gabriel is a natural rule breaker. His biggest crime is being gay. And his boyfriend's father just happens to be the chief inspector at Degenerate Investigations.

CW: homophobia, homophobic language, self harm, suicide references, scenes of violence, ableism, racism.

This book has strong world building, with a fleshed out, painfully realistic dystopian setting. It has the standard YA dystopian set up of 'society changes drastically for the worst after an event', in this case 'the outrage'. Hussey draws parallels to things like nazi book burning and UK section 28. I really liked the use of movies to highlight the importance of seeing people like yourself in the media (althought there were some questionable movie choices). There are some strong ideas in this book, and an interesting plot and compelling characters along the way.

A lot of it reads like a sweet, tragic love story. Eric and Gabe are so wonderful, soft and sweet and tough and loyal. They have a group of likeminded friends, and form their own private resistance against the police state that they live in. There is also a trans character who I really liked. However, as the plot progresses, things turn bad. Very bad. This book is not an easy read. It's very heavy. Halfway through I was really struggling because of how horrific some of the events are.

This book is a wake up call to people in countries where being queer is legal now. Other countries are much more similar to the dystopia portrayed in the novel and the fight is far from over. It's also a look at how easy it is to lose victories, which is especially important given the current situation with trans rights in the UK and US. Progress isn't linear, and this is a good exploration of how our current politics and situation could lead to a loss of rights that we've gained. Whilst the opression on grounds of sexuality and gender is explored in depth, I did feel like the racism and ableism were brushed over somewhat, and therefore the book wasn't as layered as it could have been. However, it's a much more realistic dystopia than I usually see in YA novels, and I felt incredibly invested in the characters and their stories. Although it features a love story, this isn't a romance, it's a revolution.

4.5 stars.

This book is set in England, in the future, and it's not a happy one. The Outrage happened years before and with it, The Protectorate took over the country. Movies, books, TV shows and the internet are banned.
Non-white English people have been deported or worse and it is now illegal to be LGBT+.
Gabriel is gay and has known nothing but this bleak word and country, but he's found solace in hidden movies that he stumbled into. Sharing those with his friends brings him so much comfort, especially seeing how gay people used to live openly.
But nothing is so simple, especially since Gabe is dating and in love with the son of a Chief Inspector of the Protectorate.

This was a nice story. It start pretty sad and scary but it also teaches you to find hope and love within the darkest times. Let's be honest though, it freaked me the fuck out. So much of that future could happen and I also just finished Years and Years, which didn't help. It was a lot to process.
The plot truly drew me in and I really liked all the characters. I just feel like some parts could have been a bit more in depth? Like I think it could have found a way to make me even more invested, and also I felt like the ending was a bit too fast? I wish it had dragged on a bit more.
Still, that was a hell of a ride. I didn't see a lot of the twists coming, and it was so engrossing.
Anyway, that was a very nice read and I will be on the look out for more books by William Hussey.

I was really keen to read The Outrage after I'd read and loved Hideous Beauty (William Hussey's first novel) so much! It definitely did not disappoint!!

Set in the future, the Protectorate are in power and being gay is illegal; punishable by  strict re-purification camps, and horrific stories of what happens in them...

Gabe and Eric were young and in love, but with the Protectorate in power and Eric's father a high up official - it made it almost impossible to be together!

After coming across some hidden banned films from before The Outrage - an event that put the Protectorate in power; Gabe, Eric and their friends all began watching the movies and soon built up the courage to fight back against the Protectorate and protect their human rights.

The story covers issues that many young people face on a daily basis in the LGBTQ+ community and I felt William did a superb job of giving those young people a voice through his exceptional writing!

With twists and turns throughout, The Outrage is an emotional rollercoaster that you won't get over easily. You'll laugh, cry, scream into a pillow - all on many occasions!!

#TheOutrage by William Hussey.
In an future England, civil liberties are suppressed & dissenters sent to rehabilitation camps. Teenage friends find a stash of forbidden films & discover the truth behind the government's rise to power. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️YA thriller
#NetGalley

I just LOVED this book. I flew through it. The Outrage is set in a dystopian future, in a UK where white supremacy has won. And this world is my favourite thing about this novel because it's so well built. Even better, it's entirely believable. We're seeing a huge rise in transphobic discourse in the country, it's really not much of a stretch to picture the UK's descent back into bigotry, especially since, as Jay Hulme reminds us in the foreword, gay rights are actually very recent. They could be taken away in a heartbeat.

I also liked the characters and I especially appreciate that sensitivity readers were involved in writing Alice. The secondary characters were just as interesting and the suspense was KILLING me, especially towards the ending. I just couldn't put it down without knowing how it was gonna end!

The only thing I'm missing is a few non white characters. I get why there weren't any but it made me crave a kind of spin-off with white passing people who couldn't flee and stayed with fake papers, maybe. I don't know, I guess I'm just sad not to read more about resistance in the Protectorate.

