We Set the Dark on Fire by Tehlor Kay Mejia

Her parents sacrificed everything to obtain forged identification papers so Dani could rise above her station. Daniela Vargas is the school’s top student, but her bright future depends upon no one discovering her darkest secret-that her pedigree is a lie. Depending on her specialization, a graduate will one day run a husband’s household or raise his children, but both are promised a life of comfort and luxury, far from the frequent political uprisings of the lower class. Political intrigue set in an unspecified Latinx culture merges with budding romance in a tightly-paced plot that races to its cliff-hanger finale and has strong parallels to tensions in our world today.Everyone, please welcome Tehlor Kay Mejia to Rich in Color! Tehlor’s debut novel, WE SET THE DARK ON FIRE, is out next week, on February 26:Īt the Medio School for Girls, distinguished young women are trained for one of two roles in their polarized society. She’s also navigating feelings for Carmen that are turning from a tentative bond of trust to strong romantic attraction. As Dani discovers Mateo’s role in increased hostilities against protesters, she struggles to balance protecting her secret against acting as her conscience dictates. Mateo is cold and threatening, while Carmen unexpectedly evolves into a friend, perhaps even someone Dani can trust. La Voz, a resistance group protesting border regulations and immigrant crackdowns, recently provided Dani with better forged papers, but at a price: They want her to spy for them in Mateo’s household or risk losing all that her parents have sacrificed to give her. Dani’s arch enemy at school, Carmen, has been chosen as Mateo’s Segunda. Now graduating, Dani has been chosen as Primera to Meteo Garcia, son in a powerful family with Presidential aspirations for him. Primeras are intellectual confidantes who support their husband’s career Segundas emotional and romantic companions. At 12, with forged citizenship papers, she was accepted into the Medio School for Girls, where students are groomed for one of two roles: Primera or Segunda-first or second wife-to the sons of wealthy, politically connected families, roles with origins in their culture’s creation story. ISBN: 978-0-06-269131-6 We Set the Dark on Fire by Tehlor Kay Mejiaĭaniela and her family illegally crossed the border into Medio when she was small. Published by Katherine Tegen Books / HarperCollins, 2019