*2026 LOCUS FINALIST FOR BEST SCIENCE FICTION NOVEL**ONE OF TIME MAGAZINE'S 100 MUST-READ BOOKS OF 2025*Is all that we see or seemBut a dream within a dream?— Edgar Allan PoeAt 14, Julia Z became infamous as the "orphan hacker," a teenage prodigy who broke the law and captivated a nation. Now, years later, she’s trying to leave that life behin...

From Hugo, Nebula, and World Fantasy Award–winning author Ken Liu, the first in a high-stakes sci-fi thriller series following an infamous hacker as she attempts to unravel a virtual reality mystery in the near future.Julia Z, a young woman who gained notoriety at 14 as the “orphan hacker,” is trying to live a life of digital obscurity in a Boston suburb.But when a lawyer named Piers barges into her life after his famous artist wife, Elli, ...

Small town justice comes with a priceTen years ago, in the pine-shaded town of Savage Ridge, Nick, Emmy, and Pete murder their high school classmate, Sammy Saint John.His body is never found, and no arrests are made. The three friends make a pact to leave Savage Ridge and never return...Now, each is drawn home, seemingly by chance or fate. But it's neither: Private Investigator Sloane Yo has brought them back to finally answer for their crime.The noose begin...