THE LIGHT WE LOST

In this first installment of Stone’s Lost Light series, set in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, a girl searches for a killer as geomagnetic storms wreak havoc on the world.

Shiloh Easton’s mother was murdered by a serial killer named Eli Pope, colloquially known as the Broken Heart Killer, when Shiloh was 5 years old. As if that trauma weren’t enough, Shiloh, now 13, finds her grandfather—her guardian for the last eight years—brutally bludgeoned to death in his salvage yard, and her older brother, Cody, missing. Complicating matters is the revelation that Pope has been released on a technicality and is back in town. As Shiloh attempts to find her grandfather’s killer and locate her brother (who may not even be alive) while evading those who would hand her over to social services, deputy sheriff Jackson Cross—who grew up as a close friend of Pope, Shiloh’s mother, and Shiloh’s aunt, Lena—vows to find Shiloh and her brother. As geomagnetic storms of unprecedented strength paint the sky “blood-red” and turn the entire Northern Hemisphere dark in a matter of days, Lena, who is now a paramedic in Tampa, sets out with her dog, Bear, to return to the UP and her shadowy past in an effort to save her late sister’s kids. But can she get there before the world ends? “Banks are closed. The internet is down. Planes are grounded… They’re reporting rioting in some of the big cities. People are already running out of food.” Although the narrative is character driven—the ensemble cast members are all brilliant three-dimensional creations—it’s the masterfully intricate storyline that truly distinguishes this novel. Bombshell plot twists abound, coupled with pedal-to-the-metal pacing and palpable intensity throughout the narrative as civilization crumbles around the characters—this novel is virtually unputdownable.

A flawless blend of apocalyptic fiction, thriller, and whodunit.