Part of Shades of London
First published 2014
Stephen Dene walks through the cold toward the Eton boathouse. He has come here to do something desperate, something final. But a stranger intercepts him before he can carry out his plan. This unexpected encounter derails Stephen's dark intentions and sets him on a completely different path. He finds himself traveling to London, where he meets two new companions who will change his perspective entirely. Together they enter a world filled with shadows and secrets, where mystery lurks around every corner. What began as Stephen's darkest hour becomes the beginning of an adventure he never could have imagined. The friends he makes and the hidden world he discovers offer him something he thought he had lost forever. Stephen must navigate this strange new reality while confronting the demons that brought him to the boathouse in the first place.
Genres: adventure, coming-of-age, mystery, contemporary, young-adult, psychological-thriller
Vibes: atmospheric, dark, introspective, redemptive, suspenseful
Tropes: coming-of-age, found-family, redemption-arc, stranger-intervention
Setting: Eton, Eton Boathouse, London
86 pages · Paperback · Hot Key Books
Content warnings: depression, mental-illness, suicidal-ideation