A novel by RUPERT THOMSON writing as TEMPLE DRAKE
HER SECRET MUST BE KEPT FOR ALL ETERNITY.
Set in the otherworldly megalopolis that is today’s Shanghai, Temple Drake’s suspenseful first novel blends the gothic, the erotic, and the supernatural as it charts an intense and dangerous affair.
One night in 2012, executive Zhang Guo Xing takes a group of European clients to a fashionable nightclub in Shanghai. While there, he meets a strikingly beautiful young Western woman called Naemi Vieno Kuusela. The physical attraction between them proves irresistible, and they embark on an intoxicating affair. But Naemi is not what she appears to be…
To Zhang’s surprise, she veers between passion and wariness, conducting the relationship entirely on her own terms. He feels driven to find out more about her, and is swiftly drawn into a web of intrigue, mystery, and horror. Is she a ghost? A demon? Do the living dead walk the streets of twenty-first century Shanghai?
Written in spare, high-octane prose, NVK is the first in a series of dark, hypnotic novels that explore the roots of desire and the cruel costs of immortality.
“[An] original take on the horror genre…Spare, sexy, and atmospheric, it is as deep and dark as a Finnish forest.” —The Guardian, Brilliant Books to Transport You This Summer
“[A] supercharged, genre-mixing first novel.” —BBC
“[This] gothic-drenched noirish tale unnerves and entertains…there’s something stealthily intriguing about Thomson’s handling of the uncanny and the menacing, and his subtle but insistent examination of sexual politics.” —The Times
“An atmospheric and evocative tale buoyed by a sensual affair, Drake’s debut is a compelling read.” —Booklist
“A steamy affair turns supernatural…the ending subverts expectations and provides a perfect springboard for NVK’s next adventure.” —Kirkus Reviews
“Finely calibrated…for all its mythological opulence, the tale’s central ambiguity—the question of who is preying on whom—seems urgently modern.” —The Guardian
“Seamlessly blending sophisticated gothic fantasy with a stylish, neon-lit allure, NVK is our sexy new obsession…Drake writes this thriller in a deliberately minimalist style that’s as spare and elegant as Scandinavian furniture…mysterious and bewitching.” —Apple Books, Top 10 Best Debut Novels of the Season
