RUIN ROAD

Book cover of "Run Road" by LaMar Giles, featuring a close-up of a large eye with a road leading into it, and a car with headlights on at the bottom. The title and author's name are prominently displayed.

Cade Webster lives between worlds…

He’s a standout football star at the right school but lives in the wrong neighborhood—if you let his classmates tell it. Everywhere but home, people are afraid of him for one reason or another. Afraid he’s too big, too fast, too ambitious, too Black.

Then one fateful night, to avoid a dangerous encounter with the police, he ducks into a pawnshop. An impulse purchase and misspoken desire change everything when Cade tells the shopkeeper he wishes people would stop acting so scared around him, and the wish is granted . . .

At first, it feels like things have taken a turn for the better. But it’s not just Cade that people no longer fear—it’s everything. With Cade spreading this newfound “courage” wherever he goes, anything can happen. Fearless acts of violence begin to escalate in both his neighborhood and at school. With the right moves, and brave friends, Cade might have one—and only one—chance to save all he loves. But at what cost? After all, the devil’s in the details.

“Exceptional and not to be missed!” —Trang Thanh Tran, New York Times bestselling author of She Is a Haunting

“Lamar Giles’s latest thriller is filled with chilling haunts and horrors . . . A brilliant concept, deftly executed!” —Neal Shusterman, New York Times bestselling author of the Arc of a Scythe series

“Riveting, grounded horror tinged with characters who leap to life.” —Tananarive Due, American Book Award winner and author of The Reformatory

“Ruin Road pulls your heartstrings tight and keeps you on your toes!” —Erin E. Adams, author of Jackal

“With elements of Stephen King mixed with a double helping of that Lamar Giles magic that makes his work so unforgettable, Ruin Road is a mix of terror, heart, and intelligence, with a dash of social commentary.” —Maurice Broaddus, author of Unfadeable

“A riveting thriller that seamlessly incorporates powerful social themes.” —Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

“…a genre-bending adventure that will leave readers wanting more.” —Publishers Weekly (starred review)