“A luminous, moving and visual record of fleeting moments of connection.” —New York Times Book Review, Editors’ Choice A visionary work of radical empathy. Known for immersion journalism that is more immersed than most people are willing to go, and for a prose style that is somehow both fierce and soulful, Jeff Sharlet dives deep into the darkness around us and awaiting us. This work began when his father had a heart attack; two years later, Jeff, still in his forties, had a heart attack of his own. In the grip of writerly self-doubt, Jeff turned to images, taking snapshots and posting them on Instagram, writing short, true stories that bloomed into documentary. During those two years, he spent a lot of time on the road: meeting strangers working night shifts as he drove through the mountains to see his father; exploring the life and death of Charley Keunang, a once-aspiring actor shot by the police on LA’s Skid Row; documenting gay pride amidst the violent homophobia of Putin’s Russia; passing time with homeless teen addicts in Dublin; and accompanying a lonely woman, whose only friend was a houseplant, on shopping trips. Early readers have called this book “incantatory,” the voice “prophetic,” in “James Agee’s tradition of looking at the reality of American lives.” Defined by insomnia and late-night driving and the companionship of other darkness-dwellers—night bakers and last-call drinkers, frightened people and frightening people, the homeless, the lost (or merely disoriented), and other people on the margins—This Brilliant Darkness erases the boundaries between author, subject, and reader to ask: how do people live with suffering?

This digital box set contains three full length novels, specifically, Books 1, 2 and 3 in the Casters Series. Comes the Night – How far would you go to escape your own personal teenage hell? Would you run away, break away from everything you know—even your own body? Alex Robbins, Brooke Saunders and Maryanne Hemlock could not be more different, yet they all have something in common—deep and soul-searing pain. They are also all students at Streep Academy, a boarding school just one step away from juvie, where they've come to complete high school. The three have been relegated to Harvell House, the residence reserved for the hardest cases, the so-called Rejects from Reject Row. In the forbidden attic of the old Victorian house-turned-residence, the girls discover the diary of Connie Harvell, a young woman who was confined and abused there some 50 years ago. In the end, Connie’s attic prison couldn't hold her—not completely. She found a way out. At least a dark part of her did. And after reading her diary, the girls discover they can escape at will too. A terrifying, thrilling flight from their bodies and their troubles. But God help them, their pain isn't all they leave behind when they join with the night. And God help anyone who’s wronged them... Enter the Night – In Comes the Night, Alex Robbins, Brooke Saunders and Maryanne Hemlock, three troubled seniors at Streep Academy, learned to escape their pain — escape their very bodies — by casting a dark piece of themselves out through the stained glass window high in the attic of their dorm, Harvell House. Casting has been the salvation of each of the girls, but particularly for Maryanne. The wholesome good girl of the trio, Maryanne nevertheless harbors a secret — and a darkness — unrivaled by tattooed scenester Alex or beautiful badass Brooke. Casting provides Maryanne a desperately needed reprieve from her guilt and pain, but it’s become like a drug. And as with any drug, it only masks the real problems … and brings dangers of its own. When Maryanne starts dating Bryce Walker, son of the notorious “Heller” hunter Ira Walker, is it first love, or is there a darker, more self-destructive impulse at play? As the superstitious citizens of Mansbridge begin to mutter and scan the night skies for Hellers, can the hunted lie down with the hunter and emerge unscathed? Embrace the Night - Thanks to Brooke, she, Maryanne and Alex are trapped even deeper in the Caster world, and inside their dark selves. Racing the clock, they must find a way back before they find themselves stranded in the very night they sought to claim. But even as they search for a solution, the Heller stories are growing, giving rise to panic among the superstitious citizens of Mansbridge. Armed with fury, fire and iron, the hunters are looking to “send the Hellers back to hell.” And this time, it’s more than just the usual handful of vocal Heller haters. It’s a mob. But the Casters have a righteous fury of their own. God help anyone who dares harm one.

