The Dark We Know

by Wen-yi Lee

Overview

A School Library Journal Best Young Adult Book of 2024 · A Reactor Notable YA Horror Book of 2024 · A Parade Best Horror Book of 2024

From Gillian Flynn Books, a lyrical young adult horror by debut author Wen-yi Lee that’s perfect for fans of She Is a Haunting, Stephen King’s IT, and The Haunting of Hill House.

"Wen-yi Lee has crafted a dark and compelling supernatural mystery buoyed by earnestly written, queer-centric characters. I am enthralled!" —Gillian Flynn

Growing up in Slater, Isadora Chang never felt at ease in the repressive small town, even before she realized she was bisexual—but after the deaths of two childhood friends, Slater went from feeling claustrophobic to suffocating. So, Isa took off before the town could swallow her, too. Even though it meant leaving everything she knew behind, including her last surviving friend, Mason.

When Isa’s abusive father dies, however, she agrees to come back from art school just long enough to collect the inheritance. But then Mason turns up at the cemetery with a revelation and a plea: their friends were murdered by an evil that haunts the town, and he needs Isa to help stop it—before it takes anyone else.

When Isa begins to hear strange songs on the wind, and eerie artwork fills her sketchbook that she can’t recall drawing, she’s forced to stop running and confront her past. Because something is waiting in the shadows of Slater’s valleys, something that feeds on the pain and heartbreak of its children. Whatever it is, it knows Isa’s back . . . and it won’t let her escape again.

Wen-yi Lee’s young adult debut is an intimate and gripping exploration of trauma, healing, and the lasting power of friendship, as a runaway teen must finally face the sinister forces that defined her childhood, and in doing so, demand her right to survive.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781638930587
Publisher:	Zando
Publication date:	08/13/2024
Pages:	336
Sales rank:	228,316
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.10(h) x 1.20(d)
Age Range:	14 - 17 Years

About the Author

Wen-yi Lee is a Clarion West alum from Singapore who likes writing about girls with bite, feral nature, and ghosts. Her speculative fiction has appeared in venues such as Lightspeed, Strange Horizons and Uncanny, as well as in various anthologies. The Dark We Know is her debut novel. Find her on social media at @wenyilee_ and otherwise at wenyileewrites.com.

Editorial Reviews

★ 05/20/2024

When her physically abusive father dies, 18-year-old bisexual art student Isadora Chang returns to the old mining town of Slater after two years away. While she’s there collecting her part of the inheritance, Isa must also redo her portfolio after botching her showcase by submitting pieces that didn’t reflect the theme—and that she has no recollection of creating. Initially reluctant to interact with townspeople, she’s soon approached by estranged friend Mason Kane. He embroils her in his investigation of the disappearance of “town princess” Paige Vandersteen and how it connects to the deaths by suicide of their two best friends from childhood, as well as other seemingly unexplainable moments from Isa’s life. Balanced prose with the pace of an unrelenting thriller details Isa’s internal struggles with her and Mason’s quest to free the town from a mysterious entity. In this enthralling horror debut, Lee carefully threads together Isa’s reconnecting with her past, unearthing the secrets that Slater is built on, and navigating the way that shame distorts one’s sense of self. Isa is Chinese American; supporting characters are racially diverse. Ages 14–up. Agent: Isabel Kaufman, Fox Literary. (Aug.)

Publishers Weekly

This debut transcends the supernatural mystery genre with its emotional depth and engaging setting. As a contemplative alternative to action-focused horror, its striking explorations of grief, shame, love, and queerness will haunt readers with how true they ring . . . A powerful, introspective gothic tale filled to the brim with horror.” —Kirkus, starred review

“In this enthralling horror debut, Lee carefully threads together Isa’s reconnecting with her past, unearthing the secrets that Slater is built on, and navigating the way that shame distorts one’s sense of self.” —Publishers Weekly, starred review

“Readers will find thrills, chills, and emotional validation from this unexpectedly almost-heartwarming horror novel.” —Booklist, starred review

“Lyrical, sorrowful, and oozing with anguish, Lee’s debut novel fully embraces the Gothic tradition and fills every page with dread… An instant YA horror classic.” —School Library Journal, starred review

“The Dark We Know aptly captures the way small towns can feel like a trap, especially for a queer person of color amongst a white, heteronormative population, and how the ties of trauma still bind us no matter how far we try to run. Lee writes with incredible emotional depth to tell a story that will grab at your heart and leave ghostly fingerprints in its wake.” —Reactor

