"who we were in the dark by Jessica Taylor" Book cover shows three people swimming in a lake at sunset.

Who we were in the dark / Jessica Taylor

For fans of Suicide Notes from Beautiful Girls and Genuine Fraud, this coming-of-age story with a dash of mystery/thriller asks, How do you find someone you never really knew?

Donner Lake is famous for its dazzling waters, dramatic mountains, and the travelers trapped there long ago who did unspeakable things to survive. But for lonely Nora Sharpe, Donner was where a girl named Grace glided into her life one night and exploded her world.

After that, every summer, winter, and spring break, Nora, her brother Wesley, the enigmatic Grace, and their friend Rand left behind their real lives and reunited at Donner Lake. There, they traded truth and lies. They fell in love. They pushed each other too far. They came to know each other better than anyone in some ways, and not at all in others.

But two years later, something has happened to blow their world apart. Grace is missing. And Nora must find her way through the unspoken hurts and betrayals of the last two years—and find her way back to Wesley and Rand—to figure out what exactly happened to Grace, the girl she thought she knew.

What others are saying:

“The story had a lot of heart…”

“…A really slow, bittersweet coming of age story with some really sad and heartwarming moments…”

“The page-turning suspense will make you wonder how well you know your closest friends…and whether you even know them at all…”

Available in Teen Fiction.  

JJ: September 5, 2022

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