Fight. Flight. Freeze. What do you do when you can’t move on, even though the rest of the world seems to have? From National Book Award–longlisted author Bryan Bliss, Thoughts & Prayers follows three high school students in the aftermath of a school shooting, and is told in three loosely connected but inextricably intertwined stories.

Gayle Forman, bestselling author of If I Stay, called Thoughts & Prayers “unflinching and resonant.” An unwavering novel for readers of Jason Reynolds, Marieke Nijkamp, and Laurie Halse Anderson.

Claire, Eleanor, and Brezzen have little in common. Except for the fact that a year ago, they all hid under the same staircase and heard the shots that took the lives of some of their classmates and a teacher.

Now, each one copes with the trauma as best as they can, as the world around them keeps moving. Thoughts & Prayers is a story about gun violence, but more importantly it is the story of what happens after the reporters leave and the news cycle moves on to the next tragedy. It is the story of three unforgettable teens who feel forgotten.

Acclaimed author Bryan Bliss has made a place for himself writing books that face difficult and emotional topics head-on with nuance, empathy, and a deft hand. Thoughts & Prayers is an extraordinary novel that explores what it means to heal and to feel safe in a world that constantly chooses violence.