Anyway I loved it. Definitely recommend ❤ TW for homophobia, transphobia, bullying, self harm, violence, racism, ethnic cleansing, ableism, slurs, alcoholism, ... so make sure you're in the right headspace when you read.

A brilliant book about love, being yourself, acceptance and just how wring things can be. The ongoing message of hope and love is so strong and wonderful, it broke and mended my heart.

Thank you to the publishers for providing me with an eArc of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Old Review
For me to fully digest this book, I needed to look at it in two ways: my biased thoughts on it compared to the other thoughts wiggling in the back of my mind as I read.

Biased thoughts: William Hussey is a brilliant writer and I adore his style of writing. He can make me emotionally attached and invested to any character, and I will want to love and protect them forever. Hussey is good at building suspense and keeping me engaged and wanting to read more. In this sense, I enjoyed this book and its characters.

Other thoughts: This 'future England' that the author has created was always an issue for me from the beginning when reading this book. This is because in so many other countries being gay/LGBTQ+ is still seen as a crime, illegal and being caught could result in torture and even death. This book mentions and goes into some details of torture and mentions conversion/aversion therapy as to how caught 'degens' will be dealt with.

This book has scenes of violence of queer people of all ages, almost mirroring them as Holocaust survivors with the pink cross on their clothes. I understand that at the beginning of the book there is a content warning

The mention of the movie/book 'Call Me By Your Name' also annoyed me. I just don't think that this was the best book to use and promote as 'amazing' queer literature/cinematography and making it out to be so beautiful and romantic when the movie/book is so problematic. It also deals with anti-disabled views from the same society that is regarding queer people as being wrong and a disease.

Also: I understand that this book may help bring attention to the issue and dangers that many queer people face in other countries. I know that the author himself has been very open and determined to talk about the need to ban conversion therapy and more on his Twitter, however, I wish more was done to talk about the truth and reality of how it is still a crime in so many places to be queer. Even something at the start of the book to help readers fully understand the reality and fact behind some of the issues talked about in the book.

William Hussey's last book , Hideous Beauty, was my favourite YA read of last year so I had high expectations of this one. This sadly pretty believable story tells of a future world where being homosexual, trans etc is illegal and there are strong penalties if you are found out. It's a love story, a protest story and a 'wake up and smell the roses' story and Hussey's storytelling is still superb.

DRC provided by Usborne Publishing via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Representation: gay protagonist, gay secondary character, lesbian secondary characters, trans secondary character, lesbian tertiary character, disabled tertiary character who uses a wheelchair.

Content Warning: homophobia, violence, slurs, racism, torture, drug and alcohol abuse, self-harm, coercion, sadism, suicide.

The Outrage by William Hussey is a nightmarish uchronic novel about not taking anything for granted and keeping on fighting for one’s rights.

After “The Outrage”, a terrorist attack that killed members of a conservative political party and civilians, England and Wales succumbed to the weight of fear and hatred and became the Protectorate, an oppressive regime where only being born straight and white assure you a safe life. Gabriel Sawyer is a gay and brave young boy, with a great sense of justice, who sets his eyes on traumatised newcomer Eric Dufresne, son of the commander of the Filth-Finders, a group of vicious constables tasked with finding and arresting queer people within the Protectorate. Is their clandestine love affair going to be a death sentence?

As much as I liked The Outrage, I could not avoid the comparison to Hussey’s “Hideous Beauty”, which devastated me completely. I found it lacking in that sense and it also did not manage to compel my attention from the very first chapters as Hideous Beauty did.

That aside, I still really liked reading The Outrage and I loved its powerful message and extremely lovable cast of characters. As we all well know, being freely queer is not a worldwide-accepted fact; there are still several countries where people are killed because of their gender identity or their sexual orientation. And even in the countries where queer people retain some rights, there are always people who antagonise us every step of the way for one reason or the other. Most people consider the West as a queer-friendly place because some countries legalised same-sex marriage and every year there is a Pride parade, but how many of those countries allow same-sex couples to adopt? How many allow gay and bisexual men to donate blood? How many have laws that protect us from discrimination and hate crimes? For example, Italy only has laws to protect us from discrimination in employment and allows the recognition of civil unions, but we are still fighting for other rights on a daily basis; and although gay and bisexual men can donate their blood, the donation is accepted only if the blood transfusion centre and the doctor who interviews you allow it.

To conclude, The Outrage is a quick read, but an important one.

I loved this book! I fell in love with all the characters, and the story is so relevant! It shows how easily attitudes can change and we could go backwards into a dystopian mindset despite all the process we've made with acceptance. The smart-mouthed main character with a loveable heart was a great voice to take us through the story by keeping it entertaining and moving everything forward at a great pace. A must read!