“The true hallmark of an exceptional horror novel is in its hold, and in her debut outing, Wen-yi Lee has crafted a gorgeously dark and unforgettable story that will linger long after the book is closed. The Dark We Know heralds the arrival of a rare and exciting literary talent—do not miss it.” —Courtney Summers, New York Times bestselling author of I'm the Girl and Sadie

"A knife-sharp excavation into the horrors of societal judgment. Lee has crafted an ultimately hopeful story about grief and pain among friends all a little in love with each other. The Dark We Know left me breathless." —Trang Thanh Tran, New York Times bestselling author of She is a Haunting

“The Dark We Know is a book made of shattered rock, claustrophobic family pressure, and the desperation of children trying to survive the weight of their grief. An eerie, introspective, and beautifully atmospheric addition to the best of YA horror lit.” —Andrew Joseph White, New York Times bestselling author of The Spirit Bares Its Teeth and Hell Followed With Us

“Not for the faint of heart, [The Dark We Know] draws a profound connection between supernatural forces and the terrors of grief and dishonesty.... [A] story that, despite its dark imagery and heavy subject matter, feels truly resonant and uplifting.” —BookPage

“A haunting, unforgettable debut. With gorgeous prose, palpable atmosphere, and intricate character work, Lee examines what it means to belong to a place and fight for a better world. Like the song of Slater’s mountains, The Dark We Know will settle into your bones and call you back again and again.” —Allison Saft, New York Times bestselling author of Down Comes the Night and A Far Wilder Magic

“The Dark We Know is a lyrical mediation on loss and survival, on holding on and letting go, and on growing up in a community that only ever wanted you to be small. Filled with moments of striking beauty, Wen-yi Lee’s debut establishes her as a force to be reckoned with.” —Kerstin Hall, author of Asunder

“The Dark We Know will haunt you all day and keep you awake at night. Lee’s emotional, inventively written debut had me peeling back layer after layer in a desperate search for the truth. Absolutely enthralling.” —Courtney Gould, award-winning author of The Dead and the Dark

From the Publisher

★ 08/30/2024

Gr 9 Up—A funeral—her abusive father's funeral, to be exact—is what brings art student Isadora Chang back to her hometown; all she has to do is stick around long enough to get her share of the inheritance she's owed. But it isn't easy for her: Slater is a dying mining town still under the thumb of the mine's founders, the illustrious Vandersteens, and as the collapse of the mines has choked the life out of the town, so too has it suffocated bisexual Isa. The town's religious undercurrents, her father's adherence to such, and her mother's silence never made her feel as if she belonged. When two of her best friends, track star Zach and Isa's unrequited crush Wren, seemingly took their own lives within weeks of one another, Isa left Slater and her only surviving friend Mason, and never looked back. Then Mason shows up at the service pleading for help—Paige Vandersteen, teen heiress, has gone missing, Mason was the last person who saw her alive, and he's pretty sure that she, Zach, and Wren were all taken by the same supernatural entity. Slater's secret, tragic, violent history comes roiling to the forefront. Lyrical, sorrowful, and oozing with anguish, Lee's debut novel fully embraces the Gothic tradition and fills every page with dread. Sincere characterizations of queer teens forging relationships in the face of sadness and terror buoy the narrative, which is as bleak and desolate as Slater itself. The verbose prose may turn off some readers, but those wading in will be rewarded with a tale of true terror. VERDICT An instant YA horror classic. Highly recommended.—Tyler Hixson

School Library Journal

★ 2024-05-04
Children are dying in the eerie town of Slater—and Isa’s been unknowingly drawing their deaths before they occur.

Eighteen-year-old Isadora Chang left home two years ago in the wake of the tragic suicides of close friends Wren and Zach, the only other people of color her age. But the new life she’s built comes crashing down when her art school portfolio showcase consists of gruesome sketches rather than pieces on her proposed theme. Although her professor grants her an extension, completing the work necessary to retain her scholarship feels like an insurmountable task, especially after she’s persuaded to go home for her abusive father’s funeral. Returning to Slater means reuniting with Mason, the only other surviving member of their friend group. It also means hearing the mountains sing to her again. As a bisexual Chinese American girl in a highly Christian quarry town, Isa always felt that staying put would mean death. This fear is heightened when Mason seeks her help: He believes that Wren and Zach were murdered by a mysterious force and that Isa may be the key to solving everything. Told in Isa’s resonant first-person voice, this debut transcends the supernatural mystery genre with its emotional depth and engaging setting. As a contemplative alternative to action-focused horror, its striking explorations of grief, shame, love, and queerness will haunt readers with how true they ring.

A powerful, introspective gothic tale filled to the brim with horror. (Horror. 14-18)

Kirkus Reviews