The B&n Ya Podcast

Marisha Pessl debuted in 2006 with Special Topics in Calamity Physics, a fascinating bestseller about a bookish girl and her charismatic whirlpool of a father. With its dark thrills and astonishing reveals, it made her an immediate author to watch. She followed it with Night Film, a horror thriller about a reclusive creator of cult "terror films" and the journalist who destroyed his career in pursuit of the filmmaker’s secrets. Now she’s releasing her YA debut, Neverworld Wake, a brainy supernatural tale about five teens who, following an accident that leaves them on the edge of death, must relive one day over and over, until they can vote on who among them will survive it. Pessl’s books are dense with creation and hyper articulate, filled with invented cultural artifacts and singular characters. We sat down with her to talk about entering the YA world, cult fandom, and the killer concept behind Neverworld Wake.