You Must Not Miss

Magpie Lewis started writing in her yellow notebook the day she walked in on her father having sex with her aunt on her parents’ bed. That was the night her mom started down a spiral of self-destruction. That was the night Eryn, Magpie’s sister, skipped town and left her to fend for herself. That was the night of Brandon Phipp’s party.

Now, Magpie is called a slut whenever she walks down the hallways of her high school, her former best friend won’t speak to her, and she spends her lunch period with a group of misfits who’ve all been socially exiled like she has. And so, feeling trapped and forgotten, Magpie retreats to her notebook, dreaming up a place called Near.

Near is perfect—somewhere where her father never cheated, her mother never drank, and Magpie’s own life never derailed so suddenly. She writes Near so completely, so fully, that she dreams it into existence, right in her own backyard. It’s a place where she can have anything she wants…even revenge.

Acclaimed author Katrina Leno spins a twisted and suspenseful tale of friendship, revenge, and the monsters that live inside us all.

Trade Paperback

Trade Paperback / ISBN-13: 9780316449793

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Praise

Praise for You Must Not Miss:

A 2020 CCBC Choice

* "Leno (Summer of Salt, 2018, etc.), channeling early Stephen King at his best, offers no neat conclusions, and her frank examination of depression, grief, alcoholism, and the ruinous aftermath of sexual assault, is grim yet effective. Readers will ponder this exceedingly creepy gut punch of a tale long after turning the last page."

—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

* "Compelling and harrowing.... Leno doesn't shy away from challenging themes... and she brings lyrically haunting language to a story filled with inherent darkness."—Publishers Weekly (starred review)

* "Leno (Summer of Salt, 2018) takes a concept...and executes it with beautiful, brutal precision. Between the lines of spare and dreamlike prose lurks a girl who, though quiet at first, demands to be seen, and readers will not soon forget her."—Booklist (starred review)

"This unusual blend of realistic fiction, fantasy, and mayhem begs debate wherever it is read! Stock more than one copy."—VOYA

"A little bit Coraline, a little bit Stephen King.... A frank, unflinching look at grief, rage, depression, and how pain manifests as cruelty. You must not miss You Must Not Miss."—Mackenzie Vanengelenhoven, King's English Bookshop (Salt Lake City, UT)

"A mind-bender of a book."—Rosie Lee, Readers Books (Sonoma, CA)

About the Author

Katrina Leno was born on the East Coast and currently lives in Los Angeles. She is the author of five critically acclaimed novels, The Half Life of Molly Pierce, The Lost & Found, Everything All at Once, Summer of Salt, and You Must Not Miss. While she has never eaten an entire book, she admits to tasting a page or two. You can visit her online at katrinaleno.com.

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Point of (Re)views

“In the end, you'll be wondering how much of yourself you'd be willing to give up in order to have everything go your way...I'll have to look into more of what Katrina Leno has written, because I'm officially hooked!”
—Maura, NovelMaura

“I love how one moment I’m getting The Wayward Children vibes (secret doors!), and the next I’m feeling thoroughly creeped out (people in Near kept winking at Magpie. I don’t know why but that always gave me goosebumps.)”
—Amy, A Court of Crowns and Quills

“I was blown away by the topics covered in this novel and the way they were talked about from transgendered characters to sexual abuse were elegantly addressed.”
—Sahara, Litsy