Cosmic Roots & Eldritch Shores, August 2024

“All We Ever Had” by M. A. Akins

Reviewed by Mina

“All We Ever Had” by M. A. Akins is reminiscent of Nevil Shute’s On the Beach, ordinary people meeting the end of the world with courage and dignity. We watch the last moments of a group of radio presenters broadcasting till the last possible moment as an asteroid hits Earth. They talk with each other via video as the music plays, true to their promise to stay with each other till the end. It’s a simple but touching tale (I’ll let you into a secret, it brought tears to my eyes both times I read it). Sometimes it’s nice to believe in the good in humanity. To (mis)quote Starman, we can be at our best when things are at their worst.