19 books we can’t wait to get our hands on in 2019

We Set the Dark On Fire – Tehlor Kay Mejia

With its stunning cover and enthralling synopsis, Tehlor Kay Mejia’s debut novel, We Set the Dark On Fire, sounds like it needs to be on every reader’s radar for 2019. Feminist readers in particular will want to give this book a chance, as its synopsis makes it sound like a modern-day The Handmaid’s Tale geared toward young adults — a comparison made even in the summary.

In the world Mejia has built, young women are sent to the Medio School for Girls and trained for one of two societal roles. Upon graduation, every woman will either take charge of her husband’s household or be tasked with his children. For doing such things, these women are offered protection from the violent political rebellions often staged by the lower classes.

Our protagonist, Dani, is one of the young women attending the Medio School for Girls. In fact, she’s the top student and has a future of luxury ahead of her—but that future is dependent on no one discovering her biggest secret. It turns out that Dani’s pedigree is actually a lie.

When she was younger, Dani’s parents had the necessary documents forged in order to ensure their daughter a safe and comfortable life, far away from the outskirts of society, where poverty is the only thing people know. But now that Dani is about to marry the son of an important political figure, her true identity could be revealed.

And to make matters worse, she’s approached by a resistance group on her graduation night and asked to spy on the upper classes. What she learns about Medio and its wealthy inhabitants tempts her to fight for the equality of all of Medio’s inhabitants. But her decision to do so could also permanently alter the course of her own life—and not necessarily for the better.

Dystopia lovers can pick up We Set the Dark On Fire on Feb. 26. It sounds like there’s plenty of worthwhile political commentary behind the book’s suspenseful plot.