Leave the World Behind

A magnetic novel about two families, strangers to each other, who are forced together on a long weekend gone terribly wrong

Amanda and Clay head to a remote corner of Long Island expecting a holiday: a quiet reprieve from life in New York City, quality time with their teenage son and daughter and a taste of the good life in the luxurious home they've rented for the week. But with a late-night knock on the door, the spell is broken. Ruth and G. H., an older couple who claim to own the home, have arrived there in a panic. These strangers say that a sudden power outage has swept the city, and - with nowhere else to turn - they have come to the country in search of shelter.

But with the TV and internet down, and no phone service, the facts are unknowable. Should Amanda and Clay trust this couple - and vice versa? What has happened back in New York? Is the holiday home, isolated from civilisation, a truly safe place for their families? And are they safe from one another?

'You will probably need to read it in as close to one sitting as possible', Sunday Times

'A page-turner taking in themes of isolation, race and class', Guardian

'A book that could have been tailor-made for our times', The Times

'A literary page-turner that will keep you awake even after it ends', Mail on Sunday

'An exceptional examination of race and class and what the world looks like when it's ending', Roxane Gay