-
Your next favorite book
is waiting.
A must-read thriller that will keep you guessing until the very last page from the New York Times bestselling author of Night Film.
There's nothing special about Dia Gannon. So why was she chosen for an opportunity everyone would kill for?
Arcadia "Dia" Gannon has been obsessed with Louisiana Veda, the game designer whose obsessive creations and company, Darkly, have gained a cultlike following. Dia is shocked when she's chosen for a highly-coveted internship, along with six other teenagers from around the world. Why her? Dia has never won anything in her life.
Darkly, once a game-making empire renowned for its ingenious and utterly terrifying toys and games, now lies dormant after Veda's mysterious death. The remaining games are priced like rare works of art, with some fetching millions of dollars at auction.
As Dia and her fellow interns delve into the heart of Darkly, they discover hidden symbols, buried clues, and a web of intrigue. Who are these other teens, and what secrets do they keep? Why were any of them really chosen? The answers lie within the twisted labyrinth of Darkly—a chilling and addictive read by Marisha Pessl.
This summer will be the most twisted Darkly game of all.
"Like a Darkly game, the whole is mesmerizing, improbable, deeply compelling, and best enjoyed after dark....Roll the die, flip the card: We have a winner." —Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
"Twists and connections are satisfying and surprising in this high-stakes thriller by Pessl, who takes familiar YA tropes and turns them on their head using confident prose." —Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"Creative and unique, this is a special treat for readers who wish Jennifer Lynn Barnes's The Inheritance Games had been set in the world of Jumanji." —School Library Journal
"Pessl set forth with an ambitious concept, and the result is thrilling, mysterious, and full of shocking twists through the very last page." —Booklist
"[A] compelling, immersive story that has everything necessary to enthrall careful readers." —The Bulletin
"Full of atmospheric thrills." —Los Angeles Times
This information about Darkly was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Marisha Pessl, the author of Special Topics in Calamity Physics was born on October 26, 1977 in Clarkston, Michigan. Her mother, Anne, a schoolteacher, was raised in Brazil and Venezuela, and her Austrian father was a mechanical engineer for General Motors. Her parents divorced when she was three and she and her sister, Elke (named after Elke Sommer) were brought up by her mother, visiting her father in Austria once or twice a year. When she was three her family moved to Asheville in Western North Carolina. According to her publisher's bio, as a middle and high school student she had "more extracurricular activities than Imelda Marcos had shoes", including horseback riding, ballet, tap-dancing and jazz lessons, community theater, drawing ...
... Full Biography
Author Interview
Link to Marisha Pessl's Website
If you liked Darkly, try these:
by Ivy Pochoda
Published 2026
A deliciously dark horror reimagining of a Greek tragedy, by Ivy Pochoda, winner of the LA Times Book Prize.
by Emily J.. Taylor
Published 2025
The New York Times bestselling author of Hotel Magnifique returns with another glittering dark fantasy about a deadly mystery that spans worlds and a teenage girl who must risk everything to uncover the truth.
by Courtney Summers
Published 2023
From Courtney Summers, the New York Times bestselling author of the 2019 Edgar Award Winner and breakout hit, Sadie, comes a sensational follow-up -- another pulls-no-punches thriller about an aspiring young journalist determined to save her sister from a cult.
Theo of Golden by Allen Levi
One spring morning, a stranger arrives in the small southern city of Golden. No one knows where he has come from…or why…
Your guide toexceptional books
BookBrowse seeks out and recommends the best in contemporary fiction and nonfiction—books that not only engage and entertain but also deepen our understanding of ourselves and the world around us.
