A clever, stimulating novel painting a picture of first loves and first drafts. Darcy, at eighteen, moves to New York City after her book wins a publishing deal. As her story unfolds, with writers block and deadlines galore, we also read her book, ‘Afterworlds’ in alternating chapters. As Darcy learns about herself and the intricacies of the publishing world, so her book evolves before us. Death haunts Darcy’s book, sometimes in graphic detail, so the light touches of wit that float across the pages are refreshing. Inventive and artful, Westerfeld displays a deft touch, is Darcy writing the book or is the book helping to write Darcy? ~ Liz Robinson
Darcy Patel has put college and everything else on hold to publish her teen novel, Afterworlds. Arriving in New York with no apartment or friends she wonders whether she's made the right decision until she falls in with a crowd of other seasoned and fledgling writers who take her under their wings...Told in alternating chapters is Darcy's novel, a suspenseful thriller about Lizzie, a teen who slips into the 'Afterworld' to survive a terrorist attack. But the Afterworld is a place between the living and the dead and as Lizzie drifts between our world and that of the Afterworld, she discovers that many unsolved - and terrifying - stories need to be reconciled. And when a new threat resurfaces, Lizzie learns her special gifts may not be enough to protect those she loves and cares about most.
Scott Westerfeld is a software designer, a composer of music for modern dance whose works have been performed both here and abroad, and an author. He lives in New York City and Sydney, Australia.
