Diagnosed with XP, a rare medical condition which makes him lethally sensitive to light, Tyler is a thirteen-year-old who desperately wants just one thing: to be normal. His mother Eve also wants just one thing: to protect her son. As Tyler begins roaming their cul-de-sac at night, cloaked in the safety of the darkness, he peers into the lives of the other families on the street-looking in on the things they most want hidden. Then, the young daughter of a neighbor suddenly vanishes, and Tyler may be the only one who can make sense of her disappearance…but what will happen when everyone's secrets are exposed to the light?
This novel surprised me. I didn’t expect it to have
its feet planted so firmly on literary ground since it is described as a
psychological thriller of sorts. It was a welcomed surprise to see that it, in
fact, had layers and layers of depth to excavate.
The character development is what makes this story
truly worth reading. All the characters change and grow in their individual
ways as the novel progresses, which is very gratifying to see after reading too
many books with flat characterizations. The plot, however, doesn’t drag one
bit. It is kept crisps and quite fast-paced for the depth of character study,
and I didn’t find myself bored a single moment.
The writing is straight-forward, so don’t expect to
see lots of flowery descriptions and the like. I think this is the main reason
why the story works so well. The narrative is dramatic enough that it doesn’t
really require any added embellishments.
If you are looking for a psychological novel that
really packs a punch and makes you ask yourself what you’d do, then this one is
a great choice.
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