A lyrical, fantastical horror about vampires from the Philippines . . . and a hunter on their tail.
As Filipino vampires known as manananggal, Lily and her brother Caleb understand the value of a secret. After all, to hide is to survive. To lie is to live. They'd never harm another person-but people only believe their worst fears around creatures of myth. So, the siblings stay quiet. They follow their community's rules.
Until a monster hunter turns up and kills a fellow manananggal anyway.
Until Caleb is marked as the hunter's next prey.
Suddenly, he and Lily realize there's always been more at stake than the lives of their people. Because when doing everything "right" is still a death sentence, what can they take as truth? As the hunter nears, the siblings must decide if they'll be driven from the only home they've ever known . . . or fight to protect a community that may already be lost.
Two siblings fight to protect their secrets, their community, and most of all, each other, in this evocative novel from the New York Times bestselling author of Patron Saints of Nothing. Randy Ribay writes stories for young adults. He's the author of Patron Saints of Nothing; Everything We Never Had; Avatar, the Last Airbender: The Reckoning of Roku; and more. He's a two-time National Book Award nominee, a Freeman Book Award winner, and a co-winner of the Michael L. Printz award. He's also been a finalist for the LA Times Book Prize, Walden Book Award, Edgar Award, International Thriller Writers Award, and Carnegie Medal. His books have appeared on the New York Times, Indie, and USA Today best-sellers lists.
Born in the Philippines and raised in the US, Randy earned his B.A. in English Literature from the University of Colorado at Boulder and his Ed.M. in Language & Literacy from Harvard Graduate School of Education. He currently lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with his wife, son, and cat-like dog. A thrilling YA novel based on Filipino vampire lore from Carnegie-shortlisted author Randy Ribay. Randy Ribay was shortlisted for the YOTO Carnegie Medal for Writing with Patron Saints of Nothing. He has been a finalist for the prestigious US National Book Award two times and has won the Michael L. Printz Award and the Freeman Book Award. Drawing on Randy's Filipino heritage, the book explores the Philippines vampire lore - manananggals - from the perspective of the manananggals themselves, looking at the pressures of how to survive as a diaspora community that must keep its culture hidden for fear of persecution. A thriller structure makes this a page-turning read as you race to uncover the identity of the hunter as the time ticks down to Caleb meeting his fate . . . Dual perspective chapters from siblings Caleb and Lily capture the two distinct characters and allow the reader into their world as the horror unfolds, in a refreshing departure from a romantic dual perspective. Perfect for fans of paranormal fantasy, vampire lore and horror novels.
