They Bloom at Night

by Trang Thanh Tran

First published 2025

A hurricane has left Mercy, Louisiana submerged and transformed. Red algae blooms choke the waters while mutated wildlife thrives beneath the surface. Noon and her mother survive by catching these creatures and selling them to the corrupt harbormaster. The work keeps Noon's mind off her traumatic experience at the Cove and the strange sensations crawling under her skin. But Mercy grows more dangerous each day. Residents vanish without explanation. Survivors whisper about shadows moving underwater and warn against opening doors after dark. The harbormaster gives Noon an ultimatum: capture whatever is killing the townspeople. She reluctantly partners with Covey, the harbormaster's daughter, to hunt the deadly creature. As another storm builds on the horizon, the two young women venture into the flooded ruins to confront what terrorizes their community. Noon has faced monsters before, both outside and within herself.

Genres: science-fiction, adventure, horror, action

Vibes: atmospheric, dark, suspenseful

Tropes: found-family, monster-hunter

Setting: Cove, Louisiana, Mercy

Period: Contemporary

262 pages · Hardcover · Bloomsbury YA

Content warnings: body-horror, graphic-violence, violence

More by Trang Thanh Tran

Readers who liked They Bloom at Night also liked

View on Siftivo