Shallow Graves

For fans of Holly Black and Nova Ren Suma, a gripping, hauntingly atmospheric novel about murder, revenge, and a world where monsters—human and otherwise—lurk at the fringes. “Shallow Graves is a stunner. Gripping, gory, and insightful” (Kendare Blake, New York Times bestselling author of Three Dark Crowns).

When seventeen-year-old Breezy Lin wakes up in a shallow grave one year after her death, she doesn’t remember who killed her or why. All she knows is that she’s somehow conscious—and not only that, she’s able to sense who around her is hiding a murderous past. In life, Breezy was always drawn to the elegance of the universe and the mystery of the stars. Now she must set out to discover whatever is to become of her in the gritty, dangerous world to which she now belongs—where killers hide in plain sight, and a sinister cult is hunting for strange creatures like her.

What she finds is at once empowering, redemptive, and dangerous.

NYPL Best Books for Teens * Junior Library Guild Selection

Her second life is a dangerous journey through an America hiding its monsters in plain sight.

• A Supernatural Murder Mystery: Breezy doesn’t remember who killed her, but her new senses can unmask every killer she meets. The first one she has to find is her own.
• A Gritty Dark Fantasy: From the truck stops of Nebraska to the mountains of Colorado, her search for answers plunges her into the supernatural underbelly of America.
• A Sinister Cult: She’s not just hunting for answers—she’s being hunted. A mysterious group wants creatures like her, and they believe she needs to be “cured,” even if it destroys her.
• A Story of Revenge: As Breezy uncovers the truth of her own death, she gains a power she never asked for. But in a world full of monsters, becoming one might be the only way to survive.

Breezy remembers leaving the party: the warm, wet grass under her feet, her cheek still stinging from a slap to her face. But when she wakes up, scared and pulling dirt from her mouth, a year has passed and she can’t explain how.

Nor can she explain the man lying at her grave, dead from her touch, or why her heartbeat comes and goes. She doesn’t remember who killed her or why. All she knows is that she’s somehow conscious—and not only that, she’s able to sense who around her is hiding a murderous past.

Haunted by happy memories from her life, Breezy sets out to find answers in the gritty, threatening world to which she now belongs—where killers hide in plain sight, and a sinister cult is hunting for strange creatures like her. What she discovers is at once empowering, redemptive, and dangerous.

Debut author Kali Wallace interweaves folklore and myths from all over the world in this stunning novel about the heartbreaking trauma of a girl’s life cut short and her struggle to reconcile her humanity with the monster she’s become.

“Shallow Graves is a stunner. Gripping, gory, and insightful.” - Kendare Blake, author of Anna Dressed in Blood and Antigoddess

“A fast-paced ride through a dark, imaginative world.” - Mindy McGinnis, author of Not a Drop to Drink and A Madness So Discreet

“Kali Wallace has created a world that’s both natural and unsettling …and reminds us with Breezy’s story that true terror is not a monster, but what lurks in the dark corners of human nature.” - Madeleine Roux, New York Times bestselling author of the Asylum series.

“Constantly entertaining, intriguing, and suspenseful.” - Kirkus Reviews

“A phenomenally written, spine-chilling story...sure to keep you up all night.” - Kimberly Derting, author of the Body Finder series

“A fast-paced story with an interesting hook, and a thoughtful look at what it means to be human versus what it means to be a monster. The end result is a superbly crafted debut bound to entrance.” - Booklist (starred review)

“Writing in Breezy’s pragmatic and engaging voice, Wallace weaves an unsettling tale that explores Breezy’s strange existence, while also thoughtfully examining a life cut short...her struggle to reconcile what she has become with the human she used to be forms the heart of this bittersweet story.” - Publishers Weekly