**For a limited time - THE SCOURGE ebook available exclusively in the SHATTERED WORLDS boxed set! Get THE SCOURGE plus 22 other fantasy/science fiction young adult novels and novellas for only 99 cents.**Library Journal Self-e SelectionNext Generation Indie Book Award Finalist in the YA CategorySeventeen-year-old Groundling, Fennel, is Sightless. She's never been able to see her lush forest home, but she knows its secrets. She knows how the shadows shift when she passes under a canopy of trees. She knows how to hide in the cool, damp caves when the Scourge comes. She knows how devious and arrogant the Groundlings' tree-dwelling neighbors, the Lofties, can be.And she's always known this day would come--the day she faces the Scourge alone.The Sightless, like Fenn, are mysteriously protected from the Scourge, the gruesome creatures roaming the forests, reeking of festering flesh and consuming anything--and anyone--living. A Sightless Groundling must brave the Scourge and bring fresh water to the people of the forest. Today, that task becomes Fenn's.Fenn will have a Lofty Keeper, Peree, as her companion. Everyone knows the Lofties wouldn't hesitate to shoot an arrow through the back of an unsuspecting Groundling like Fenn, but Peree seems different. A boy with warm, rough hands who smells like summer, he is surprisingly kind and thoughtful. Although Fenn knows his people are treacherous, she finds herself wanting to trust him.As their forest community teeters on the brink of war, Fenn and Peree must learn to work together to survive the Scourge and ensure their people's survival. But when Fenn uncovers a secret that shatters her truths, she's forced to decide who and what to protect--her people, her growing love for Peree, or the elusive dream of lasting peace in the forest.A tale of star-crossed lovers, strange creatures, and secretive, feuding factions, THE SCOURGE introduces readers to a rich and exciting new world where nothing is as it seems.

"Another great story by Henley. I love how there are no easy choices in this world and how her characters struggle with right and wrong." ★★★★★ Alev is proud to be a Fire Sister, one of a fierce group of women who live in a flaming mountain compound called the Cloister. The Sisters live without men, so Alev gathers young girls to replenish their numbers. After she plucks Kaiya from the remote village of Koolkuna, the girl’s father follows them into the wilderness. Alev keeps him at bay, but over time she suspects that this man, at least, isn’t the monster she was taught all men are. When Kaiya's father manages to reach the Cloister, the Sisters want to put him to death. Alev can look the other way, or she can heed the growing whispers of her heart to help the girl and her father escape. But to defy the Fire Sisters is to revoke the only life and family Alev has ever known—and to face certain death herself. "Fantastic companion novella to the series!" ★★★★★ The Gatherer is a companion novella in the fantasy romance Brilliant Darkness series. Fans of Divergent and Under the Never Sky will love this series about a blind girl who alone can protect her forest people from the terrifying flesh-eating creatures that hunt them.

"I can count on one hand the number of authors who provide a compelling storyline as well underlying themes that cause me to reevaluate myself and the society we live in. For example, Suzanne Collins with The Hunger Games Trilogy, Veronica Roth with the Divergent Trilogy, and now A.G. Henley with The Brilliant Darkness Series." ★★★★★ It hasn’t been long since Fennel, a Sightless Groundling, and Peree, her Lofty Keeper, fell in love and learned the truth: the Scourge, and their world, is not what it seems. Fenn and Peree are determined to guide their people to the protected village of Koolkuna. First, they must convince them that everything they believe is a lie. Not everyone wants to uproot their lives in the forest, and those who stay behind will be left terribly vulnerable. Fenn and Peree’s resolve to be together despite their people’s disapproval, and the constant threat of the Scourge’s return, pushes both groups to the breaking point. Unable to tell friend from foe, Fenn must again decide how much she’s willing to sacrifice to ensure the people of the forest’s future. Only this time, the price of peace may be too high to bear. "Captivating." ★★★★★ The Defiance is book two of the Brilliant Darkness fantasy romance series. Fans of Divergent and Under the Never Sky will love this series about a blind girl who alone can protect her forest people from terrifying flesh-eating creatures.