A Neon Darkness (Bright Sessions Series #2)

by Lauren Shippen

Overview

A Neon Darkness, the second Bright Sessions novel from creator Lauren Shippen, features villain Damien, who can make anyone want what he wants.

Robert Gorham always gets what he wants. But the power of persuasion is as potent a blessing as it is a curse.

Robert is alone until a group of strangers who can do impossible things—produce flames without flint, conduct electricity with their hands, and see visions of the past—welcome him. They call themselves Unusuals and they give Robert a new name too: DAMIEN.

Finally, finally he belongs. As long as he can keep his power under control.

But control is a sacrifice he might not be willing to make.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781250297549
Publisher:	Tom Doherty Associates
Publication date:	09/29/2020
Series:	Bright Sessions Series , #2
Pages:	256
Sales rank:	78,400
Product dimensions:	5.84(w) x 8.52(h) x 0.96(d)
Age Range:	14 - 18 Years

About the Author

Lauren Shippen, author of The Infinite Noise, is a writer best known for her work in fiction podcasts. She is the creator of the popular audio drama The Bright Sessions, and its spin-offs, The AM Archives and The College Tapes. She co-produced and co-directed the #1 podcast Passenger List, for which she received a BBC Audio Drama Award. She also wrote MARVELS, an audio adaptation of the popular comic. Shippen was named one of Forbes' 2018 30 Under 30 in Media. She grew up in New York, where she spent most of her youth reading and going to Panic! at the Disco shows. She now lives in Los Angeles, where she does the same thing.

Editorial Reviews

A deliciously dark, genre-bending look at the thrill and danger of intoxicating power. Shippen creates a world—and a family—that you'd do just about anything to be a part of.” —Charlotte Nicole Davis, author of The Good Luck Girls

“Shippen combines an exciting plot with diverse characters...This may be the best Bright Sessions content yet as well as an excellent starting point for those unfamiliar with this world. A creative and compelling read.” —Kirkus Reviews

“A rich cast of secondary characters and gripping plot twists keep readers interested until the last page. Damien’s use of control to gain human connection and its moral implications will make readers question how far are they willing to go to get everything they desire. The story will leave readers thinking long after the last page is read.” —School Library Journal

Praise for The Infinite Noise
“Emotional and inventive, Lauren Shippen has written a queer love story for anyone who’s ever felt like an outsider. The Infinite Noise managed to make me swoon even as it broke my heart. A thoughtful and tender exploration of mental health, it will make you want to go to therapy, whether you have superpowers or not.” —Britta Lundin, Riverdale screenwriter and author of Ship It

“The Infinite Noise is a marvelous book about love, mental health, and connection. Lauren Shippen writes with a clean and honest warmth that is deeply refreshing, and her sharp representation of depression and anxiety rings true. Once I started reading The Infinite Noise, I couldn't stop; now that I've read it, my life has become a matter of waiting to get my hands on whatever Shippen creates next.” —Sarah Gailey, Hugo Award winning author of Magic for Liars

“Fans of the podcast will revel in this closer look at the lives of the characters, and readers new to the franchise will drop into this world without missing a beat. Give this to fans of the podcast, as well as readers who enjoy Becky Albertalli's Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda, Rainbow Rowell's work, and Welcome to Night Vale.” —School Library Journal

“The author gives emotions form, texture, and color, taking readers along on Adam's and Caleb's journeys while remembering that a boyfriend is not an antidote to life's supernatural—or mundane—problems.... A warm, satisfying love story with depth.” —Kirkus Reviews

"Shippen does a superb job of handling a swirl of complex emotions, ranging from subtle to fiery as the boys struggle to complete each other and share their differences." —Booklist

Praise for The Bright Sessions
“A gripping character drama with blockbuster-worthy plot twists.” —The New York Times

“Created by the brilliant Lauren Shippen, The Bright Sessions is probably my number one favorite podcast right now.” —Patricia Thang, Book Riot

“[The Bright Sessions] combines shades of The X-Files and the HBO psychotherapy drama In Treatment, plus the youthful characters of a WB drama like Roswell or Smallville, into one compulsively listenable tale.... A testament to the simple power of good storytelling.” —Vox

“Radio dramas for the podcast age often veer towards either solid writing or engrossing performances. Rare is the show that satisfies on both fronts like The Bright Sessions.... Shippen never loses sight of the impressive character work that drives the show.” —IndieWire

“Part Professor X, part Sigmund Freud, Dr. Bright has a specialty: treating 'the strange and unusual....' Start at the beginning and binge away an afternoon on Dr. Bright’s couch.” —WIRED

From the Publisher

08/01/2020

Gr 9 Up—The Unusuals have gifts. Neon can create electricity, Marley can see the past, Blaze can create fire, and Robert can get anything he wants just by desiring it. Before Robert, the other Unusuals and their Unusual-sensing friend Indah led a peaceful existence in Los Angeles. Then Blaze disappeared and Robert arrived, and no one could tell whether their actions were their own or what Robert desired. Told primarily through Robert's perspective, readers watch as he transitions from a wandering teenager struggling for acceptance to the new persona of Damien, who goes from using his powers to get what he wants to controlling people to get the friendship he craves. Based on Shippen's "Bright Sessions" podcast, this second book in the series delves deeper into the character of Damien. A rich cast of secondary characters and gripping plot twists keep readers interested until the last page. Damien's use of control to gain human connection and its moral implications will make readers question how far are they willing to go to get everything they desire. VERDICT A first purchase for library collections. The story will leave readers thinking long after the last page is read.—Ashley Leffel, Griffin M.S., Frisco, TX

School Library Journal

2020-07-14
Robert can manipulate others—but he doesn’t know if that’s a blessing or a curse.

Following The Infinite Noise (2019), this Bright Sessions book tells the origin story of Damien, ne Robert, one of the podcast’s antagonists. When the book opens, Robert is an 18-year-old high school dropout and White boy with no family but all the material resources he could ever need. He has the power to make people do what he wants, or more accurately, to want the same things he wants. After arriving in Los Angeles, he falls in with a slightly older group of Unusuals with various powers who take him under their wing. Shippen combines an exciting plot with diverse characters—such as Neon, who is Black and queer, and Indah, who is Indonesian, Muslim, and lesbian—who defy stereotypes. As the group tangles with a shady organization that has kidnapped their friend, they also realize that the affection they feel for Robert might not be real. Robert’s emotional arc is interesting and unusual—he wants to be a good person, but he is selfish, manipulative, and unwilling to change. He is sympathetic while also being pitiful and contemptible and far too uncool to be an antihero. This may be the best Bright Sessions content yet as well as an excellent starting point for those unfamiliar with this world.

A creative and compelling read. (Fantasy. 14-18)

Kirkus Reviews

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